First Year Elementary Teachers discuss ideas from the book: Seven Simple Secrets by Annette Breaux and Todd Whitaker
When I think about all the helping hands that helped shape who I am as an educator and a person, the list is long. When I student taught, I was fortunate to have great cooperating teachers who patiently guided my professional practice. Then I got my first teaching job and I.WAS. ALONE. That was twenty years ago. Fortunately, things are changing in education in a BIG WAY.
Mentor Coaches at Linn-Mar were created to work extensively with first and second year teachers. The intent of this portion of our Teacher Leadership program is to help teachers new to the profession learn to manage the various needs of the job and to embrace their passion for teaching. In addition to observing these teachers weekly and working with them on planning, co-teaching, curriculum pacing, good teaching strategies, and applying the teacher standards into their classrooms, our mentor coaches are also offering an extra layer of support to our new teachers in the form of professional development.
Our mentor coaches have set up book clubs for first year teachers, or study groups, to read current literature in the field of education, collecting data, best practice, assessment, and classroom management. These clubs meet on a regular basis to discuss implementing theory and practice into their daily lessons. The laughter, camaraderie, and team building in these groups is infectious.
First year teachers have a support group unlike years past. This is a great way for them to see each other's classrooms. They have another opportunity to collaborate and build their efficacy in their profession and knowledge and pedagogy.
New teachers goof around with new centers and tricks their Mentor Coach, Carol Kesl provided them at a recent book club meeting.
Fifth grade students at Echo Hill Elementary are learning about Native Americans. Bobbie Janssen organized the lesson for her teammates, by utilizing a website: skypeintheclassroom.com. This site allowed her to peruse lessons. She found one that pertained to her grade level current social studies topic. By using Mystery Skype she connected with the Virginia Historical Society. The Historical Society sent a packet of information to prep students on pertinent information and the process. After that Janssen set up a date to meet with other 5th grade teachers and she covered the materials and the lesson specifics. On Thursday (10.23) students and teachers took a virtual field trip to the Virginia Historical Society via Skype. Students learned valuable information and were able to ask questions. They had a great experience learning more about the Powhatan Indians, Pocahontas, and Native American life in general! The elementary technology integration coaches, also attended the Skype session to learn how to utilize Skype in other schools and classrooms. Several other schools sent teachers from their buildings to watch the Skype lesson while, Instructional Strategists covered their classrooms. This collaborative learning will allow this lesson design to be implemented in several of our schools. Thank you Echo Hill for sharing your experience with all of Linn-Mar.
Corey Brinkmeyer’s "LM Store" class was searching for ways to earn money for start up cash for their class to buy products to sell in their store. After meeting with strategist, Sheri Crandall, at the HS, they came up with the idea to sell used sportswear to earn this start up money. They worked together with the athletic office and district office to get approval of this event and then contacted coaches to get the merchandise. On the first day of the sale, Thursday Oct. 9th, the students in the class raised approx. $500.
Linn-Mar High School will be holding an Athletic Surplus Sale, open to the public, on October 9th-11th. Sales will be inside the High School's Main Entrance (Door #1) on October 9th & 10th, from 7:45-9:45am.
Students will also be selling outside of Linn-Mar Stadium, prior to the 2014 Homecoming Game on October 10th, from 5:30-7:00pm, and on Saturday, October 11th, from 9:00am-Noon, in the High School Auditorium Foyer.
This sale will include game worn jerseys, shorts, and other merchandise previously used by some of Linn-Mar’s finest athletes. Proceeds from this sale will be used to help fund a new student-run business, called theROARstore.
Check out theROARstore on social media sites, listed below:
Meet Rhonda King, first grade teacher at Westfield Elementary and model teacher. Rhonda is one of twenty model teachers in the district this year. Model teachers have an open door policy and allow teachers and teacher leaders from across the district to meet with them, observe their teaching, and discuss how that instruction may apply to his or her classroom.
Today I had the pleasure of visiting with Rhonda and observing her classroom. Her most recent student success is due to a teaching partnership with her first grade team of teachers; Kari Hollinrake, and Jena Conway, Kelly Kretschmar, the Instructional Strategist, and Deb Wegmann, the media specialist. Rhonda King, and her team of first grade teachers at Westfield Elementary wanted to capitalize on the Journeys curriculum and expand it during their intervention block. They were looking for something, but needed someone to help them find the light at the end of the tunnel!
