Engaging All Learners

Engaging All Learners
Studio Day April 2019

Thursday, June 30, 2016

Things Exceptional Leaders Do Every Day

Tim Salem sent me a link to a really good article from MSN about what exceptional leaders do.  I wholeheartedly agree with all of these!  Our district is working on clearly communicating expectations.  Our leadership team has been reading about the importance of clarity and coherence through a book study this past year, and our work has been focused on clearly communicating with everyone.  My hope is that you will start to see this improvement.  Let me know what you think.
Beth

Things Exceptional Leaders Do Every Day

Being a good leader takes work. And it's not just about mastering the hard skills and technical expertise required to manage a team in your industry. Exceptional leaders — those who are respected and admired by both their team and upper management — also have "softer" skills that they put to use every day. Here are a few:

They're emotionally intelligent.

Building relationships — both with your team and cross functionally — is crucial in leading a team. That means interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence (EQ) are extremely important. EQ is the ability to recognize, understand, and manage our emotions, as well as understand the emotions of others. It's an intangible part of how we navigate social situations and then make decisions to achieve goals. Several studies have found that a strong EQ is a top predictor of a leader's success. In one, international search firm Egon Zehnder International analyzed 515 senior executives and found that those with the strongest emotional intelligence were more likely to succeed over those who were strongest in both IQ or relevant previous experience.

They inspire employees.

Exceptional leaders are ones who inspire and consistently remind employees of the broader goal. Whether it's reaching a sales number or disrupting an entire industry, a team needs regular reminders of what they're marching toward. With a larger vision in mind, their day-to-day work has more purpose.

They lead by example.

Great leaders make sure their daily behavior is a model for their team. They're conscientious (meaning they always follow through on what they've promised), they respect people's time (meaning they don't make others wait unnecessarily), and they retain a thoughtful, objective approach to problems or issues (meaning they don't fly off the handle reactively). They also have fun. Humor is a crucial part of making somewhere pleasant to work, and if employees see their managers letting their hair down a bit, they might feel more comfortable following suit.

They make decisions quickly.

Good managers are decisive. Whether it's a minor matter or a major strategic initiative, effective managers need to make — and then communicate — decisions quickly. Waffling or taking too long to come to a conclusion disrupts your team's momentum and sets things off track. A laser focus on moving things forward at all times, and making decisions that support that progress, is crucial.

They empower their employees.

Although the buck usually stops with them, exceptional leaders also encourage employees to reach strategic decisions on their own (offering constructive feedback along the way). Employees need to feel like their opinions and work matters — that they're not just cogs in a wheel. This is especially key during meetings. It's important to foster an environment where employees feel that it's safe to speak up. Good leaders then facilitate conversations that empower the team to reach a strategic conclusion together. And when necessary, they step in and resolve any friction points.

They consistently remove roadblocks.

Organizational roadblocks can thwart employee productivity and prevent important work from moving forward. If a project isn't progressing at the pace you expected, remember that effective managers ask employees what's getting in their way, rather than reprimanding them for falling behind. Then they work to remove those blockers, whether it's by making sure they're aligned with other teams, or implementing tools that can help employees do their job more efficiently. A manager's job is to navigate politics and organizational hurdles so the team can focus on the work.

They clearly communicate expectations.

All team members should have a clear idea of what they're responsible for delivering on at all times. That's why successful leaders regularly communicate expectations. Deliverables should be measurable (whether it's a sales number or a deadline) and clearly tied back to the company's overarching goals and mission. People should walk away from every meeting knowing exactly what they're responsible for executing on.

They acknowledge and reward employees.

A big raise at the end of the year is nice, but recognizing employees daily is also important. Respected managers take time to praise team members who excel. This can be as simple as stopping them in the hallway and saying "thanks," or sending off a quick email to communicate a job well done. When employees feel like their good work is getting noticed, they're more likely to keep it up.

Friday, June 24, 2016

Quotable Quote

Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers.

