Every Day is a Bones Day at Bloomer!

 

    So I'm absolutely not a fan of Tik Tok but I saw this story on a Sunday Morning show and thought, "Fabulous!"  I think this is a metaphor for how we use our daily work to create the conditions that are given Bloomer Bones!  Noodles is a pug who has become an internet sensation.  He is now seen as a motivator or seer for the day up or down.  Your daily PLC is also an opportunity to develop optimism for the day.  Together you can do so much!

    You are so marvelous!  This staff works hard each day to make a difference and you are!  We are raising achievement one student at a time.  You measure your success by looking at data and analyzing it.  Next steps are in the making because you have determined what a student needs to advance in learning. The point of the blog this week is to focus on your PLC and establish a revised set of ideas that will help you become a stronger teacher or staff member.  

    Your professional learning is interdependent, your success hinges on the efforts of your team.  In order to make the learning happen as a grade level collaboration is required.  Your work needs to be characterized as collective action and interdependence .  Your success is correlated to the efforts of your entire team.  

Your efforts are twofold:

1. Creating a goal that is shared by the entire team.   Setting an interdependent goal sets the stage for collective action.  When you work toward one goal you persist and refuse to give up.  You work together to find strategies that continually examine the status quo.
   
2. Interconnecting tasks that teams work on.  Working collaboratively is key to making work efficient and to get results.  Working together on a task strengthens the opportunity for collective efficacy.  This is the belief that together you can accomplish great things.  Think about designing, delivering and debriefing lessons.  Drawing on your collective expertise, collecting ideas, discovering methods and materials all to raise achievement.  Your team can just do one or the other.  It requires efforts in both.

What is a team to do?

1. Actively engage in the PLC process.  Maximize the opportunity of support from coaches and the principal. We are here to support your practice and want to learn alongside you. 
2. Have open conversations around learning.  Listen and ask questions.  Develop trust with one another so you feel comfortable wrestling with problems and solutions.
3. Set interdependent goals.  Create the goal and monitor progress. Listen, prioritize and observe student learning.
4. Use student evidence. Use the day to day work to determine if you are making a difference in learning.  
5. Focus on Outcomes: link your collaborative work to student results.  Using this idea it makes sense to adjust practices day to day.

    If you are to be a difference maker you must maximize the work of your team.  Consider how your work is shaped by the discussions you have.  Are you using coaches to support the work?  Do you have interdependent goals and tasks?  Are you sharing the load?  If the answer is yes you will begin to see your data triangulate and achievement improve.

    So as you warm up each day in your PLC ask one another if it's a bones or no bones day.  I challenge you to make the choice for bones.  Our students deserve it.