It's here, that final week before Christmas break. As I've spent time with teams and around campus I have felt the excitement in the air. Kids are a little more rowdy then they have been and teachers are a little more ready for a break then they have been!
As we enter this final week before Christmas Break, let's keep in mind a few things.
1. Always remain patient and be more forgiving than necessary. The holiday season isn't something everyone looks forward to. Whether you have colleagues who struggle with this time of year or you have students who aren't looking forward to little to no gifts and 10 days away from a warm safe place. We have to remember to be more patient and forgiving than necessary.
2. Lean into the excitement. Our kids are so very excited. Let's not squelch this excitement but instead find ways to lean into it and bring it out in constructive ways.
3. We're not done yet! Let's keep our focus on the main thing: learning. Let's make sure up until the final day that we provide high quality instruction to continue to fill the many gaps we have!
We've got this!
Week at a Glance
Monday - Jackson Counseling Day
Argueta Coaching Day
Staff Meeting - 3:45pm
School Board Meeting - 6:30pm
Tuesday - Nesloney Coaching Day
Santa Pictures
Christmas Program - 6pm
Christmas Movie Night - 6:45pm
Wednesday - Short Coaching Day
PenPals Demonstration - 3:45pm - Library
Thursday - 2nd Grade Field Trip
Nesloney Coaching Day
Prayer Time - 7am - TP Room
Staff Christmas Party - 5:30pm - Western
Friday - Early Release - 12:00pm
Holiday Parties
Santa Pictures
On Tuesday we will be doing Santa Pictures. For the families who have turned in their forms, we will pull the students to quickly take their photos. Please make sure all forms and money have been turned into the box (with notification of who it belongs to) outside Cindy's office.
Christmas Program and Movie Night
Mr H and company have worked really hard on preparing another fantastic Christmas Program on Tuesday night. We encourage all who can to please show up to support our staff and children.
After the program we will have a family movie night where PTO will be selling pizza!
PenPals
PenPals is a new fun way to have your children collaborate with others and their writing. We are not purchasing this at this time, but if you are interested in seeing a Demo, please come to the Library at 3:45pm on Wednesday
Staff Christmas Party
We hope you can all join us for our annual Staff Christmas Party! See Cindy to pay your $6.
Friday
Friday is Holiday Parties and Early Release. Please make sure that your team leaders have put on the spreadsheet what time your parties are so we can hold parents until then!
Birthdays
Dec 18 - Joni Leonard
Dec 22 - Cewilla Thomas
Dec 23 - Aziza Marchant
Jan 5 - LaToya Miller
Family Day
We thought Family Day was a GREAT hit! Every family member that left, left saying how much they enjoyed learning alongside their child. I think you all did a fantastic job of continuing to build relationships with our families to get them more involved. If you have any feedback from the day, please let me know!
PLC & Morning Duty
This week we will NOT have PLCs, but we still need help with Morning Duty. Please remember that there should be at least two people at car rider and at least one by the cafeteria door.
Everyone is valuable in their own way and capable of expanding our horizons.
Our individual journeys take us into many unexpected situations where we encounter a wide variety of people--some quite like ourselves and some very different. We cannot anticipate these meetings, but we can make the most of them when they take place. When we are courteous as a matter of course and open-minded in our assessment of the individuals whose lives briefly touch our own, we are more apt to stumble upon surprising gems of wisdom that open our eyes to new worlds of possibility. Every person we meet can affect us profoundly, just as every situation we find ourselves in can teach us something new. To fully embrace this fact, it is essential that we acknowledge that everyone is valuable in their own way and capable of expanding our horizons. Since we never know when we will happen upon those individuals who will unveil truths before us, we should extend to all people the same generous level of kindness, care, compassion, and understanding. When we assume everyone we meet is special and treat them as such, we can develop a strong rapport quickly. By making an effort to adopt a positive attitude toward others at all times, we ensure that our emotions do not blind us to wisdom that may be lurking in difficult or distressing situations. We are accordingly receptive to knowledge that comes to us in the form of examples, advice, and direct teaching. These brief relationships ultimately have the potential to enrich our lives in a very concrete way. But the wisdom we gain is proportional to the attention we pay to the world around us. The responsibility is on us to maintain a state of awareness that allows us to recognize when we are in the presence of someone consciously or unconsciously in possession of knowledge that will change us significantly. When we are cognizant of the potential for unexpected enlightenment, we make a habit of turning strangers into friends, thus ensuring that we are never without a font of wisdom from which to draw.
Week at a Glance
Sunday - Grades Due by Midnight
Monday - Nesloney Coaching Day
MAP and Istation Testing Begins
Jackson Counseling Day
Tuesday - High School Music Performance - 7:45am
2nd Grade Planning - 8:00-11:30
1st Grade Planning - 12:30-4:00
Wednesday - Nesloney Coaching Day
3rd Grade Planning - 8:00-11:30
Kinder Planning - 12:30-4:00
Thursday, December 20th at 5:30pm is our annual Christmas Party at the Western. That day is also Ugly Sweater contest day! We hope you can make it! Remember to fill out THIS form to reserve your meal and pay your $6 to Cindy Puentes!
