What Motivates YOU?

What motivates you? That seems like a simple question, but the answers and the underlying truths can be very complex. During my summer reading I was able to enjoy Robyn R. Jackson's excellent book, Never Underestimate Your Teachers.  The book is written for school leaders as a resource to help them analyze the skill and the will of professional educators. Once the school leader has identified the skill and the will levels of the teachers, the leader can then match their professional development approaches to the primary driver or motivator of the teacher. Aligning the right professional development with the needs of each teacher's skill and/or will can help every teacher follow the path to mastery. Here is the winning formula: "If you shape the path to mastery the right way, more teachers will choose it."

Robyn uses the Will/Skill Matrix to help school leaders identify ..."where the path to professional development begins." She explains that teaching takes both skill and will. While everyone has different levels of each, if a leader can use Robyn's matrix to place the teacher's skill sets, then the matching of the professional development can be cleverly selected.

For example, imagine a teacher that falls into the High Will/Low Skill category. The author describes this teacher as someone who is excited to be a teacher. They know they are growing, and they are eager to learn. They try new strategies often, but because their skill level is not yet "high", their strategies are disconnected, and they struggle with all the complexities required for teaching. This can result in average or low level student achievement.  However, every leader should take heart! Their high will levels mean they are willing to learn. With proper training, encouragement, and coaching, they can make quick growth and improvement. The  danger is without these things, they can lose their energy and fall into the low-will, low-skill quadrant. This is where teachers who have lost hope land. This low-will, low-skill group is the most difficult to help in our profession. 

Ms. Jackson also sorts teacher skill levels into four categories. They are: Master Teacher, Practitioner, Apprentice, and Novice. These line up similarly to Danielson's categories...Distinguished, Proficient, Basic or Developing, and Unsatisfactory.

Then, the author gets into my favorite part of the book. She analyzes the primary drivers that move us. She describes the drivers as..."we are all driven by the desire for four basic feelings: autonomy, mastery, purpose and belonging." I love psychology and studying the reasons behind human behavior. This part of the book was extremely interesting to me personally. I was able to easily identify my own primary driver, but I also quickly identified the majority of my staff's drivers. 

I don't think any one who knows me would be surprised to know my driver is MASTERY with a strong undercurrent of PURPOSE. And, I was so pleased to recognize all the MASTERY folks on my staff--we all have a similar mindset of excellence. Even more importantly, I saw the need for a balance of all these different personalities. For our campus to be balanced, we also need those AUTONOMY and BELONGING folks. One of my favorite, I mean all-time favorite, articles about personality types is the article that talks about how every workplace needs a balance of chaos and order. Check out the article here: 

Click this link: What Kind of Muppet Are You?   

Chaos Theory - A Unified Theory of Muppet Types

Cookie Monster is most definitely a Chaos Muppet!

Make certain you watch all the videos at the article link. They really drive home the difference in the chaos and order muppets. This is the best article, and I love the Bert and Ernie video excerpt about cookies in bed. It will definitely make you smile.

Overall, I highly recommend Robyn's book to every leader. She brings her points home in the final pages of the book with the following tips:

• An enemy of growth is impatience; take time to develop your teachers.
• Moving teacher will and skill is a marathon, not a sprint---stay the course.
• Everyone is valuable. "You must believe, and you must help your teachers believe, that if they do the work with intense focus over time, they will become master teachers."
• "If we don't really believe in every teacher, it's a lot harder to believe in every kid."

There are several diagnostics and templates in the end of the book to help leaders execute their new found knowledge with will and skill and primary drivers. 

Read this book! It is a mindset shifter.  

Isolation Is the Enemy of Innovation #SAVMP 2.6

Isolation Is the Enemy of Innovation -- #SAVMP 2.6

     Change continues to wipe out existing paradigms in education. Teachers of today have a job that looks VERY different from teaching just 5 years ago. With the advent of data-driven instruction, technology integration, and ever-increasing accountability, teachers are living in a “brave new world.”

