Creating a Shared Vision

After finishing my evaluation narrative late one night this week, I opened Facebook only to have this pop up on my feed.  As I read it, I smiled as a sense of peace and relief washed over me.  Brene Brown reminded us that "when perfectionism is driving us, shame is always riding shotgun."  We can't be perfect.  The shame of what we didn't accomplish, what child we didn't "save", our imperfections, can eat away at us.  As I wrote my evaluation, I realized there is plenty of what we accomplished this year that is right.  There is plenty that should be celebrated: our staff, our students, our perseverance.  

Yesterday's staff professional development day was a reminder of our commitment to each other and our students.  My head pounded by the end of the day but the feedback I did receive was positive and powerful.  "This was good work."  "The day flowed nicely."  "I think we are headed in the right direction."  Working from a shared vision, we have the power to align our vision, mission, and goals to work most efficiently and effectively to empower ourselves and our students and provide them with a high quality education and character traits to be happy and successful human beings.  As Van Gogh said, "Great things start with a series of small things brought together."  

Big Rocks:
Lion King is this Tuesday at 7:00 pm!  This year it will be held at Churchill in order to provide more space for our audience.  It is always a packed night!  Under Karen's direction, our students always do an amazing job.  There will be two morning presentations on Tuesday morning at 9:30-10:25.  Please refer to the Google Doc Karen shared.  We are excited to see what this year brings!

Wednesday night is Cooper Culver's Dine to Donate Night!  It will take place from 5:00-8:00.  This is a Win-Win!  Culver's gave us free ice cream for our Art Show and Leadership Showcase and we said we would do a restaurant night in return.  Bill placed a sign up sheet in the lounge.  Feel free to sign up.  The students LOVE to see us serving the food and talking to their families.

ACES is this Wednesday from 10:30-11:00.  M-STEP should be finished by that time for the people who are testing.  Students may bring their water bottle.  Fatino will distribute a map.  The route will be the same as the Walk-a-thon.

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!  The PTA has planned a packed week for you!

Monday:  Time out for Lunch ( Jimmy Johns as well as a traveling Concession Stand) 

Tuesday: Breakfast of Champions - Pastries brought to you from The Looney Baker, Coffee from                   Biggby

Wednesday: Concessions Carts will be making their way throughout the halls of Cooper

Thursday: Staff Meeting Gifts! 

Friday: Tailgate Lunch - Games to play on the lawn!  

Calendar for the Week of May 2:

Monday:11:45 Student Lighthouse 

            1:00 - 4:00 Kristi at CO

Tuesday: 9:30 Lion King

              10:25 Lion King

              3:45-5:00 Lighthouse Team

              Lion King at Churchill

Wednesday:10:30-11:00 ACES 

                  11:15 PTA Leaders

                  5:00-8:00 Culvers

Thursday:8:00 Staff Meeting 
                11:00 Curriculum Advisory Meeting (Sarah)

                1:00-4:30 Principals' Meeting 

Friday: 8:00-11:30 SIP work (Sarah and Robin)
           8:45 LEAD Bus Meetings

School Secretaries are the Heart of the School

All educators may complain that they are overworked and underpaid. Yet, if you had to ask who deserves one of the biggest paychecks in the school, it would have to be the school secretaries. In Cooper's case, we hit the school secretary (or fancy title-Administrative Professional) jackpot! Pam and Colleen are the rocks of Cooper. A school secretary can make or break a school. They are literally the "face" of Cooper. The first person students, staff, and parents see when they walk in the door.

We recently had the pleasure of evaluating Pam and Colleen. The evaluation asked about bookkeeping skills, confidentiality, attendance,etc. They certainly do those things well but what we appreciate about them the most is that they are student focused. They put students first day after day after day. Then, they take care of us too.