Family Day
Our first ever Family Day will be this Friday! What is Family Day? It'll be an opportunity for family members to come spend an hour in their child's class to take part in the learning. They'll check in whenever they can make it and get a "check out" time one hour from when they check in! We're excited to invite families in to see the great work you're doing with the kids.
PLCs
This week's PLCs are as follows.
Monday - 2nd/3rd ELAR
Tuesday - 4th/5th ELAR
Wednesday - 2nd/3rd Math/Sci
Thursday - 4th/5th Math/Sci
Friday - 1st Grade
Morning Duty
Monday - 2nd Car Rider, 3rd put one at Cafeteria Door and others in Gym
Tuesday - 4th Car Rider, 5th put one at Cafeteria Door and others in Gym
Wednesday - 2nd Car Rider, 3rd put one at Cafeteria Door and others in Gym
Thursday - 4th Car Rider, 5th put one at Cafeteria Door and others in Gym
Friday - split to all stations
Marylee's Mother
HERE is the information for the visitation and funeral for Marylee Argueta's mother if you would like to pay your respects.
Tell Your Story
This week's conversation is with Staci Erickson. A powerful story about how she decided to donate her kidney to a complete stranger and about her dealing with forgiving her father.
As we know, any moment could be our last moment. Let's not take for granted any time we have with each other. How can you show the people around you how much they mean to you? This past week we had the unique opportunity of taking part in history. The passing of President George H.W. Bush and his train passing through Navasota. It was a pretty powerful experience that I hope you were able to take part in.
Here is a clip of his son, President George W. Bush, sharing at his funeral.
If there's one thing I've learned over the last few years, it's that it takes all of us to build a school culture. The administration plays a part, the staff plays a part, and the students and parents play a part.
It isn't just a one person show. But sometimes I think we all find ourselves guilty of waiting for someone else to do the lifting. I've even found myself guilty of it! But the truth of the matter is, when we aren't happy with the way something feels, we have the ability to change it!
When we don't like the way something looks, the message that was sent out, the idea that was chosen, the decisions that were made, we have two choices. The first one is the easy one, sit and complain. It's so easy to tear something apart and talk about how terrible it is. How much you hate it. How you sure aren't doing it. But the second, and much more difficult decision, is deciding that despite what is taking place, you have the power to make it better!
When we wallow in our own frustrations and complaints we begin to show others that it's ok to do nothing. I find myself easily drawn into a mindset of complaining. I have to continually look at a situation and ask myself, "Stop. How can you make this better? How can you fix this? Who can you work with to build this up?". Those answers don't come easily and they don't always come quickly. But I found, that I am happier and enjoy what I do much more when I'm working hard to look for solutions instead of drowning in what I find wrong.
Week at a Glance
Monday - Jackson Counseling day
Nesloney Coaching Day
Tuesday - 4th Grade Math Benchmark
5th Grade Science Benchmark
Nesloney out at Region 6
Picture ReTakes
Wednesday - Short Coaching Day
4th Grade Reading Benchmark
Thursday - Staff Prayer Time - 7am - TP Room
Principal/AP Bootcamp - Admin may be off campus off and on throughout the day
Friday - Argueta Coaching Day
Nesloney Off Campus
School Spelling Bee
Saturday - EdCamp Aldine
Sunday - Grades due by Midnight
Benchmarks
This week is the finale of our Fall Benchmarks. This week 4th-5th will be Benchmarking. This is our time to see exactly where kids are and how we need to work moving forward.
I expect you to sit with your classes and set goals with your students. Bring in a level of competitiveness between classes as well. And remind them that kids who improve the most will get House Points.
Things to keep in mind...
1. No schedules will change. Just please be aware of testing if you're in that grade level's hallway.
2. Monday during conference tested grade levels will sign out bins with Marylee Argueta.
3. We may be pulling IAs to help in some areas.
PLC This Week
Due to Benchmarks and Data Conversations, PLCs this week will be as follows...
On your PLC day your team should split between at least 2 at car rider, at least 2 in Gym, and at least 1 at the cafeteria door (and if team is large enough another in the cafeteria).
On Time
This is just a reminder that all contracted staff's work day starts at 7:30am. Just like any other job, that means that you are ready to work at 7:30am and not pulling into the driveway at 7:30am. Your contracted hours are also until 4pm.
This week will be having discussions with those who continually arrive late or leave early.
Tell Your Story
This week's conversation was with Derek Lopez from Stand Up Our Kids.
I don't know about you, but this week was a great opportunity to find time to rest and get re-energized to make it through until Christmas! I can't wait to hear about the things you all did!
Week at a Glance
Monday - Jackson Counseling Day
Nesloney Coaching Day
Tuesday - 4th Grade Writing Benchmark
5th Grade Math Benchmark
ELAR Textbook Meeting - 3:30pm - Central
Wednesday - 3rd Grade Reading Benchmark
5th Grade Reading Benchmark
Legends of Learning Training (3rd-5th Science) - 3:30pm - Library
Thursday - 3rd Grade Math Benchmark
Short Coaching day
Staff Prayer Time - 7am - TP Room
ELAR Textbook Meeting - 3:30pm - Central
Friday - Nesloney Coaching day
TEKS Resource on Campus
Saturday - Navasota Christmas Parade and Festival
Benchmarks
This week is the start of our Fall Benchmarks. This week 3rd-5th will be Benchmarking, and again next week. This is our time to see exactly where kids are and how we need to work moving forward.
