Friday, March 27, 2015

Moving Forward.....
During a time of change, people can question what they are doing and sometimes even become frustrated. As a leader, it is important to recognize these feelings and encourage people by pointing out or recognizing all of the positive things that are happening because of this change. The Lone Tree Elementary staff was given that opportunity to encourage one another before beginning our PLC meeting this week. Each teacher was given an envelope that had a statement about something positive happening as a result of our Wednesday early out meeting times. Below is a list that some may regard as minor statements, but rather are positives that need to be recognized in a time of change.

We have unpacked and learned new concepts in the math standards.

We have worked positively in a collaborative group.

We have worked with others outside of our grade level.

We have become better listeners to one another.

We have had the opportunity to speak in front of our elementary group.

We have shared personal classrooms stories with one another.

We have allowed our peers to plan and lead change for us.

We have asked good questions along the way.

We have become better teachers.

We are more focused on what our students should be learning.

We have read and used research to support our goals.

We are more focused in the classroom.

We have practiced building consensus.

We have learned the content of other grade levels.

We are working as a group and keeping an open mind.

We have practiced agreeing to disagree.

We are making progress and moving forward in the education of our students.


TESTS! TESTS! TESTS!
Throughout the week, the students in grades 2-5 were participating in the Iowa Assessments. To prepare the students for these tests, teachers have worked with students on test taking strategies and have provided them with test taking practice homework. As part of the preparation, I also met with every student in grades 3-5 to talk about their Iowa Assessment scores from previous years. Showing students their performance scores in the areas of math and reading allows them to understand how close they are to meeting the grade level goals. These "Test Talks" are always fun to do with kids because we are able to have a conversation about how important the assessment is, where the students are in relation to meeting the goal, and identify all of the things that the student should do during the assessments to ensure they are able to score their very best.