Did you notice?

 

It's staff Panorama Survey time.  It's an opportunity to take the temperature of our building.  The survey will ask your opinion about leadership, trust, feedback and satisfaction.  There are days that you may feel low and others when you are on top of the world. 

 Let's face it.  You work very hard and progress may seem slow.  Yet you persevere!

 I wanted to make sure you knew that you are making a difference in the lives of children.  You notice when they are gone.  You notice when they are sad or dysregulated.  You react to make a positive change.

You wonder why they aren't progressing at the rate they should.  You wonder what may be a barrier to their success.  You make a plan and act.  

That is what you do each and every day.  

Let me tell you what I noticed...

• I noticed that we have gone from 45% to 81% of our students working at grade level in Lexia.
• I noticed that we are 64% proficient in ELA and 63% in Math.  Our goal is 70%.  We are on target to meet this.
• I noticed that 100% of grade level teams are meeting as a PLC at their scheduled times.
• I noticed that 3 students who were on track for a BSP program are now successful in general education because of the efforts of Heather, Jessica, Lindsay and the student support team.
• I noticed that all of three of the students in BSP are integrating in general education.

These are some things that were noticed that the following was done to increase satisfaction?

• Time to read and respond to this Blog during professional development on Monday?
• Giving you more time as a PLC to learn together on Monday afternoon.  It also allows you to process and plan to use new learning.
• The principal is spending equal time with general education and BSP
• The principal is doing more first response.

When you take your survey remember that feedback is given in general ways like implementation studies and the weekly blog.  Group feedback is given each week during your PLC.  Individual feedback given through a small note and 1:1 feedback at least every three weeks.  Your efforts are noticed and you matter.  Giving your input is an opportunity to share and then an opportunity for the leadership team to respond to it.

Thank you for your efforts.  Thank you for your dedication.  Thank you for your advocacy.

This is how we do it.

 This is how we do it, all hands are in the air. And wave them from here to there 
I'm kinda buzzed, it's all because
(This is how we do it)
BLOOMER does it like nobody does
(This is how we do it)

Wave your Hands in the air
Teacher Clarity

The formula to 'do it' and make an impact includes having clarity with your learning intentions and success criteria.  Finding a solution to this issue is based on starting with the standard; collaborating with your teammates and using your materials to understand.  Last week in third and fourth grade Bri facilitated a discussion using the introduction of a bridges unit.  I noticed that the descriptions included the developmental arc as well as models that explained how the standards can be taught throughout the unit.  In the second grade PLC  Julie and I had a discussion with Sam and Katie about breaking down the success criteria into manageable chunks that included potential misconceptions.  They choose to put those in the notes of their slide.  They were prepared to confer with kids who needed a prompt, cue or direct instruction based on their questions to check understanding.  

Teacher clarity is both a method and a mindset, and it has an effect size of 0.84 (Hattie, 2022). It's teaching that is organized and intentional. It brings a forthrightness and fairness to the classroom because student learning is based on transparent expectations. 

I'm Kind of buzzed and it's all because...
Guided Instruction

Jones Math

Bigley Reading

Scherb Reading

This is how we do it.   Guided Instruction at it's finest.  Carol Bigley had assessed her students in reading comprehension.  During the assessment she reviewed as kids worked and noticed that the five students shown had a serious misconception.  They are capable readers but were using their own background rather than the author's words to back their inference.  She prompted and cued. I noticed very quickly that the students took on the concept independently.  Amy Scherb was also monitoring as kids did the comprehension assignment.  She did more cuing with a few kids as they were not able to hit the learning target without a heavier scaffold.  It wasn't one size fits all it was: you get what you need.  Finally, in the third photo Felicia Jones was working with two students who were unable to grasp the standard algorithm.  She walked them through the problems and gave them manipulatives to manage the place value of fair trade.  When they had finished the problem she had them compare this work to their previous assignment where the same problem was.  Like Carol she led a discussion helping the students realize their error and them gave them an opportunity to learn from their mistakes.

Two primary benefits of effective guided practices are 1) the lesson is focused and 2) the teacher gives clear instructions to students defining “when” and “how” to use a particular strategy. The teacher gives the students guided practice using the strategy and provides feedback on their use of the strategy.

Scaffolding for learning is the key to guided instruction.  You are working toward reaching Vygotsky's "zone of proximal development."  This is the sweet spot in learning; it's the distance between what a learner can do independently and what can be accomplished with the help of a "knowledgeable other." This is a critical concept to understand so you can scaffold learning.  You must have clarity, know when and how to scaffold and then use formative assessment to determine when kids have learned.  

You need clarity.  

You need questions, prompts and cues.  

                                                                                This is how we do it.

Consider what your plan will be.  How will you know that you have made the difference and prepared kids to be independent in their learning.  What will you do?  What will your PLC do?  How will you use student work to guide your actions? 

You know that this is how we do it
This is how we do it 

You gon' make it,
Keep on doing what you doing, man