December 20, 2018

Happy holidays GVMS Super Heroes   

2018 has been a heck of a year....This is my first Christmas without my mom and I keep looking for her at cheer competitions, my birthday, Thanksgiving, family pictures, and water polo tournaments.  Any of you who have lost a parent or loved one must know what I am going through and I appreciate your patience with me.  I know that I can jump to want to fix things (not necessarily a good thing and I need to stop and reflect!), where taking a minute to evaluate the situation would benefit all involved.  I know it will get easier, as time goes on, and I appreciate the patience, kind words, hugs, and smiles.  I really try to put on a brave front most of the time... =)

~Kristen

We have had so many challenges this school year so far (behavior of previous students, new student behavior, new curriculum, and more) and you all have so incredibly worked hard to maintain smiles, positive notes, happiness and more!  We know that you are looking forward to a bit of a break to rest and rejuvenate!

 We truly wish you the best for the holidays and hope they are filled with love, laughter, and light.  We all have "stuff" going on outside of GVMS and, yet, you all come here to be here for our kids.

Surround yourself with people who make you happy.  People who make you laugh, who help you when you're in need.  People who make your day brighter and better. People who genuinely care about you this holiday season!

When we return, Rick Vacarro will be sub AP for Christine for the first two weeks.  For the remaining time, Angie McKinsey will be here for Christine.  Angie is looking forward to getting back into the swing of Admin as she was previously an FSUSD Admin.  Please help me in making her feel welcome and answering questions that she may have regarding the way we work at GVMS!

We know it's been a stressful (trust me, we know!) and there may be more along the way. We encourage you to take a break, enjoy family, don't check email unless you are just DYING to do so, take care of yourself, and come back ready to focus on ALL THINGS POSITIVE and about our kids.  

Much love,

Kristen and Christine

December 14, 2018

Focus on Good, no GREAT, First Instruction!

We continue to focus on GOOD, if not GREAT, first instruction.  Asking a large number of questions and checking the responses of all students is something all teachers should be doing daily.  When we stop talking "AT" students, we get them to reflect on their own learning and process the information at their level.   From this, and having ALL students participate in academic conversations determines whether or not the class is ready to move on, needs to work in small group, or you must reteach the concept to the entire class.

How can this be done, you ask?  In addition to the academic conversation cards that we have and can continue to laminate to tape on desks or student binders, here are some other suggestions to use:

• Structured academic conversation: Put sentence stems on board for each partner
• Summarizing and sharing out: whole class, neighbors, or just to teacher
• Use Google Survey as a quiz
• Use those whiteboards!!  Have them complete a quick write question, formative assessment, or an exit ticket! SO EASY!
• Use Padlet.com or post it notes to review quickly.  Again, SO EASY!

While this is happening in the majority of classes at GVMS, it IS still happening.  It the classrooms where we see the discipline issues, the failing grades, and  boredom.  Check out the Student Advisory Council Board Meeting.  Out of the mouths of babes and, yes, one of those students is a Viking.

Any of you that have had the chance to read John Hattie and his High Impact Strategies for Teachers, you know that he focuses on student achievement and the high impact teachers have on students' learning.  We recently went to a training and reviewed the 6 areas that contribute to learning (student, home, school, curriculum, teacher, and learning approaches) as well as his updated list of 150 effects of visible learning.  Take a look HERE at the 252 influences of related to student achievement.  Any guess on what the most influential one is?  Yep.  Teacher efficacy.  Read it.  It's worth your time.

I know I sent the link to the CA Dashboard to have you all review, on your own time, where GVMS stands in regards to ELA scores, Math scores, Suspensions, and Attendance.  We reviewed this, again, in great detail on Monday.  Take a minute to really look at our data.  What is it telling us?  What area should we be focusing in on?  Do we need to refocus our overall goals?  

We will be reviewing this data, more in depth, at our faculty meeting on January 8, when we return from break.  This will be guiding our focus for the remaining part of the school year!

SUPER HERO SHOUT OUTS!

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• SUPER awesome shout out to Brenda for answering all of my "new staff member" questions without rolling her eyes (at least not in front of me!) ~Karron
• SUPER awesome shout out to Nate for coming to the rescue in P1! ~KC &CL
• SUPER awesome shout out to English Department for an awesome Collab Day!  Best Department Ever! ~Heather T. =)
• SUPER awesome shout out to Tamia for working so hard with our 6th graders! ~Cristina
• SUPER awesome shout out to Marlys for all of your help everyday in 1st period! ~Cristina
• SUPER awesome shout out to Cristina for putting together the slides for Creating a Culture of Kindness for the 6th grade team! ~Ryan
• SUPER awesome shout out to Ms. Kristy and Jason for coming to my rescue more often than not in the parking lot! ~KC
• SUPER awesome shout out to PE DEPT for always being willing to help supervise before and after school! ~KC&CL
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December 7, 2018

Focus on Good First Instruction

Presenting new material in small steps with student practice after each step is a researched based learning strategy that we should be incorporating into instruction daily.  No one, including our students, likes to sit through a meeting or a training being "TALKED AT" the entire time.  As we think about engaging our students, we want to present new material in chunks and give students practice (HANDS ON, something to DO!!) after each chunk or standard.  Using a timer and the 10:2 (10 minutes OR LESS of instruction: 2 minutes of processing) method you can make sure that you are chunking the instruction.  This is just one simple idea and there are TONS more!