     With all of these incredible responsibilities added to an already time-intensive career, the need for teachers to collaborate is stronger than ever! So let’s take a trip back in time when I was a beginning teacher. 20 years ago (yes, I am a D-I-N-O-S-A-U-R), I started teaching. I had a mentor on campus who met with me about once a month. I was a fairly strong new teacher, so we just met after school when we could both find the time. After that year, I continued to fly on my own, and there was no more mentoring. It was part of our district’s plan at that time to provide new teachers a mentor during their first year. Then, each year afterwards, I would have a department chair who guided me and all department members in important calendar events, lesson planning protocols, and other school priorities.

     Fast forward to the future. Teachers now have virtual mentors available to them at a mere click of the mouse or a swipe of the touch screen! There are personal learning networks on Twitter, tutorial videos on how to teach anything on YouTube, and ideas on how to teach anything and everything with access to Pinterest, BLOGs, and many other vast resources on the Web.

     What used to be an isolated profession is now a connected profession. For example, in our district, we have moved to Professional Learning Communities as an amazing impetus for collaboration. It has improved our practices at both the school and the district level.

     Collaboration is also increasing via the Internet. The quickest and most dynamic way we have moved to transform the culture of isolation is by using Twitter at our school.  We are seeing the contagion of innovative practices occurring through the unique and dynamic Twitter window.

     Here are just a few benefits of our use of Twitter @MCherryStreet. We have many teachers tweeting just about daily, and all but a handful of members of our instructional faculty are leveraging Twitter power.

BENEFITS:

1.       Personal Learning Networks

My personal learning network has been the source of about 80% of all learning that occurs in my professional development arena. In the past 6 months, several of our district employees have joined Twitter, and now we are using Twitter to provide a World Wide and a Local Personal Learning Network. Here is a recent Tweet that contains one of my TouchCasts that allowed three administrators to collaborate together. This is sooo exciting!

2.      Excitement by Students

One of our #RockStar teachers, that I will refer to in the rest of this BLOG as Nikki, gets her students all excited about Tweets and the Retweets they have earned by national companies. She recently Tweeted about her students winning the grade level First in Math competition at our school. Her class Tweet was then Retweeted by the company, First in Math. Her kids were so excited, and they feel like they have voice!

3.      Transparency of Practices

Teachers are learning from each other and from others across the globe. We recently had a district Technology Exposition where our teachers learned several new apps. and programs that have caught on like “wild fire”. Several of our teachers are now using Go Noodle. Nikki, tweeted about it, and others all over campus can now see how one teacher could use this program--great ideas spread quickly. This is grass roots professional development from one teacher’s voice to another teacher’s view.

Take a look at these few Tweets where Nikki  credits another teacher on her grade level. These two teachers collaborate frequently! Teacher Kim is @CherryCheetah64.

4.      Classroom Walk-Thrus ~ The Window into a Teacher’s Practices

As an administrator, it is always difficult to get into teacher’s classrooms with the mounting paperwork responsibilities that accompany more and more federal and state accountability. Further, the immediate needs of students in crisis will throw my schedule out the window quicker than anything else. With that being said, Twitter has allowed me to see, sometimes on a daily basis, a snapshot of lessons occurring in the classroom. For my teachers who Tweet regularly, I can without a doubt­ vouch for the practices of that teacher because they provide documentary evidence EVERY SINGLE DAY about what occurs in their classroom. I have virtual CWT’s happening at my school. I feel empowered, but imagine how confident a parent will feel about the practices of this teacher! Twitter has been a tool for positive press for the teacher and the school! I, as the Principal, have access to our school’s FaceBook page, and I have begun cross-posting Tweets to our FaceBook page which gives the teacher twice the impact for those families who don’t have access to both—more bang for the buck!