Charles William Eliot

Former President Harvard University

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Science in TCS

Science in TCS
Weird Science?  Not in Trussville City Schools!  The new science standards have caused some of the most amazing conversations in grades K-12, and we are looking forward to an exciting school year.  With the help of Dr. Phyllis Faust, who has facilitated many PD opportunities, our science teachers now have many tools at their fingertips to help lead science discussions and labs with our students. 
All TCS science teachers are taking time out of their summers to prepare for the 2016-17 school year.  Our elementary teachers began meeting last week to learn more about their STEMScopes resources.  Their trainer, Heather Wilde, led them through multiple facets of their lessons in order for teachers to begin planning for their school year.  Our science modules’ specialist Rod Alex was also able to demonstrate the kits that will be available to the teachers that will create instant labs for students to experiment with the science standards in which they are mastering.  Stephanie Hawthorne assisted teachers in learning how Chromebooks can help provide the technology tool to assist students in virtual labs and exploration that will create additional learning opportunities for our students.  Dr. Faust and Stephanie Hawthorne will also be meeting with our secondary teachers this summer to lead them through similar PD. However, our secondary science teachers have already started meeting with their grade-level colleagues to begin collaboration on lessons and creation of resources to help our students be ready to master the new science standards.  Science teachers in grades K-12 are ready to lead this learning and are diving deeper to create science experiences that will help our students leave TCS with science skills that will prepare them for college and career opportunities after graduation. 
But, wait, there’s more!  We have had science teachers lead and attend additional professional development events.  Several secondary teachers attended the Science Summit held at Pizitz Middle School last week.  This learning opportunity was facilitated by the 2015-16 Teacher of the Year Jennifer Brown, who teaches science at Vestavia Hills High School.  The “unconference” format allowed for meaningful conversations between secondary science teachers from Homewood, Hoover, Mountain Brook, Trussville, and Vestavia Hills school systems.  This time to share and plan proved worthwhile in working to establish future collaborative partnerships.  Additionally, Jennifer Bruno and Angela Shorter led “Out of this World Workshop…No Really!”  Participants received real-world applications and activities based on ideas from NASA and ALEX. Teachers from the Birmingham-area attended and were able to get ideas to take back to their students.  Cynthia Thomas, an HTHS Physics teacher, led “Incorporating Engineering Design Challenges into the Science Classroom” workshop that utilized NASA STEM resources, and had science teachers from Birmingham City Schools and Jefferson County Schools come learn more about building the engineering strands into their science lessons.  We are thankful for our science teachers who are not only gaining more knowledge from their participation in PD, but are helping others through their leadership. 
I know this is SO MUCH, but we just can’t contain our excitement in sharing all of the wonderful learning opportunities in which our teachers are engaging, so I must tell you about one more.  Jennifer Gerhart (Environmental) and Angie Simonetti (Biology) attended a Legacy workshop called Mountains to the Gulf. This was an 8-day trip (almost 1,300 miles) throughout the State of Alabama exploring a variety of different state and national parks, rivers, streams, and estuaries, woods, and bogs. The teachers were provided fantastic interactive activities and resources for the students to utilize in the classroom that fit perfectly with the new state standards of modeling and discovery.  

As you can see, the summer professional development opportunities have continued to provide time for discussions, planning, as well as lesson development ensuring our students have science experiences that are engaging, rigorous, and authentic to give them skills preparing them for college and career readiness.








Kindergarten Teachers Learn about the Balanced Literacy Block

June 23, 2016
Reading coaches Edra Perry and Kelly McGough led kindergarten teachers through a day of professional learning for the goal of understanding a balanced literacy block and the Lucy Calkins' Units of Study.  Teachers received the Units of Study and mentor texts that they will use throughout the year.  The group participated in various activities, including viewing some Lucy Calkins' videos.

"Your units of Study series is not for the weak of heart - but yes, the units yield dramatic results."  Lucy Calkins


Wednesday, June 22, 2016

From The Washington Post

Check out the ranking of HTHS on Alabama's list of the most challenging schools . . .


Friday, June 10, 2016

Quotable Quote

“It's not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.”

—Roy Disney (born 1930)
Former Disney Executive, Nephew Of Walt Disney

Tuesday, June 7, 2016

Quotable Quote

“Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest. ”

—Mark Twain (1835-1910)
[Samuel Clemens] Humorist, Essayist, Novelist

Sunday, June 5, 2016

Virtual Field Trips

Virtual field trips are becoming more and more popular. According to SimpleK12, here are THE BEST free online virtual field trips.
1. Google Art Projects
A collection of 1000+ works from 17 highly acclaimed art museums in the world.  You can virtually walk the aisles of these museums and view high resolution images of paintings like Van Gough’s “The Bedroom” and even share your whole collection.http://www.googleartproject.com/
2. Google Sky
Travel the stars with Google Sky. You can explore constellations, and even watch the birth of distant galaxies. You can even change the view of Google sky to see what the sky would look like if we had the ability to view the universe in x-rays or infrared. http://www.google.com/sky/
3. Smithsonian
This is a complete virtual tour where all you have to do is follow the blue arrow around the museum to journey on a great tour of the museum that makes you’re feel like you’re actually walking the halls of the Smithsonian.http://www.mnh.si.edu/panoramas/
4. Panoramas.dkBring the 7 wonders of the world to your classroom with breathtaking panoramic which includes the Colosseum in Rome, The Great Wall in China, The Taj Mahal in India, and Machu Picchu in Peru.
http://www.panoramas.dk/7-wonders/colosseum.html
5. The Oxford University Museum of Natural History
This virtual tour is of The Oxford University Museum of Natural History. This museum is home to an extensive world-wide collections of zoology, entomology, geology, and mineralogy, including the local dinosaur finds, a 40ft Tyrannosaurus rex, the observation beehive and Alice’s Dodo. Also a part of the tour is the building itself; one of the finest examples of the Victorian Gothic style of architecture.
http://www.chem.ox.ac.uk/oxfordtour/universitymuseum/#
6. Inside the White House
Travel floor-by-floor as you take an interactive tour of the White House and browse through history. Learn the significance each room has in the day-to-day workings of the White House.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/interactive-tour