11-20-2015

What a great celebration yesterday as we celebrated the coming birth of Baby Giacalone!  It's awesome when our staff can come together to celebrate like a family!

The kids really got a kick out of  Dr. Ehrhardt and myself carving the turkey's for their lunch.  The 5th grade even thought I cooked it!  Thanks to Ellen for driving the idea into a reality.

As American (Fe)Ed-U-cation Week ends today, I would like to thank everyone for the work that you put in not just this week but every week.  Their were many positive comments from parents about what they saw in the classes and I was able to see some of Mrs. Dunne's students Poem Presentations.  I'd also like to thank Dr. Ehrhardt and the BOE for the awesome lunch on Wednesday, Michelle, Barb, Jessica, Jessica and Mike for the Birthday Treats yesterday and the PTA for the breakfast this morning.

The ISBE is using a play on words as they make PARCC PLACE the weblink for resources for educators.  Despite the corny name, take time during team or your plan to check out the educator section.  http://www.isbe.net/parcc-place/default.htm

The next link is one that keeps on giving...in the sense that within the link there many other resources.  The article is about using video observations to learn and grow as a teacher.   The downloadable toolkit inside is from Harvard's Best Foot Forward Project that shows how to use video technology to rethink traditional approaches to teacher observation and PD.
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/video-classroom-observations-new-toolkit-ashley-cronin?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=socialflow&utm_campaign=Feed%3A%20EdutopiaNewContent%20%28Edutopia%29

Look at this Large info-graphic from Common Sense Media that details student media use:

Here is a really cool video called Everything's a Remix.  It first came out in 2010 and was just re-released and updated.  It's about how everything we listen to, watch, write etc...is a remix of something else from the past.  It is pertinent to today's digital world and the projects our students might create.  It is also just really cool and fun to watch.  You can watch the 4 parts separately or all together.

http://everythingisaremix.info/watch-the-series/ 

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving with friends and family.  See you soon.

11-13-2015

Every time I go by the gym Lynette has her class actively engaged and is in the mix, modeling the skills and game-play.  Keep up the great work!

Our kids did an outstanding job of collecting over 230lbs of candy to turn into troops. It shows the giving nature of kids!
Check this out, Nasa just released 8400 moon landing photos:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/projectapolloarchive/albums

Thanks to Nicole and Rich for presenting at our learning meeting.  Learning from our talented staff is the best PD we have.  Please let me know if you have an idea for our next meeting.

Melissa L did an outstanding job of planning the Veterans Day assembly and Mark C had the band sounding patriotic.  What was most amazing was sitting down with the veterans afterwards and hearing their stories and how much they appreciated the ceremony.

Creating a Project Based Learning gaming Unit for your class.
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/project-based-learning-gamification-go-great-together-heather-wolpert-gawron

Food...food and more food.  Next Wednesday is lunch by Admin and BOE, next Thursday is the turkey feast (sign up in office) and Birthday Treats (Fiorini, Ogorek, Adams, Droste, Erickson) and

next Friday morning is Breakfast by the PTA!  Happy American Education Week.

I'm excited for the parent visitation day on Tuesday.  This gives parents the chance to see the great work you do in the classroom on a daily basis.  

I appreciate everyone's efforts yesterday as we discussed student needs and brainstormed the best ways to help them.  Hearing different points of view and working through problems can be a difficult but necessary process to help our students.

Thanks to Meghan S for bringing in the pretzels from Gnarly Knots 

I don't think I have shared this video before it is a fascinating video on the the Paradox of Choice:

"Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see." -Mark Twain

11-6-2015

Wow....candy mania has hit Benjamin, Jim "19 lb" Allard, classrooms holding bags of candy back for a big turn-in, Nicole walking around with an over-sized stuffed heart filled with germs, all done for two great charities.  Huge thanks to Nicole and Melissa L for making this happen!

Thanks to Ellen and Pat for putting together our two awesome dinners for PT Conferences this week.  Don't forget that Thursday will be the soup (and more) dinner from the Women's Prayer Group.

