The Essential Principal

Our Own Little "Fed Ex" Day

2012-02-21T20:11:00.004-06:00

In honor of President's Day, our students had a holiday yesterday leaving my staff to a professional development day. We had a fantastic morning working through some much needed discussions involving student achievement followed by a time devoted strictly to my teachers working in curriculum. Forgive me for bragging, but these are the hardest working staff members I've ever seen around. Truly they are.

The point of my post is what we did towards the end of our day. I've written a few times on the work of Dan Pink and have searched for ways to incorporate some of his ideals into my professional life whenever I could. I continued my research and found several principals who've written on the use of a FedEx day on their campus and decided it was time to take the plunge.

I saved the final hour and half as our FedEx time....also known as time for creativity and non-commissioned work. I gave the staff a few ideas that other teachers had and set them on their way. The only stipulation was that they had to share out their ideas via Twitter. What they came up with was outstanding! See for yourself...

Two ladies put their heads together and created large zeros to hang in each hallway to serve as a reminder for our students to remain silent while passing through. I loved how their project will impact the entire campus.

The same goes for one of my grade level teams. They have organized a chili cook-off to celebrate Texas Public Schools Week. And the best part? I get to be a judge. Yum!

Two special teachers collaborated and searched through our literacy library brainstorming for ideas.

Another entire grade level team developed math stations for their students and worked diligently to located the resources they needed to implement their ideas.

Lots of ladies hopped on the Internets and researched ideas on Pinterest. I even saw students products hanging in the hallways today!

There were teachers exploring sensory integration, music for the classroom and even creating the Rio Grande River.

Will this be something we dedicate time to in the future? Absolutely!

The Flip Side of a Home Visit

2012-02-14T16:29:00.001-06:00

One of the many challenges we face at my campus is the ever growing population of low SES students. It is the toughest hurdle my ladies face on a daily basis and it's not going away anytime soon. During a discussion yesterday with my leadership team, the topic of home visits came up. I was reminded of a school where each teacher was required to conduct a home visit on each student prior to school starting in August. They were simple, yet powerful meetings where the student and parents met the teacher. Most took place on the doorstep, others on the couch. Regardless it set the stage for a positive relationship.

The leadership team didn't dive too far into the topic. At at time where I'm extra conscious about what I ask of them to do, I didn't press the subject. But deep down, I knew these are the types of things we're going to have to do. Doing the same things over and over again expecting different results isn't how we're going to make an impact in these families' lives.

The whole topic was left tugging on my heart. Then my doorbell rang.

When I opened it, to my surprise I saw my son's music teacher and day care director. They were conducting a home visit to personally invite him to join the children's choir. I didn't receive a flier in his folder announcing the new activity. It wasn't posted on Facebook. It was personal. It was at our home and it struck me in the heart.

This is what we must do for our students. I've always believed we cannot control what happens beyond the doors of our school, but I'm starting to change my thoughts on that. We can control how we engage the parents...how we make them feel about our school...how we approach their students. Just like the first phone call home from the school shouldn't be about a discipline problem, it should be an introductory call - a happy phone conversation. Our first visit to the home shouldn't be because of tardy or truancy issues, but because we want to be there to invite them to join us on a journey of learning.

SHARE-ing my Valentine

2012-02-13T19:13:00.003-06:00

After a particularly challenging day I found a very powerful email waiting in my inbox. My school counselor had sent an email and Valentine's document to the staff that truly touched my heart. In her wisdom, she asked the staff to remember and relive the moments in which they decided to become a teacher. I must admit it stirred my heart as well. Why am I here? What is it that drives me?

It's easy - it's the kids.

I remember my journey to being a teacher. I had grown up volunteering in my church and working with young children. I lived - and I mean truly LIVED - for the week of Bible School each summer. When I was old enough, I began teaching. I taught on Sundays and every summer. I planned, I decorated, I crafted, I just plain loved teaching kids. In addition, I volunteered to give clarinet lessons to younger players at school. My band director looked at me one day and said the sentence that would change my life, "Kim, have your ever thought about being a teacher? You're a natural."

So I did what any normal person would do. I entered Baylor majoring in Business. Teaching school was not for me - or so I thought. I remember how excited I was walking into class that August morning. Within 10 minutes I knew I was not a Business major. Not. At. All. Over the next few weeks I struggled with my future. Just what was I going to do? It all came to me one Sunday morning while teaching a group of Kindergartners. I knew in my heart I was being called into the field of education. I was born to teach. I changed my major to Education and set out to change the world.

But the story doesn't end there. I loved teaching. Still do. My staff knows the days I'm yearning to get away from the piles of paperwork because I start wandering the building and hanging out with the kiddos. As a teacher, I enjoyed leading staff development and supporting new teachers. I enjoy learning and decided to return to school to obtain my Masters. There I truly began to grow as a teacher and try so many new things. I loved being a leader on my campus and impacting more than just my classroom. I felt the pull to impact education in a larger setting.

I entered the world of educational administration and vowed I would never lose touch with the classroom. Six years have flown by and I love what I do. Some days are tough. Others tougher, but I'm doing what I love and the students give me so much fulfillment.

So, that's why I'm here. For the kids. To make life and education better for them.

Thank you Ms. V for bringing me back to my reality and passion today. Much, much needed.

Siempre.

The Flip Manifesto from D Pink - My Thoughts

2012-02-11T13:55:00.005-06:00

I have always enjoyed reading the thoughts of Dan Pink. He's quite ingenuitive, quizzical and incredibly thought provoking. Not too long ago, I ran across his latest publication, The Flip Manifesto 16 Counterinutitive Ideas About Motivation, Innovation and Leadership.

It was indeed a flip.

The first preponderance that hit me was his first point, Start Doubting Yourself. When faced with a problematic situation, instead of declaring "I can do it!", change your thinking to "Can we do it?" It allows the mind to immediately begin exploring options and solutions. By changing one, simple reaction an entire mindset is created. Will I be exploring this option with my leadership team, absolutely.

His fourth topic really, really intrigued me. Take as much vacation as you want, whenever you want it. I just knew Dan Pink was telling me to hop the first plane to the Bahamas! However, once I read through it, his main point is to ensure time for adequate relaxation and rejuvenation while ensuring all tasks are completed. These tasks just may be done by your colleagues, but what's more intriguing is that the culture of the organization must be at an inter-dependence level before this type of vacation policy will be successful. Will education ever get there? Most likely not, but it's fun to think about.

One of my favorites, do the reverse of whatever you're doing now. I'm a big fan of the Fisch Flip, flipped instruction and just about anything else that spins us 180 degrees. Change is tough, but change in inevitable and I enjoy the new motivation and excitement brought about by it. I've written on flipped instruction a few times before and even dove into flipped staff development a time of two.

Carve out time for non-commissioned work. The key to any true success is what you're doing in the wee hours of the morning or when you're not "on the clock." In his book, Drive, Dan Pink describes the use of FedEx Days as a motivator within several companies. FedEx days - or times - are when official work for the company is put aside and employees work on a topic/idea/project of choice. I so badly want to approach this concept within my campus, but finding practical ways to implement it is tough. In the end accountability wins out.

All in all, a very good read with a great deal of leadership value.

The Power of Pinterest

2012-02-02T16:30:00.000-06:00

Pinterest is all the rage right now among my friends and many of the crafty/décor-related blogs I follow. If you don’t know Pinterest, it’s an online bulletin board for organizing and storing internet sites by photo. Of course, there’s the social network component as well….you follow people, people follow you, you can link it to Twitter and Facebook as well. My husband calls it fantasy football for women.

But recently I have seen a growing use of Pinterest among the education world. When I set up my Pinterest boards I was sure to include a generic board for Education thinking I’d probably pin “a few things”. However, it has become increasingly evident that I need to redo and reorganize how I was pinning my educational thoughts – because I had LOTS going on in that Education board. After doing some research and finding that several schools and technology departments have Pinterest boards as part of their online resources, I knew I had to restructure my own. I spent some time one evening organizing my boards into the following: Tech Tools, ELAR Instruction, Math Instruction, Word Walls, Education Blogs/Sites and Education. Then I searched around and found some great educationally related Pinterest users to follow and pass along to my staff.

All this organization and pinning is great, but here’s where the power of Pinterest really shines.

As I sat in a district-level RtI committee meeting last week, we were discussing the need for a PreK-2nd grade visual that adequately shows the developmental continuum of reading skills. Crazily enough I had one on my Pinterest. So, right there I pulled it up on my iPad and showed it to the committee.

As if that wasn’t enough, the following day I was in an RtI meeting on my campus with a teacher and we were discussing the need for fluency practice ideas. Yet again, I had a great fluency practice activity pinned on my ELAR board. I showed the teacher and she was eager to give it a try.

Twice I have been able to utilize Pinterest as an online, mobile resource that positively impacted the instruction on my campus. I’m hopeful and looking forward to more opportunities to use Pinterest as a staff development tool, online resource and source for parent education.