      

5.      Ed Chats  -- Sharing Practices about Specific Strategies

Our school recently participated in 2 different Ed Chats. We modified the format a smidge by having them last all day so that any teacher could post to the Twitter feed during their planning session. This extended the Ed Chat to an 8 hour window, but the information we gleaned was priceless. Our topics were PBIS strategies shared by all faculty and the integration of technology. The PBIS chat was a positive way for teachers to share their successful strategies with each other while not interrupting their school day. This was organic professional development at its best. The technology integration Ed Chat provided my Technology Team with the diagnostic feedback they needed to help them organize and run a faculty meeting/professional development session focused on integrating the latest technologies. I created a Storify of that very first Ed Chat in a previous BLOG entry: Spreading the EdTech Virus.

Here is a Tweet where Nikki uses the #PBS hash tag to identify this Tweet is specifically about our school's #PBS initiatives.

And, here is a Tweet that shows how much Nikki is loving using Twitter to learn from her colleagues:

     And, just to praise the power of #TwitterTeachers, I observed a tweet from #RockStar Nikki while I was typing this BLOG Entry—she is frequently leveraging the power of Twitter to impact not only her classroom community but also the educational community at large (with Twitter that is a.k.a. THE GLOBE)! To emphasize my points here, I was away from the school today, and I could see—with a visual—what this amazing teacher was working on right then--when the learning occurred!

     Nikki is an educator who has shifted the “norm” of her classroom culture by using social media spaces to connect and learn from educators all over the world. To quote Amber Teamann @8Amber8 who provoked this BLOG entry via the #SAVMP project (I believe she was quoting my hero, @GeorgeCouros,) “Isolation is now a choice educators make.”  The shift really has to happen for educators. Using tools like Twitter allows for educators to connect and share learning that is happening with educators in their own school and with any other school abroad. We need to make this happen, weave this magic for our profession, and continue to create transparency in our own classrooms.

     If you want to follow one of these amazing teachers check out my list on Twitter titled: #Cherry Street Rock Stars. And....Tweet on my friends, Tweet on!

Teacher Leaders - The Wind Beneath My Wings #SAVMP 2:5

So today I am going to talk about MY classroom! Yes, the school and its teachers are MY classroom, and just like a classroom teacher, I get jazzed when my students (my awesome team of teachers) take risks and grow and demonstrate mastery of their learning. 

I have one teacher who took the teacher leadership challenge, and she is helping others grow as well. Since it is appraisal season, I was having one of those sit-down conversations with a strong teacher at our school. I was discussing the topic of teacher leadership with her. I shared that I wanted her to take on more leadership roles. Because she is a quality teacher, she was not afraid to raise questions with me. She shared that she felt she had missed the opportunity to lead in formal ways because grade chairs, school improvement team positions, and other formal leadership roles were already distributed. That is when we got down to some "real talk." I shared with her that my vision for the school was of a collaborative work force, and that I wanted to see leadership formally and informally. SHE WANTED TO KNOW MORE. I explained that teacher leadership should be exhibited by all teachers who have something to offer others. I wanted her to take on leadership roles that were beyond the status quo. I wanted her to be a "go-to" girl for new teachers, for her colleagues, and someone who positively impacts our campus for the greater good of our students. I began to see a gleam in her eyes. This was a paradigm shift for her, but it was one she quickly adopted. Sitting in the chair in front of me and my assistant principal,  she paused for a few seconds, and then she said, "Can you give me some examples?" I was amused by her enthusiasm and energy. I shared that there were a group of new teachers on campus who needed some help with their action research plans. I shared that we needed to be able to assist some of the new teachers with getting activated on Twitter since we were coming up on our second school #EdChat (#CherryElem). She said, "Okay, I will do that." Well, she wasn't kidding. She was SERIOUS and she meant BUSINESS! She walked out of my office, and went directly to the new teachers and asked them how she could help. She called me about an hour later, as it was getting dark on campus, and she said, "Hey, I am helping this new teacher and we have a question about the action research plan requirements." I got a huge smile on my face, and I was speechless! We talked through how to support that teacher. Then, the very next day, she got one of the new teachers on Twitter which is the picture you see above. 

