domingo, 27 de enero de 2019

January 28, 2019


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Kudos
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  • We have a new staff member joining our team for the next semester!  Her name is Shelly Svoboda and she is a student teacher coming from UW-Whitewater to student teach with Dawn Salbrieter.  We are excited to have you in our building for you to learn from us and for us to learn from you!  Kudos, also, to Dawn for paying it forward and assisting a future educator!  
  • When you see Bella Longoria thank her for coming in these past few weeks to fill our open position.  Bella has done a great job filling the necessary shoes from one day to the next.  Bella's last day is this Friday and then she goes back to school!  
  • When you see Margaret Starzyk please thank her for assisting with filling our open position once Bella goes back to school.  Margaret has willingly taking our open position for most of the rest of the school year in the event we do not find a replacement.  So... when you see her please tell her thank you as it assists with some consistency with our students!  

Article of the week: 

Voices: The Teacher / Helping Kids Believe in Themselves

Michael A. Rousell
By the time Cathy reached 4th grade, she had become discouraged. She felt like the dumb kid in class. Everything she did in school reminded her that she was a failure.
But with the new school year came a new teacher. One day during some difficult seat-work, Cathy began to sob; she told the teacher how frustrating school was. The teacher took her aside and said something that she would remember vividly for the rest of her life: "Someone who struggles so hard with school will make a great teacher. You would make a great teacher." Cathy was shocked.
Outside, the change didn't seem so dramatic, but inside her world had changed. Schoolwork was now a rocky pathway on her way to becoming a teacher—a teacher who helped students like herself. Sixteen years later she graduated with a teacher's degree and glowing recommendations.
How we view ourselves and how we view the world around us are two of the most important factors in our development. Students who see themselves as persecuted will probably experience the classroom as oppressive. Students who view themselves as competitors will probably experience the world as challenging. A personal view of conqueror yields a world view of spoils.
It is equally true that how we experience the world can affect how we experience ourselves. Although one factor might be said to generate the other, Piaget believed, as do I, that they co-evolve. As the story goes, there is good news and bad news. The bad news is that a view of the self and a world view tend to affirm each other in an endless cycle. The good news is that a change in one view will often initiate a complementary change in the other. Cathy initially experienced herself as dumb, viewing success in school as hopelessly elusive. After the teacher's intervention, she saw herself romantically as a struggling teacher, viewing school success as an achievable goal.
Most classrooms have several students who view school as oppressive, useless, or too difficult. They typically respond with little effort. Why try if you're just going to fail? In the past, we called these children lazy; now we call them discouraged underachievers. Examples of high achievers are equally clear. Students who see themselves as academic successes will view classrooms as opportunities to excel and will usually work diligently to become successful.
Most of our training teaches us how to maximize the learning situation by manipulating the instructional environment: creative lessons, state-of-the-art teaching strategies, compelling supplementary materials, and vigorous management techniques. We learn a great deal about creating the optimal learning environment, but in spite of our best efforts, we often feel ineffective. We look at a great many of our students and say things like "I know she can do it if she would only try" or "He has so much ability, but I just can't seem to get through."
Intuitively we know that something is lacking in our teacher training, and intuitively we also know that it is something that can't be taught. We can only hope that those attracted to the teaching profession already have "it."
We have difficulty describing what "it" is, but we know the teachers who have it when we see them. We hope that our own children are lucky enough to be in their classes. To a large degree, young students' identities are still being developed; how they see themselves has not quite crystallized. Children will usually see themselves as reflections of powerful adults in their lives, and who is more powerful to a child than a teacher?
I've studied student influence for six years and collected hundreds of stories and identified several beliefs that the best teachers hold. 
  • Failure is really just feedback. The best teachers remember that inherent in every failure is a lesson on improvement or change. High achievers have confidence in their ability to learn. All learners experience frustration, and the great ones probably more so. Failures do not incapacitate achievers because they hold the belief that failure is a step in the process of learning.
  • Teachers wield tremendous influence. A careless comment ascribed to a child's character may create a life-long result. If such a comment is made during a moment of weakness, the teacher addresses it immediately, disqualifies it, and recasts it as a neutral or positive comment. For example, 
    I'd like to talk with you for a moment, Wade. Earlier today I said, "You never pay attention when I'm talking to you. All you ever do is goof around." [Addressed as soon as possible.] I'm sorry for saying that. Clearly I was wrong. [Disqualify statement.] Obviously you pay attention to things that interest you. I see you are paying close attention to me now—Thank you. [Recast] I snapped at you because I was frustrated.
  • The child is not the problem. Recurring patterns of problematic behaviors usually indicate that children have an unfavorable interpretation of themselves or the world in general. What the teacher interprets as problem behavior, the child often applies as a solution. 
    Jordan is easily angered, produces violent outbursts, and frightens other children. The teacher and the other students see Jordan's anger as the problem—Jordan regards his anger as the solution. His parents were abusive, and he was frequently picked on by classmates when he was younger. Jordan's anger acts as a barrier to keep others from hurting him again. Attempts to correct his anger will result in resistance because Jordan uses his anger as an ally.
    Effective change must focus on the child's understanding of his or her world, not the adult's.
  • Children have all the resources they need to solve their own problems. Changes in behavior, self-esteem, motivation, or the development of a skill result from changes in how children view themselves and the world they live in. What one child sees as a stumbling block, another sees as an opportunity. What one child sees as insurmountable odds, another sees as the ultimate challenge. Children have immense potential. Our job is to note their resources and enlist them to help in restructuring a constructive model of the world.
  • Understanding the essence of a behavior is useful. Even violent behavior can be enlisted as a positive resource (for example, taking control, willing to respond authoritatively, quick action, refusing to be victimized). Ask yourself in what context would the essence of a particular behavior have value? For example, "Your refusal to be victimized will help you be more tolerant of people as you grow older." This comment has a good chance of reducing future outbursts because it validates the child's experience and orients him or her toward a more fulfilling future. To the shy or withdrawn child: "Your ability to examine situations carefully prepares you to work with others."
  • We must build from strengths, not from weaknesses. Focusing on weaknesses fosters anxiety and promotes feelings of helplessness. Discouraged children find it all too easy to not do something; they become masters at avoidance or compulsive perfectionists. Emphasizing strengths keeps children solution-focused, not problem-centered.
  • Children often excel in the most extraordinary ways. Nurture successes, however small, and always be prepared to be pleasantly surprised. Charles Darwin, Thomas Edison, Louis Pasteur, and Leo Tolstoy were all considered poor to average students by their teachers. Our culture promotes a rather narrow perception of intelligence. Once we abandon our restrictive ways, we soon discover that children know a great deal more than we typically give them credit for. Remember that change truly happens in an instant. It is the preparation for change—indecision, reluctance to risk, and self-doubt—that takes so long.
Those who operate from these fundamental assumptions can't help but encourage the children in their care. Think of those who had the most positive influence on your life. Fundamental beliefs like these create high expectations of the self-perpetuating variety. These are the best kind.
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Information/Reminders
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  • In the event the district decides to cancel school I will send everyone a message once I know anything through our  Remind App.  
    • To sign up please text @247693 to the number 81010
    • You do NOT need to download the Remind App. After you sign up, you will receive messages from Karcher Admin via text message. You can also reply to the number once we send a message, which will only go to admin, not the entire group. This method will be used in emergency situations, drills, or necessary information to communicate with staff.  
  • Reminder to Complete... School Safety Threat Reporting: 
    • Please disregard if you have taken this assessment.   
    • Wisconsin Act 143 requires that all school district employees complete the online training on the reporting of threats of school violence.  The DPI has developed the training and it is a powerpoint with some questions to be answered.  The training should take you less than 15 minutes to complete.  Here is the training link: https://media.dpi.wi.gov/sspw/av/school-violence/story_html5.html  
    • Most aides have already completed the training with Kathy Merlo on the last in-service day so if you did this training with Kathy you do not need to do it again.  If you did not do the training please do the online version.
    • After you have completed the training it will ask you where to send the email verifying your completion.  
    • If you have any questions please contact Jeanine or one of your colleagues that have completed the short training.