Twimpact

2012-01-29T14:17:00.000-06:00

I stumbled upon a thought provoking blog titled Teaching Paperless. The title alone took me by surprise. There's a wealth of knowledge hanging around on there, but alas - that's not my focus for today.

A read through an article detailing the impact of her use of Twitter for the week, i.e. twimpact. So I was inspired to figure out what impact twitter had for me this week. There was a tweet I read a while back that put it plainly...I get more professional development out of twitter in day than I could get traditionally in a month. I couldn't agree more.

My previous week's Twimpact:

I sent 24 tweets
I read approx 400+ tweets
I follow 171 professionals - some teachers, some administrators, some education organizations
I currently have 120 followers - only 35 are my staff members
I stumbled upon two powerful tweetchats (#D5chat - Fri p.m. and #educhat - Tues p.m.)
Found an excellent Math TEKS Toolkit to share with my staff
Followed live updates of the SBOE meeting this week pertaining to TEKS realignment
Received udpated TEA and STAAR assessment information 2-3 days before my current district disseminated the information
Found an excellent activity I "favorited" to do with my staff at the next staff development day

Quite honestly, this was a slow week for me on twitter. I'm hoping to garner more information and professional development ideas the week ahead.

Eluding Efficiency

2012-01-24T20:30:00.000-06:00

As hard as it was, I gave up the to-do list on the ol' yellow legal pad today.

A moment of silence please for my courageous endeavor.

I am determined to learn, or better yet, retrain myself to better use 21st century tools to increase my efficiency. Time is of the essence and I need to be in classrooms rather than completing paperwork or answering emails behind my desk. The hectic-ness of the past two weeks has pushed my limits and forced me to gain full-on mobile efficiency. After a full day off campus (again), I know I'll be yearning to complete my reports, order supplies and regain control of my desk as soon as I walk in tomorrow.

But alas. The students and the classrooms need me to be present. Present for learning. Present for collaboration. Present for encouragement. Just plain present.

My newest form of efficiency is the electronic to-do list app on my iPad. At first I was worried I wouldn't get the same satisfaction using the delete button as I do scratching out my tasks on that fabulous yellow pad. Have no fear - the delete button gives me the same feeling of joy and victory.

Tomorrow will be my first day going mobile with my to-do list as I spend the day in PLC meeting with my staff.

Wish me luck!

Why I Tweet

2012-01-17T08:20:00.000-06:00

Twitter is a subject on my mind this morning and well, pretty much the past week of so. I do my best to utilize my new found PLN on twitter as much as possible, but over the past week I've really given deep thought as to why I tweet.

I tweet to remember dynamic presentations or conversations I'm a part of.

I tweet to share my thoughts and what evokes emotions.

I tweet to further my learning and processing of a new topic.

I tweet to share what I'm doing and what I'm learning.

I tweet to plant seeds in my staff, hopefully stirring the waters for growth and development.

I tweet because it's fun to be in a session and read others' reactions about the information presented.

I tweet to be a part of something bigger than my world.

Just yesterday I was recommended as someone to follow and learn about twitter. The person who recommended me is a professional educator for whom I have a great deal of respect and hope to emulate at some point in my career. It was a honor to say the least. But most importantly, it got me to thinking about twitter and my own professional goals.

Mobile Parental Involvement

2011-12-05T17:06:00.000-06:00

One of our main focuses for the year is increasing our parental involvement. So far, we’ve done a pretty good job. Our parents are starting to feel more welcome coming to school for activities and being present in the classrooms. That’s a good start, but we must keep going.

Last week, we hosted a Prek-2nd Math Family Night where over 35 families spent the evening playing math games and learning about online and apps for their mobile devices. Truly, it was a powerful event. But as I looked around the room, I couldn’t help but notice the families that attend these type of events are typically aren’t the ones we’re trying to desperately to reach. Not that we don’t want to reach all parents – you know what I mean.

I thought popped into my head. What if we took our family nights mobile?

Currently, we service 3 apartment complexes within our school zone. What if we packed up our Math Parent Night supplies and held it in the apartment complex “clubhouse” room instead of at school? What if we went to where the parents and students are instead of always asking them to come to us?

What if?

While it sounds promising and easy enough, it won’t work without teacher buy-in. So as I ponder these possibilities for the second semester, we will work towards creating the buy-in we need to accomplish such a task. I truly don’t believe it will be difficult to do. We have a great staff with a “whatever it takes” mentality.

All I know is if we keep doing what we've always done - we'll continue to get what we've always gotten. It's time to try a new approach. Definitely looking forward to more what ifs!

First Ever Tweet-Chat

2011-12-03T10:55:00.000-06:00

Yesterday life slowed down a bit for me. I was home with my little one who was sick. While it's always hard to be away from the office, I did enjoy the slower pace of the day. While cruising through my Twitter feed on the couch, I came upon a tweet-chat occuring that evening on the topic of Daily 5 in the classroom. Being that we've just recently implemented Daily 5 campus-wide this year, I thought it might be of interest to me to check out this tweet-chat.

Mind you, I might use Twitter a lot, but sure didn't know what this tweet-chat was going to be about.

I tuned in at 7:00 CST and searched the chat hashtag #D5chat. What I found was a online collaborative of teachers from across the nation, I mean continent - discussing topics relating to implementing writing during their Daily 5 time. These ladies were sharing ideas, topics and resources all through a simple 140 character twitter feed.

Now, I would've loved to participate fully in the #D5chat, but it took me a little bit to get the hang of things. I did share a resource for writing, but what I gained was so much more. And it all archived here.

I learned there is so much more to Twitter than just posting - it's about creating an online collaborative network where you can share, talk and lean on one another. That's exactly what these ladies were doing. I'm committed to seeking out administrators on twitter and find some chats that will directly impact my leadership and learning.

Book Talk: The Fundamental 5

2011-11-15T19:04:00.001-06:00

In an earlier post, Book Talks, I mentioned The Fundamental 5 being one of my current professional reads. Well as luck would have it I was able to finish it while spending some quality time at the local Starbucks. It's amazing how a yummy latte and a comfy chair will get you in the mood for reading.

Sean Cain and Mike Laird co-wrote this book outlining 5 very simple steps, all based on Marzano's research, to significantly altering the landscape of a classroom.

Frame the Lesson - Start with your objective and end with a student outcome.
Work in the Power Zone - Be aware of your proximity to students and use it powerfully.
Frequent, Small-Group, Purposeful Talk about the Learning - Intentionalize the conversations in your classroom.
Recognize and Reinforce - Building positive learning habits and self esteem.
Write Critically - Fostering the relationship between reading and writing.

The above steps are all characteristics of good, solid teaching. When used together and intentionalized, student engagement and achievement are profoundly impacted.
How does this impact me as an educator? Intentionalize. Intentionalize. Intentionalize. We must focus and make decisions in our classrooms that are intentional and meaningful. Marzano measured these intentionalized practices in terms of percentile gains. As Cain and Laird noted, these percentile gains can add up to become sustained student achievement.

What does intentionalized instruction look like?

Purposefully created small group instruction where students are taught on their academic level and in their preferred learning style.

On-going, formative assessments are used to alter and adjust instruction.

Tiered assignments are given with a specific purpose towards student learning.

Students are questioned critically and guided towards personalized problem-based learning.

Classrooms are arranged with brain-based learning in mind.

Student objectives are posted daily and referred to throughout the lesson.

Sustained student achievement is not accidental - it is fundamental.

Where are You Developing Teachers?

2011-11-10T17:18:00.000-06:00

How do you conduct staff development? More importantly, where do you do it?

During our past staff development designated day I took a very different approach than in the past and as I completed the day, I wondered why I hadn’t done it before. You see, I took the Staff Development to my teachers where they are….in the classrooms.

Instead of sitting in the sterile cafeteria on hard chairs while the principal struggles to use the AV equipment, I designated two classrooms for our staff development locations. I went directly into the teaching environment and used the AV equipment my teachers use each day for instruction. In other words, I went into their world instead of making them come into mine.

The results? Outstanding. I could easily tell the teachers were more comfortable learning in this environment. The conversations were enriched and comfortable. Let’s face it, it’s much easier to converse in the classroom with 10 of your peers than in the cafeteria with 35 of your peers.

My structure was simple, I sent out an agenda several days before via vlog and explained the events of the upcoming day. I conducted two sessions on the upcoming state assessment, STAAR. One session was specifically targeted for Kinder – 2nd grade and the second session for 3rd – 5th grade. Fortunately this was a day where many of my specialized teachers were off campus at various trainings that pertain to their content. I’m planning on trying this structure again in January, but it could get slightly more complicated since I will have more staff on campus.

Overall, I was incredibly pleased with the outcome of our day. One of my goals for professional development is to provide the faculty with specialized, relevant, differentiated experiences. Basically, I plan to teach them how I want them to teach the students.

And it worked.

Take Your Mom to School Day

2011-11-09T10:36:00.000-06:00

What a morning! We had almost 200 mothers join their students for breakfast and then time in the classroom. Many thanks to our fantastic school counselor for this awesome event.