Thanks to Jen for bringing rugby experts into our school to teach the sport to our 8th graders.  What an awesome experience!

Keep this one bookmarked and watch when you can. Library of videos on the Growth Mindset, how to praise children, and effort.
https://www.mindsetworks.com/webnav/videogallery.aspx

Thanks to all of our special teachers as they man the phones and make contact with parents who have yet to schedule conferences.   Their goal is to fill Thursday night conferences for every teacher that doesn't have to man the phones. :)

All reports are that PT conferences are going great.  This is a huge opportunity to communicate and work with our parents to help our students.  Thanks for all of the brainstorming, planning, peer collaborating, data researching blood, sweat and tears that goes into preparing for these three nights, not to mention the work you do in the classroom everyday.  

Thanks to Jim Allard and Melissa Lamantia for serving on Monday Night's Superintendent advisory committee.  I know how packed this week already was and your extra effort is appreciated.

So I started listening to a new podcast called The Hidden Brain(yes, I am a nerd) and they talk about topics like Switchtracking, using stereotypes to your advantage, the science of Fear, and this one on Teacher and Student Relationships.  Give it a listen when you have a chance, it is episode 4 on this link.
http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510308/hidden-brain


Thanks to Melissa Falkos who has been serving on the elementary ILAR textbook adoption committee. This is important to ensure our voice in what is chosen.  We will have a meeting soon for 6-8th Grade.  More information to follow.

Newsletters are due to Ellen today.

Please remember to plan accordingly for our Veterans Day Assembly which next week, thanks to Melissa L for putting this huge event together.

Thanks to Lynn and Meghan for putting together a Banner for School Board Appreciation.  We will have children sign it today at lunches and it will be unveiled at Monday Nights School Board meeting.

Finally, I know I am late with this, but I want to thank everyone for the kind words and gift card I received on Bosses Day.  It means a lot to me.  Now that we have been together for more than a year, I am still amazed at the level of dedication by the staff as a whole as well as the individual talents staff members possess that come together to make Benjamin what it is.  We have also seen each other at our less than best (mine would have been yesterday), but being able and willing to do that means that we are more like family because you are more willing to show your true emotions to the people that you are closest with.  I remember having a conversation with Greg when I started about how I use to wear white socks with my dress clothes and you will know that I am comfortable in this district when I wear white socks.  I wore white socks on Wednesday for the first time...so thank you for enabling me to be less fashionable than I already am...if that is possible. :)

10-30-2015

What an awesome Halloweenie celebration feast yesterday.  Thanks to Ellen for organizing and to Michelle for helping out in the office as needed.

Jessica A. shared a sight to use the Sphero outside the Maker Space in Subjects like math and science.
http://dailygenius.com/teaching-with-sphero-the-robot-in-math-science-and-beyond/

Nicole and Melissa L did an amazing job of organizing Character Education week.  From the Make Their Day Fish Notes to the Be There slips, Trivia Call In, to the music in the hallway, it was a week balanced with thoughtful activity and Play.  We will end the week today with a double assembly with Camfel Productions Ready Set Go for the 5th/6th grade which has a goal setting theme.  7th/8th  grade will watch Be Amazing which will focus on achieving personal excellence.

Learn about OER Open Educational Resources
http://www.slj.com/2015/10/technology/a-librarians-guide-to-oer-in-the-maker-space/#_

Thanks to Michelle for putting together the DEAR activities for our students opposite of the film, your hard work is appreciated.

Lynette and Lynn were doing their best America's Got Talent judges impersonations yesterday as they got the 5th and 6th grade students  ready for the upcoming Talent Show.

Thanks to Colleen for putting together all the work necessary for a gardening grant for our school.

Thanks to Alex for organizing the Halloween dance tonight, and to all of the teachers who are chaperoning.  Thanks for Being There for our 7th and 8th grade students.

Melissa and Danielle were burning the midnight oil finalizing the roster after analyzing auditions all week for FOTR.  The long journey to the March musical is underway.