Duties performed by a school secretary:

• accountant
• public relations specialist
• nurse to ailing students
• counselor to students and colleagues

Some special talents of Pam and Colleen:

• feeder of Principals
• charmer of UPS and copy machine personnel
• declutter queens
• shoulders to cry on
• finders of lost children
• delousers
• relationship experts, bullying consultants, etc

Magic Johnson once said, "All children need is a little help, a little hope, and someone who believes in them." Thank you Pam and Colleen for exhibiting help, hope, and belief in all you do.

Big Rocks:

M-Step has gone fairly smoothly.  There have been a few issues but most have been able to be resolved quickly.  This week 5th grade will be finishing up and 6th grade will be starting.  A HUGE thank you to Robin who has been a go to person for assisting with questions and concerns. Interestingly enough, we just found out that 36-48 hours after testing, individual student results are available on the BAA site.  Final reports are due late August.

Youth Making a Difference will be held this Tuesday at Churchill High School from 6:00-8:00.  Students can bring their tri fold boards to the office and we will bring them over on Tuesday night.  If a student or a class needs a tri fold board, we have them in the office.

LPS is searching for more presenters for Level Up 3.0.  If you have something new you have tried with technology, sign up!

If you have not heard, state law now requires that the Teacher Evaluation tool be one of several models.  Livonia has looked at three models: Danielson, 5 Dimensions of Teaching and Learning, and The Thoughtful Classroom.  We know that this is not welcome news. It is going to be a new learning curve for all of us. It appears that 5 Dimensions of Teaching and Learning is the front runner.  We do not have a lot of information at this point but know that due to state law it is a mandatory move.  

Our professional development day on Thursday will be School Improvement focused.  There is also a follow up on the DSIT Culture and Climate goal that the district has asked us to do.  Finally, we would like to do some follow up on the team meetings and Cooper Vision.  The day will start at 8:00.  Lunch will go from 11:00-12:30 and the day will end at 3:30.

The Fire Drill on Friday does still interfere with two 6th grade classes. However, this is at the very end of your testing window and we believe it is very likely that everyone will be finished. This is a required passing time drill. Most teachers will be in the midst of taking students to lunch or recess. Please remind students that if there is ever a fire during lunch or recess, they would proceed out the back of the school. Students at recess would want to line up (by class if possible) away from the school, off of the blacktop. Student at lunch would proceed calmly out the back door and line up by class in the field, off of the blacktop. This will be more chaotic than usual but we will be outside to direct students. This is good practice for an emergency.

Calendar for the week of April 25:

Monday: MSTEP 6th grade begins this week

              11:45 Student Lighthouse Meeting

12:15-3:30 PD Planning

Tuesday: 6:00-8:00 Youth Making a Difference at Churchill

Wednesday: 8:00-11:00 Kelly Boswell Professional Development (Sarah/Kristi, Sally, Shawn)

Thursday: Professional Development Day at Cooper-School Improvement

Friday: 8:45 LEAD time Leadership Roles

           11:15 Fire Drill

Make Them Gold

"We are made of our longest days

We are falling but not alone

We will take the best part of ourselves 

And make them gold"

-CHVRCHES

Thursday night we tried something new.  The Lighthouse Team listened to your concerns about Leadership Day and took a risk.  We may not have had as many students participate as in year's past.  We may not have had as many "community" leaders.  The projects may not have been "perfect."

Yet, they were "perfect enough."  The leadership that did shine through was authentic.  The students' projects were their own.  With the representation of so many content areas, the showcase was aligned to our mission of "learning and leading."  Students arrived early and excited.  They were prepared when sharing their projects and thoughtfully answered questions.

We have a lot of reflection to do.  Feedback is certainly encouraged and welcomed.  From just the few conversations I have had with staff, I believe that with some more planning and encouragement the Showcase could evolve into something even greater.

Leadership Choir

Presenting on How to Write a Mission Statement

Presenting on his App Club using his own powerpoint

Playing Guitar 

Cooper Host

Recommended Articles: 

Thank you to Sally for sharing the following article, "9 Elephants in the Classroom that Unsettle Us."  It is very thought provoking article about common school practices and how they do not align with what we know about today's modern learners and the job we must do in order to prepare students for their "real lives."

