4-28-2017

The Power of Ted Talk in the classroom.  Watch the video of the discussion or read the article.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/58d95b1ee4b0ef7ce8c5c056?utm_campaign=coschedule&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=drrodberger&utm_content=TED%20Talk%20Meets%20Global%20Education:%20Keeping%20Your%20Kid%27s%20Head%20in%20the%20Clouds


Big thanks to MJ, Chris, Melissa F, Danielle, April, Matthew and Melissa L for attending the fourth grade parent night last night.  Your participation was valuable.

The 4th grade visit was equally successful.  These future Bengals are pumped to be here next year!  Thanks to the 5th grade team and Melissa for organizing this successful day.

12 Ways Librarians can promote digital literacy.
http://edtechvision.org/?p=1464&utm_content=bufferf2130&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer


Mark Bradbury and Keriann have been sending me DC pics that Janice Youngwith have been putting on the district Facebook and Twitter.  They are having a great time.

 

Thanks to Melissa L and April for participating in our teacher interviews yesterday.  We have great candidates to join our Benjamin Family.

Thanks to Sherry, Adrienne, Nicole and Megan for participating in the PTA McTeacher Night last night.  I heard Sherry was making students order in spanish at the counter.  Me encanta!



Thanks to Adrienne and the seventh grade team for hosting the career fair today at Benjamin.  I know the 7th grade students will benefit from hearing parents talk about their careers.  Thanks to Jessica for being a presenter as well!

Thanks to Michelle F for finishing up the PARCC make-up tests.  It is a thankless job and I appreciate the effort in getting it done efficiently.

Great article on the power of Choice with student reading.  Please read.
https://www.edutopia.org/article/building-choice-student-reading-susan-barber?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=socialflow


Thanks to Mark and Melissa F for running the state science test on Wednesday and to Greg and Ellen B for their support.  We are hoping to get the results of these tests in before they graduate high school so we can recycle the tests as thank you cards and send them to the state for their support!  :)

Thanks to Lauren and Bill for preparing the presentation on our new ILAR curriculum for the Board meeting on Monday night.  Thanks to the entire ILAR staff for their dedication to getting this adoption completed over the last two years.

Thanks to Angela, Jessica and Mr. Johnson for chaperoning the trip to the UIC engineering expo.  Watch the short youtube video below.

Thanks to Ellen and Kim who do a great job everyday in the office.  Jim and Adrienne found out the hard way how difficult your job is. I am glad I was able to assist them by improperly transferring calls and hanging up  on people.  You are an essential piece to the school.

Throw like a girl...Yes Please!

4-21-2017

Red White and Beautiful was an awesome night.  The music, artwork, projects, PE presentations, healthy snacks, NJHS bake sale, photoshop videos and book fair were all a big success.  Most importantly it was a night of great conversations between teachers, parents and students.  Thanks to everyone who helped make this night a great success.

Great article on internal motivation:
http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2016/09/what-separates-champions-from-almost-champions.html

Thanks to Lynette and Jen for having the students make so many healthy snacks that teachers were able to grab bags of them for PARCC Testing.

PARCC testing is working well with students seeming to really enjoy our special schedule and being less stressed.  Most computer issues are solved by restarting the computer.  Special thanks to Michelle Fiorini for conducting the make-up testing as we go along.  One more day on the 25th!

A short podcast (13 minutes) on How trust and communication can improve school culture with the great Todd Whittaker.
http://www.bamradionetwork.com/ascd-learn-teach-lead-radio/4343-how-trust-and-communication-can-energize-school-culture

Alex is at the CEC conference in Boston for the past few days.  Follow his twitter feed to see some updates before he presents information from the staff.

Thanks to Courtney, Bill and Abby.  Running a track team is difficult with all of it's moving parts and they did a wonderful job of hosting our first home meet of the season on Tuesday.

Great picture of Wrigley Field!

 



Mrs. Morgan and Mrs. Incrocci are at Student Council State Convention this weekend with many students.   Mr. Bradbury and Mrs. Moore will be in Washington DC wit students starting on April 27th.  I want to thank these teachers as there is a lot of planning on top of giving up weekends and time with their family to make these trips a success.  These trips are valuable and engaging learning experiences that you can't get from reading a book in a classroom.