We invited moms (i.e. mother figures) to join their students in the cafeteria for breakfast and then to join them in their classrooms for approximately 45 min to an hour before coming together in the cafeteria for a short parenting segment by our counselor. The moms walked to the classrooms in the arrival lines just as their children do every morning. They watched the announcements and recited the Pledge of Allegiance alongside their little ones. What a powerful moment it was.

As I walked through the hallways, there were mothers sitting alongside students in the computer lab, the guided reading tables and on the carpet for the morning circle time. Parents and students were learning together.

That very last statement is the heart and soul of why we have days like today. There is nothing more powerful than the parent-child relationship. Couple that with a strong parental involvement program at a school and the student cannot help but achieve. The family unit may not be what it was 20 years ago and we cannot change that. But what we can control is how we structure and provide these opportunities to our families to help foster and develop those relationships.

In retrospect, this morning I realized that there has been more parents in classrooms this school year alone than in the 10 previous years. One of our goals for this year was increasing parental involvement and we are well on our way.

Book Talks

2011-11-08T16:39:00.000-06:00

But first, I must clarify…it’s been a long 10 weeks. I am well aware that I have not blogged since late August. So much has occurred in education-land since then. I have so much to say….from Tweachers being interviewed on the local news, to new book studies to phenomenal instructional practices. But something had to give. I am in the final two classes of my Texas Superintendency Certification program and my time has needed to be devoted to my schoolwork rather than blogging. I have reached a point where I am coming up for air and will now try my best to keep up-to-date here on the blog. Promise!

Back to Book Talks

I am asked quite often about the books I read. I do love to read. I read for pleasure (i.e. stress relieve) and I read for an internationalized purpose. There is room in our world for both. And we must be teaching our students the same as well. So what am I reading professionally? I have two books going presently: The Fundamental 5 by Sean Cain and Mike Laird and Fierce Conversations by Susan Scott. Both are riveting my work world as I read them – full of excellent, strong concepts that are easy and practical to put into place.

More on those books later.

Written below is a brief synopsis of professional books that I utilize on a weekly basis. Happy Reading!

Drive by Dan Pink – A fresh look at results-based structure and what motivates us.

Working on the Work by Phil Schlecty - I find myself going back to the Engagement levels time and time again.

SMART Goals – by Jan O’Neill – A phenomenal structure for producing achievement.

Readicide by Kelly Gallagher – An eye-opening experience regarding our reading instruction.

Classroom Instruction that Works by Robert Marzano – The BEST book regarding research based instructional strategies and why they work.

Pretty much anything written on Differentiated Instruction by Carol Ann Tomlinson – She is so my instructional hero.

People First by Jennifer Hindman – A strong approach to keeping what’s important first – the people with whom you work.

Teach With Your Strengths by Roseanne Liesveld and Jo Ann Miller – Learn how great teachers inspire their students.

Turning Teachers into Tweachers Part II

2011-08-28T17:08:00.000-05:00

Several weeks ago as I was preparing for my campus staff development, I wrote a blog entry entitled Turning Teachers into Tweachers. I have been amazed and humbled by the response and support from fellow educators. If I have tracked the article successfully, it was exposed to over 2000 educators around the globe. Like I said, that’s humbling.

I previously established three goals for my teachers as I turned them into Tweachers:

1) Establish a PLN through the use of twitter feeds.
2) Learn to use Twitter as a global instructional tool.
3) Enter the world of Social Media.

What happened during our staff development week absolutely blew me away. I should have known – these ladies are some of the best I’ve ever seen. By the time they all arrived on campus, the majority of them had established a Twitter account. As we moved through our professional development topics, I stopped periodically and asked them to Twitter their responses and thoughts. While some were hesitant, others dove in headfirst. To alleviate some of the anxiety, I asked those who had a mobile device to share with their neighbor who may not have a device. In addition, I asked for a response from the grade level or department instead of each individual teacher.

Examples of how I used Twitter during professional development:

** Just after a session on differentiated instructional techniques, I asked the teachers to tweet one instructional technique they were going to implement.

** During our session outlining the implementation of the Daily 5 Guided Reading, I asked the teachers to tweet one concern they had relating to implementing this in their classroom.

My goal was to have them using Twitter multiples times during the week and to increase their comfort level. We have not truly dove into using this as an instructional tool – I did not feel they were ready. However, I do feel they have successfully started down the path to establishing their own PLN.

I’m not going to stop making them Twitter responses to me. One piece of “homework” I will be assigning them this week is to tweet their favorite moment from the first week of school. We will continue to hone in on these skills and produce viable, 21st century Tweachers.

The P's of the Job

2011-07-24T14:38:00.000-05:00

The time has come for my summer to end - what little summer I do get. I will again rise and shine in the morning and tackle all the tasks my job has to offer. As I do so, I will strive to remember the P's of the principal job -

It's about People, not Policies and Procedures

Truth be told, that's a tough lesson I learned this week through a very unfortunate situation. As a Principal it's easy to get wrapped up in all the must-do's, the laws and the black and white world we exist in. But it's not that easy.

Are you truly being the best administrator you can be if you're ignoring the People in your world and relying solely on Policies and Procedures? I am soberly reminded of my mantra when I entered the world of education...at the ripe old age of 22, I was ready to conquer the world - or at least a room of 1st graders. The classroom is all about relationships. So is the principalship.

So I challenge you as you return to your office to prepare for the upcoming year, you focus on the People....the Policies and Procedures will take care of themselves.

Fighting Stagnation

2011-07-21T15:00:00.000-05:00

How do you fight being stagnant as a leader...as a school...in the education system as a whole?

One must look past the norm, the medocrity, and begin pushing the boundaries. Boundaries are all around us, in our profesional goals, in your own thoughts.

I have recently began reading the book, Drive, by Dan Pink. And boy is it pushing my boundaries and forcing me to think beyond the walls around me. I'm already planning a separate blog post on Drive, but first, it's got me thinking about those darn boundaries and our stagnation as educators.

One way to fight stagnation is to push ourselves beyond our normal limits. I believe that a true goal is not a goal unless it is outside your comfort zone. Much of the principles in Drive are outside most everyone's comfort zone. Maybe that's why I'm enjoying reading it so much.

I'm being pushed. And being pushed is the best prevention against stagnation.

Turning Teachers into Tweachers

2011-07-12T11:16:00.001-05:00

One of my goals this year for my teachers is to truly allow our students to become global learners. Through all my travels this summer and instructional research I have not found a better tool than Twitter.

It's time to make Tweachers out of my teachers.

As a part of our back to school staff development, my teachers will come prepared with a new Twitter account set up and ready to go. In the week prior to staff development, I'm planning on sending them explicit instructions along with the following resources to guide them.

The Ultimate Guide to Twitter

All About Twitter Hashtags

10 Steps for Educators New to Twitter

What are my goals for my teachers?

1) Establish a PLN through the use of Twitter feeds
2) Learn to use Twitter as an global instructional tool
3) Enter the world of Social Media

I have allotted an entire day of our staff development week to be completely dedicated to technology. While I know technology is no longer an add-on, but a vestibule for instruction, there must be time dedicated to instructing teachers the ins and outs. If they are not given time to use the technological devices and learn them, they'll never use them in the classroom. It's easy as an administrator to put the "cart before the horse" and just dive it. But what truly makes successful implementation is gently nudging your staff while providing a safe and supportive environment.

Slow and steady wins the race....and the Tweachers.

Flipped Staff Development

2011-07-01T08:32:00.000-05:00

Recently, there has been a great deal of discussion about flipping instruction. I've posted on the topic several times and it was a hot topic at the SW BLC a few weeks ago. In my preparation for the upcoming Staff Development in August, I decided to step out there and flip my staff development.

One topic we will be covering is Differeniated Instruction. The idea was inspired by a teacher on my campus who said to me one day, "We all know why we should differeniate, but no one has ever told us how to do it." As you know, I just can't dive into a staff development on DI without first giving some background. But I couldn't stand the thought of my teachers sitting there listening to something they've already heard while newer teachers grasp on to every word. It was time to differeniate my staff development.

I decided to create a short podcast of the background and overview of DI. I added in my expectations and what we'd be doing as a campus this. The idea is for my ladies to listen to this prior to coming to staff development and then be ready do dive in to DI!

Originally, I wanted to use Keynote for my iPad2 and add audio. Well, I found out the iPad version of Keynote doesn't support audio. Next idea...I moved on to iMovie and decided I'd video myself with audio overlays. But I couldn't put the slides I wanted into iMovie. (I really need a Mac computer!) After several attempts at using Audacity, iMovie, GarageBand and Keynote I wasn't about to give up. As much as I hate to admit it, I went back to PowerPoint. It's not my favorite tool to use, but it will accomplish what I need it to. I created a short set of slides and then added my audio summary to each one. In a few weeks I'll send it to my teachers and post it to our campus blog for them to view.

I am excited!! One of my goals as an administrator was to teach my teachers like I want them teaching the students. Flipping Staff Development....it's a start!