I expect you to sit with your classes and set goals with your students. Bring in a level of competitiveness between classes as well. And remind them that kids who improve the most will get House Points.
Things to keep in mind...
1. No schedules will change. Just please be aware of testing if you're in that grade level's hallway.
2. Monday during conference tested grade levels will meet with Marylee Argueta.
3. We may be pulling IAs to help in some areas.
Jackson Counseling Days
On Mondays, Jackson will begin "Counseling Days". These days for her, will be like my coaching days. She will spend the entire day in classrooms, interacting with kids. If you'd like for her to come into your room on that day to help with a child you're struggling with reaching, let her know. If you'd like for her to come in and lead a character education lesson, let her know. If you'd like feedback on how you're reaching your student emotionally, again, let her know.
TEKS Resource on Campus
TEKS Resource will be on campus on Friday. Please stop by during your conference time to ask any questions you may have (or to get ideas) on how to best utilize TEKS Resource.
Birthdays
November 28 - Andrea Day
December 2 - Mary Vogt
NEW PLC INFO
For the remainder of our semester our PLC dates will change.
Monday - 2nd and 3rd ELAR
Tuesday - 4th and 5th ELAR
Wednesday - 2nd and 3rd Math/Sci
Thursday - 4th and 5th Math/Sci
Friday - Rotation of PreK, Kinder, and 1st. This week will be PreK.
Morning Duty (on your PLC day)
2nd - Gym and Cafeteria Breakfast Door
3rd - Car
4th - Gym and Cafeteria Breakfast Door
5th - Car
PreK - split between all 3 stations
Anxiety in the Classroom
Here's a conversation I had with Amy Mascott about anxiety in the classroom.
We have been given such an opportunity to truly impact lives by not only connecting with our students on a personal level, but also educating them and imparting wisdom into their lives that will leave a mark for years to come.
But....sometimes teaching can feel like the video below...and we just have to have patience and persevere through it.
This time of year is always one of thanksgiving. Of remembering what we're thankful for. Of focusing less on the material things and more on what truly matters.
As we enter this final week before Thanksgiving break, I hope you take time each day to reflect on all you have to be thankful for and that you make time to do that with your students as well.
Week at a Glance
Monday - Nesloney off Campus with Central Admin
Book Fair Begins
Veteran's Program - 8am - Webb Gym
Staff Meeting - 3:45pm - Webb Cafeteria
School Board Meeting
Tuesday - Nesloney Coaching Day
2nd Grade Spelling Bee
Webb/Brule Family Game Night - 6pm - Trinity Lutheran
Wednesday - Nesloney Coaching Day
3rd Grade Spelling Bee
Fire Drill
Thursday - Argueta Coaching Day
1st Grade Field Trip
4th Grade Spelling Bee
Staff Prayer Time - 7am - TP Room
Friday - Nesloney Off Campus at NCTE
Short Coaching Day
4th Grade Field Trip
5th Grade Spelling Bee
Webb/Brule Family Game Night
The first ever Webb and Brule Family Game Night is on Tuesday at Trinity Lutheran. We hope all the staff can attend and take part. I'll get you finalized information tomorrow, but please bring a fun game to play with students who come to your station!
Book Fair
Our first book fair of the school year is upon us! Please get with Haven for times you can bring your class down to preview. She will be notifying me of the classes who don't take time to preview as this is the time we get the kids excited about what they could purchase. Please make the time to get with her.
Morning Duty
TEACHERS, please note....
We always need someone at the cafeteria door in the hallway on duty days. This person shouldn't allow any students past them or down the hallways before 7:35am.
If you're out a car duty, I assumed it was common sense to open doors, but I'm hearing there are several teachers who just stand and stare. Please make sure you're opening doors to cars as you serve car duty and that you're welcoming students.
PLC times this week will be like last week....
Kinder - Monday - spread out your duty stations across all 3 areas
2nd Grade - Friday - spread out your duty stations across all 3 areas
A Christmas Carol
Our Navasota Theatre does different productions throughout the year. This year they're doing A Christmas Carol featuring two of our own; Jessica McHale and former student Grace Mendez. If you're interested in supporting our people, you can get info and purchase tickets HERE.
Birthdays
Cassie Reynolds - Nov 17
KVon Lambert - Nov 23
Katie Arrington - Nov 23
Dorothy Sargent - Nov 24
Tell Your Story
Here is a great conversation with Brandon and Abby Mullins about their journey through depression, marriage counseling, and mental health.
What We're Reading. A great idea for advertising what your students are currently reading!
The Impact of Reading 20 Minutes Per Day
In Closing...
Watch As Tony Robbins, Iyanla Vanzant, Td Jakes, Steve Harvey, Oprah Winfrey, David Steindl-Rast, Zig Ziglar share tips about being grateful and thankful for what we have as we strive for more!
Why do you teach? Why did you want to work in education?
Those are two questions that are paramount to the work that we do with kids. Hopefully your answers range between
- I wanted to impact children's lives
- I love working with kids
- I knew I could make a difference
- A teacher changed my life
- It fills me
But what if your answer is none of those? What is the answer is something more along the lines of "I need a paycheck" or "It keeps me busy".
