11-3-2017

Thanks to everyone for keeping up with such a busy schedule for parent teacher conferences, I know many of you went non-stop without a break.  I appreciate all of the effort and preparation that you put into these very important nights of parent/teacher communication for student success. 



How bout them soups!  Thanks to Ellen and Kim for organizing the OG Feast.  Don't forget donuts tomorrow morning courtesy of  Dwayne Ackerman.

The difference between intelligence and Critical Thinking
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-do-smart-people-do-foolish-things/?utm_content=buffer122cc&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer



I will be delivering two extra student device power cords to each classroom to help when students forget theirs.

Dr. Ehrhardt gave me an article that led to me finding this great math website.  This link is on The Three Acts of a Mathematical Story.  Great Article for all, click the link to the video when you have more time,
http://blog.mrmeyer.com/2011/the-three-acts-of-a-mathematical-story/

Thanks to Lauren Dunne who set up student volunteers  for our PT conferences.  Super organized and very helpful!

Don't Touch the Glass in this virtual shark museum in DC. 

Sherry had an awesome Day of the Dead celebration in her room Wednesday complete with Horchata and other Spanish treats with parent volunteers helping out.  Nice job!


Thanks to Greg for presenting the phone voice over IP system on Wednesday.  Please see me if you did not get the directions.

Acknowledging what students do well in your classroom can lead to deeper thinking by many of their peers.
https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/uk/17/10/acknowledging-what-students-do-well?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=general

If you have time shoot me an email with your feedback on the Red Ribbon Assembly we had yesterday.

How to Make Student Feedback Work.  Check out the steps to get honest feedback from your students.
https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/uk/17/11/making-student-feedback-work?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_term=&utm_content=&utm_campaign=Usable+Knowledge


Chess Tournament December 2, Benjamin Middle School.  More information to follow.

Thanks to Coleen for organizing the student council trip to Feed My Starving Children this week. What a great learning experience for those students. 



Melissa is making this Veterans Day Assembly one to remember, first the VFW color guard and now  Abigail Farthing from Team Rubicon will be our Keynote Speaker.  Don't know Team Rubicon?  Read Melissa's summary below:

I am very excited that through a team effort, we will have a representative from a veterans organization called Team Rubicon both as a keynote speaker at our assembly and to kick off our veterans service project.    I became aware of Team Rubicon watching 60 Minutes after Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Maria and after the earthquake in Mexico City.  We had already collected for Harvey and it was weighing heavily on me that we should do something for Puerto Rico, Florida and Mexico City, but I also knew that we had Veterans Day coming up...then I saw this amazing story about Team Rubicon on 60 Minutes.  Members of this organization were deployed going door to door assisting people clean up in aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in Houston.  The organization was started by veterans who had returned from battle or service, but still wanted to help out...wanted to serve.  

A brief summary of Team Rubicon from their website:  In the days following the devastating earthquake in 2009 in Haiti, many traditional aid organizations were slow to establish relief efforts, citing dangerous and unstable working conditions. Troubled by the scenes in Port-au-Prince and the lack of proper aid, two Marines, Jake Wood and William McNulty, decided to act. Gathering supplies and volunteers, the small group of veterans, first responders, and medical professionals deployed to Haiti in the days following the earthquake.

https://teamrubiconusa.org/

Roughly 70% of Team Rubicon volunteers are military veterans. Many of the skills gained in the military – things like emergency medicine, small-unit leadership, logistics, and experience in austere environments – translate well to disaster response. Military service does not define a Team Rubicon member, nor is it required. Many of our volunteers are pulled from the civil service sector. Firefighters, medical professionals, law enforcement officers, teachers, and mental health providers are among the diverse careers held by TR volunteers.

I was talking to Betty about this and she mentioned that Megan Dusing's sister does PR for a veteran’s organization. We found out it is none other than Team Rubicon.  Her sister made a few calls, put Megan in contact with the Chicago office....and here we have a speaker and a service project.  

The person who will be coming to our assembly:  Abigail Farthing is a former soldier who worked as a military police for the US Army.  While in the Army, Abi worked in Alaska, Washington DC and Iraq.  She comes from a military family and grew up traveling the world with her family.  She has volunteered with Team Rubicon for several years and enjoys the opportunity helping people recover from natural disasters.

Again, she will serve as our key note speaker as well as to speak about our fundraising effort for Team Rubicon, a veteran’s organization that continues to serve by helping recovery and rebuilding after natural disasters.  I am still working the details of our fundraiser and will involve students and welcome your input.