Looking for Balance

2011-06-27T20:54:00.000-05:00

I came across an interesting blog post in my Twitter feed today. With a title of "17 Signs Your Classroom is Behind the Times," if definately caught my eye. I took a few moments and read through it earlier today. I had a hearty chuckle at some of the signs because, well, they were funny.

3.) You still have chalk. Or a Dry Eraser.

4.) You try to pull up a web resource on your computer to show the class and you receive a "This website has been blocked" message.

5.) You cross your fingers every time you try to connect to the network to access the internet.

I admit, after I had my hearty laugh, this list got me to thinking. When I checked the blog post later this evening, there were 36 comments responding to the list. Several were positive and supportive of the list components. Others, were stark raving mad.

A great deal of teachers were offended by this list. And honestly, I think some of mine would be too. What does this mean for me as an administrator?

Balance.

I must strive to find balance between the technologies we have and how we use them. I must never lose sight of what's best for kids. Ever.
I must gently nudge my teachers towards collaborative technologies, not push them over the edge. Nothing good will come of that.
And most of all, I must listen. I must listen to their hopes, their fears and their frustrations while creating an evironment of support and encouragement.

Only when balance is achieved will we truly move our classrooms forward and not fall behind.

Time for Change

2011-06-25T14:03:00.000-05:00

I've spent much of the past two weeks traveling here in Texas. I attending the TCEA Tots and Technology Conference, TESPA Summer Conference and most recently, the ASCD Building Learning Communities SW Conference. Whew! I'm tired!

After hearing so many wonderful leaders in education speak, I have come to one conclusion: It's time for change.

I'm currently wrestling with how to slowly, yet surely implement this change on my campus for the upcoming year. It's time to take down the walls of our school. It's time to go global.

My first opportunity arrived yesterday as I was editing and revising my Parent Handbook. I found myself working on the Telecommunication/Cell Phone section....and you can guess what happened next. Yep, I'm allowing cell phone use in the upper grades for instructional purposes.

It felt so liberating to type those words in the handbook. Of course, being that we're an elementary school, we will heavily monitor our students as we use such devices.

I'm reminded of why I became an educator in the first place, I wanted to change the world. Well, here I am - one little policy at a time.

All A-Flitter About Twitter

2011-06-22T13:45:00.000-05:00

Watch out world - I now tweet!

After after attending a fantastic session at TEPSA Summer Conference last week, I learned the ins and outs of Twitter and I decided to join in. A mere 5 days later I have access to more information than I ever thought possible. In fact, more than I can keep up with!

I have created myself the the mothership of all PLNs. I've managed to figure out how to "star" the tweet and keep it as a favorite for later. Favoring tweets is a must if you're going to use any of the information. Trust me on this.

In addition keep an eye out for spam tweeters. It took all of 1 day for me to receive my first tweet spam follower. Its easy to block them from following you. Again, it's a must.

I am super excited about my future in Twitter! Come join me!

kimbarker25

iPad-apalooza

2011-06-18T08:07:00.000-05:00

Yep, I'm still talking about my newest toy, the iPad2. I have successfully taken it to two professional confernces and multitasked like a mad woman. I could sit in sessions taking notes while emailing with my secretary, while perusing the online handouts, while keeping up with the newest information from our State legislature. Multitasking makes me happy.

A few things I learned while bonding with my iPad2 at Tepsa this week....

There are endless apps!!! I attended several sessions specically on the uses of the iPad - how it can increase productivity, new apps available, and how students are using this tool.

I am a member of the Tepsa eAcademy cohort 2 and I cannot wait!!!

Check this site out - these gals have it going on!
http://techchicktips.wikispaces.com/60in60

I AM purchasing Pages, Numbers and Keynote for my iPad2. (appox $9.99 each) At first, I wasn't sure how to use the iPad as a produtivity tool, but my goal is to use it for my staff developement presentations in August for my staff. And yes, you can purchase a cord to hook it up to your projector. (more on this topic later)

No more lugging around a laptop for me!

Again, I am very happy with this device and the increased level of productivity, efficicency and organization it has given me.

TCEA - Part II

2011-06-14T18:29:00.000-05:00

It's the close of day two at TCEA Tots and Technology Conference in Galveston. I didn't realize, but it's their first year to hold this conference. I have made the definitive decision that I will be sending a team of teachers here next June. In my earlier post, I listed a few - very brief, tidbits I learned. Here are a few more from today's sessions:

Garland ISD has two instructional technologist for their 47 campuses and these gals get the work done! Along with be super tech-savvy, they have fun while doing it. Using a theme to motivate teachers just struck a chord in my heart. Click here for link to her blog.

I had been wondering if purchasing Pages, Keynote and Numbers for my iPad was really worth it. I $9.99 each I had to think on it. Well, after hearing these tech-savvy ladies from Virginia, I decided to bite the bullet - and $30! - and just do it. Nike would be proud.

All in all, TCEA was a fantastic conference!

TCEA - Tots and Technology

2011-06-13T10:49:00.000-05:00

It's barely brunch time here in Galveston and I've found two new web based tools that I'm looking to dabble in: LiveBinder and Picnick.

I can truly see myself using LiveBinder to store my presentations, documents, etc. I do wish I had learned of this tool prior to preparing for my two presentations this week. It seems like such a simple way to documents and videos, links, and well, just about anything else. But you know what really gets me about LiveBinders?? It's organizational system. It's like being in The Container Store! Gets my blood pumping evey time.

In addition to being way cool, they're easy to use. I'm sitting in a session now where I'm hearing a technology specialist share several of her lessons - all tied to literature and technology TEKS. Being the uber efficiently - ok, neurotic - person that I am, I have already copy, pasted and sent the LiveBinder link to my two computer lab teachers via email.

It's that easy!

Back to the conference....more to come!

RtI Resources

2011-06-07T17:02:00.000-05:00

After much research, here are the best resources for creating and sustaining a successful RtI program. These resources are for the broad topics of RtI. I am working on compiling more specific resources for the various components within RtI.

What Works
Intervention Central
Ogonosky RtI
Easy CBM
Jim Wright online
National Center of RtI
RtI Tools

More to come!

RtI - Ogonosky Style

2011-06-05T16:54:00.000-05:00

This spring, my district had the great opportunity to bring in Dr. Andrea Ogonosky for some training with the district level RtI committees. As soon as she began talking, I was in awe. That's one incredibly intelligent woman.
And then the panic set in - we are no where near the ballpark in RtI.
She spoke about Texas leading the nation in RtI litigation. Teacher's grade books, lesson plans and formative assessments are being subpoenaed as evidence that the student is receiving a valid education.
Yep. Made me stop breathing too.
After two fulls days of hearing her speak, my brain was more than muddled. But what I gathered the most from her discussions was that Tier 1 is the key to everything. Everything.
We must be IN the classrooms ensuring that our students are receiving evidenced based practices along with a rich and viable curriculum. We must SEE FIRSTHAND which of our teachers can deliver this to students and who cannot. It's time to separate the men from the boys...set the bar high...and reach beyond our goals.
It's go-time people. And I am ready.

It's a Wrap!

2011-06-04T16:41:00.000-05:00

Whew! It's been a whirlwind of a year. As the last buses pulled out, I felt a sigh of relief. I've completed 3 years of the principalship and a total of 5 years in administration. It strangely feels like just yesterday I was teaching first graders. My how time flies!

With the close of the school year, inevitably I get the question, "So what do you do up there in your office all summer?" And the answer is, a lot!

The Summer To Do List:

finalize the 2010 budget

finish the 2011 master schedule

create classes

hire several staff members

oversee summer cleaning projects

organize my office!!!

revamp RtI procedures to better reflect Dr. Ogonosky's findings

present at two conferences

attend a third conference

begin planning for 2011 with PTO

GPC meetings

make appearance at summer school and destiny camp

And that's just the beginning! There are reports due to upper administration, evaluations to be completed, paperwork to be shredded or filed, classrooms to be moved and a whole host of other things.

It appears I'll be a busy woman. And that's just the way I like it.

iPad Frenzy

2011-05-20T11:29:00.000-05:00

I must say I drank the Kool-aide - I simply MUST have an iPad to increase my instructional leadership and efficiency as an administrator. After feverishly tracking it's path to Texas via FedEx, it finally arrived just over 2 weeks ago.

I dove in head first and began downloading apps I knew I'd use that I already had on my iPhone 4:

Dragon Dictation
Weather Channel
Flixster
iBooks
Google
Google Earth
Texas Tribune
Goodreads

Then, I went deeper and found some apps to help increase my efficiency as an administrator as I prepared for an RtI Conference later in the week:

Evernote
Dropbox

I left town with only my iPad - no laptop. I was nervous about soley using the iPad to take notes during the conference and communicate with my staff back on campus. I was pleasantly suprised at the ease in which I was able to take notes via the touch keyboard and email the directly to my Assistant and myself. (just in case)

I'm a believer.

