Monday Morning Message 2018-2019

Good morning, First off, we hope everyone had a nice weekend. We are looking forward to another week building relationships, strengthening our students academic needs and working towards meeting our goals. We are in it together, don't forget that! Mrs. Solomon shared a great article with us last week. It stated how anxiety can leads to disruptive behavior. Kids who seem oppositional are often severely anxious, which is very true! It touched upon many things we are seeing in and out of the classroom. As our society is changing so are our students. We have student with social, emotional and academic needs that we may have not experienced before. We have to take the time to understand them and what they are dealing with internally on a daily. This often leads to digging deeper and learning about their needs; reading articles and furthering our knowledge on research is very valuable tool in our profession. It takes time, hard work, patience, and last but not least love. Take a few ...

You should all have the mathematical practices by now. (They are also on the county website) It is important students know these practices fluently. They should be frequently using them during daily math instruction. When students use them they increase their ability to solve problems with a more strategic high ordered approach. It will further their understanding and all them to be successful. There are a ton of Powerpoints on Google with further explanation of the mathematical practices- also kid friendly ones. If you would like me to send these please let me know. ( I did add a few great resources below that can be useful) The Common Core mathematical practice standards are the foundation for mathematical thinking and practice for students as well as guidance that helps teachers modify their classrooms to approach teaching in a way that develops a more advanced mathematical understanding. Think of these standards as a guide to creating a more complex and absorbing learning experi...

Last week, I had the opportunity to attend an informational seminar presented by the Suncoast Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, with several community members, educators, business leaders, and board members from Desoto, Charlotte, Sarasota, and Lee counties.   The theme was An Exploration of Catalytic Thinking.   Hildy Gottlieb was our presenter for the morning.   She spoke to us about how just by changing the questions we ask when tackling issues, it can change the way we approach and see the world.   I quickly realized that there are so many amazing groups of individuals who all share the same goal, improving the academic success of our children, our futures!   Hildy's main suggestion was to have us change the questions we are asking in order to change the world.   It is not enough to just ask what the problem is or what we should do about the problem or how should we solve the problem.   We spend too much time living in negative situations. ...