Thank you to Mary Ann for sharing the following video, "Teachers as Architects and Masons."

Big Rocks: 

Thank you to Lauren Didomenico for another beautiful Art Show.  Most of us have been in many buildings and understand that Lauren's passion for art and dedication to Cooper are rare. When I think of my own children who define themselves as artists but whose least favorite special at school is Art, I am reminded how very blessed we are to have Lauren at Cooper.

In typical Cooper fashion, there were so many people that helped with the Leadership Showcase that I would be afraid to name all of you in case I forgot someone!  However, there is one person who went above and beyond and deserves a special thank you.   Angie Doelker.  Thank you Angie for writing the letters, organizing placement of our Cooper leaders, setting up, meeting with presenters and different leadership roles, etc!

Report Cards must be completed by midnight on Monday, April 18th.  Report cards will be sent home on Friday, April 22.

Thank you to Adam Lark for filling in for his third long term at Cooper and completing Dawn's report cards on such short notice.  This was not an easy task and we really appreciate Tim, Robin, Wendy, and Bill's advice and help.  If I missed anyone else, thank you!

Band-o-rama was rescheduled for this Thursday at 7:00 at Franklin High School.  

The Professional Development Day on April 28th is building based.  The day will be at Cooper from 8:00-3:30.  Lunch is from 11:00-12:30.  More information will be coming. 

Thank you to everyone for providing us with strengths and challenges feedback.  We have all of the comments in a Google Doc and are just deciding what is the best way to share it.  The lastest you will receive it is on the 28th.  There are a few people who did not get to attend.  If you would still like to meet with us, just pop in!

Overall, M-STEP is going well.  There have been a few cases where tickets have not worked but reprinting the ticket has solved the problem.  There have also been a few cases where an error message has appeared.  Sometimes moving to a new computer has worked.  Other times, just pressing the back button and re-logging in has worked.  We will keep you posted.

We are supposed to have at least one emergency drill during a passing time.  The fire drill on Tuesday will be at the beginning of lunch time.  Most classes will be walking to lunch or recess.  Classes who are already in the lunchroom will need to be reminded that they should exit the building quietly out the back door.  Students who are at recess will line up quietly in the field.

Calendar for the Week of April 18. 2016:

Monday: 11:45 Student Lighthouse

               3:45-5:00 GOTR

Tuesday: 11:15 Fire Drill

                1:30 Triad Meeting

Wednesday: 8:00 IST

                   3:45-5:00 GOTR

Thursday: 8:00 Staff Meeting

                 1:00-4:30 Elementary Principal's Meeting

                 7:00 Band-O-Rama at FHS

Friday: 8:00-10:00 Curriculum Advisory Presentation

            8:45 LEAD Time with Accountability Partners

Live, Learn, Evolve

Recently at a district meeting, one of our directors said to me, "Sarah, every time I see you, you are quoting an article or recommending a new book.  You have four kids at home.  How do you find the time?"  From a very young age, I have always had my nose in a book.  I can't fall asleep at night without reading at least a few pages of a book.  I have always been a reader but I also feel strongly that our job as educators is to be continuous learners.

Last year, Judy and I shared how we use Twitter as a Personal Learning Network at a staff meeting and Level Up 2.0.  Twitter has become one of my go-to places for professional learning.  The newest research, lastest articles, and most popular TED talks are always at my fingertips.  If I have a few minutes to spare, I can quickly read an article, tweet something positive, ask a question, or connect with a colleague.   Recently, I shared how I was invited to join the Compelled Tribe through Twitter and blogging.  Other Compelled Tribe bloggers now connect with me on Twitter to share their posts and dialogue around issues in education.  Finally, I recently discovered that I can download TED talk podcasts and listen to them on my runs.  My time is precious and if I can run and learn something at the same time, I'm all in!