Since then I've began collecting apps in various content areas to showcase to my teachers and instructional specialists as additional modes of instruction for students. I promise to share once my collection becomes more extensive.

Until then, drink the Kool-aide....it's worth it!

Flipping Instruction - We Are Rolling!

2011-05-17T21:17:00.000-05:00

I am excited! Truly excited!! I met with my Fourth grade team yesterday to discuss the details of flipping instruction in their classrooms. To jumpstart our discussions, I sent the Flipping Resources links a week ahead of time. In addition, I sent a brief email with bulleted points of what to expect at our Flipping Meeting.

• What subject/content area will you be flipping?
• How will the students watch the clip?
• What will be the class activity in the classroom? What level of Bloom’s is this compared to what you normally do in the classroom?
• Are you interested in doing individual projects such as book trailers, etc?
• How can I help/support?

I will say, I was seriously impressed by my teachers readiness and ideas concerning flipping. They have chosen to work in two teams of teachers to implement this instruction strategy. One team is looking into pre-teaching vocabulary through the use of vodcasts and the other is creating vodcasts that model appropriate behavior. Both are needed within our school.

By having my teachers chose their instructional content, they are more willing to embrace the new change. And it has sparked some creative momentum!

• Ideas flying around in their heads…..
• Using the videos as part of independent centers
• Showing them on the document cameras
• Attaching them to the teacher websites
• Sending them to parents via smartphones
• Linking up to Xbox and Wii
• Using our district Moodle
• Posting on TeacherTube and YouTube

Can I just say, I’m thrilled. I work at Disneyland!

Testing mobile blogging!

2011-05-04T18:24:00.001-05:00

Mobi

2011-05-04T15:13:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I had the opportunity to hear a presentation from eInstruction on their newest gadget, the Mobi View. Earlier this school year I was able to hear a similar presentation as the device was quickly shown to my staff. It can be best described as a whirlwind.

20 minutes of quick paced instruction + lack of audience participation = zero understanding of what a Mobi does

For those who don't know, a Mobi is a handheld, interactive whiteboard that acts like a wireless "smartboard." Still, after 2 presentations - the second being much more user-friendly - I still do not consider this device anywhere in the Web 2.0 or 21st Century Learner domains.

The website and trainer claims it's "collaborative" and "student centered." But honestly, it's just another device that acts as a worksheet. A very fancy, expensive worksheet.

There are a lot of bells and whistles that come along with the newest Mobi. It interfaces with the Internet, Eduphoria and Cscope very easily. One of the newest features is the addition of a touchscreen - however it is only for maneuvering within the tools.

I don't want to sound like a pessimist, I am very grateful for the opportunity to meet the great people at eInstruction and I did earn a free Mobi View for attending yesterday, but I am most focused on finding instructional tools that put collaborative, creative learning in my students hands.

Flipping Resources

2011-05-03T12:29:00.000-05:00

For those who've been following, I'm preparing to make a run at Flipped (or Reverse) Instruction with one of my teams at school. In preparation, I have found the following unique resources that I will be sharing with them today.

We are scheduled for our Flip Meeting on Monday, however, in anticipation of great things, I am sending the Flip Resources ahead of time for their preview. My overall goal is to jump start the conversation and thought process before they ever sit down with me to develop the final plan.

So here you have it - The Essential Principal's official Flipping Resources:

Robin's Technology Tips - Presentation of 40 Interesting Ways to Use Flips in the Classroom

Free Technology for Teachers - 20 + Ways to Use Flips in the Classroom

Donna's What the Blog Do We Know - Reverse Instruction

The Electric Educator - Flipping Your Classroom Through Reverse Instruction

The Electric Educator - 10 Tools to Help you Flip Your Classroom

The Flipped Class Network - just go there!

Moving Forward: Online Book Study

2011-05-02T15:00:00.000-05:00

One of the major challenges of my campus is the lack of technology. We are lacking both infrastructure and instructional knowledge. However, we are making strides.

My plan of attack has been to get the teachers using technology first. By increasing their comfort level, they are able to then share it with their students. At least, that's my plan.

I am happy to report that I've seen some forward progress this week. One project I have undertaken is creating an online book study for a group of teachers. Our district using Moodle as an online network for creating forums, web pages, blogs, etc. At first I was concerned, but found it to be very user friendly. I felt at ease using it with my teachers.

I spent some time with our district instructional specialist learning all the ins and outs of creating an online book study. I loved it!!

Once it was all set up, I sent my teachers the directions and hoped for the best. In just a few days, I saw the first comment posted! I was thrilled! Then a day or two later, there were more comments.

Finally! We have online collaboration occurring between teachers within the building!

I couldn't be more thrilled. Absolutely thrilled. Well, maybe I'll do some back flips once one of these ladies creates an online book study for their class.

Wrapping it All Up

2011-05-01T14:08:00.001-05:00

It's here - May 1st.

That time of year when as an administrator you truly begin the wind-down process while concurrently beginning the wind-up process. It's a tough time of year in a school altogether, but planning for the future while planning to end a school year - that's not for sissies.

I find myself this time of year honing my organizational skills. One MUST be organized to be a successful administration. However, to adequately thrive - not just survive - May, one must be uber organized.

Up until a few weeks ago I was feeling a little "off." I attributed it to the fact that I was operating an entire school without my assistant. But, I soon realized what I was missing:

My famous End of the Year To Do list.

You see, each year when I return from Spring break, I create the EOY TD list. I barricade myself up in the conference room and create a month-by-month list that is both color coded and chronological. It becomes my bible - the root of all organization and thriving the end of the school year.

Once I realized the error of my ways, I quickly found some time to meditate in my conference room with dry erase marker in hand. Within an hour I had the list created and my heart felt better just knowing I had a map to which guide me to June.

With today being the first of May, I will check my list in the morning to ensure I am on track.

Book Review: Literacy 2.0

2011-04-17T14:40:00.000-05:00

One of my long standing professional development goals is to keep abreast with all things education. That's quite a large undertaking I might add. This weekend has provided me the opportunity to read several professional development books.

Presently, I am drawn to all things technology. I feel like with each passing moment, we are losing ground in the technological arena. Anyone who truly understands the world in which we live knows that with each passing second, we are getting farther and farther behind. It's inevitable. However, I vow to do whatever it takes to keep myself and my staff updated.

In enjoying the spring weather, I read Literacy 2.0 written by Nancy Frey, Douglas Fisher and Alex Gonzalez. As with all things published by Solution Tree, it was a worthwhile ready.

The overall expectation was set during the intro on pg 8 where a handy table listing technology actibities based in each strand is located. However, the book took a historical/philosopical turn. I was searching for a more technical guide to implemeting things such as Voki, Flickr, Ning, etc.

So the search continues. But don't let that take away the worthiness of this publication. It is definately a good read for administrators and educators alike. However, I feel my level of understanding the importance of technology is past the point of discussions presented.

Alignment and Transperancy

2011-04-13T21:11:00.000-05:00

I just have to repost this from one of my favorite site, Connected Principals. I have to admit, that this got me pretty fired up when I read it. Fired up in a good way. It's time to bring about change in our education systems. Will you join me?

http://www.connectedprincipals.com/archives/3218

Hand Delivered With Love

2011-04-02T21:47:00.000-05:00

As I approached my office door on Thursday morning, I saw it - the large, over sized envelope from our district HR dept - it was my teacher's contracts. I know many administrators who quickly hand over the envelope to their secretary never to see it again. Not me.

Every year I take the time to hand deliver the contracts to my teachers. As I walked the building - and I mean walked the building, I found myself reflecting on just how this practice came about. Back in the day when I was interning, my mentor delegated this task to me. I absolutely loved it. I was out of the office and into the classrooms. love. pure love.

From that year on, I've always made it a point to hand deliver my contracts. In fact, I really thought nothing about it until Thursday.

Of course, there were smiles as the contracts passed from my hands to theirs. There were even a few jokes, but what really got me was what happened after school.

A teacher, a very tenured teacher, stopped and thanked me for hand delivering her the contract. The next sentence really got me, "No one's ever done that for me before. " No one?? Seriously? To paraphrase, the simple action made her feel very wanted, welcome and ready for the new year.

All because I use it as a time to get out of the office. There's so much more to it than my simple brain break.

** I get to see every single teacher in the building within a 20 minutes time span. That's some good face time!

** In addition, I get to see the instruction in every classroom and interact with students.

** The students see me in their world interacting positively with their teacher.

** And apparently, it makes me teachers feel wanted and, above all, loved.

In reflecting back to my internship days, I'm certain my mentor knew the outcome would positively impact teacher's lives. I just had to learn the lesson myself.

Mental Zoom Focus

2011-03-26T15:42:00.000-05:00

In preparing for my faculty's upcoming staff development day, I created a Prezi (http://www.prezi.com/) centered around the notion of obtaining Mental Zoom Focus. Throughout this year, I have been using Jon Gordon's Training Camp as the basis for our theme. We've worked on becoming Ten Percent Better than the rest and several other concepts in the book. With spring and all it's distractions upon us, it was time to break out the chapter on Mental Zoom Focus.