DID YOU KNOW?  Over 50% of students in school are disengaged.   Until we are at 100%, we will CONTINUE this conversation as high levels of engagement directly link to higher achievement, lower off task behavior, and all around happier students!   Check out THIS LINK to read about the statistics, what we can do about it, and the impact it can have! 

WOULD YOU WANT TO BE A STUDENT IN YOUR CLASS???

IF YOUR STUDENTS DIDN'T HAVE TO BE IN YOUR CLASS, WOULD THEY SHOW UP ANYWAY??

With the holidays fast approaching, it can be a more stressful time than any other time of the year.  So how do we, as educators, keep our students focused on the positive so that it can only encourage us as well?  Take a look at THIS ARTICLE for an easy read on easy ideas such as being a "cheerleader", focusing on emotional needs of students instead of standards first, and more!

SUPER HERO SHOUT OUTS!

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• SUPER awesome shout out to all who helped when my car got broken into.  Officer Joe, Aida, Brenita, Rosa and Ric who vacuumed the glass from my window so that I could dirve home safe.  They treated me how they would want to be treated in the same situation! ~Emily
• SUPER awesome shout out to my secret pal for the festive gifts!  I am enjoying them all! ~Katherine
• SUPER awesome shout out to Heather T for always helping me and my students! ~Megan
• SUPER awesome shout out to Heather T for taking on more with 504s, SSTs and parent meetings! ~Admin
• SUPER awesome shout out to Mr. Frank for my awesome jacket! ~KC
• SUPER awesome shout out to Tamia who I co-teach with!  I love her positive energy and ability to teach effectively while managing the classroom! ~Laurie
• SUPER awesome shout out to Karron!  She is super helpful to our SPED teachers! ~Lilia
• SUPER awesome shout out to my secret pal!  Thank you for all you have done! ~Carol
• SUPER awesome shout out to Karen for putting up with all of my crazy questions about textbooks! ~Carol
• SUPER awesome shout out to Karron, Kevin, Kimberly, and Sue for helping with movie night!  
• SUPER awesome shout out to Sandy for making movie night happen for our kids!
• SUPER awesome shout out to Heather T. for her support with a challenging student.  Thank you for doing a daily check!! ~Karron
• SUPER awesome shout out to my secret pal.  I love the treats and the office decorations! ~Brenda
• SUPER awesome shout out to Sue for caring so deeply for our students and their success!  She truly looks out for every individual! ~Aubry
• SUPER awesome shout out for the staff meeting this past Tuesday!  It was great to see everyone outside of school! ~Julie
• SUPER awesome shout out to Karen and Annette for letting me use the library TV!  I really appreciate it! ~Julie
• SUPER awesome shout out to Cristina for making the Kindness lessons into a slide show! ~Julie

November 30, 2018

I recently read an article about why many kids are so impatient (including my own sometimes!!) and this helped me with a little insight.  It doesn't excuse it or promote it, AND, it can help to explain it a little.

Take a look at THIS ARTICLE to gain some insight as to why this year may seem WAY more of a struggle than ever before.  From instant gratification to limited social interaction, to "endless" fun, this article was truly insightful!!  

MORE ON ENGAGEMENT!  Until we are at 100%, we will CONTINUE this conversation as high levels of engagement directly link to higher achievement, lower off task behavior, and all around happier students!  How do we get students to make class discussions more engaging so that they are focused on the learning AND master content?  Check out THIS LINK to try 5 easy ways to make your class discussions more engaging!

WOULD YOU WANT TO BE A STUDENT IN YOUR CLASS???

IF YOUR STUDENTS DIDN'T HAVE TO BE IN YOUR CLASS, WOULD THEY SHOW UP ANYWAY??

I put this in family blog and I seriously think it needs to be in our staff one too...

Kindness.  Such an easy word to say and yet such a struggle to encourage kids and each other to practice.  Every single day, we remind our students to be nice, kind and caring.  To follow our school rules.  And every day we struggle with some of our students being mean, cruel and downright disrespectful to their peers and the adults.  Please help us encourage our Vikings and encourage each other ON STAFF to PRACTICE KINDNESS DAILY.  Here is an article about the Power of Kindness.  It makes SUCH a difference in everyone's life.