Staff empowerment is such an important gift for our teachers. Teachers should not have to wait for a CEO type Principal to hand down decisions from above. Teachers should be empowered to come up with creative and innovative solutions on their own with collaborative input and monitoring by administration.

This teacher, Tiffany, was empowered, and she used her empowerment to empower others. Her excitement for the opportunity to lead others inspires me and my assistant principal. She has recently helped host our second school Twitter chat, and her leadership example stirs the excellence in others. Just since this school year started, we have seen all but 3 of our faculty members join Twitter. It has become a #BragTag fest where the teachers share the awesomeness of their classrooms. It has become a school-level PLN where we share and learn from each other's practices. AND, it has become an encouragement network for supporting each other's efforts to be #RockStarTeachers.  This same teacher, Tiffany, spontaneously got us all involved in a #TweetMob celebrating #EdJoy a couple of weeks ago. 

I have many others like her on my campus. She, and other teachers like her... are the wind beneath my wings.... 

#FETC Spreading the #EdTech Virus

Well, this year's FETC Conference was another amazing experience. I was exceptionally lucky to add to the richness of the experience this year by bringing three teacher leaders with me. Three of my Cherry Street teachers joined me in Orlando for FETC 2015, and I do believe they came back with the #EdTech Virus!

Valerie, Stefanie, Me, and Tiffany (all pictured here) got our #FETC Mojo going and have been on fire since our return. I am sure that each of these ladies could write their own BLOG entry on the amazing ed. tech. they have been integrating in their classrooms since their return. I hear wonderful stories about their use of Plickers: https://www.plickers.com/ and Kahoot: https://getkahoot.com/ as well as many others. 

Some of the sessions I attended this year were:

• TechShare Live
• Advanced Twitter Tips and Tools
• Give a Kindergartner an Ipad
• Kathy Schrock's Telling the Story
• Augmented Reality and Mind Blowing Student Engagement
• Neurological Benefits of Gaming
• Advanced YouTube

...and as always each of the keynote speakers was fabulous. 

The hottest topics in Ed. Tech. are, of course, the gamification of learning and the maker movements. I, personally, get excited by all the augmented reality that is out there on the market. There were several augmented reality demonstrations I attended, and the Elements 4D app from DAQRI was crazy amazing: Elements

The elements from the periodic table are in wooden blocks. But when you use the app. via your tablet or SmartPhone, it turns the blocks into three dimensional cubes that contain the elements being represented. It is difficult to even describe this sort of technology, but the crowd was "oooo"ing and "awwww"ing constantly. A cube containing oxygen and a cube containing hydrogen, when paired together, became a cube containing water!

Here is a tweet from Tiffany during one of the keynote speaker addresses that shows 3D printing and several augmented reality examples. 

Here is a tweet from Stefanie during one of the sessions she attended.

Part of the greatness of attending the conference is not only what you learn while you are there but also the fun you have trying out the programs you learn about once you get home! I started using TweetDeck at the conference, and I was able to use it during our Inaugural #EdChat at Cherry Street this month. With TweetDeck, you can monitor multiple timelines, topics, lists and accounts. I love it! The multi-tasking fool that I am has three different Twitter accounts. It can get overwhelming without these amazing tools: TweetDeck

AND, most exciting of all, my three teacher leaders hosted our very first #CherryElem #EdChat. We followed the lead of one of my favorite BLOGsters, Amber Teamann, and her suggestion to modify the parameters of a regular Twitter Chat by allowing for 24 hour posting so folks can see the process and get initiated slowly. Here is that BLOG entry: Technically Teamann

I got to use another super cool program, Storify, at https://storify.com/, when we finished the #EdChat. I posted a summary of our #EdChat here: Storify.com/Enrjtk_Educatr/first-twitter-edchat-for-cherry-street-elementary

Lastly, I appreciate the comradery and the fun that I was able to have with my awesome team in Orlando. We created some great memories! I have been attending FETC off and on for twenty years. I have seen Jim Lovell from Apollo 13 and the lauded science fiction author, Ray Bradbury. FETC is the best!