One of the books I'm currently reading is Primary Greatness by Stephen Covey.  In regards to lifelong learning he states, "People must accept the personal responsibility to upgrade their knowledge and skills, to become more and more tech-savvy, to read widely, and to become aware of the powerful forces that are operating in their environment.  They may need to gain or regain a liberal or fine-arts education, in addition to keeping up on what is happening in the world of technology and science, because the arts increase the capacity of the mind to keep learning.  They also need to develop a value system that supersedes technology and science, so that they live well with the internal side of their nature.  Those who do those three things will find that their influence will expand far beyond their immediate vision and beyond their business and their family, their children, and their community.  They will make the great contribution they are capable of making."

How do you keep a commitment to lifelong learning?  How do you grow personally and professionally?  Comment below or share the last book, article, TED talk, etc that you read or watched.

My book pile next to my bed.  (Pre and Post Clean Up.  Yes, that really is a library receipt sitting on top.)

Leader In Me Conference-A big thank you to Sally and Lauren for their braveness and willingness to demonstrate their leadership, personal and professional growth by presenting with our past and present Cooper Leaders.

Just Some of the TED Talks I've Listened to Since Learning about Podcasts: :)

• Teach Girls Bravery, Not Perfection: Reshma Saujani
• A Delightful Way to Teach Kids About Computers: Linda Liukas
• How to Fix a Broken School: Lead Fearlessly, Love Hard: Linda Cliatt
• Success, Failure, and the Drive to Keep Creating: Elizabeth Gilbert
• How Childhood Trauma Affects Health Across a Lifetime: Nadine Burke Harris

Quotes: 

"Like wildflowers, you must allow yourself to grow in all the places people thought you never would."

-E.V

"Change happens when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change." 

-Tony Robbins

Big Rocks:

M-STEP is here!  We will be in the labs with you.  Please come and get your tickets right before your testing time.  If you have any problems, please call us.  We will call our District Coordinator, Kathy Baldwin, if help is needed.  Remember, this is just a small part of what we do!

Thank you to everyone who met with us regarding feedback on our strengths and challenges at Cooper.  There were several people who were still interested in meeting.  We will hold another meeting Wednesday morning 8:00-8:20.  We are happy to meet individually as well.  Let us know if you plan on coming Wednesday or another day.

Our Leadership Showcase, Art Fair, and Book Fair will be held this Thursday!  We are excited to see our leaders showcase their leadership.  More information will be coming this week regarding set-up.  Thank you to Angie for handling and organizing all of the forms!

For 6th Grade teachers, Cathy Grieg and Elaine Kramer recently emailed the 6 to 7th grade placement for math and ELA.  They would like all feedback by April 14th.  Please let us know if you have any questions.

Calendar for the Week of April, 11 2016: 

Monday: M-STEP Begins

               11:45 Student Lighthouse

                1:00-4:00 OSS meeting (Kristi)

Tuesday: M-STEP

                3:45 Lighthouse Meeting

                5:30-7:30 DSIT (Sarah)

Wednesday: M-STEP

                    8:00-8:20 Strengths and Challenges Feedback Meeting

Thursday: M-STEP

                 8:00 Staff meeting

                 1:30 Expulsion Hearing (Sarah)

                 5:30-8:00 Book Fair, Art Show, and Leadership Showcase

                End of Marking Period

Friday: Work Day

            

                 

Balance Feels Best

Before break, we noticed more hyperactivity, more tears, more short tempers, and more exhaustion.  We're not just talking about the students.  We were all out of balance: overstimulated, overworked, overtired.  The 7th Habit, Sharpen the Saw, reminds us that balance feels best.  We all feel better when we take the time to renew the four parts of who we are: body, mind, heart, and soul.

As unfortunate as it was that my daughters' spring break did not correlate with mine, there was a blessing in it too.  Full time parents know that it's challenging to find balance.  You work all day only to go home and be "on" all night.  This week was a gift. My husband and I had the same time off and were able to "balance" all of our responsibilities.  We took the kids to school each morning, went for runs, read, went out to lunch, watched TED talks, painted some rooms, picked the kids up, played at the park, etc.  I was beautifully reminded that we only have one life to live.  As the author and spiritual leader, Eckhart Tolle, said, "In today's rush, we all think too much, seek too much, want too much, and forget about the joy of just being."  Don't be too busy sawing to take time to sharpen the saw.