SUPER HERO SHOUT OUTS!

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• SUPER awesome shout out to Cristina for being selected Teacher of the Year for GVMS!
• SUPER awesome shout out to my Secret Pal for such thoughtful gifts that brighten my day! ~Karen
• SUPER awesome shout out to Steven for the idea of collateral for a chrome charger use in class!
• SUPER awesome shout out to Rosa for helping me with the glasses!!
• SUPER awesome shout out to my amazing partner, Ryan, for being my twin on 11/27/18! ~Karron
• SUPER awesome shout out to Brenita who does a great job of making sure our students are safe.  She is a steady and calm force in our students' lives! ~Emily
• SUPER awesome shout out to the front office staff for being so helpful! ~Peter
• SUPER awesome shout out to Brenda for keeping me calm and reading my mind! 
• SUPER awesome shout out to Sandy for all of her help during College and Career Week! ~Peter
• SUPER awesome shout out to Rosa for helping me track down the chrome books! ~Karen

November 16, 2018

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!  Please have a safe, restful, rejuvenating, relaxing, fun, and EMAIL FREE WEEK!  Please do not come into GVMS unless absolutely necessary and make sure that you have the alarm code to get in!  We will not have custodial here the entire time so, if you do choose to come in, please make sure you know how to disarm the alarm.  I will be staying local so, if there is a problem, please give me a call.

Just to put a smile on your face, take less than 5 minutes to watch Kid President.  He ALWAYS puts a smile on our face and I am SURE it will for you!  =)

SUPER HERO SHOUT OUTS!

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• SUPER awesome shout out to Tamia for all she is doing while Heather is gone through January!
• SUPER awesome shout out to HISTORY Department for being the first department to entirely submit student of the month names!
• SUPER awesome shout out to Carol for her support of my EL student in 3rd period! ~Karron
• SUPER awesome shout out to my Secret Pal for such thoughtful gifts that brighten my day! ~Karron
• SUPER awesome shout out to my Secret Pal for my gifts too!~KC
• SUPER awesome shout out to Alex Chalmers for solving my Smart Board problems in a timely manner! ~Sue

November 9, 2018

During our faulty meeting, we had the table focusing on objectives vs. activities and I wanted to share the differences.  Here is the black and white of it from that activity ("borrowed" from THIS reading:

Activities-

• Students will take extensive notes (Cornell Notes, DOK notes, etc) on the causes for the Louisiana Purchase
• Students will share their ideas on the benefits of multivitamin on health
• Students will be engaged in a role-playing activity to learn about Civil War
• Students will write down 3 strategies on time management

Learning Objectives (taken from SAME theme):

At the end of class,

• Students will be able to identify, with evidence, three main causes that led to the Louisiana Purchase
• Students will be able to discuss, with evidence, the 5 benefits of a multivitamin 
• Students will be able to identify, with evidence, the causes and effects of the Civil War and their impacts on the national building process in the years that followed
• Students will be able to recall, with evidence, three strategies that are used to manage their study and personal time effectively.

During our recent faculty meeting, we had a table that discussed differentiation, which leads to higher student engagement, which leads to lower negative behavior issues.  Go figure, right? =)  The read we had at that table was easy to follow and went over the four areas to differentiate in the classroom. 

How else can we differentiate to (in the long run) make our lives easier???  Yes, please!!  Take a look at THIS additional article on more ideas, ways to succeed in implementing differentiation, and making life EASIER!!

I recently revisited on ways that we, at GVMS, could help our students get inspired to be grateful.  How could we, as adults, teach and MODEL this to our students?  How could we inspire the next generation to CARE about one another as we see this less and less?  How do WE train them to be the good int he world and to "be the  change that we want to see in the world?  Check out THIS ARTICLE for some inspiration and the video above.  Don't worry, it's quick =)

Recently, a group of admin and teachers watched an EverFi webinar on mental health, myself included.  If you want to check it out, click here.  We would LOVE to create a staff wellness challenge, much like what we discussed in our faculty meeting around self-care.   We are going to print the bingo cards for each staff member to attempt to complete by the end of November.  Those that do will receive a prize from Admin!!

SUPER HERO SHOUT OUTS!