Gordon sets out 3 techniques for creating ZF:

1) Ask the following question each day, "What are the three most important things I need to do today that will help me create the success I desire?" Then do them.

2) Set your priorities straight. Don't spend time on trival things that have nothing to do with our vision and goals.

3) Tune out distractions. Everyday focus on sustained continuous improvment.

(all found on pages 67-68 of his book)

Now that you've got some background, enjoy the Prezi!

I'm Flipping Out Too!

2011-03-09T20:41:00.000-06:00

If you've been following my blog lately, you'll notice that reverse instruction - aka - flipping instruction is on the forefront of my mind.

With the recent administration of the State Assessments, I have left my 4th grade team somewhat alone concerning their impeding flip. I hand delivered their cameras to them late last week and said, "Just play with it."

Meanwhile....

I still had the itch. The itch to flip.

So I did what any other elementary principal would do and I flipped out. All by myself.

I downloaded an online program to better use my laptop's built-in camera. Then I practiced a few sessions until I got the hang of it. And then....I flipped.

I recently conducted one of our weekly IFT (instructional focus team) team meetings. I took a few moments to review the past meeting and preview the upcoming meeting. My goal was to 1) improve communication between me and my IFT team, 2) get them used to viewing videos as a mode of communication and 3) expose them to the concept of flipping.

It worked. Beautifully!

I placed my video on our campus blog (here) on a separate page designated for IFT Information. I requested that they comment on the blog post. It's time to get comfortable utilizing those Web 2.0 skills.

Then I waited. (there's a lot of waiting in campus administration)

Sure enough, my ladies started responding. They thought previewing the upcoming meeting's information was the coolest idea ever. A few even requested information on how to create their own video!

The Administrative Flip has begun!

Flipping Instruction: Talking to the Students

2011-02-26T08:19:00.000-06:00

Today was a big day for me. I finally bought 4 Flip Cameras for my teachers. Turns out I had an entire grade level that wanted to Flip Out. =) That makes my administrator heart happy beyond belief!

With the Flips among us, it’s time to gather a detailed plan for implementing a change in instruction. One of the key components to the success of The Flip is to involve the stakeholders – the students. They are on the cusp of technology and most likely, more comfortable than we are with all these gadgets.

The scene: Fourth grade lunch

I found myself sitting with four outstanding Fourth grade students. We were talking about the beautiful spring weather, Texas Independence Day and other musings of their life when I posed a question, “Do you all ever watch YouTube videos?” They all immediately stopped eating and looked quite incredulously at me. It was as if I was so cool for even talking about YouTube. The resounding answer was, “Yes! We love to watch videos.”

So I dove farther….

“What if your teachers videoed part of their lesson? You know, maybe 10-15 minutes or so. Then you would watch the video at home and when you got to school –“ I was interrupted by the student on my left.

(hold on to your hats here)

“Then we’d already know the lesson!” she exclaimed excitedly.

(keep holding your hat)

The boy across from her jumped in, “And our teachers could help us instead of teaching!”

Amen!! Eureka!! We struck gold!! These kids GET IT!

It’s amazing what happens when you step out and try something new.

Getting the Flip Going: Part 1

2011-02-22T21:27:00.000-06:00

In my previous post, Flippin Out Over Flipped Instruction, I stated my angst and concern over how I’m going to get this implemented. It’s hard to be an administrator when you see a good idea and you get all excited! Then, reality sets in and you wonder just how “crazy” are those teachers going to think I am!?

Well, I put on my thinking hat and formulated a plan. I am presently in the initial stages of the Fliping Rollout.

I utilize a weblog for communication with my staff. I update it weekly with all the pertinent information, dates, and other announcements. One of my goals is to use the blog as a staff development tool. Flipping Out was the perfect opportunity to do so! So here goes…

I developed a post briefly explaining what reverse instruction was and included several links to online blogs and research about flipping instruction. And then I made an offer that couldn’t be refused…I offered a Flip camera for two teachers who were willing to try this mode of instruction. Oh, and I threw in a packet of jean coupons. My teachers will do anything for jeans coupons.

I posted around 9 p.m. and then I waited.

I was jumping for joy the next morning as I received my first email from a staff member saying she’d give the Flip a try. It was 6 a.m. I was on cloud nine!

Since then, I’ve had four ladies offer to try it. I am overwhelmed with their readiness and willingness.

The next step….we’ll get to that in post soon. Meanwhile, I’m basking in administrator happiness!

Flippin' Out over Flipped Instruction

2011-02-15T20:27:00.000-06:00

Over the weekend I read my first article about flipping instruction on Connected Principals and I just can’t seem to get it out of my head. I keep finding myself googling to locate different articles reading more and more.

I just can’t get enough.

And now I sit here and before you as my witness I’m going to declare publicly, I wanna flip.

In a bad way. But how?

As an administrator of an elementary school I quickly realize that there are some flipping adjustments that we must make for this to be successful. It’s kinda difficult to flip first grade reading instruction. However, I can see this being used in third-fifth grades very easily.

As my assistant principal and I discussed the topic, we immediately thought, “not all of our students have access to computers at home.” We are a full Title 1 campus and you know that presents its own challenges.

But, we have a solution. At my campus, we have 2 computers labs that are full literally all day. The teachers could collaborate and arrange for a time for the students to view the flip videos in the lab and then spend regular classtime working on homework and application of the skills.

And…what…if…(having an idea here)….we could have teachers flip vocabulary instruction! Research shows that students who are economically disadvantaged and/second language learners have the greatest need in the area of vocabulary. What would happen if teachers created short videos of vocabulary instruction and the students watched them prior to the lesson or application? Amazing things could happen!

How? Just how will I implement this as an administrator? It’s one thing to have great ideas, it’s another to actually get them implemented.

Stay tuned as I continue to flip out over flipping instruction!

RtI Musings

2011-02-11T21:43:00.000-06:00

RtI - Response to Intervention....most definately a buzzword in education these days. RtI is a component of our campus that I am constantly tweaking. And I mean constantly. I took over a campus that already had a simple RtI program in place. Being new in the district and campus, I didn't want to change too much the first year. As school started, I managed to streamline the RtI process and put some definitive structure to the loosely organized program. I did some simple, training with the staff and provide opportunities for the teachers to see samples of real, verifiable data.

That was all I could put into place at that time. I did not want to overwhelm the staff and end up shutting them down. Now it's been a semester, so it's time to tweak. Ok - maybe we need to do more than just a little tweaking.

First, our parent contact documentation is lacking. This week I re-employed a form I used at my previous campus. It's much more specific and requires the teacher to have detailed documentation of what was communicated to the parent. In addition, we will be sending home letters after each RtI meeting to parents detailing information about the interventions their child is recieving. Why change forms you ask? It's not really changing forms, it was adding a piece of accountability for the teachers. I can't tell you how many times we'd get into an RtI meeting and we'd ask if the parent was supportive and the teacher would admit that she hadn't called the parent. (Note: At our campus, we require one parent conference per Tier) Without a form to complete and add to the RtI folder, the teachers were not being held accountable for their actions. I am happy to report that three teachers already used the new communcicaton forms and brought them to RtI today. Woo hoo!

Second, our knowledge as a campus is lacking. I've worked with RtI models for over 5 years. I've read tons of books, heard speakers, and tried lots of things. Sometimes I forget that my peers do not have the same knowledge base as I do. As the instructional leader on campus it is my duty and responsibility to increase their learning and abilities to do their jobs. How did I remedy this? Well, I've created an RtI PLC team and our first task is to complete a book study on Tileston's book Closing the RtI Gap Why Poverty and Culture Count. Bring it on!

Third, our paperwork is too cumbersome. You. Have. No. Idea. Now, some of this is district driven so I just have to figure out how to deal with it. But, there has to be a way to make it more streamlined for my ladies. It just has to be simpler. I know it can be based on previous experiences. My favorite set of RtI forms is from ESC Region 4...the book is titled Hallways and Blackboards. Well worth your money spent.

Fourth, we must learn what true interventions are. Interventions must be research based and scientifically proven. I'm pretty sure most of what I see on our Interventin Log sheets is not research based. I'm not saying we're doing it all wrong by any means. I'm just saying we need to take a close look at what we're doing with our students in these small groups. Generic tutoring will not get it done.

So, with a renewed passion and interest I'm ready to continue down the path of continuous improvement. I know this won't be my last stop in the journey for a strong RtI program, but I know I'll be giving it my best shot. After all, that's what the kids need.

Book Review: The Six Secrets of Change by Michael Fullan

2011-01-28T13:23:00.000-06:00

The Six Secrets of Change, Michael Fullan

Fullan describes in passion the six secrets to surviving – I mean, thriving - during change. Let’s face it, change is difficult no matter what the situation. We all hate change. Think of how you feel when the road you travel daily to work is all the sudden under construction. It’s change – you have to go a different route. It feels different, it’s not the same. Deep down we all crave being the same.