Kristi sharpened the saw on the beach.

My Loves

Quotes: 

"I don't understand why school can't just be you do a project and learn and then you do another project you are interested in and learn that, rather than textbooks and worksheets." Carys 

http://head-heart-health.com/17652/10-inspirational-quotes-rumi

TED Talks Worth Watching:

Scott Dinsmore: How to Find the Work You Love

Big Rocks:

Thank you to everyone who met with Kristi and I regarding Cooper's challenges and strengths.  We will be putting out the opportunity for a few more meetings for those teachers that wanted to meet but were not able to last week.  We will send out the Google Doc when complete.  Due to overwhelming consensus, there were a few changes we can make prior to the completion of the meetings. 

•  Please spend the next few weeks reviewing expectations for hallway and bathroom behavior.  We will be expecting students to walk quietly in a line in the hallway.  Kristi and I will be asking classes to go back and walk if they need to practice.  Teachers, overwhelmingly, felt that they should work together to ensure that all students were following these expectations.
• There is no gum chewing at Cooper.  This privilege has been revoked due to the problems of finding gum everywhere.
• Teachers overwhelmingly felt that hats should not be worn in the building and wanted to work together to enforce this expectation.  
• Passes for the hallways were also a big discussion.  We will discuss this at Lighthouse this week.  Teachers were concerned about the overwhelming amount of children wandering the halls.  The number one person who has control over this is the classroom teacher.  Please review your expectations for bathroom breaks and leaving the classroom.  

M-STEP is nearing.  Fifth grade begins next Monday, April 11.  Kristi and I have a meeting Monday afternoon at the board office regarding protocols and procedures.  I did set up all sessions prior to break.  I did go into school on Tuesday to print tickets but the site would not let me do it!  We are planning on printing tickets at the beginning of the week and will complete a schedule.  Please remember that the district is requiring teachers to view the videos and practice with students.  Thank you for your patience and support during this time!

Over break, Sue was approached by the EMU theatre of the Young about a possible assembly.  Another school in the area had to cancel and she offered Cooper an assembly for an extremely cheap price.  One thing our students said they wanted was more assemblies so we jumped on it.  Unfortunately, it is only for 5th grade students.  It's a play called Love Like Salt and Other Ordinary Wonders.  It is a collection of folk tales and riddles, and it celebrates the power of ordinary objects to become extraordinary.  A sign up sheet will be in the office.  The assembly is Friday.  It is a 45 minute assembly with an additional 15 minutes at the start to organize a seating arrangement.  One assembly will begin seating at 8:45 with a 9:00 start and the other will begin seating at 10:00 with a 10:15 start.  Enjoy!

The Super Readers Run will take place on Tuesday afternoon.  It look like this is the best weather day this week.  More information will follow on Monday.

Keep those Leadership Showcase applications and ideas coming!  We are happy to allow more leaders the opportunity to find their voice and showcase their talents.

Calendar for the Week of April 4, 2016:
Monday: 11:45 Student Lighthouse
                1:00-4:00 M-STEP meeting @ CO (Kristi and Sarah)
                 3:45 GOTR
Tuesday:  9:00-12:00 MSTEP Planning (Sarah and Kristi @ Cooper)
               1:00-4:00 DSIT (Kristi)
               3:45 Tennis Club
               3:45 Lighthouse Team
Wednesday: 8:00 IST
                     9:30-11:00 QAR (Sarah)
                     11:45 PTA Leaders
                     3:45 Girls Basketball Clinic
                             GOTR
Thursday: 8:00 Staff meeting
                 1:00-4:00 Elementary Principal's Meeting
Friday:  LEAD Time Bus Meetings with Drivers
              Final MSTEP Preparation