I know I got chills watching this...how about you? #starwarsnerdforlife

Please check out this powerful cyber-bullying website.
http://mayorlaw.com/cyberbullying/



Wednesday night was filled with recognition and good spirits as Bill, Rich, Abby, Cody, Matt, Doreen and Keriann honored our fall student athletes at our awards night.

Thanks to everyone for getting ready for Parent Teacher Conferences.  This is a great opportunity for two way communication and to get extra support to help students.  Many of you probably already know of this resource, but the teaching channel is an unbelievable resource for many things to do with teaching, here is a video on P/T Conference Tips.
https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/parent-teacher-conference-tips

"People are not your most important asset. The RIGHT people are." -Jim Collins

10-23-2015

Check out this Learning Differences and Special Needs Guide to Apps from Common Sense Media.  Lots of different categories and skill levels to chose from.
https://www.commonsensemedia.org/guide/special-needs


The Outdoor Ed Trip is going great thanks to the hard work of Jim, Rich, Colleen, Lauren, M.J., Alex, Bill, Jackie, and Cody.  Special thanks to Mark who has been on the trip for 28 years and whose leadership pulls everything together.  Please ask Colleen why her new name is Merciless Morgan after what I experienced yesterday.

Nice short blog entry, that I think we all feel at times with technology and teaching in general...It's OK to pause.
http://technicallyteamann.com/its-ok-to-pause-the-firstyear/

Thanks to everyone who is donating food or time to the Foundation's Fall Festival on Sunday.  It should be a great time for Benjamin families.  I will be on the grill if you get hungry.  Thanks to Melissa L and Cathy for promoting and organizing the baked goods drive.

So here is this weeks must read, most of us have heard of Gladwell's 10,000 hour rule of practice to be an expert, but he actually learned that from researcher Dr. Anders Ericsson who actually said the most pivotal point is not how much we practice as it is HOW we practice:
http://addicted2success.com/success-advice/4-steps-experts-take-to-learn-faster-than-you/

Megan Swiertz, Lyn's student teacher has been doing a phenomenal job in the art room.  If you haven't had a chance to say hi, please stop by the art room and do so.

Thanks to Greg, Ellen B, Alex, Tom, Manny, and Frank for moving three rooms worth of "stuff" to make the Maker Space a more efficient and productive space.  It was a lot of work and is appreciated.

Watch this three minute Ted Talk about success..powerful and funny.  (There is one curse word at the end as a word of caution)

I was popping into some of the rooms that had substitute teachers in them on Wednesday and came away with two conclusions, we have a solid group of substitute teachers and they were left meaningful work to do with our students.  Often overlooked, substitute teachers are an important part of our school!

  

10-16-2015

I want to thank Karen O who has done an amazing job starting with last Friday and going back to every teacher institute or School Improvement Day, of setting up and providing both Benjamin and Evergreen with snacks and drinks as well as meeting the needs of our speakers and administrators.  Her attention to detail on meeting everyone's needs is unmatched and appreciated!

Thanks to Keriann for providing the school board with a comprehensive overview of our athletic program on Tuesday night.  Her use of students(via GoPro camera footage) was a great addition the board appreciated.  Here is the video:

Information and Resources on how to empower students through Digital Storytelling Projects.
http://www.edutopia.org/blog/empowering-students-through-multimedia-storytelling-michael-hernandez

I'd like to thank the Melissa L, Nicole, Christine, Lauren D, Jim and Mark B for not only meeting with me monthly during our Leadership meetings, but for leading your teams and this building on a daily basis.  I could not do my job without you during yours.

I was amazed to see the dedication and collegiality that took place Wednesday after school on our early release day.  Teachers discussing their ideas and concerns about their content area as well as departments getting their hands "dirty" and digging into curriculum across grade levels really reinforced for me how special this school district is.  Thank you to all Benjamin staff members!

Great Image on principles of great digital citizenship.

Congratulations to Matt T, Doreen, Bill and Rich as they led their teams in the first round of the playoffs yesterday.  It was exiting to watch our home teams play hard hard and put their skills and sportsmanship to use as they represent our school.