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• SUPER awesome shout out to Cristina for coming up with and planning the huge scavenger hunt for 6th grade! ~Tamia and Lynn
• SUPER awesome shout out to 6th grade for saving cans for leadership so we can buy fun things! ~Sandy
• SUPER awesome shout out to Volleyball team and Coach Cristina for making the staff vs. team game happen! ~Sandy
• SUPER awesome shout out to Carol for raising the most money for the Sandy Hook Promise! ~Sandy
• SUPER awesome shout out to my Secret Pal for the goodies and putting a smile on my face! ~Brenda
• SUPER awesome shout out to Jason for the idea of Student of the Month during Tutorial!
• SUPER awesome shout out to Megan for the awesome engagement idea!
• SUPER awesome shout out to our History teachers for taking on the election! ~Carol
• SUPER awesome shout out for the monthly Room Service!!
• SUPER awesome shout out to Carol and Sandy for making the mock election happen! ~Julie
• SUPER awesome shout out to Elizabeth for her awesome brussel sprouts!  5/5 Yelp Review! ~Alex
• SUPER awesome shout out to Tamia for help with 1st and 2nd in P2!
• SUPER awesome shout out to Julie, Lynn, Anita, Katherine, Ryan, Karron, Tamia, Ms. Kristy, Ms. Uma, Heather, Rosa, and Elizabeth for helping to make the scavenger hunt work so well! ~ Cristina
• SUPER awesome shout out to Heather for making me laugh even when I want to cry! ~Cristina
• SUPER awesome shout out to Bates and Lucero for calming me down, making me laugh and not letting me call in sick for the rest of the school year =)! ~KC
• SUPER awesome shout out to Ms. Kristy for always helping me with crosswalk! ~KC
• SUPER awesome shout out to PE Department for back up on after noon yard duty!!
• SUPER awesome shout out to Sue for the awesome rewards! ~Lynn

November 2, 2018

How do we keep them engaged, even with the craziness of all of the holidays coming up??? We know it can be a crazy time of year, so just HOW do we keep our Vikings engaged?  Take a look at THIS ARTICLE on some easy ideas to keep em' engaged even with the holiday craze!  Again, would YOU want to be in YOUR class??

WOULD YOU WANT TO BE A STUDENT IN YOUR CLASS???

IF YOUR STUDENTS DIDN'T HAVE TO BE IN YOUR CLASS, WOULD THEY SHOW UP ANYWAY??

Stressed and burnout seem to be a common word we are hearing lately.  Are you feeling irritable?  Not wanting to attend social gatherings, even the easy ones that involve food?  Increase in complaints? Fatigue or insomnia?  You aren't alone.  I think we are all feeling these warning signs in one way or another.

So, how do we reverse this and charge ahead, focusing on the positive/great/wonderful things that are happening in our lives- both at home and at GVMS?  It's time to TAKE ACTION!!  Take these easy ideas, (even something as easy as loading the "momentum" app to your computer like I demonstrated at our faculty meeting last month) including remembering to smile, shift your focus to your home, laugh uncontrollably, try teaching something new, take up yoga, go for a walk during your prep, and share with your colleagues.  I know, I know, easier said than done sometimes.  And, if you have ideas, PLEASE share them with me too =)

SUPER HERO SHOUT OUTS!

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• SUPER awesome shout out to Tamia for the ADORABLE backpack!  I love it and it made my day! ~KC
• SUPER awesome shout out to Cristina for organizing and implementing the 6th grade scavenger hunt for our 6th graders!  THIS IS AWESOME!!!
• SUPER awesome shout out to DHH staff, Admin, and office ladies- thank you for your patience and support while I was no here full time for the DHH students!  Much appreciated! ~Tara
• SUPER awesome shout out to Heather T., for so many good thoughts, superb planning and organization and clear communication in our collab meeting this last week! ~ J. Alfred Prufrock (AKA Jason)
• SUPER awesome shout out to CL and KC for help with troubled students! ~Julie
• SUPER awesome shout out to Carol for patience and enthusiasm working with me to speak with the 7th grade students! ~Peter
• SUPER awesome shout out to Sandy and Leadership for an awesome Spirit Week!
• SUPER awesome shout out to Carla and Heather T. for their work with PBIS and looking at all of our data! ~KC
• SUPER awesome shout out to Paula for letting us use your classroom for College and Career Club during lunch! ~Peter
• SUPER awesome shout out to Karron for helping with Cross Country championships with Liz!
• SUPER awesome shout out to Lorraine for being my twin on Twin Day and always being willing to listen! ~Heather T.
• SUPER awesome shout out to Sandy for the awesome spirit and activities all over campus! 
• SUPER awesome shout out to Carla for always being willing to impart her knowledge to me on the ins and outs of school psychology! ~Heather T
• SUPER awesome shout out to Cristina for her AWESOME work on the scavenger hunt for 6th grade (SO bummed we missed it!) Seriously a ton of time and effort went into this!  MAJOR shout out! ~Julie
• SUPER awesome shout out to Sandy and Leadership for MOC election work coming up! ~Carol