8 coolest Ted Talks on Psychology (not just for Todd!)  My favorites are the Parodox of  Choice and FLOW.
https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/8-ted-talks-that-will-help-you-understand-the-human-mind.html


Thanks to Ellen for running the UNbirthday Party on Wednesday.  On top of the food and conversations people enjoy by coming together to celebrate, I was able to teach young Matthew Turek what happened to Alice, who the Mad Hatter was, as well as the "unbirthday" song.

JFK On Poetry, Power, and the role of the artist in society.
https://www.brainpickings.org/2015/05/01/jfk-amherst-speech/


 April 27th is a busy day, we have 4th grade visitation, 4th grade Parent Night, and the PTA McDonald's fundraiser.  thanks to all of the teachers that are participating in these events and special thanks to Melissa for organizing the 4th grade programs.

ROE Stem Newsletter with great Earth Day links and resources.

https://denebxserve3.denebcorp.com/webmail/api/download/attachment/bendist25.org/mfitzgerald/5ddac126-0fab-47fb-a485-22a173fe32d3/40251/0-1/April%202017.pdf?version=253210&sid=fc0dce03bd4382c50c677e957e16e487e775189829aa1956058180364d06460e&mode=view



Monday morning I will be at the Illinois Principal Association recognition breakfast with two of our 8th grade students and their families.  It is a great program and Laura P from Evergreen will be getting her Principal of the Year recognition.

"Just keep a smile right on your face, don't let 'em get you down."

4-7-2016

Thanks to Chris, Lauren, Jim, Keriann, Nicole and Todd for giving their presentation on the Learning and the Brain Conference.  When teachers get to go to a conference we want that information shared with the rest of the staff.  By presenting their favorite parts of the conference we get to have a general overview of ideas that on the surface level we may agree or disagree with or that intrigue us.  In order to gain from this experience the most important action that we must take is to take time to explore at least one of the concepts/ideas in more depth with the links that they provided.  Thanks again guys.

Successful strategies for teaching gifted learners.
http://www.davidsongifted.org/Search-Database/entry/A10075

Short on Chaperones for tonight's dance.  I will have my dancing shoes on if anyone wants to join me and earn some extra $.


New Math App in google allows students to type, write or voice math equations
http://alicekeeler.com/2017/04/04/math-teachers-screamed-excitement/

Thanks in advance to everyone for the work you have done to prepare students for PARCC.  This includes the trials and practice tests but most importantly the teaching you have done all year to get them where they are at today.  I talked to all of the students in lunches on Tuesday and they seem pumped for the new schedule.

Stephen King's top 20 rules for writers:  good list
http://www.openculture.com/2014/03/stephen-kings-top-20-rules-for-writers.html

Thanks to Greg, Ellen B and Kim for all of the prep work they did to get us ready from a tech/data perspective, for the PARCC Testing.


Continuous cycle of learning.


Thanks to Megan, Cathy and Betty who I watched yesterday do some real-time problem solving and propose some strategies they could try to help student learning while in an annual review meeting yesterday with a parent.  Sometimes we try to pre-plan and have all of the answers, but it is also important to listen to concerns, collaborate and adjust on the fly.  Great job!

10 Dr. Seuss books you might not of heard of.
http://www.parent.co/10-dr-seuss-books-youve-never-heard-of/


Lynn was putting up some amazing artwork in her hallway.  Please take a walk down to check it out.  I was blown away with some of the 8th grade self-portraits.

10 Podcasts that will make you smarter.
https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/10-podcasts-that-will-make-you-smarter.html?cid=sf01001&sr_share=twitter

Jessica put out another outstanding issue of the student newspaper.  I really liked how RWJ and a student from San Francisco posted the best things about Chicago and San Francisco which I am assuming appeared in both newspapers.  What a great way to share and collaborate with other schools.

How to Learn Faster with the Feyman Technique

Thanks to Michelle for stirring up interest in reading by running the March Book Madness.  Kids were excited to vote and read!



It was great to see that we passed the referendum on Tuesday.  It is good to know that the community supports our schools. Yesterday we had a reception for some of our parents and community members that helped rally the troops and get the word out.  Special thanks to Dr. Ehrhardt for organizing the successful effort.