FINDING TIME FOR FUN ~ Time Management for School Leaders #SAVMP 2:4

Time Management for School Leaders - Finding Time for Fun!

The topic of Time Management is a critical one for leaders these days as we are being buried under an ever increasing load of paperwork. The paperwork can include appraisals of faculty and staff, school improvement planning, and federal and district requirements. I have previously written about my efforts to organize and manage my days in a post called: Time Management from the Perspective of an Efficiency Freak. This topic has come up again in my focus during the 2014-2015 school year but in a bit of a different way. With a little twist, I have begun to explore how I manage my time at home and continue to be effective in my other jobs: MOM, WIFE, DAUGHTER, FRIEND. 

As I entered into my third year as a school leader, I have been able to turn my gaze back to a "Search for Balance." That first year as Principal was a type of audit and inventory of my new environment. I used a facilitative leadership style where I just facilitated the life of the school while at the same time taking stock and shaping my vision for the future. That first year was very, very busy. It was the year I had to establish credibility, build relationships, and learn everything possible as quickly as possible about my new responsibilities. I felt like I worked ALL THE TIME--like till 1 and 2 A.M. most nights. The second year was a bit better for the total hours I worked per day, but it was at a more intense level as I used a pacesetter leadership style. I showed the faculty the vision and the pace, and I asked them to keep up or to look for a better fit--nothing personal. And, NOW, as I have moved into the winter of my third year, I feel as if the staff and I are unified and working together collectively to increase student achievement and impact student success in the life of our school. This is my favorite style, the visionary leadership style. Most everyone is rowing the boat in the same direction, and no one is trying to sink it! This has been a refreshing year, and it has helped that I have one of the strongest assistant administrators I have ever met working closely with me on all levels. We share the same vision and have similar kindred spirits. These elements have allowed me to work on the necessary balance between home and work life.

EXERCISE: First, I make certain I know what my focus is at home. Rather than coming home from work exhausted and binge eating in front of the TV, I am working to include exercise every day. On my birthday, my husband bought me a fitbit. I love goal setting, and this wearable technology meets my goal-oriented needs. Here is a picture of my progress today from the app. on my SmartPhone which synchronizes various times throughout the day. My daily goal is 10,000 steps every day. Of course, I would show a day when I met my goal! The Dashboard also tracks my meals and my sleep patterns. It synchronizes with my favorite calorie counter app. myfitnesspal. Both of these tools are at my fingertips and help me maintain my focus. 

     

During Christmas, I converted my garage into a mini-gymnasium. It used to be such a pain to get dressed for the gym, drive to the gym, and then work around everyone else on the nautilus equipment or the free weights. Now I have my very own gymnasium heaven! Here is a picture, and I jokingly call it my nightly date with "Gym."  My mini-gym has everything I need, and I especially love the DVD player where I watch my favorite CSI: Las Vegas episodes while walking on the treadmill. My gym is just feet away. I am grateful for a new focus on exercise that is quick and easy. 

FUN & FAMILY:  The next thing I do to keep my focus is I plot out everything on a weekly calendar (my only tracking item using traditional paper) that sits on my desk in my bedroom. I put all appointments like my daughter's upcoming soccer booster club meeting on my Google Calendar, but I put the little things on this calendar. Things like read my spiritual devotional every morning, play my DuoLinguo app., mail a package to my son in college, visit my father during the weekend, date night with the husband, movie night with my #CoffeeClubGirls, etc. etc. I am adverse to any paper calendars and PREFER the digital version in my apps. Google Calendar, G-Tasks, Google Keep, and Sticky Notes, but I still use this old-fashioned calendar when I am at home because when I walk in the door, I truly try to put the phone down and disconnect from the grid temporarily. This visual calendar gives me just a couple of items to focus on every day so that I DO feel accomplished during the week, and I don't succumb to  the hustle and bustle which can drain me at the end of each day. This daily focus allows me to get the important things done as soon as I get home, and then I am not panicking to finish everything during my two days off on the weekend.

