If you are like me and read Harvey "Smokey" Daniels & Stephanie Harvey's 1st book, you will want to note that their 2nd edition is coming out in June.   Many people think that  the Common Core restricts the teaching in our schools.  Harvey and Stephanie point out that now we can be focused on the bigger picture and teaching that allows for inquiry.  Let me know if you would be interested in a book study after school monthly in the fall with this new book.  I enjoy their blog posts too.  Click here if you would like to read and/or join too.

Just what are we missing in our schools today

...is what this article made me think as it really caught my eye ...... I think I want to go to this kindergarten.  Click here for the whole article. Kathy

What does a school do with 5- and 6-year-old kids?

The old answer was coax them into little chairs — at least until “creative time" — keep 'em relatively organized, and keep a lid on their natural enthusiasm. Basically a constant riot-control situation. And a first taste of standardized education.

But kindergarteners don't need to be forced to learn — really, they can't stop learning.

So educators in Tokyo had a different idea.

Architect Takaharu Tezuka explains in a TEDx Kyoto talk how one school created a kindergarten that doesn't fight against kids' natural impulses. It counts on them.

The roof is a giant ring of a playground. Why? Kids love to run in circles.

The single, continuous classroom has no walls.

Teachers asked kids to use crates to create their own areas, but somehow it didn't quite manage to get done.

The design has child psychology in mind.

Kids can get anxious when they feel walled-in or constrained. That doesn't happen here. And since little dynamos thrive in environments with lots of noise, they've come to the right place — there are no acoustic barriers.

 “The principal says, 'If the boy in the corner don't want to stay in the room, we let him go. And he'll come back eventually because the circle comes back.'" — Takaharu Tezuka

Are you running on empty ............

Let's consider our stress level today - just how does it affect your brain.  When I am over-stressed, I find myself learning about stress.  What does it do to my body?  How can I help myself?  How can support others?

This was an interesting Ted-talk about stress.  It made me feel a bit better. It was reflective at the minimum.

It is a trying time in the world and especially in the educational setting.  I hope you can take some time to reflect on thinking about your own learning, your self-talk, and yourself.

"chasing meaning is a healthier choice than running from frustration or discomfort (stress)"

I care for my educational friends and colleagues, may your day be filled with meaning as you touch so many lives.  K

Depression is real..............it touches those around us daily

This week was a particularly difficult one for me.  A wonderful neighbor in Green Bay lost her daughter on Tuesday.  Shannon, name written with permission from her Mom, was a bright girl who went to school with Kyle from Kindergarten to 12th grade.  She began her depression in high school and it  perhaps was associated with her sharing of her alternative lifestyle.  Even in a community where living an alternative lifestyle is thought to be respected in the education and community environments she struggled.  Mental health issues are all around us.  My son, Kyle, was really surprised and saddened by the news.  He rode the bus, shared car rides, and chatted with her over coffee when he came home for breaks, and messaged her via Facebook regularly to encourage her and to continue to be her friend.  He spoke of her struggle with me throughout the years.  The mother cried on my shoulder trying to know the right things to do, to say.  Shannon had a heart of gold.  It just goes to show we can never know exactly how much someone else is hurting.  We cannot ever judge when or if someone is struggling.  It makes me pause to think how many people around me are hurting.  It is so easy to rush through our own lives.

Take the time today to watch this video - for all the Shannons around us.

Using criteria-based rubrics for peer and student self-scoring really does matter!

Using rubrics in your teaching really matters to ensuring that your students work harder than you do. Having the students peer-assess and self-assess using the rubric forces the students to grade their own work before the teacher grades it.

Some times teachers say, "Well the students grade themselves too high or too low so it doesn't really work that well".  Always outsmart those students by giving them a grade on how well they can use the rubric to correctly score their own work and their peer's work.  That way you will teach them what to look for and they will be able to evaluate their work effectively.

Using student's work from the class, with their permission of course, to review and score as a class is a great technique to teach students this important rubric scoring skill.

Give them the rubrics, ask them to score themselves and give them a grade or bonus points for matching their self-score with the teacher's score to make sure they work harder than you do!

Criteria-based feedback truly can matter to student learning.  Kathy

Who or What is SAMR?

If you have not heard about SAMR - then it is time to relax over a hot cocoa on a rainy day like today and read about the way instruction is changing via moving instruction through the SAMR transformational model.  Decide where you are at and consider a goal for next year of moving to a M or R project, assignment or collaborative activity during each marking period.  Set reasonable goals to allow yourself and your students time to grow in this area.

Click here for SAMR interactive learning.

This visual will help you understand your instructional framework within a 21st Century Transformational Model.  What I love about being an educator is that I am constantly learning and growing.  Sometimes it may exhaust me but most of the time it challenges and inspires me to get up early and stay up late.

Let me know what you think.  John Kuglin, on June 15th, will provide you with some cutting edge technology tips to transform your planning and teaching to transform student learning in your room. Registration materials for the 1st Annual Summer Teaching and Learning Academy will come to you on April 15th as our plans are almost finalized.

Let's continue to learn and grow together --- Kath

State Mandated - Personal Financial Literacy Standards

As I begin to ponder how we will work on the Personal Financial Literacy Standards that need to be embedded in our math, social studies, guidance, and career education, I see the many resources that are available to assist us in the instruction.  Click for DPI Personal Financial Literacy Standards  or CUNA: Financial Education to learn more.



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