Fullan writes about the six greatest keys leaders need to be painfully aware of while leading an organization through a change. Briefly listed…. 1) Love your employees, 2) Connect peer with purpose, 3) Capacity building prevails, 4) Learning is the work, 5) Transparency rules, and 6) Systems learn.

Individually, each key is described below:

1) Love your employees. The basic premise Fullan communicates is best summed up in this quote from pg 23, “the quality of the education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers.” We will all fail our students if we continue to hire, or even renew, marginal employees. Sometimes loving them means leading them to greener, more successful pastures. It’s a tough job, but someone’s got to do it. Pardon my minor rant, I’ve been leading a few people to more successful endeavors lately.

2) Connect Peers with Purpose. Summed up on page 41, Fullan describes the key to becoming a successful loose-tight organization is deeply rooted in “purposeful peer interaction.” This is quite the opposite from totalitarian leadership. My administrative fantasies involve a campus culture where teachers interact in deep, meaningful conversations after time spent in each other’s classrooms. Just as students learn best from each other, so do educators. So often, we do not make the time to foster these types of relationships. Cognitive coaching at its best – that’s Fullan’s desire as well.

3) Capacity Building Prevails. While loving your employees is powerful, so is guiding and developing them into leaders or specialists in their field. The theory and practice of continuous improvement with our faculty is the most integral component of capacity building. Stated by Fullan, “If they are committed to putting in the energy to get important things done collectively and continuously,” then you have a culture of strong capacity building.

4) Learning is the Work. This is where the balance of effort comes in to play. Schools must be able to tame the balance between ferociously, continuously attacking their goals while continuously learning to become better at what they do. It’s time to roll up the sleeves and dig in to the hard work.

5) Transparency Rules. Time to put away the rose colored glasses. Using data to drive decision is key, but too much of it can distract from the overall work of the organization. I’m beginning to detect a theme of balance in Fullan’s work. As instructional leaders, we must look at data honestly and make key decisions, however, we must not over analyze – thus creating a culture of microscopic leadership.

6) Systems Learn. We must shift our focus from one, influential leader to many influential leaders. Recently I was at an Organizational Health training and the facilitator asked all the leaders in the room to stand up. Naturally, the campus administrators stood alongside some central administration. I’m sure you can guess who didn’t stand – the teachers. The facilitator’s point was to get the teachers thinking towards their leadership capabilities. Each of our staff members has a talent to lead in some capacity – all we have to do it get them there!

Fullan’s book gives us a clear blueprint for successfully navigating change – which is certain. As our State makes decisions in the coming months, I feel certain that many schools and districts will be experiencing not only change, but radical change. It will be up to us as building administrators to lay the foundation for successful transition. Our students will be depending on it.

Blur

2011-01-25T21:49:00.000-06:00

Somewhere between preparing staff developments, sitting in meetings, learning a new district, challenging a new staff.....you get the picture. Somewhere between all of this I have neglected my administrative blog. Here's my promise, premise and pledge to you: I will not let you down again! I am committeed to reconfiguring The Essential Principal. I have so many ideas! Check out the sneak peak below:

** Book reviews!!
** Confernce discussions
** RtI Tips and Treasures
** Technology Troubleshooting
** Keep Staff Motivated
** STAAR
** Legislative Updates

And more!! Come back soon!

Here come the busses....

2010-08-28T14:22:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again! Last week the quiet hallways of my school were inhabited by 500 students donning bright smiles and their new clothes. Parents proudly walked their little ones across the crosswalk anxious to meet their new teacher.

The teachers, were anxious as well.

We, as educators, will work tirelessly to do whatever it takes for these students to be successful. Our mantra will be to do whatever it takes while they're with us during the day. We cannot control what happens when they go home. But, on our watch, we take the best care of them we can.

Best of luck as you all embark on a new year!

Cheating on this blog with my new blog

2010-08-05T20:10:00.000-05:00

Shhh!! Don't tell...I've been working on launching my newest blog, www.thehometeams.blolgspot.com. It's a networking/devotional blog for Coach's Wives. I'd have to say it's going well. We average 10-20 hits a day which is really strong. It's kinda hard to keep both a personal and professional blog, but I'd like to keep them both going. After all, it is the 21st century and this is how we do things now. I plan to get back to posting more professional items on this blog.

This summer I've read a few interesting educational books...I have an entire arsenal I'm anxious to read. So many books, so little time !

Currently I'm reading Training Camp by Jon Gordon. I'm not too far into it. It's an inspirational book set to the tune of a football player. It works great for me right now. I'm surrounded by football! In fact, our campus theme this year is Team Chandler: Champions for Kids. I purchased these way cool banners on www.shindigz.com. Great website for fluffy stuff like that - you need to check it out.

This guys also wrote The Energy Bus. I'm hoping to read that one next. Followed by some others.... Failure is Not an Option, Failing Forward, etc.

It's going to be a busy fall!

Times are a Changin'

2010-07-17T08:32:00.000-05:00

Long time no post - so sorry for my delay in writing. You see, I've been a tad busy. In the past month, we've moved 300 miles, started 2 new jobs and gone on one awesome vacation. The theme for the month is change.

Change is good.

Change is inevitable.

Change is nessecary.

Change is refreshing.

Change is hard. Like really hard.

While I helped make the decision to relocate, it's been a tough situation. Everything is different. New town, new house, new school, new day care, new mall, new grocery store, new every single thing.

I am confident I will feel better once I find myself in a structured, routined environment. Which ironically will be starting on Monday! Back to work!

Stay tuned for more from South Texas....I promise to keep up the blog!

Remember the Alamo!

2010-06-24T09:46:00.000-05:00

I've just returned from an eventful trip to San Antonio for the State Cscope Conference where I learned a great deal of useful information. I will be transitioning to a new district where they are implementing Cscope in the upcoming school year. However, I am leaving a district where we implemented Cscope 2 years ago. So....I am well aware of the bumps, bruises and fire I am walking into. I am not one to dwell upon the negative, so bring it on! It's going to be nice to walk into familiar territory once again.

Thoughts from Alamo City...

* What a great setting for a conference! Good food, everything within walking distance and so much culture!

* 4000 people at one conference...man, Cscope has gone bigtime!

* The keynote speaker was Ron Clark. Absolutely amazing educator and individual. He has truly impacted students and education around the world. Stay tuned for a book review. I cannot wait to get my hands on his books.

* STAAR is coming and it's going to change the face of teaching. Instead of being a skills mastery test like TAKS, it's going to assess Academic Readiness. Think Application and Synthesis at it's highest levels. A mind shift needs to occur...students need to be ready for learning future concepts, not just responsible for current mastery of objectives. I will post more as I hear and learn about STAAR.

* EOCs will cause a whirlwind of change in secondary land...just saying.

* Cscope, once often discussed as a very rigid, strict curriculum, is now being told to adjust and make supplemental changes as you use it. I hear teachers cheering across Texas! Cscope is good, but it can't be the be all, end all for teaching. You must adjust, you must supplement, you must think of it as a living, breathing process.

* You CAN use Cscope with Web 2.0 tools, guided reading, vocabulary work and everything else.

* Word of the day...adjust!

* Successful implementation of Cscope is centered around teacher dialogue...hence, PLCs. I attended a fabulous session on PLCs and Cscope from a crew in Stafford, TX. The essential piece - getting through it together and all working for a common goal.

Would I go back to the State Cscope Conference again, absolutely!

Worth Watching

2010-06-13T09:37:00.001-05:00

TEPSA Ponderings...

2010-06-12T14:34:00.000-05:00

Well, it was another great Summer Conference from TEPSA! Did I expect anything else?? I enjoy spending a few days with several thousand other administrators who are all in the same boat I am...it's summer...we've just finished the year..and we're ready to start the new one. No time to rest for the weary! I can always count on the TEPSA Summer Conference to rejuvenate and motivate me for the upcoming year.

Without further adieu...a my ponderings from the week:

* Drum Cafe = awesome!
* Hearing the story of the NDP of the Year, Rhonda Palmer, was awe inspiring. One day I hope to leave that kind of legend in the field of education. Congrats Mrs. Palmer!
* Did my first professional presentation on Wed!! I loved every minute of it. I see a future here.... big THANKS to my Assistant Principal for being my wingman and my hubby for being my "clicker." I'm anxious to see how I hear online once TEPSA posts the sessions online.
* Sessions online = Way cool! There were many administrators who weren't stressing if a room got full because they could locate the handouts and sessions online.
* Another great session my Mark Lukert, a personal favorite of mine. www.marklukert.com His ways of developing a campus team through themes is extraordinary. I began using them this year on campus and will build upon it next year.
* Are you Leading or Just Being Followed? GREAT session by the fabulous ladies out in Longview ISD. I was able to get several great professional book references that I will research, read and post in the future. (gee...my reading list is getting long!)
* TEPSA put together another strong room of exhibitors. I'm armed and ready with the newest publications
* GREAT, resourceful time with my colleagues. Ready for summer 2011!!