That's when we really need to address our priorities. The moment working in education becomes only a paycheck or something to keep us busy is the moment we need to look elsewhere. Why? Because there are MANY jobs to keep food on the table and take up your time.
But when we work with children, we're impacting little lives, that will be felt for years to come. And that is far too important of a task to take lightly. Our children watch our every action, our every word, and our every interaction with others. We have to be careful about who we are choosing to be in front of our children.
We have to find ways to become more patient. Find ways to bring more joy into our day. Find ways to entice, excite, and engage our kiddos. Like any career choice with qualified individuals, we have to daily study our craft and find ways to get better. We have to complain less and look for solutions more.
No where we work is going to be perfect or filled with perfect co-workers. But you know what we CAN do? What we DO have control over? It's.....US. We can control what we choose to put our emotional energy into and how we choose to come at each situation.
So this week I challenge you to find the little things to bring joy back into your life. To find ways to laugh with your students. To study a part of your craft that is lacking and celebrate your work at trying to improve that area. To see struggles as opportunities to be better, for the kids. To complain less, and look for solutions more. Our kids need us! WE are the ones charged with getting them to where they need to be! Let's do this!
Week at a Glance
Monday - Nesloney Coaching Day
ELAR Textbook Meeting 3:30-5:00
Tuesday - Short Coaching Day
UIL Practice - 3:30-4:30
Wednesday - Argueta Coaching Day
Team Leader Meeting - 7am
Garcia Baby Shower - 3:30pm - Library
Thursday - Nesloney Coaching Day
Prayer Time - 7am - Team Planning Room
Friday - First Grade Spelling Bee
Coaching Days
Last week was mine, Short's, and Argueta's first week of assigned coaching days, and wow! It was so great for us to have these assigned days where we weren't interrupted by anything in the office and could just spend the whole day in classrooms. We're learning so much and enjoying our time with all of you!
Starting this week we'll also have "coaching type days" for our counselors! Once we have those days set in stone I'll let you know too. This will be for them to get into classrooms and see more students and even help you with ideas on how to reach some of your most difficult issues.
PLC Meetings this Week
This week is a "Make and Take" week. Kinder, First, and 2nd-5th Math need to bring Greg Coleman stations to make and take with you. Please keep in mind that you need to come PREPARED to this time so that you can work. When you don't come prepared it shows us that this time isn't important to you, and we'll use it for other reasons.
2nd-5th ELAR, get with your teams and decide what you're going to bring to make and take. Again, if you don't come prepared, you won't be given this time for this reason.
Kinder, 1st, and 2nd, you will meet like last week on either Monday, Wednesday, or Friday. When it's your team's time to meet, please SPREAD OUT for Morning Duty. Have two of each of your team members at each spot (Car, Gym, Cafeteria; including the door).
3rd Grade - Cafeteria
4th - Gym
5th - Car
Birthdays
Nov 5 - Halley Palmer
Nov 6 - Nancy Hernandez
Staffing Changes
This week is the beginning of some staffing changes we wanted you to be aware of!
As of Monday...
As you know Ms. Walker has left us to go work for the special education department. We have selected Tyra Johnson (our former Kinder IA) to take her spot. So as you see Ms Johnson in the front office please congratulate her and welcome her to her new spot!
As you also know Ms Martinez (Math Intervention IA) has left to be home with family. We have selected Maura Pavlock (former PPCD IA) to take her position. Maura will begin pulling kids Monday with Ms. Brewer.
Since we've moved Pavlock, we have also moved Marissa Garza (former SPED IA) into PPCD. We are thrilled to watch her continue to grow on this new journey.
We also had Ms. Nelson (Computer Lab IA) leave us last week.
We are currently looking for a Computer Lab IA, Kinder IA, and Special Education IA (with Mr Bradford). If you know anyone interested, please send them my way!
Parent/Teacher Conferences
Last week should have been the wrap up of Family Conferences. Thank you all for making this happen. I know you may think this is a crazy thing for me to ask of you, but it's actually state law that parent/teacher conferences are held in elementary schools in Texas. So thank you for helping us make sure we're in compliance. Please get your notes and sign in sheets to Cindy Puentes (please do not place outside my door).
Book Study
Don't forget to be reading your next two chapter in anticipation of our next discussion at our November faculty meeting. It's always funny to me how much we want to hold children accountable for behavior or completing work, yet many adults don't do the same! Reading this book together, as any book study, is a clear expectation of mine that I want you to make time to complete and come prepared to discuss.
House Points
As some of your students make huge academic gains to earn house points, please let Mr Bradford and Mr Holt know so they can celebrate them on the announcements.
Your students should be setting goals for themselves before EVERY Unit Assessment. This is an expectation of mine.
Positive Phone Calls/Messages Home
It has come to my attention that some may be a little confused on my expectations for positive messages home. Please ensure that weekly you are calling or sending a personal message home to celebrate at least two of your students.
I'm not sure, at the elementary level especially, why we wouldn't all want to be doing something as easy as this, which takes so little time, to celebrate kids and build relationships with families. So please begin that today (if you haven't already), and keep track somewhere of how/when you're doing it. I'll be collecting that information monthly starting at the end of November.
Tell Your Story
This week I interviewed Jr High Teacher Josie Bensko. You can watch below (or listen to on iTunes of SoundCloud).
