Evidence of Next Practices

We've all heard of best practices, but in Lindbergh, we are moving onto "Next," those innovative teaching practices that continue to innovate and inspire students.  Check out the next big things in our teachers' classrooms...

Building stamina in Reader's Workshop

Procedural anchor charts provide reminders to students about expectations

Choosing where to sit in Reader's Workshop

A useful anchor chart that readers can keep on using all year

Clear lesson objectives in kid-friendly language 

Reading conferences at the beginning of the year help teachers learn more about their readers and plan for instruction throughout the year

Flexible seating allows for learners to make choices about where they work & learn best

A subject-specific anchor chart with clear definitions and modeling

Goal-setting is an important piece of learning

With something new comes...expectations!

Using math to tell all about me

Partnerships telling "stories" about artifacts they brought from home

Writing about Reading Anchor Chart

Supporting a growth mindset

Clear expectations and purpose for learning

Flexible seating:  tall top tables and collaborative learning

Flexible seating:  alternative space to learn

Charting increases in student reading stamina

Math Foldables and Notebooking

Moving Beyond 5

I've pushed myself out of my comfort zone and am officially a Twitter user.  To continue to the conversation about learning in Lindbergh, follow me @drtarasparks. #LindberghLearns promotes collegial sharing of instructional ideas among our ECE-12th grade community.

Learning to Soar in Lindbergh

Today, new teachers wrapped up their new teacher orientation, earning their wings and soaring into the start of the school year.

In addition to learning the nuts and bolts of the district, new teachers participated in professional development sessions focused on student learning and engagement.  Check out some strategies used to model active and engaging learning.

Given a task the task of shooting cotton balls as far as possible, teachers use the materials provided to come to a solution.

A Quiz Quiz Trade activity gives new teachers a chance to discuss how to react in challenging communication scenarios.

Kahoot to show what they know!

Teachers write letters to themselves about priorities in their first year in Lindbergh.  These letters will be delivered to them in January as a motivator for 2nd semester.

At the conclusion of NTO, teachers participate in an "inside outside circle" rotating among partners to summarize their learning and reflect on needs as a first year teacher in Lindbergh.

We welcome this outstanding group of educators to Lindbergh.  I can't wait to see how they soar through their first year here.

Summer Learning Had Me a Blast, Summer Learning Happened So Fast...

Each summer, administrators participate in two administrative conferences.  The purposes of these conferences are to build lead learners and ensure calibration of key systems in the district.  Last week, administrators gathered at Moore to prepare for the start of school.

We started the half day program with a quick warm up, focusing on communication and reflecting on how communication processes can break down.  Administrators were in groups of three:

Person #1:  Had directions for person #3 to complete.  They communicated the directions nonverbally to person #2 to convey to person #3.

Person #2:  Had to interpret person #1's nonverbal directions to provide person #3 with clarity through only verbal communication.

Person #3:  Had to listen intently to person #2's instructions to complete the task.

Johnicka Turner gives nonverbal directions to Doug Barton who communicates to Jodi Meese.  

Kathy Wood works on her task communicated from Ronni Zagora though Stephanie Ringhofer.

Mike Franklin completes his task as communicated through his partners.

Activities like this can be replicated in the classroom to emphasize the importance of clear communication and direction following.  When I was teaching, I used similar activities at the beginning of the school year to set a purpose for learning in an English classroom.  In this scenario we used 5 different sets of instructions to ensure no one "cheated."  If you'd like to use them in your own classroom, email or call me (ext. 8611).

Keeping administrators engaged is just as important as keeping students engaged, so in C and I we model tools that can be replicated in your buildings and classrooms.  To review the teacher handbook with administrators, we used the augmented reality app Aurasma for a scavenger hunt.

Administrators worked in pairs, using Aurasma to view the questions in the provided pictures along the scavenger hunt.

Competition relaxes as groups begin to work together to ensure accuracy of their answers.

Beth Johnston and Mike Kuhn work together to view the question and find the accurate answer within the teacher handbook.