Kelly Kretschmar, an instructional strategist met with the first grade team, and their building principal to have a planning conversation about what was happening in first grade classrooms during intervention block. Kelly discovered the first grade team was noticing that their students were lacking in consonant/vowel/consonant work. They were searching for more resources for practice and assessment. Kelly asked a series of questions that helped her select resources to share with this team of teachers.
After some research, Kelly found Galacticphonics.com, a relatively new site to help students work on phonics, sight words, and spelling. She followed up with the first grade team at their weekly meeting and shared the specifics. Rhonda and the other first grade teachers utilized resources and games and activities that had been organized by the Instructional Strategist.
A few of the materials from the site, organized by the instructional strategist.
"Without, the help of an instructional strategist, we never would have found time to research these resources, nor create them to use with students," stated Rhonda. Rhonda uses the website to help reinforce the phonics skills that are embedded in the Journeys curriculum. She uses it whole group to play some games with students, as well as for small group instruction during reading groups. She also uses it one on one to assess students' understanding of consonants, vowels, and blends. This website is a great way for students to work on high frequency word lists, as well. Rhonda has found the information to be two-fold. She can easily see what students have sounds, and which students can then transfer those sounds into spelling and reading. She explains it beautifully in the following video.
A final thread in this partnership, was the first grade team sharing the website with the building media specialist who has added the link to the building library website. Now teachers, parents and students can access this tool at school and home.
When I think about the impact of this one planning meeting, it is prodigious. An activity that started out to impact 25-75 students has now ricocheted into a possibility for a school of 500 and now all seven elementary buildings in our district can utilize these on-line resources. That is potential impact of 3,500. As I reflect upon the instruction, learning, and assessing I observed this morning, I am reminded of the focus of teacher leadership: adult learning and collaboration to improve teaching and influence student performance.
I want to give an huge shout out to Westfield Elementary for collaborating with classroom teachers, their building media specialist, and their instructional strategist to influence what happens in their classrooms. You truly are OUT OF THIS WORLD!
Today is Saturday. I'm snuggled inside on this crisp morning with a warm peppermint mocha reflecting on another week in the trenches of Teacher Leadership.
In today's world we are constantly "doing." The more peppermint mocha's I have, the more I can "do." Life is fast paced. We have technology at our fingertips 24/7. I can check my email, shop for things and communicate messages with multiply people at once without "doing" much.
I'm always busy. I've created lists of more things to "do" to stay busy. I create lists for the Teacher Leaders I work with to "do." I have made them busy.
I recognize we all have work to "do," and part of that work will keep us busy, but this week I've had the opportunity to be away from my phone, computer, desk, and lists. Myself, and the other Program Coordinator, Erin Watts, have been in our schools in classrooms observing, working with teachers, or helping cover their classes, so they would have an opportunity to learn from other teachers and reflect upon their own teaching, and best practice. The idea is for teachers to see great teaching, have conversations with other teachers, reflect upon their own teaching, and apply the new learning into their individual classrooms. To do this properly, teachers have to be given the opportunity to SLOW DOWN, REFLECT, and PROCESS how they can make changes in their own teaching. Time is the key. Reflection is necessary. We need to stop "doing" and ask questions about the "doing."
I am thankful for the opportunity our school has to implement leadership roles for teachers and the impact it is having on teaching, and learning for students. I am thankful that I had this week to be in classrooms seeing teaching practice that ROCKED MY SOCKS OFF. I am thankful for the reminder to SLOW down, and REFLECT. I know the classroom teachers at Linn-Mar are benefiting from the opportunity to collaborate, and learn from each other. I didn't realize how much I would learn and benefit from covering their classrooms, and working with them. My mind is full of ideas I would want to implement into a classroom if I had one:-) Now, I can share those ideas with other staff.
I am more aware of the resources our school district holds within it's school walls. My challenge to all our teaching staff is to connect with the teacher leaders in your building and begin observing, collaborating, and reflecting with your peers.
Fall is in the air.With the leaves and the temperature changing
that can only mean one thing:Parent
Teacher Conference time is here!
This year our Mentor Coaches, Carol Kesl,
Jennie Lorenzan, and Sue Atwater are working with first and second year
teachers to help them prepare for conversations with parents.
By holding mock conferences new teachers can
practice their delivery of information, learn how to share delicate
information, and make sure they are prepared to answer all the questions
parents may have about their child’s academics, and social behaviors.
We know that practice makes perfect and if you
have never attended conferences before as a parent or a teacher, it can be
stressful.At Linn-Mar Community Schools
we want the very best for our students and we know how important the
Parent-Teacher Partnership is for student success.