This week focus on those things that make you smile, make you laugh, give you hope, help you keep stepping forward.
If there's one thing I know about Webb Elementary, it's that there are a lot of people who are passionate about children and are doing incredible work!
We've all seen or heard the iceberg analogy. That idea that you only see about 10% of what is actually happening in someone's life, while the other 90% happens beneath the surface. I think we could all agree with how completely true that is.
When you think about that analogy from a personal perspective, it helps remind us that we don't always know what is going on in deep within the lives of our students and our co-workers. We don't always see the entire picture. And sometimes that's our own fault. We don't work to put on the scuba gear and dive beneath the surface. But other times it may be because the water at the top has already frozen over because the person doesn't want us seeing any deeper. It may be too painful to share. To difficult to allow others to see. Or they may have always been told to handle their own problems and not put weight on others.
But that's when we, as divers, get out our ice picks, and chip away. We have some children and co-workers, who are struggling with some pretty deep issues. Who are allowing you to only see 10% of who they are.
Let's take time this week to sit with others on our team and just share. Ask about life, listen to other's stories without bringing it back to your own experiences. When we truly make the effort to see beneath the surface there's so much more we can learn from each other.
Week at a Glance
Monday - Nesloney Coaching Day
McGraw-Hill ELAR Textbook Adoption Meeting - 3:30pm - Central Office
Tuesday - Fall Pictures
UIL Practice - 3:30pm
Wednesday - EDUHERO DUE
PreK Field Trip
Storybook Character Day
Nesloney Coaching Day
Life Skills 1 & 2 Field Trip
Treats on the Street - 7pm-8pm
Thursday - Argueta Coaching Day
Kindergarten Field Trip
Staff Prayer Time - 7am
Friday - Short Coaching Day
Faculty Meeting & Walker Goodbye Party 3:45pm
EduHero
PLEASE make sure you have your EduHero and extra hours completed by Wednesday. I will be VERY unhappy if I have to come to work that week of Thanksgiving because in the 3 months or more you had to do this, you didn't get it done.
Coaching Days
You'll notice in the week at a glance, above, that there are identified coaching days. This will be true of every week moving forward. A "Coaching Day" is an untouchable day for that administrator. On that day the administrator will be spending the entire day in as many classrooms as possible and providing you with feedback and celebrations. If you are doing something spectacular, please still invite us in no matter what day it is!
These days are just marked off on mine, Short's, and Argueta's calendar so we don't plan any meetings those days and can be 100% present and active in classrooms.
Treats on the Street
We are participating in Treats on the Street with the city of Navasota again! Set up starts at 5pm and we just need someone to set up a small table with candy. Please get with Kheli LaBlue (in 1st Grade) for more information.
Birthdays
Jeanette Enriquez - Oct 30
Kevin Bradford - Oct 31
Tyra Johnson - Nov 2
Greyson Holt - Nov 3
Faculty Meeting
Yes, we have a Faculty Meeting on Friday at 3:45pm. It won't last too long. It'll be a celebration of something we're doing this week and also a goodbye send-off for Ms. Walker. It has been on the calendar for a little over a month, so please plan to be in attendance.
Dayana Martinez
This is Dayana Martinez's last week with us! She is going to stay home and take care of some family. We have loved having her as a Math Interventionist Aide with Ms. Brewer. If you see her this week, please let her know how much we have appreciated having her!
Parent/Teacher Conferences
This is the final week of Family Conferences. Please make sure when you've met with all your families that you turn in the sign in sheet to Ms. Puentes.
Morning Duty
On your PLC day....PLEASE keep in mind that you are on duty until 7:40am. We need you to stay at your duty station until then. Your PLC starts at 7:45am. Be on time to both your duty and PLC time. You should come prepared on your day.
Please also remember that 2nd-5th should be placing sticks in their cones either the morning of on the WAY to duty, or the afternoon before during Bus Duty.
Kinder - Gym
1st - Car
2nd - Cafeteria (need someone by cafeteria door)
3rd - Gym
4th - Car
5th - Cafeteria (need someone by cafeteria door)
House Points
We have put up the brand new House Score Board in the gym! Huge thank you to Courtney Moore and her father for building that for us!
Remember, this year we want to also give out House Points for academic reasons too!! So, before any exam, meet with your students and have them set goals for themselves. The goals should be lofty, but not out of reach.
If a child reaches their goal, let's give their house some points!
Hopefully this will be another opportunity for students to take their exams seriously and provide a little competitiveness. Please also find ways to celebrate kids who far exceed their goals, on the announcements!
T-TESS CUBE
Make sure you're continuing to find videos to grow your thinking on T-TESS Cube. There is an excellent one over "60 Tech Tools in 60 Minutes".
I saw this video online this week and found it to be such a brilliant easy idea. Instead of having one particular way we greet our students each morning, let's give THEM the choice!
Remember, our campus expectation is that every morning you are at your door greeting students and welcoming them into your classroom.
You've heard me say it before and you'll hear me continue to say it, change is hard. I know for a fact that when we are comfortable in the way we're doing something, then we're not challenging ourselves. We're not pushing ourselves.
I talk all the time about the ways we're pushing you and growing you, but the truth of the matter is that I have to be growing myself too because I can always be better.
