American Studies - February 17, 2017

Mr. Schroeder was absent today so we planned that I would take over his Sheltered American Studies class for the day.  Sheltered is for ELL students only.  It is a slower paced American history class that focus on big ideas, concepts, and vocabulary.  The hope is that students build their capacity to be successful in regular classes in high school.  I have never taught a sheltered class, but I have taught basic government, which was for lower level special ed students and ELL students.  I hoped that experience would help me be successful teaching this class.

Luckily for me, the students were working on creating a presentation about the three branches of government.  I taught governemnt for 10 years, so this was totally my thing!  I told the students and they thought it was cool to have an "expert" in class.  Mr. Schroeder wanted me to focus on presentation skills rather than content, however.  So we begain by making a list of things a good presenter would do.  Here is what the students came up with:

Eye contact/look at the audience
do not just read the slides
loud, clear voice
don't be shy
give examples
be prepared for questions

I thought it was a great list.  Then I took a practice presentation and presented to them poorly.  They had to note what I did wrong and how I should improve.  It was fun to really do it wrong!  The students even giggled at some of my mistsakes.  Then I did it the right way and they attentively listened.  I gave them some work and practice time.  Then we had one volunteer to practice his presentation in front of the whole class.  He was pretty proud of himself and did a great job remembering our presentation skills.

The take-away from this guest teaching lesson is that these students are really no different than any other students we have.  They want to learn, they are excited to share what they know, and they can learn.  I think that sometimes we think that they are lazy or don't care because it takes ELL students longer or they need different types of instruction.  I had fun working with these students and loved seeing their creative juices flowing as they worked on their projects.  And a big shout out to Gamal for being brave enough to practice his presentation in front of all of us!

Shadow a Student - February 16, 2017

I recently participated in the national Shadow a Student challenge.  I thought this was a great way to experience life as a Northwest Junior High student.  And it really goes along with my goals for the year - connecting with students and staff.  I chose Tyquanna, an 8th grade student, to shadow.  She wanted to make sure she wasn't in trouble, but then thought it sounded like a cool idea.  I chose her because she is an average student - no learning support classes, no advanced classes, no music.  She is also a student that has come a long way in her two short years at Northwest.  She has grown and matured so that she is prepared to be successful in high school.  I'm really proud of her.

We started our day doing volunteer work in the modified special ed class.  This was probably my most favorite part of the day.  It was fun to work with the students and even more fun to see Tyquanna thriving with these students.  She was kind, patient, and helpful.  It was a great example of how very different students can work together and make each other better people.

The rest of the morning was filled with academic classes.  The afternoon had two study halls and two academic classes.  A couple of my take-aways from these experiences included hunger and boredom.  After working hard all morning, I was starving by lunch!  Now I know why so many students complained first trimester about lunch being late.  We did move it up, but I was definitely hungry.  I was also really bored in the afternoon.  Two study halls and a language arts class that was having a reading day did not make for a very exciting learning experience.  No wonder why students end up sleeping or acting out.  I also learned why students complain about not having enough time between classes.  Sure, you can make it from one room to the next without a problem in four minutes.  However, if you need to use the bathroom or want to talk with your friends for the first time all day - it is nearly impossible.

I did see lots of good things happening in classes.  Teachers were always prepared and they seamlessly included me in their class, like I was just another student.  You could see the pride teachers take in their lessons and their craft.  This was unlike an evaluative lesson where they knew I was coming and prepped a special lesson.  I told them the day before that I was planning to be there, but I don't think I gave them enough warning to change their plans.  It was so great to see teachers in their element working with all types of students.

I encourage anyone who can take the time to shadow a student to do so.  I learned a lot about our school, our teachers, and the experiences we are giving our students.  Thanks to my student for letting me tag along all day!

Focus on the staff this February

As we continue through a long, cold, dreary winter, I can feel myself dragging.  And see it in our staff and students too!  I was perusing Twitter one day and saw a great idea by Eric Ewald (@ericewald_iowa), principal of Van Allen Elementary.  Each Friday was a special day just for staff.  It gave them something to look forward to and something to bring them together.  I loved it and decide to steal the idea and change it around for our staff.

Staff need incentives and boosters as much as our students.  I have read the book Kids Deserve It and it was filled with so many great ideas to support our students, and some to also support our big kids - staff!  They work hard for our students and if we don't support them, they will not be able to continue to do all that they do for our students.  The ideas are nothing extravagant or expensive.  Just a little something to bring the staff together, get them talking, and build them up.

I also am bringing an idea from another district I worked in that will get our staff talking and building respect for one another.  A traveling trophy for teachers doing great things!  Teachers will present the trophy (actually I think two trophies) to their colleagues who are doing something extra, something extraordinary, something special.  Our Instructional Leadership Team will choose two people to receive the first trophies.  This will happen at our next building meeting.  Then at the following meeting, those winners will pass on the trophies to other staff that they have found doing something great.  It could be something related to PBIS, something related to academics, or just something where they saw a special connection to our students.  It could be for teachers or support staff.

These couple of new ideas for February are sure to get our staff smiling again and keep them working hard for our students.  Kids deserve it and so do our amazing teachers and staff!