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."