Thanks to Alex and Colleen for continuing to coordinate the magazine sale activities.  Today is Bingo and the Limo Lunch for students that earned it.

If you only read one thing in the blog this week....then you're fired...JK:)....then read this:
What we can learn from Carly Rae Jepsen and the Harvard Baseball Team
http://georgecouros.ca/blog/archives/5694


On October 30th we will have our three screens assembly for students and our Drop Everything and Read event.  We will be on a double assembly schedule with 5th and sixth grade being pulled first for the movie and 7th and 8th grade participating in reading activities(more to follow).  Then the 7th and 8th will watch their movie and 5th and 6th will participate in the DEAR.  I will need to pull the 5th and 6th grade a little early for their film showing so we finish the complete program on time for the end of the day.

Please encourage students to join our chess team.  I would like to have our Chess Team built back up in the tradition it once was.  It will begin on Thursday at 6:00pm in the multi-purpose room.  we will make announcements but any push into making chess a "cool" experience would be appreciated.


How awesome will the musical this year be...I am excited to see what Mrs. Lamantia , Mrs. DeChristopher and the Benjamin Theater Club do with Fiddler on the Roof.  In the great TRADITION of what they have done in the past I am sure it will be spectacular.

10-09-2015

Thanks to Melissa L for organizing and running the Bus Evacuation Drill yesterday.  I was impressed with the instruction given by our bus drivers and the behavior of our students.

Thanks to Shelly and the wellness committee for putting together the wellness screening this morning.  We have to take care of ourselves before we can take care of our students.

9 Educational App Benefits for Modern Education.

http://www.fromdev.com/2015/10/educational-app-benefits.html

I am looking forward to attending STAR Custom Training today.  Hopefully this will be a valuable learning session that will enable us to pull and create questions that will challenge our students and make them grow.  

Thanks to Melissa L, Lynette, Jen, Lynn, Mark C, and Cody for bring in a Birthday Treat Feast.  A little bit of healthy and a little bit of chocolate was the perfect combination!

The room rearrangement has begun! Thanks to all involved to make the transition a smooth one.  

Abby and Cody had their Cross Country party yesterday to celebrate the student athletes hard work.  Their season will come to a close on Tuesday at the cross country Championship being hosted at Harvest Christian.

How one teacher teaches the Growth Mindset in her classroom.

A huge thank you to Keriann who will be presenting our Athletic Program to the Board on Tuesday, October 13th.

Mark once again informed 8th Grade parents of the wonderful opportunities that exist on the Washington D.C Parent Meeting.  Hopefully our 8th grade students will take advantage of this great trip.

Good Article on Why we send students to school.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/a-teacher-like-you/justin-aion-why-do-we-sen_b_8261292.html

Thanks to Manny, Frank, Tom, Jose, Brenda, and Alicia for helping out with all of the set-ups yesterday to get ready for the events of yesterday evening and today.

From The Onion(Joking...but only slightly) article on Student Growth

New Statewide Education Standards Require Teachers To Forever Change Lives Of 30% Of Students

SPRINGFIELD, IL—In an effort to hold classroom instructors more accountable, the Illinois State Board of Education unveiled new statewide education standards Friday that require public school teachers to forever change the lives of at least 30 percent of their students. “Under our updated educator evaluation policy, teachers must make an unforgettable, lifelong impact on at least three of every 10 students and instill a love of learning in them that lasts the rest of their lives,” said chairman James Meeks, adding that based on the annual assessments, if 30 percent of students don’t recall a particular teacher’s name when asked to identify the most influential and inspiring person in their lives, that instructor would be promptly dismissed. “We are imposing these standards to make certain that a significant proportion of students in any given classroom can someday look back and say, ‘That teacher changed the course of my life, making me who I am today, and there’s no way I could ever repay them.’ Anything less is failure.” Meeks also confirmed the implementation of another rule aimed at ensuring that no more than 40 percent of a teacher’s students end up in prison.
Cartoon of the week.