This past week, on Monday and Tuesday, I attend the Breakthrough Coach training. I had heard about this training for years but never really thought to attend. After some prodding from a few more people, and a need and want to better myself but not finding just the right training, I signed up.
This training blew my mind. But it also made me incredibly uncomfortable, challenged some of my pre-conceived notions, and made me look at things in a whole new light. I also attended with Amy Bay (and Dr Brewer went two weeks before), so we're all going to be keeping each other accountable!
The training is designed to make principals (and other school/district leaders) the best leader they can be. Whether it's through the design of your office space, correctly utilizing your secretary, or how to make sure you make time for "coaching" and "office" days on campus. All I know is, after attending the training, I was sold and knew there were some major changes I needed to make, for me.
Over the next few weeks you will really begin to see these changes take place. Some things you'll see....
- You'll notice my office will look incredibly different.
- You'll see that the TP (Team Planning) room has been moved to the room behind the library. The old ARD room. This is to make room for a workable office for Cindy Puentes.
- You'll hear me tell you often, "Check with Cindy", "Cindy can schedule that time in for you", "have you talked with Cindy". Why? Because Cindy is my boss. She will be running my entire schedule and calendar and telling me where to be and when so I can maximize my productivity time.
- You will see me in your classes a lot more and providing much more feedback. Each week will be filled with "Coaching" and "Office" days, The "coaching" days are days that I am 100% in classrooms, with no other meetings planned, to be present and help provide feedback. "Office" days are days when I'll be planning meetings, returning phone calls, finishing paperwork, and also choosing to do some of my work while sitting in your classrooms, so again I can be more present.
- You'll see "Request Forms" mentioned often. Anytime you need anything done by anyone in the office, you'll get a Request Form from Cindy, fill it out, and we'll get it done!
This is just a start, and it'll make more sense as we go along. Cindy and I are also going to be working with a couple other schools who have done the Breakthrough Coach training to make sure we're really learning. This will be different for some of you. I know I already made someone really upset last week by asking them to schedule a time to meet with me, by talking to Cindy! But just as your time is important, so is mine, and I have to be wary of that more. If I am going to be the best Principal I can be, for you and these kids, I need to make some changes to be better.
This is our year! I am uncomfortable in making some of these changes, but I know they're necessary. I know they're going to make me better and I know they're going to make this school better.
So here's to change! It definitely isn't easy, but nothing easy was ever worth working for!
Week at a Glance
Sunday - Grades Due by 11:59pm
Monday - Staff Development Day
Tuesday - Beginning of Parent/Teacher Conference 2 Weeks
UIL Practice - 3:30-4:30pm
Education Foundation Dinner - 6:30-8:30pm
Thursday - Staff Prayer Time - 7am - New TP Room
4th Grade Field Trip
TEPSA Principals on Campus for Tour/Meeting
Friday - Mr. Lee & Ms Wright on Campus
House Games - 2:15pm
Football Game - 7:00pm
Saturday - Trunk or Treat
Dress Code
It's that time of the year again, when I'd like to remind you of our dress code expectations...
- Tights are never acceptable as pants without a dress over the top of them.
- Jeans with holes in them are never acceptable.
- If your clothes are too tight, or too revealing, Ms. Short or Ms. Argueta will ask you to change.
- T-shirts with random words or logos are never acceptable.
- Your ONLY jeans days are Mondays and Fridays. On Mondays you MUST be wearing a Webb shirt to be able to wear jeans. On Fridays you MUST be wearing a Rattler, Team, or Education shirt to wear jeans.
- Wednesdays is House colors day. That does not mean jeans day.
Please be aware, that if you are out of dress code I will send you home to change. I already sent two home last week to change clothes.
We are professionals and need to dress and act that way in front of your students.
Off Campus
A few admin and teachers will be off campus on Tuesday and Wednesday for mandatory trainings from Region 6 (Tuesday) and Region 4 (Wednesday). They will be bringing back their learning to share with our entire team.
Monday, October 22
I have already emailed SPED, PreK, and SPED/PreK IAs about where they need to be.
K-5 ELAR teachers will meet with Jessica Rogers in the Library starting at 8am
K-5 Math teachers will meet with Greg Coleman in the Gym starting at 8am
If you're a K-1 teacher, make sure you make double of the materials to share with your teammates who are in the opposite training.
When at these trainings, please stay actively engaged. You will need your laptops and something to write with at these trainings.
Camp Teachers will work as a team to be ready for the next 9 weeks.
Intervention teachers will continue to complete their paperwork and prepare their lessons.
At 1:30pm, if you work with students during the school day in an educational setting, you will need to be at Brosig Auditorium for the SPED training.
If you are not sure where you're supposed to go, please check with Walker up front.
Mrs. Walker
And speaking of Mrs. Walker, it is with a heavy heart that I tell you she has accepted a new position at Central Office working for the SPED department. Friday, November 2nd will be her final day! We will throw her a goodbye party in the coming weeks, but please make sure you take time to let her know how much we've appreciated all she's done! At least she isn't going far!
Phone Calls
There seems to be some confusion. So just to be clear, it is my expectation that you make at least 2 positive parent phone calls home per week. This was never a suggestion. This is best practice as a teacher. Please document these. It should take you no more than 5-10 minutes per week. If you need to put it on your calendar, set an alarm, have a friend hold you accountable, do whatever it takes.