And, after I complete the "first things first" I can download and do the fun things like reading a great book or watching my favorite crime drama on Netflix. Here are a stack of books I am working on now:

PAPERLESS: And, lastly, I am moving many things to paperless in our home. I am using Evernote frequently to journal vs. my old way of writing in bulky journals. Also, the digital version is quicker to write/type. I now have all of my papery type things accumulating in EverNote. I have all of my recipe collections, movie ratings, and a journal committed to my wonderful husband all building in Evernote. What would have taken shelves to house and time to write is now all contained in the Cloud and typed up quickly with all sorts of little bells and whistles that can be added with images, fonts, and it is all done within either my SmartPhone or on my laptop. I prefer paperless. 

     

Here is an example of all of the movie ratings I have been collecting in my Evernote app. I can add images of the movie ticket along with my commentary. I can scroll through these or even share them with a link such as this one to my American Sniper review: 

Movies! Review of American Sniper by C. R.

So, with this different twist I have shared how I have increased my focus at home so that I am as good at my night job as I am at my day job! I work very hard to enjoy my down-time and all those times I am able to unplug from the grid. My husband knows when I am trying to get things accomplished, and he calls this my "checklist mode." Just the other day, he told me that we must have switched roles because nowadays he is always the one in checklist mode, and I am the one trying to relax. LOL. I laughed, because he used to refer to me as his work-a-holic or captain of the NFL (No-fun-league).  I have been working hard to relax. Wow-What an oxymoron that is. I guess the better way to say it is, I have been using my time wisely so that there is time left for F-U-N. 

Embrace Struggle #SAVMP 2:3

The Growth Mindset – Not Just a Kid Thing

The research by Carol Dweck has been so affirming for me as an educator. As a teacher, I always loved the most challenging students in my class because they caused me to grow and become a better teacher EVERY day. I was frequently setting goals and trying to grow and improve, and I also believed those same “hard to teach” students could grow at any second, minute, or hour of the day. I made it my personal challenge to meet them where they were and to unlock the key to their learning. Many times these were the students who were despised by other teachers. I even became the classroom where students who were kicked out of other classes ended up--yep, a new schedule was written with Rine as the new teacher! LOL. With my teaching eyes, I would size up every single student and ask myself the question, “How can I help you learn?” Many times, the obstacle was helping the student understand that they COULD achieve. Conquering a fixed mindset in a student can be a challenge.

With that sort of growth mindset in my teaching past, I have been so invigorated by Dweck’s research which is extremely popular right now. The growth mindset ensures that the opportunities for learning are present for the students. I am devastated, DEVASTATED, when I hear educator conversations that include statements like: “Oh, that teacher has (Insert name here) in his/her class. They can’t do anything with THAT child.” 

Our mindset has power. We can have a FIXED mindset where we let failure define who we are or a GROWTH mindset where we see setbacks as opportunities to grow and improve ourselves. I think of my short bout with cancer. I could be mad about the fact that I had to live through a season with cancer, and my life will never be the same because of it OR I can reflect on that difficult time and look for ways it has made me a stronger person. Probably the one way I see that experience as valuable has been the conversations and advice I have been able to give those who walk the "cancer walk" for the first time. I can share my experiences and help them know that it is not always fatal even though it will be traumatic. As teachers and educators, we encounter some very damaged children--maybe it is not cancer damage but we see physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, abandonment, and worse. I mourn that so many of them have seen so much evil in their short lives. But, I never count any of them out of the game. No matter how mischievous, lying or conniving a child might be, I show them the pathway to truth and life and especially the roads where education can lead them. I believe they can all grow. This  mindset can also translate to our impact on students. Do we view our students with a growth mindset and believe that they have the power to change their circumstances? Or do we view them with a fixed mindset that they cannot rise above their circumstances? To be a CHAMPION for a child, you must view them with a growth mindset.

Here are some resources from Project Happiness that compare and contrast the fixed vs. growth mindset. We are focusing on the growth mindset as part of our #SpeakLife theme this year at our school.

