Taking Risks with Professional Development

As we enjoy the much needed break, rejuvenating our minds and bodies in preparation for Round 2 (aka 2nd semester), take a moment to reflect upon your own professional learning.  Whether it's been a LindberghU class, PD session, or book study, I hope you've found something that's inspired you to take a risk in the future.  

As professionals, it's easy to get caught up in the day to day pressures of teaching, ensuring students are getting every opportunity for success.  However, as professionals, it's also important that we are excited about our craft.  For me, that often means doing something different, trying something new, being willing to fail in the hopes that I've found a new method that inspires me and my students...with the added benefit of modeling for them that I am a learner too.  It's hypocritical of us to talk about growth mindset if we are fixed.

This year at Sappington, teachers are participating in Lesson Study through an MU Partnership study grant.  Through this process, teachers model lessons, observe one another, and provide feedback to further the team's instruction.  This is a great tool for PLCs to use when taking a risk with an new instructional idea.

Observing the lesson to provide feedback

Students engaged in collaborative learning

Reflecting upon the lesson, with ideas to further professional learning for all

Kudos to LHS teachers whose knowledge of differentiation was so strong that they challenged presenters from EdPlus to reach an audience of advanced learners.  In this session on differentiation, teachers focused on key strategies they could implement in the classroom as well as making connections between content-based standards and the readiness level of students.  This is key in the work we'll do within the curriculum revision cycle.

At the beginning of this activity, teachers self-selected their readiness level to begin learning the content.

Working in pairs or small groups, they engaged in new content by categorizing and classifying the newly acquired information.

A Pictorial Peek Into Middle Schools

Science:  Measuring lung capacity with their own hot air, a balloon, and measuring tape

Science:  Graphing their data in multiple trials to find the mean and draw conclusions

ELA:  using annotation marks to document thinking during reading

ELA:  Post-it notes track student thinking while reading and serve as inspiration for reading journals

ELA:  Book clubs engage students in dialogue about reading

ELA:  A preview of novel choices helps students determine interest for future study, concluding in critical essays on characterization

Math:  Collaborative discussion helps students figure out the mathematical errors

Math:  Real life problems are solved through critical thinking, "Which product is the better deal?"

Math:  Online games help students further their mathematical fluency

Math:  Front Row helps students navigate learning based on current skills

LEAP:  Students apply learning in models of body systems, including coding to demonstrate the path food takes through the stomach

Nothing Brings a Smile Like...

A visit to ECE!

Every time I visit ECE, I think, "I need to be here more."  I can't help but smile as those 2, 3, 4, and 5-year olds learn through play and discovery.  Listening to their little voices as they explain a newfound skill or understanding melts my heart.  But, it's not all sweetness and smiles; there are also fundamental learning structures that apply to all grade-levels and contents: scaffolding learning to build independence, providing choice to differentiate for student interest, inquiry-based models to build understanding and retention of concepts, and so much more.

Scaffolding through visuals:  at the preschool level and into the early grades of elementary, students need to learn the social structures of school.  The use of visuals helps students understand the routines of learning, the skills of working with peers, and the processes of following directions.  While visuals are an essential part of early literacy and pre-reading skills, they don't have to end there.  Students struggling with the transition into elementary school benefit from these same supports and as students progress through more rigorous content, visual supports meet the diverse needs of learners.

Learning to stand in line:  each dot is a visual and physical reminder of expectations.

Learning to work together:  when in conflict, students have tools to independently solve the problem.

Procedural expectations:  these cards remind students how to behave during circle time and can be used for the whole group or for individual students who need reinforcement.

Learning a new skill:  until they've mastered putting on a coat, they have visuals to help them apply their skill.

Student choice and exploration in learning:  rotating through centers gives students the chance to build skills in various content areas.  We all know that we learn more when we are interested in the topic, and that's what's happening in early childhood.  There's a balance of student-selected play and teacher-directed learning opportunities.  Through exploration, students are furthering their literacy skills and building understanding of sophisticated science topics, such as gravity and scientific inquiry.

Students use favorite books to inspire their own writing.

Students mix dyes to observe color variations.

"Children Are Like Wet Cement. Whatever Falls On Them Makes An Impression"

Lindbergh Counselors Discuss Trauma: It's OK to be Not OK

The school counselors are participating in book club discussions during our district counselor meetings. They are reading Fostering Resilient Learners: Strategies for Creating a Trauma-Sensitive Classroom. 



Teachers are sorting quotes from the text in the order they think is most importance. This activity guided our group discussions on our belief systems and how we serve students.



Today's discussion really focused on the understanding that it is OK to be Not-OK. "The healing process begins with our willingness to give ourselves permission to grieve our traumatic experiences."



We ended our discussion with a "Yay, But". . . "And, Yes" activity. Counselors split up and took a position on the impacts of trauma on students. This group had some fantastic comments.



This is such an AWESOME group of people. I am so glad to have them on my team.

Lindbergh Learning - In Pictures

Word Walls are a key component of our Writers' Workshops

Using anchor charts throughout a unit helps writers when they get stuck

Another great word wall

Students keep track of their writing goals and have them out in front of them during writing time.

Check out this drafting!  

Anchor charts can easily be added on to each day with new content from the mini-lesson

100% student engagement...every student has an instrument!

Clear "I Can" statements help get the lesson started

Each student has a plicker and heart rate monitor assigned to them.  

A 2-dimensional industrial town - it's about to be redrawn...

Step by step directions to modify the town as it expands its industy

You can't see it here, but these students are collaborating to find the correct answer to their missed assignment...they must cite the source of their corrected work.

Bazinga! an engaging and fun formative assessment. Students in this Spanish class work together to get the correct answer. 

Clear learning goals connected to learning activities and assessments with the added bonus of Spanish and English directions

An anchor chart emphasizing appropriate civil discourse

Science notebooking with graphs and foldables

Drawing conclusion in science based on observation and using evidence to support that conclusion

Revising in writing:  each draft is a different color to emphasis the importance of the writing process

Reminding us all about a growth mindset

A class meeting provides closure to the days learning activity

Break, What Break?

Walking through the halls of Concord Elementary, one would never guess that students had just returned to school from a 5-day break.  Rich learning opportunities abound in writing and math as students engage in meaningful work.

5th Grade Writing:  Students collaborated to research an historical topic, ranging from the sinking of the Titanic to September 11th.  Independently, they used their research to write a non-fiction "book."

Multiple drafts demonstrate student engagement in the writing process

Students use Post-it notes to add ideas to their drafts

Revisions are evident with editing marks and taped together paper and index cards for added thoughts

Students create systems to check their work

Peer feedback helps students monitor their mastery of writing skills

2nd graders set personal goals to improve their writing

 2nd and 4th graders spend their afternoon expanding thinking through mathematical processes.  

A first attempt to independently complete a long division problem

Checking for accuracy - students self-monitor their understanding

Using Post-it notes to identify the tens and ones place in double digit addition

Increasing the relevance of math by using students in the word problems

An interdisciplinary connection:  by using Fitbits, students are merging their understanding of physical education topics with their math centers.  Students practice their estimation and addition skills, adding a higher level of depth of knowledge by creating a word problem that merges those skills.

Checking their steps

Making math fun, yet still relevant