This is NOT the same as the Hats Off cards.
Parent/Teacher Conferences
October 23 - November 2 will be our 4th annual Fall Parent/Teacher Conferences. This year you will have a two week period to meet with parents.
This is a part of our Targeted Improvement Plan, so here are the expectations this year.
1. You must meet with every parent.
2. The excuse of "I couldn't get ahold of them" will not be accepted. If we need to make home visits, make home visits.
3. Admin can sit in on any meeting you need them to sit in on (as well as make home visits with you)
3. We understand this may seem like a big task (it is!) but this is one of the most important pieces to getting families involved in the process.
4. There must be a sign in sheet that needs to be turned into Cindy Puentes.
5. Our 3rd-5th graders especially need to begin to lead parts of the meetings because the SPRING Parent/Teacher Conferences will be led by students 1st-5th Grade.
6. Students need to be present at their family meeting.
7. Find something positive to celebrate about EVERY child with their families. Talk GROWTH.
Morning Duty
On your PLC day....PLEASE keep in mind that you are on duty until 7:40am. We need you to stay at your duty station until then. Your PLC starts at 7:45am. Be on time to both your duty and PLC time. You should come prepared on your day.
Please also remember that 2nd-5th should be placing sticks in their cones either the morning of on the WAY to duty, or the afternoon before during Bus Duty.
Kinder - Car
1st - Cafeteria (need someone by cafeteria door)
2nd - Gym
3rd - Car
4th - Cafeteria (need someone by cafeteria door)
5th - Gym
House Points
This week we will be putting up some "House Points" signs around school so kids can continually keep up with house points.
Also, this year we want to give out House Points for academic reasons too!! So, before any exam, meet with your students and have them set goals for themselves. The goals should be lofty, but not out of reach.
If a child reaches their goal, let's give their house some points!
Hopefully this will be another opportunity for students to take their exams seriously and provide a little competitiveness.
TEPSA Principals on Campus
On Thursday we will have about 40 Principals and Assistant Principals from around the state of Texas visiting our campus. TEPSA (Texas Elementary Principal and Supervisor Association) selected our school as their fall meeting spot so they could see some of the great things Webb Elementary is doing.
They will tour the school (as led by some of our 5th grade tour guides) and meet and plan.
Lee and Wright
Mr. Lee (our SIP) and Ms. Wright (our Region 6 Rep) will be on campus on Friday! They may be stopping through your rooms to say hey!
House Games
Our 1st House Games of the year are on FRIDAY! We can't wait!
This year there will be a "sensory" room (the Library) for those students who can't handle being in a large space with that kind of noise.
Darla Davis will be the teacher in charge of that space. The House Games will be live broadcast by some of our 5th Graders so that the students in the sensory room can still feel a part.
If you have a student who needs to be in that room, please fill out THIS FORM, so Darla can make sure they're there. If they're not on that form, they will not be allowed in the room.
This is NOT a behavior room. Students will miss House Games for no reason except for DAEP Placement.
Birthdays
Lauren Neutzler - October 24
Tell Your Story
Here is this week's interview with 5th grade teacher, Jon White.
John Maxwell works with people from around the world on ways to help make them better leaders, educators, people, and more. He has "Minute with Maxwell" videos all over YouTube. I found this one to be especially timely. So many times we can lose our composure because we're focusing on the minuscule things instead of the big picture.
Let's work together this week to help each of us keep our eyes set on the big picture! Let's bring our best every day, because our kids deserve nothing less.
Discover something daily that makes you happy and become witness to your life transforming.
Our lives are rich with potential sources of happiness, but sometimes we become victims of negative thinking because we believe that focusing on all that has gone wrong will provide us with the motivation we need to face the challenges of survival. When we choose to focus on what makes us happy, however, a shift occurs in the fabric of our existence. Finding something to be happy about every single day can help this shift take place. The vantage points from which we view the world are brought into balance, and we can see that being alive truly is a gift to be savored. There is always something we can be happy about--it is simply up to us to identify it.
On one day, we may find happiness in a momentous, life-changing event such as a marriage or the birth of a child. On another day, the happiness we experience may be a product of our appreciation of a particularly well-brewed cup of a tea or the way the sun shines on a leaf. If we discover that we literally cannot call to mind a single joyful element of existence, we should examine the cause of the blockage standing between us and experiencing happiness. Keeping a happiness journal is a wonderful way to catalog the happiness unfolding all around us so that joy has myriad opportunities to manifest itself in our lives. Writing about the emotions we experience while contemplating joy may give us insight into the factors compelling us to resist it.
Happiness may not always come easily into your life. You have likely been conditioned to believe that the proper response to unmet expectations is one of sadness, anger, guilt, or fear. To make joy a fixture in your existence, you must first accept that it is within your power to choose happiness over unhappiness every single day. Then, each time you discover some new source of happiness, the notion that the world is a happy place will find its way more deeply into your heart. On this day, find one thing to be happy about and let it fill your heart.
Week at a Glance
Monday - Nesloney, Short, Argueta off campus at Training
Start of National School Lunch Week
Staff Meeting - 3:45pm - Gym
School Board Meeting - 6:30pm - Central Office
Tuesday - Nesloney, Short, Argueta off campus at Training
On Monday and Tuesday myself, Short, and Argueta will be at a training. Geralyn and Cewilla will be your go-tos. Just call the front office if you need assistance.
