The Social and Emotional piece of the new Kansas Can Vision starts with us. If we struggle every day with our resilience how then can we model this behavior with our students? So how can we become more resilient in our own work? The "How Educators Can Become More Resilient This School Year" article is a great way to help all of us. If you are interested in the book "Onward" which the article refers to, just let me know and we can get it for you. You can do this individually or as a study book group. Here is another resource regarding finding happiness at your work place. I give you these resources to reinforce our culture work at our own work place. Culture of our work place is everyone's responsibility. It is everyone's responsibility because we all are part of it. In other words if we all have to exist in the culture then why not make it the best possible environment.
The following information has to pertain to the Kansas Report Card and Attica Public School success rate. Please take the time to look at our district's report card. You will have to look go to the drop down bars at the top of the link and look up USD 511 information. To understand more about the success rate you will need to watch this Post Secondary Success Video.
Here is a great article on the importance of social skills in the elementary classroom. Social Skills are Important! To reinforce the importance of teaching social skills to our students you can review the KSDE Kansas Can "Vision Launch" by clicking on the PowerPoint presentation located on the link. To say the least it's powerful information for our students, schools, and communities in our state.
I wanted to draw your attention to a classroom project which Robert Adcock is doing in his classrooms. He is teaching his Social Science students about Primary Sources. Through his research he was given some great feedback by one of his sources. I'll let you read the email below. It's exciting to see our junior and high school students learning skills undergraduate students don't even have.
Another great project in our school has been started by Ali Harbin, our Eighth through Senior class, Language Arts teacher. In order to improve our students writing skills she has started a school newsletter. I am sure most, if not all, of you have already seen their first newsletter! If not here is a picture of their first "The Doghouse News" edition! Love the title! Maybe this concept of displaying student's writing can grow into other areas of our district? The best way to become a better writer is to do more of it, get feedback, reflection, and rewrite. This Authentic Writing Aligned to the Common Core from eleducation is a great resource for writing projects in all classrooms. Enjoy reviewing it!
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| Be Resilient! |
The following information has to pertain to the Kansas Report Card and Attica Public School success rate. Please take the time to look at our district's report card. You will have to look go to the drop down bars at the top of the link and look up USD 511 information. To understand more about the success rate you will need to watch this Post Secondary Success Video.
Here is a great article on the importance of social skills in the elementary classroom. Social Skills are Important! To reinforce the importance of teaching social skills to our students you can review the KSDE Kansas Can "Vision Launch" by clicking on the PowerPoint presentation located on the link. To say the least it's powerful information for our students, schools, and communities in our state.
I wanted to draw your attention to a classroom project which Robert Adcock is doing in his classrooms. He is teaching his Social Science students about Primary Sources. Through his research he was given some great feedback by one of his sources. I'll let you read the email below. It's exciting to see our junior and high school students learning skills undergraduate students don't even have.
It’s really wonderful to hear that you are integrating primary and secondary source research into your classroom. I think that it’s really important to expose students to this kind of research at such a young age, and it’s definitely something that doesn’t happen as much as it could. I have met with plenty of undergraduates here at UMass Boston that had never worked with primary sources before, so I’m glad that you’re introducing those kinds of materials to your high school students!
University Archives and Special Collections
Joseph P. Healey Library
University of Massachusetts Boston
Lastly, I want to provide you a new way of thinking with project based learning in your classroom. Several of you attended the Buck Institute training back in the first part of August. One of the hurdles in using PBL in the classroom is having a thorough alignment to the state standards in a project. Several schools are starting to use the Boy Scouts of America Merit Badge system to insure a thorough project. Here are a list of schools which are using the Merit Badge system.
Hutchinson High Alternative School
McPherson High English Teacher - Mark Malaby
Little River High School Teacher- Karen Hull
Reno Valley Middle School
Prairie Hills Middles School
Haviland Elementary School
Here is the link to the Boy Scouts of America Merit Badge System. If this is something you are interested in doing within your class PBL projects let me know and I will support your efforts to learn.
Just so you are comfortable with stretching your own professional learning, I give you permission to fail in the process. It is a powerful learning process when we fail, reflect, and recommit in our learning as educators. So get out there and fail! :)
Just so you are comfortable with stretching your own professional learning, I give you permission to fail in the process. It is a powerful learning process when we fail, reflect, and recommit in our learning as educators. So get out there and fail! :)
Just a short note about how I love my job and all of my staff and students. I'm very proud to be working with all of you! I'm doing a little bragging in this section and want to show off the picture Carol Jean, our Attica Independent reporter, took of my office colors. Very proud to be showing off the Black and Gold colors!
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| Yea Black! Yea Gold! Yea Attica Lets Go! |
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