  Excerpted from: Project Happiness 

It Is up to you!	FIXED MINDSET Belief that intelligence, personality and character are carved in stone; potential is determined at birth.	GROWTH MINDSET Belief that intelligence, personality, and character can be developed! A person’s true potential is unknown and unknowable.
Desire	Look smart in every situation and prove myself over and over again. Never fail!	Stretch myself, take risks and learn. Bring on the challenges!
Evaluation of Situations	Will I succeed or fail? Will I look smart of dumb?	Will this allow me to grow? Will this help me overcome some of my challenges?
Dealing with Setbacks	“I’m a failure.” OR “I’m an idiot.”	“I failed.” BUT “I will try harder next time.”
Challenges	Avoid challenges, get defensive or give up easily.	Embrace challenges, persist in the face of setbacks.
Effort	Why bother? It’s not going to change anything.	Growth and learning require effort.
Criticism	Ignore constructive criticism.	Learn from criticism. How can I improve?
Success of Others	Feel threatened by the success of others. If you succeed, then I fail.	Find lessons & inspiration in other people’s success.
Result	Plateau early, achieve less than my potential.	Reach ever-higher levels of achievement.

Here is a video from Dweck that we watched during our pre-service training days. I encourage you to shift from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. #YouCanLearnAnything

Follow this link if this video display below for you! #YouCanLearnAnything

Standing United with Staff #SAVMP 2:2

Participation is Paramount for a Leader's Credibility 

#SAVMP 2:2

When asking your faculty and staff to take a leap of faith and try something new, it is critical that the leader step out in faith as well. I have joined with my amazing staff in hosting a program for our students. I always believe it is critical to be ready to commit to anything that I ask staff to commit to so that we are partners in the rewards AND my presence will continue to provide credibility and solidarity for our team.

This year we have begun a significant initiative to try and provide an after-school network of clubs and extracurricular activities for our students. Simultaneously, several of our teachers are taking the opportunity to tutor students since we have budgeted to provide transportation for these programs on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The longer we can keep our students on campus, we can be assured they are safe. We provide snacks, and we can be assured they are fed. We provide rich academic opportunities and content exposure, and we are assured they are learning!

Several teachers and staff have chosen to create and participate in rich experiences for our students. I have also chosen to be a member of our after-school activities.

Here is our COMING SOON flyer from last spring for the programs we have begun on campus: Cherry STEMS (STEM project-based learning club), My Brother’s Keeper (a mentoring program partnered with local community leaders to reach out to young boys), Cheetah Harmony (a Music Academy with exposure to instruments and community music programs), and a thriving Chess Club! The emphasis in each of these clubs is expanding the background knowledge of the students through exposure to high-level academic content and experiences.

In addition, this fall, as part of the STEM program, our STEM Teacher has begun a GEMS Club: GEMS is Girls in Engineering, Math, and Science.

I have been able to participate in two of the clubs myself and share in the joy! I attend every My Brother’s Keeper and Chess Club meeting. The experiences have been intensely rich for me.

The My Brother’s Keeper program is led by a local pastor who has scheduled to bring in multiple guest speakers. He first brought in local law enforcement officers to speak with students. He and one of our male staff members teach character lessons, and the pastor is currently developing a lesson for the boys that has an obstacle course in conjunction with our PE Coach. It is so awesome to watch how these developing young men respond to the instruction of these community and school mentors. Here are photos from the last session:

The other club, the Chess Club, has been the club that makes me laugh, and I leave each meeting with a huge smile! I have taught several students how to play Chess. It is very rewarding to turn the fledgling players loose and let them play other students. We have club norms like, “No bragging if you win.” AND….one young lady in 3^rd grade asked me if she could check out a chess board to take it home to teach her family how to play. Now, that was a worthwhile experience for all the time that our team of three adults puts into the club. Here are photos from our first session:

I am grateful for the staff who extend their work day to provide these experiences for our students, and I make certain that I participate because we are ALL IN THIS TOGETHER!