Kevin Bradford will also be available to help as needed.
Staff Meeting
There will still be a Staff Meeting on Monday at 3:45pm. Please be on time.
There will be a brief TRTA Membership Info presentation and then Jeannie Robertson will present a tool at this week's staff meeting.
House Meetings
We will have a House Meeting on Friday at 7:45am to practice cheers. 5th Graders will be designing cheers this week and will come prepared to the House Games on Friday to present the cheers to your house to practice.
There will be a 5th grader in each house who will record the cheer for me to share out in case you need to practice in class.
Birthdays
Courtney Moore - Oct 16
TCCA
TCCA is this Saturday. It is a fantastic conference that is FREE and comes with a free lunch. If you're attending please let me know! If you want to carpool let me know as well because I have a parking pass to park close!
PLC
During PLC time this week you will plan with your grade level cluster in the TP room. Please bring supplies to discuss your upcoming lessons and how they align with your standards so that other grade levels can see the continuity. We are tasking YOU with leading the PLC this week.
T-Shirts
Monday is our final day for Creating the Magic additional orders. If you want to order, you can HERE.
COMING SOON: Parent/Teacher Conferences
October 23 - November 2 will be our 4th annual Fall Parent/Teacher Conferences. This year you will have a two week period to meet with parents.
This is a part of our Targeted Improvement Plan, so here are the expectations this year.
1. You must meet with every parent.
2. The excuse of "I couldn't get ahold of them" will not be accepted. If we need to make home visits, make home visits.
3. Admin can sit in on any meeting you need them to sit in on (as well as make home visits with you)
3. We understand this may seem like a big task (it is!) but this is one of the most important pieces to getting families involved in the process.
4. There must be a sign in sheet that needs to be turned into Cindy Puentes.
5. Our 3rd-5th graders especially need to begin to lead parts of the meetings because the SPRING Parent/Teacher Conferences will be led by students 1st-5th Grade.
6. Students need to be present at their family meeting.
7. Find something positive to celebrate about EVERY child with their families. Talk GROWTH.
Book Study
Please make sure that you are making time to read something 20 minutes every night. Schedule it if you have to. We want to be asking our kids to read, we must also.
As far as our Book Study book, please make sure you have Chapters 4 and 5 read, with questions/discussion topics written down, to discuss. Please be prepared. You have several weeks advance notice, so the expectation is that you come with your written down questions/discussion points, and the chapters read.
Instead of discussing at this week's Faculty Meeting, you will have until FRIDAY to submit your reflection and answer the following two questions on FlipGrid
1. What is something you learned that you didn't think about before?
2. What is something that is pushing/challenging/frustrating your thinking about these two chapters?
Morning Duty
On your PLC day....PLEASE keep in mind that you are on duty until 7:40am. We need you to stay at your duty station until then. Your PLC starts at 7:45am. Be on time to both your duty and PLC time. You should come prepared on your day.
Please also remember that 2nd-5th should be placing sticks in their cones either the morning of on the WAY to duty, or the afternoon before during Bus Duty.
Kinder - Cafeteria (need someone by cafeteria door)
1st - Gym
2nd - Car
3rd - Cafeteria (need someone by cafeteria door)
4th - Gym
5th - Car
House Points
This week we will be putting up some "House Points" signs around school so kids can continually keep up with house points.
Also, this year we want to give out House Points for academic reasons too!! So, before any exam, meet with your students and have them set goals for themselves. The goals should be lofty, but not out of reach.
If a child reaches their goal, let's give their house some points!
Hopefully this will be another opportunity for students to take their exams seriously and provide a little competitiveness.
Tell Your Story
Here is this week's interview with Chris Ruden as he discusses his disability, diabetes, bullying, and overcoming obstacles.
As a campus we either rise together, or we fall. We know that in the end, what matters is our kids. Their lives are at stake here. When we get upset about adult things, and then those things bleed into our school day, we affect our kids.
When I say WE rise together, I mean it takes ALL of us, When we're short handed we all step in. Yes even Jennifer Short (in 5th) and I (in 4th) had to sub in a classroom all day in the last two weeks because we were short handed.
When we need extra help in the office, we pull IAs and they help. When our students are having a rough day yes us in the office give up hours of our workload to help those kids and provide consequences. When we need supplies from Wal-Mart someone is always ready to jump up and go! When teams have that have to combine classes and they do it.
When we bring a joyful spirit to work and know that "Today I'm going to help these kids however I'm asked. Even if my cheese is moved. Even if what I'm being asked to do isn't what I thought I'd be doing today" then things become a little easier.
Why? Because our kids need us to take our own emotions out of the equation and show up, for THEM!
This is a campus filled with people who step up at a moments notice. Even on Friday when I sent out the Remind text for help in the morning, we had over 20 teachers show up to help. THANK YOU!
None of you get paid what you're worth, or for the work you're putting in, but TOGETHER we're going to make it work for these kids. Because in the end, they are the reason why we're here.
I love this video because I think it exemplifies team work. It shows how even the opposite team sometimes sacrifices to do what's best, to do what's right.
