REFLECTION ZONE: Academic Intervention Tier 1 Results



I implemented the help signal with my second hour team taught math students.  Each student received a laminated help button to use during work time.  I collect them and keep them in the room so they do not get lost, and I pass them out during work time.
The students' reactions have been positive.  Students have asked, "Are we using the buttons today?"  I introduced them before taking the WKCE, and a student was disappointed that they weren't allowed to use them on the state test. :)
Students place the green side up when they are understanding and do not need our help.  The red side would be displayed when they were stuck or needed some assistance.
Positives:

• Easy, non-threatening way to ask for help
• Hands don't need to be raised, so they are able to keep working and not just sit and wave their hands around without working. (very nice)
• Shy students are more likely to flip their card than raise their hand or approach a teacher.  One student who has not once initiated help this year has flipped her card multiple times since the start of the intervention.
• Not everyone notices if your card is red, whereas raising your hand draws attention
• When the green side is flipped I can still stand over their shoulder and check that they are understanding, but I don't need to interrupt them to check in.  They are communicating they are fine with the green card.
• I have one autistic student who started out shouting, "My card is red.  My card is red."  He then progressed to smacking it down loudly when he turned it to red.  We have talked about flipping and still trying.  You first have to have evidence that you tried the problem on your paper.  If you are still stuck, you will need to move on to a different problem until a teacher can get to you.  He is learning patience as he has progressed to trying to make eye contact with me before flipping, but this is an improvement. 

Overall this has been a positive intervention.  It was easy for me to prepare and easy for the students to use.  I will continue using this with this group of students and would consider trying it with my other math classes as well.

REFLECTION ZONE: Live @Edu

 I introduced my 6th grade advisory team to a collaborative online document at Live@Edu(Office365).  I was going to create this on Google Docs, but our tech. dept. responded that it would be easier to use WindowsLive as all staff members already had an account created for them.  The tech. dept. offered to provide a how-to session for our team, but I played around with this as it is a little different than google docs, and I was able to share it with my team. I created an online spreadsheet where each advisor recorded notes from Parent Teacher Conferences.  My team did not have experience with this piece of technology, and they were happy with its ease, that they could access it from any computer, and the fact that it automatically saved. :)  We display this document on the promethean board. We are planning to use it at our Students of Concern meetings to keep records on kids that anyone can access.  We are also using it in preparation for the next time we have conferences.  It was fun to introduce something new to my team that they found helpful.

REFLECTION ZONE: Teaching With Poverty in Mind

End of Chapter 2

Some of the most important skills teachers should foster are social skills and problem-solving skills.  If students are taught social skills to resist peer pressure they stay in school longer, do better academically, and get in less trouble. p39-40

Low SES children are often subject to health and safety issues like malnutrition, environmental hazards, and insufficient health care.  Kids raised in poverty have more cells in their body "under siege" and therefore their ability to concentrate, learn, and behave appropriately are diminished. p41-42

Effects of Health Issues on School Behavior & Performance p43
school absences, tardiness rates, incidents of illness during class, rates of undiagnosed or untreated health problems or disabilities

Action Steps p43-44
provide physician on site, work with local pharmacy for access to meds, have a dentist make school visits, provide tutors to help students who miss classes to catch up, improve staff awareness about health-related issues
Anyone finds it difficult to listen, concentrate, or learn if they don't feel well. 
Does your school do any of the action steps listed or any additional steps to help out with health and safety issues?

Chapter 3

The brain CAN change - it is designed to change.
Positive Changes can occur from quality nutrition, exercise, and learning.  Negative changes can result from long-term neglect, chronic drug abuse, and boredom.
Research shows that IQ may be affected by the following factors:  home environment/living conditions, early childhood experiences, educational interventions, amount and duration of schooling, and quality of nutrition.
To succeed in school, students need to have an academic operating system in place.  The must-haves are: p55

• ability and motivation to defer gratification and make a sustained effort to meet long-term goals

• auditory, visual, and tactile processing skills

• attentional skills that enable the student to engage, focus, and disengage as needed
• short-term and working memory capacity
• sequencing skills
• a champion's mind-set and confidence

These skills help form the foundation for school success and can give students the capacity to override the adverse risk factors of poverty.
The operating system can be improved through many activities such as: physical activity, playing chess, the arts, and music.   Low SES kids' brains have adapted to survive their circumstances, not to get As in school.  Teachers need to upgrade their operating systems in order to make a difference in their academics.
Action Steps

• Change Staff Members' Mind-Sets
• Invest in Staff
• Support Ongoing Collaboration
• Encourage Staff Dialogue
• Gather Quality Data

Do you feel all the teachers in your school fully believe that EVERY kid can succeed?

REFLECTION ZONE: Stakeholders

I think all teachers are stakeholders, but I specifically chose the team of 6th grade teachers as a group of stakeholders in our district.  This is a group of people who have a stake in our school and greatly impact our educational system. 
One thing this group of teachers does each year is the cookie dough fundraiser. These teachers double check each student's order and count the money that each of their homeroom students bring in.  One year, when I had 28 students in homeroom, I alone had over $10,000 sitting in my desk.  It took quite awhile to count the money (each time I picked up an envelope and felt or heard coins jingling I would cringe), call the parents of the students who are short or over to make sure everything was accurate, and to record how many dimes, quarters, $1, $5, $10 bills, $14 checks... were collected for the records of our district office.  It is a pretty time consuming project. 
The profit we make is quite large. Money earned from this fundraiser is used for MANY things and experiences that greatly impact our students. It pays for the gas needed for buses for fieldtrips so students pay $0 for the fieldtrips and the food they eat on these trips during their 6th grade year.  Specifically the money is used for the Camp Wapo experience where students attend camp, eat breakfasts, lunches and dinners, and spend the night in cabins.  This is an expensive fieldtrip that is funded entirely by the cookie dough fundraiser.  We usually have money left over.  This money has gone towards the purchase of the following things for all students in the middle school.