Preparing for TEPSA

2010-06-07T15:21:00.001-05:00

Powerpoint completed - check. Handouts xeroxed - check. M&M bought - check. Materials ready - check. It seems that everything is in order for my presentation at TEPSA later this week. This being my first big professional presentation, I am ecstatic. Hope to see you there!

New book...new thoughts

2010-05-30T16:06:00.001-05:00

My latest professional read is Enhancing Leadership Effectiveness (Fairman and McLean). It's the result of a lot of NEW in my life. You see, we are relocating our family to south Texas this summer. My husband and I both have gotten great jobs in a new school district. Thus...I'm reading this because it's the framework of my new home away from home.

I'm only a few chapters in and I'm already beginning to understand the big picture. A few points to ponder:

** Choices rather than circumstances, control outcomes.

** Trust empowers others.

** Decisions must be consistent with the organizations mission, vision and goals.

** Vision...what do we want to become?

I will leave these thoughts to roll around in your head as they are mine. We will revisit. I am sure.

Summing it Up

2010-05-07T11:13:00.001-05:00

It's that time of year again...summative conference with teachers. I am convinced many administrators do not use this time as effectively as possible. What better time to sit and have a truly instructional conversation with your teachers! This is the stuff instructional leaders dream of!! So often, principals are overly busy in April and May and do not take the time to truly listen and discuss instruction with their teachers.

When I conduct summatives, I like to have the teachers come to me with a set of questions answered ahead of time. My questions vary from year to year, but the purpose remains the same. I want to know them instructionally and to keep open the lines of communication from my office to their room. This year I posed the following questions:

1) Review your 3 goals from last year. How have you accomplished those? What positive impact did they have in your classroom?

2) What things worked here at school this year? What one thing would you not change?

3) What things did not work? What is one thing we must absolutely change?

Through these questions, I have learned so much about my staff. It really hit me when one of my strongest teachers stated that she didn't feel she had done her best this year. From the outside looking in, I felt she did an outstanding job. I had no idea she felt inferior and self conscious concerning her teaching. Looking back, this explains a great deal of her actions and emotions during the year. Had I known this earlier, I could have supported her better. Thus, eliminating several conflicts.

I encourage you as the year winds down, spend some time truly talking with your teachers during their summatives. You never know what you'll find out!

Readicide - Part 1: Initial Thoughts

2010-03-21T10:44:00.000-05:00

I completed my reading of Readicide this week while on break. I cannot express how powerful of a book this is. While I do not agree with all that Gallagher writes, there are several key points that must not be overlooked.

I firmly believe Readicide is happening all across schools today...including mine. Sobering thought.
The 4 points listed on pg 5 are a summary of Readicide: Schools value the development of test takers rather than readers; schools are limiting authentic reading experiences; teachers are over teaching books, teachers are underteaching books
Our assessment techniques are churning out memorizers instead of thinkers
What you test is what you get - Amen to that!
The Paige Paradox (pg 17 and on) is TRUE! It's a cycle we can't get out of, but we must find the strength to break it.
What are we doing for our struggling readers? More drill and kill? Limited access to powerful, reading materials that are high interest? I have been working to limit my students' drill and kill for practice and test prep. However, my students are missing the piece of reading....real reading.
I will be taking the questions on pg 24 to my Leadership Team and Faculty. We will right our direction!
Where has SSR gone? As a classroom teacher, I conducted SSR time each morning. However, somewhere in my transition into administration, the silent reading time is absent from the classrooms. To me, that's the first piece that must be placed back into our schools. Even it's if only 10-15 time daily...it's a start!
Readicide and Accelerated Reader - not a match made in heaven.
Readicide vs prescribed curriculums - something to ponder. How can we balance our requirements with what students need?

While my mind is still realing with the initial thoughts, I am working to move forward to determine the best goals and objectives for my specific campus. I am contemplating the best way to infuse this ideology into the faculty. Maybe a book study....staff development snipits at faculty mtgs...an awareness of reading instruction.... Regardless my actions, the end result must be the same. Stop Readicide from happening in my school.

The Importance of Spring Break

2010-03-17T15:46:00.000-05:00

Stress.

It can consume us. It can overcome us. It can rule our lives.

It can be overcome!

It's spring break for me and I sit at my kitchen table working through my blogs. I love my job and I love doing my job and I love going to work every day. However, at some point I've got to walk away from it and relax and give my mind a break. Giving myself a break will make me a better administrator when I return from break. My teachers need the same break as well. They need to spend time with their friends and family in order to restore balance to their lives, thus making them better teachers in the process.

Time away from our daily jobs ensures us that we restore balance. It's the key to putting stress at bay. As I sit here, I've had a wonderful, stress-free afternoon looking through fashion and home decor blogs. I've renewed my interests in things other than assessment, professional development, student data, and educational theory. I cannot be consumed by those things or I will lose my effectiveness as a leader.

I challenge you to spend some time not working and not thinking about work. You'll find yourself restored, renewed and re-engergized!

Enjoy your spring break!

Proposal Acceptance - TEPSA Summer Conference

2010-03-05T10:43:00.000-06:00

I recently found out this week that my session proposal was accepted for the TEPSA Summer Conference - my first REAL speaking engagement! My session topic will be M&Ms - More Than Just a Candy! (Summary: Increasing student performance is at the heart of every administrator's vision. Learn how to implement M&M meetings to Monitor student performance and Motivate teachers along the way. Learn one school's strategy to paving the path to student success.)

M&M meetings have revolutionized our campus. I've been the principal here for a little over 2 years and the change has been slow. However, my philosophy is "slow and steady wins the race." We first started two years ago with slowly and steadily building our RtI foundation program. Once that was firmly in place, we have added progress monitoring meetings. These meetings, dubbed M&M meetings, are rooted in the principles of SMART Goals. Teachers set goals for their grade level, class and individual students. Then, we monitor the goals each grading period through our meetings and make adjustments as needed. For example, in First grade we are monitoring our students reading levels. They must be at a 16 Rigby before the end of the year. As the students progress through the year, we monitor their growth. For those not making adequate progress, we set their goals according to what it will take to reach 16 by the end of the year. We strive to accelerate their learning and "close the gap." We are seeing success!! Currently 80% of our First graders are reading on level!

I feel that M&M meetings bring success for two main reasons: 1) accountability. We as administrators are holding teachers accountable for student learning and in turn the teachers have an increased accountability level for their students. 2) motivation. We take time in each meeting to celebrate the successful and stroke the egos of our students and teachers. Positive praise motivates everyone.

And yes, we do have M&M candy at our meetings. Who can turn down chocolate??

So, join me in June at the TEPSA Summer Conference to hear the details on developing and implementing your own M&M Meetings.

Is your school conducting Readicide??

2010-02-28T20:19:00.000-06:00

I have recently began reading Readicide by Kelly Gallagher. Powerful, powerful book. Stay tuned as I find my way through the chapters. Until then, I'll leave you with a quote....

Readicide - defined as "the systematic killing of the love of reading, often exacerbated by the the inane, mind-numbing practices found in schools." - pg vii

What do muffiins have to do with community outreach???

2010-02-19T00:20:00.000-06:00

We've started a powerful tradition at my campus. Three times a year our staff stands in the morning drop-off traffic and gives each parent a smile and a homemade muffin. The looks of surprise and deeply meant, "Thank yous" are all the motivation our teachers need.

This idea all came about earlier in the year...my assistant and I were searching for ways to reach out to our parents. To make them feel welcome in the school. We both knew there were many parents who never got closer than the parking lot to the school. How could we get them in? How could we show them we care? How do we take our staff to them? Out there?

My assistant attended Camp TEPSA earlier this year as part of his staff development. He heard the Distinguished Principal speak and share some of his unconventional ideas. The muffins were there...

He came back and shared with me. Honestly, I was skeptical. Then I processed through how this could potentially impact our community. We made a plan...baked the muffins...and as I handed the first one in the car of a parent I had barely seen a handful of times...I was hooked!

The Muffin Express, as we affectionately call it, has become a highlight of my year. We have teams of teacher volunteer to bake homemade muffins (total of 300!), another volunteer group packages the muffins in a cute, decorate sack (we are elementary) and the last group of volunteers hand them into cars the following morning. Rain or shine.

In each muffin sack is a school calendar of events, a short listing of activities to do at home with their child and details of how to get involved in our school. And of course, the homemade muffin.

The Muffin Express has made two appearance this school year...we are anxiously awaiting our next deployment in May. It was mighty cold this week!

A BIG THANK YOU to my assistant for bringing this idea to fruition and to my staff who bake, package and hand deliver a little piece of love and compassion to our parents. I am honored to be your colleague.

Here I am!

2010-02-14T18:04:00.001-06:00

Welcome to the Essential Principal blog! I developed this blog to be a tool for others to use as a means of support and staff development. Our job is not an easy one, but is by far the most rewarding thing I've ever done. I have several upcoming adventures for this blog...1) blog of the week highlight, 2) book talks, 3) staff development ideas, 4) morale boosters and much, much more!!