    THIS WEEK: 
  • Monday, January 28 - Eric Burling will be coming over to talk with our 8th grade students about freshmen year scheduling in the auditorium.  Staff will take attendance and then bring your advisory to the auditorium.  Please stay for this presentation so that you can answer questions later if your advisory students ask!  Students will be getting their course books and requests forms at this time.  
    • Freshman Open House is on February 4 - we have informed parents/guardians and have extra handouts about this in the office.  Please encourage students to attend. 
  • Monday, January 28 - BLT Meeting from 2:40 - 3:30 in the conference room! 
  • Tuesday, January 29 - Strings Festival @ 6:30pm
  • Wednesday, January 30 - iReady Training for our academic, special education, and interventionists.  Thank you to all staff for securing your subs for this day!  
    • We will start at 8:10 in the 21st Century lab with 8th grade going first until 11:10.  Then 7th grade will start at 12:00 - 3:00.  Please be on time and have your sub plans set according to this schedule - 8th grade teachers please note, in your plans, where the subs should go after they are done with you.  They will all be taking lunch at 11:24 but then their 5th hour will start at 11:56 in _____ person's room.  
    • Here are the pairings for our subs:  
      • Sturdevant/Hancock
      • S. Rummler/Botsford
      • Geyso/Murphy
      • Jones/Tenhagen
      • Weis/Berezowitz
      • Schmidt/Ferstenou
      • K. Rummler/Smith
      • Stoughton/Jorgenson
      • Riggs/Varnes
        • Riggs.. we will have you attend with 7th in the afternoon
      • Fulton/Thate
      • Ebbers/Zeman
      • Newholm/Bekken
  • Wednesday, January 30 - No PLC due to iReady Training.
  • Thursday, January 31 - Morning Assembly Schedule with 8th grade attending in the auditorium and 7th grade has extended advisory.  
    • Here is the Google Document for the Character Awards as we do not want to double up on any students.  Ideally you are also picking students who have not been student's of the week... looking to pick students who always do the right thing, might be your quiet leaders, etc.   
  • Friday, February 1 - Morning Assembly Schedule with 7th grade attending in the auditorium and 8th grade has extended advisory.  
  • Friday, February 1 - Snow Cone Sale during lunches!!!

Looking ahead:  
  • Tuesday, February 5 & Wednesday, February 6 - PRA User Group Meeting #2  
    • This LINK will show you the schedule for our next User Group meeting with the architects.  The tentative plan is for them to bring a blue print of the initial thoughts of the actual building and discuss with the teams.  
    • Those in BOLD I already put in for two subs for the day... please make sub plans for the period in which you are bolded!  
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    Pictures from the week
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    Geography Bee took place this week!  Congrats to the below students on a job well done!!!
    Nick Farvour 1st place
    Murphy Diggens 2nd place
    Addie Rauch and Clare Freeburn runner ups



    Students in math class with Ms. Stoughton working together to practice combining like terms!  


    Students in 7th grade science learning about organ systems.  During the unit they engaged in a worm dissection with a mini lesson done first by Ms. Berezowitz or Ms. Hancock and then they transitioned to the worm dissection!  

     








    Students in Ms. Smith's ELA class reading independently while Ms. Smith and Ms. Fulton conferenced with individual students about their winter iReady diagnostic results.  










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