LT principal after chaos in Washington

 Well said... after january 6, 2021 chaos in Washington.... LT principal sends this out:

The events that occurred during Wednesday’s election certification in Washington D.C. were historic, tragic, and not reflective of the democratic society most Americans strive for. On Thursday, our remote classrooms included questions from students and discussion, which undoubtedly included varying opinions, thoughts, and feelings regarding Wednesday’s events. Please know as educators, while we do not have all the answers to student questions, our obligation is to focus on acknowledging the history of the moment and the reality of what occurred, to demonstrate empathy to those who were injured or lost their lives, and to provide an opportunity for all students to share their thoughts, feelings, and opinions in a respectful manner.

Lead with Gratitude

 

When people are stressed out, they’re more likely to treat those around them poorly. But research shows that creating a culture of gratitude on your team can not only lift people up and boost morale, it may also prevent workplace mistreatment. So be a role model. For example, take time to give each employee a sincere and personalized thank you for their effort this year. Or create time and space (physical or virtual) for gratitude. Some employees may feel uncomfortable expressing appreciation verbally, so you might start an appreciation wall to recognize each other. Alternatively, you could begin meetings with gratitude “check-ins,” during which team members can express one thing that they’re thankful for. Or consider creating opportunities where customers, clients, patients, or other beneficiaries can explain how they’re positively impacted by the work of your employees. There's no better time to introduce these practices than the holiday season, as we're all reflecting on what's been a trying year. So go ahead and start now.

This tip is adapted from “Building a Better Workplace Starts with Saying 'Thanks,',” by Lauren R. Locklear et al.

Make gratitude part of every day

 This tip is adapted from “Be Grateful More Often,” by Francesca Gino (from HBR 11/26/2020) 

Say Thank You Today — and Every Day

Even though many of us have numerous occasions to feel grateful in both our personal and professional lives, we often miss out on opportunities to say thank you — especially at work. Failing to express gratitude is a missed opportunity. Research finds that it allows you to savor positive experiences, cope with stressful circumstances, and strengthen your relationships with colleagues. And sending a message of gratitude can also have powerful and long-lasting effects on the recipient, who will feel valued and motivated to help others. So send some thanks today — to colleagues, mentors, mentees, family, friends, or anyone who's helped you along the way. But don't wait another year to do it again! Whether you're a CEO or someone looking for your first job, think about incorporating gratitude into your daily, weekly, and monthly routines. It may make your journey, wherever you’re going, a little brighter.

What inclusive leadership "sounds like"

 Check out this article from HBR- 

https://hbr.org/2020/11/what-inclusive-leaders-sounds-like?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter_weekly&utm_campaign=weeklyhotlist_not_activesubs&deliveryName=DM107768

Crowd Source - How to Engaged Kids who are getting Ds and Fs now

  Addressing D and F.

Teachers feel like the problem isn’t that kids don’t show up… it’s executive functioning and proximity.  Kids are just not finishing and submitting often.  

Teachers are feeling like they need PERMISSION to take class time to check in with students.  It’s very hard to get the struggling students to reach out during office hours.  And talking to kids who are “in front of you” in class is really hard b/c teachers are doing so much tech juggling and teaching.  

So, a couple ideas:

1. Make time EACH CLASS PERIOD to touch base with kids on D/F list.  You can do this either by having daily reading time (book love/independent reading) or “daily drafts” (some opening write either in response to an article/video/cartoon or something else.  Think Gallagher/Kittle).  Yes, this is “against” the district’s idea that you are “synchronous” the whole time.  This DOES align with all flex learning models.  You can schedule “work time” where you pull kids into class.  The class doesn’t know you’re calling in only the Ds and Fs.

2. Do it Right Now.  When you talk to a kid about missing work, ask them to complete it RIGHT NOW and exempt them from whatever else you’re doing (of course there will be some times you can’t do this) (you can use co-teacher or Lit Lab to help with this, too.)

3. You have the power!  Just providing them “more time” to get in work might not work.  You might need to exempt kids from formative work.  Think about ALL kids in F range as Jenn Jaczyk kids.Get the kids to do the KEY formative and the summative stuff.  You have permission to be flexible with due dates and EXMP grades (keep a deadline).  You have the power to allow to allow summative re-takes (until district decides later).  You have the permission to let formatives go (meaning, allow kids to get a poor grade or 50% or whatever) if they are doing well on summatives.

4.  Full Day check in.  It’s OK to take a whole day every couple weeks for “extension activity” so you can check in with struggling students.  Check in with all kids at the beginning, assign a TASK, then send them away to work while you KEEP all kids who are struggling.  Work with them as a group and/or 1:1 to help them manage the missing work.  Also… you can ask the Lit Lab to come in to be with the kids who are getting As, Bs, Cs.  YOU take the day to work with kids to manage their missing work.

5. Enforced Office hours.  The days before a summative, I send emails to parents and kids to meet with me during office hours.  If a kid misses a summative, I send the email and say “you must come on Tuesday at 1:30 to TAKE the test.”  Parents are cc-ed.

6. Lit Lab Wednesdays. Let Lit Lab take your successful kids.  You work the entire period with the D/F list.  (You can also send 1-3 kids to work with the Lit Lab teacher just to get summatives.  Even if the assignment is not COMPLETE, it’s at least started.  It’s OK if kids don’t get what’s in TODAY’s Class.)

7. Low Weight (like “0.1” weight) for assignments in TAC.  It’s a pain to keep up with the grading, but it helps show the trend of “not doing work” to parents/counselors.   Some teachers say that they are currently doing lots of this kind of thing, but are planning on reducing it as the semester goes on.

Helpful no-nonsense email from teacher to parent

 

Diego is failing Rhetoric, not due to lack of skill, but to lack of assignment completion. Below are all of his outstanding assignments. Diego is in the remote group, so I can’t help him in person, but I am willing to have a separate zoom conference with him to figure out what the deal is. Otherwise, he needs to set aside some time, like this afternoon when there are no classes, and get this work done. It would be a shame to have to repeat this course in summer school due to missing assignments. This is a graduation requirement. Let me know if you have any questions.

(followed by list of missing assignments)

Helpful Form Email from Teacher to Parents

 

Good morning,

So far this quarter, we have been working on the development of four skills in Civics.  In Infinite Campus, you will see 4 summative grades (one for each) skill recorded.  These scores make up your first quarter grade.  You will also see other grades entered.  These grades are practice for each skill, and do not count toward the quarter grade.  They are called formatives.  Per district policy, homework and practice do not count toward the final grade.

We will continue working on these skills in each unit moving forward in our upcoming units on The Executive Branch, The Legislative Branch, and The Judicial Branch.

All summative assessments can be made up, or re-taken, once your student has reflected on their effort and progress and requested a re-take with me.  Students have three weeks to make up or re-take these assessments from the date they were given.

Overall, students are doing very well, and we are looking forward to learning about the Presidency as we explore various aspects of the 2020 Presidential Election.

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out via email:---  I am happy to talk with you about your student's progress.

Thanks, and have a great day!