• sleds for recess
• recess equipment
• a large tv for the media room
• equipment for the workout room and phy ed. dept.
• Some years we put the extra money in a cd that would come due during their junior year, and they could use this for their prom.

There is a great deal of extra time and energy that goes into this fundraiser.  The impact of this fundraiser and the benefits reaped from this group’s hard work are also great. Primarily the sixth graders receive the most benefits, but so do other middle school students.  Students are impacted by this group again as juniors in high school.  I view the 6th grade team of teachers, as well as all teachers, as a group of stakeholders in our district. 

REFLECTION ZONE: the essential enneagram



After reading the essential enneagram by David Daniels ,M.D., and Virginia Price, PH.D, I have learned a little bit more about myself.  I remember I was a "blue" when I took the True Colors inventory, but this book dove a little deeper into personalities.  According to the authors, "the enneagram is a powerful and dynamic personality system that describes nine distinct and fundamentally different patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting.  Each of the nine patterns is based on an explicit perceptual filter.  This filter determines what you pat attention to and how you direct your energy.  Underneath each of the nine patterns is a basic proposition , or belief, about what you need in life for survival and satisfaction."  I took the essential enneagram test and identified my top three personality types.  As I learned more about these types I found that I had many of the principal characteristics.  I later confirmed and verified my top types by answering a few questions.  My three types are as follows:

1. Perfectionist

2. Mediator

3. Giver

 

I found it interesting that my second and third types were the wings of the perfectionist.  I agree that I am responsible, conscientious, try to do things the correct or right way, and meet my high internal standards. I am one to follow the rules, whether its in a game, or a class, or any aspect of my life.  I do focus my attention on what is right and wrong in my opinion, and I tend to be critical of myself and others.  Two of my strengths are putting forth a lot of effort and being highly responsible.  I agree that I can become stressed by not being able to quiet my internal critic and the associated anxiety and worry and feeling overburdened by a sense of personal responsibility and conscientiousness.  It was stated that there were some ways I can further my personal development.  I need to accept "imperfections" in myself and others.  I need to practice forgiving myself and others.  I also need to allow free time for pleasure and relaxation.  I learned that others can support me by encouraging me to go easy on myself, remind me to take time for myself, provide me with a nonjudgmental viewpoint, and remind me that the goal in life is to be human, not without fault. 



I found it interesting to practice breathing and centering yourself.  I also enjoyed the serenity prayer that expressed the role of the active force, receptive force, and reconciling force. 

 

I took note of the specific practices for the perfectionist.  Participating in these practices may provide me with opportunities to become aware of how my personality functions, to take action to change my habitual behavior, to preview and review my progress in self-development, and to reflect on my overall development. 

I will pay particular attention to the dominance of my inner critic by pausing throughout the day and asking how have I been judging myself and others.  I will try to consciously and deliberately make time for my personal needs, desires, and pleasurable activities.  The statement I wrote down is,

 "Today I will practice accepting my own and others' mistakes and errors as part of the natural flow of life.  I will practice appreciating different points of view, different values, and different ways of doing things.  I can do this by releasing resentments when they arise and practicing forgiveness.  I will try to bring a sense of harmony and balance between work and pleasure into my life today."

The fundamental principle I need to be reminded of is that we are all perfect as we are, that life is good as it is, and it is important to allow time for myself to relax and enjoy life each and everyday. 

                                      

               

REFLECTION ZONE: Danger of a Single Story

I am willing to share an example of the danger of a single story in my personal life.  My husband and I have been attending Expectant Parent classes.  One evening a woman came to our class to provide information and answer questions on receiving an epidural.  She introduced herself and immediately a red flag went up in my head.  She had the same last name as two of my former students, and there was no way I was going to receive medication from them or someone closely related to them.  I prejudged her instantly, and I am embarrassed I did so.  By the end of our time together I learned that she is very good at what she does, very knowledgeable, and she answered every single question I had.  I felt very bad about myself and that I was so quick to judge someone based on a single story - their last name.  I hope this helps remind me to keep an open mind and get all sides to a story before I make a decision. 

      

REFLECTION ZONE: Grants

Here are two grants I shared with the learning community. 

Become a Mathematics Teacher-Leader
http://www.nctm.org/resources/content.aspx?id=1310


The purpose of this grant is to increase the breadth and depth of the mathematics content knowledge of one elementary school teacher who has a demonstrated commitment to mathematics teaching and learning. The applicant must have the support of the school principal in becoming a mathematics teacher-leader within her or his school or district. For the 2012–2013 school year, grants with a maximum of $6,000 each will be awarded. Only one teacher per school may receive the award. The desired outcome of the funded project is the development of an elementary school mathematics teacher with mathematics content expertise.

Provide Movement Activities for Children with Disabilities

http://info.cvscaremark.com/community/our-impact/community-grants
CVS Caremark Community Grants provide funds of up to $5,000 for public school programs that promote a greater level of inclusion of children with disabilities in extracurricular activities.
Proposed programs may include either physical activities or play opportunities for youth
under age 21 and should address the specific needs of the population served.