November 9th-13th #NisforNotice

This week I'm continuing Shelley Burgess' Lead Like A Pirate challenge with N is for Notice. I hope you all felt appreciated last week. It was so great to get around to almost every classroom with Tammy Lee last week (we went everywhere but the classrooms with substitutes)! Each and every classroom was filled with happy students engaged in meaningful learning. I especially appreciated how we were able to talk to students, say hi, and ask a question. Even in the classrooms where direct instruction was happening, there were plenty of turn-and-talk opportunities where we could have a little conversation. 

With N is for Notice, my notes will be focused on specifically noticing the impact of your instruction for students. I know that the choices you make are powerful and purposeful, and I want to be sure that you know I notice! 

Tweet Tweet! 
If you are tweeting out the awesome in your class, don't forget the hashtag #ncsstar ! I retweet everything I see with that hashtag on the @staracademyncs Twitter feed. 
I saw the image below and I think the answer is a YES!

Dates & Details
November 11th- No School
November 12th- Dive In PD Project Lead the Way - choose to come this week or next week to dive in to the PLTW curriculum! Be sure to do your "homework" from Susie and Carly below :)

Before they meet with us on Thursday we need the teachers to:
1. Look for the email from PLTW
2. Set up their account (an image below of the email you should have received should help you in searching, or search your email for PLTW)
3. Watch your Grade Level Video (you will need to do this 24 hours before our meeting on Thursday)
Here is a screencast to help you get to your grade level video
PLTW Screencast- How to access your grade level video

November 18th Math and Literacy Cadre- Literacy Cadre at Star, Carly's room
November 23-27 Thanksgiving Break
Dec 2 Star staff meeting : Class Meetings
Dec 18 Minimum Day- Star 
January 18 No School
January 19 NCS PD day
March 4 NCS PD Day & ROCKSTAR Roseville! 

Mindful Minute: 

image credit

What is the purpose of school? PACT administrator Kirsten Spall posted this blog this weekend and there is a lot to think about. As I read the post, I kept wondering when the author would get to his findings... the purpose of school. It's a LONG post, but well worth a read. Here's the part I loved--doesn't this sound like our school?

"Greatness is happening daily across our country, often in schools with scant financial resources. Our challenge is that these innovations are isolated, when they need to be ubiquitous."

The United States now has more than 500 “Deeper Learning” schools, most in our nation’s poorest communities. Clustered into a dozen networks, these schools aren’t “cookie-cutter” replicas of each other. But in their own creative ways, they deliver exceptional learning based on shared principles:

• self-directed learning
• a sense of purpose and authenticity in student experiences
• trust in teachers to teach to their passions and expertise
• a focus on essential skills (collaboration, communication, creativity, critical analysis)
• teachers as coaches, mentors, and advisers, not as lecturers
• lots of project-based challenges and learning
• public display of meaningful student work

 I see this every day at Star! Have a great week!