Monday February 1st, 2016

Duties for the week: 
     
     AM Bus: Lancaster
                  Garcia
                  Coleman
     PM Bus: Fullmer
                  Anderson
                  Standley
     Lounge: Triner
 
 
  Meetings/Reminders for the week: 
 
   February 1st, 2016- Monday- Parent Lighthouse Team 8:20 am in Library

   February 2nd, 2016- Tuesday- Intervention Meeting
  
   February 3rd, 2016- Wednesday- Eval Team
 
   February 5th, 2016- Friday- Friday Fun- Dress with your favorite sports team

   February 5th. 2016- Friday- Student leaders selling bookmarks for .50¢


Habit of the week/Classroom leading morning announcements:

    Simson- Habit 6: Synergize


This week is both Counselor Appreciation Week and the 100th Day of School. 

Student leaders will be selling bookmarks on Friday. We have yummy smelly ones and blank color your own. We want students reading, so this is a great item for students to buy. Student leaders are excited and have started making and posting signs around the school. 

We love students who are learners, and happy students! We had fun activities this past week, from kindness to dancing:

Pictures This Week

Great reminders:

Friday January 29th, 2016

What a great dance Thursday night! We had ladies from three years old to fifth grade, and we heard so many thank you comments throughout the evening. We had dads and grandpas that we don't see very often, and they were dancing and smiling! Thank you to everybody who helped from the planning, to the set up, and the clean up. Thank you also to Mrs. Anderson for suggesting the activity. What a successful family involvement activity! I'll have more pictures to share on the Monday blog post.

Please also thank TJ for being an awesome DJ. In addition to dancing in the gym, we had refreshments and a photo taken.  A big thank you to Mrs. Sorensen and her husband for taking a photo of every young lady who attended, like the one below.  Next week, students who attended will each receive a professional photo that they will cherish as a great keepsake.

Have a great Friday! Look for treats in the staff room as well!

Thursday January 28th, 2016

The big event today is the Little Miss Dance, from 6-7:30. A big thank you to everybody who is helping with the event.

Please remind families about our first Parent/Guardian Lighthouse Team meeting on Monday. We'll be starting at 8:20 in the library.

This article is a great check list for inclusive classrooms, which I'm always impressed at how well our staff works together to ensure all students are included throughout the school day. Two pieces that stand out are communication and collaboration:

5 Effective Strategies for the Inclusive Classroom

As kindness week continues, this is a great thought to share with students:

Wednesday January 27th, 2016

We have a staff meeting after school in the library. We'll start at about 3:50. The main focus will be LEP students and WIDA. We'll also try to have a few minutes to share anything that was tried after our last staff meeting about Leader in Me, and after completing a gallery walk over the last two weeks with the charts in the workroom that have the notes.

Please help remind families and the ladies about our Little Miss Dance on Thursday. We will also have cookies, a photo booth, and fun engaging songs. We'll have something in the Spring for the young men and the important mom/female in their life.

This article is a great reminder that we are all leaders, both staff and students. Not only did we have a shy third grade student bravely start her two week school wide leadership role this week as a birthday leader, but we also had a diligent young lady from first grade checking in with teachers on Tuesday about our upcoming Leadership Day, so she could complete her task as a student lighthouse team member. How many students get to have those great experiences at school?! Sitting at a desk, or engaged in active real life learning?! Leaders are everywhere, and we are all continually reflecting and growing:

Reflection on Yourself as a Leader

So true:

Tuesday January 26th, 2016

A big thank you to Mrs. Sweet and Mrs. Terrell for all of their time and work with Winter assessments, both testing and entering data! We had additional math assessments added this year for universal screening of all students. Those two ladies did an excellent job.

Second grade will be at the Herrett Center in the afternoon.

You might be the first smile a student sees in the morning, or even a staff member or parent. For Kindness week:

Monday January 25th, 2016

Duties for the week: 
     
     AM Bus: Hammond
                  Simson
                  Nail
     PM Bus: Osmond
                  Miller
                  Kenyon
     Lounge: Jensen
 
 
  Meetings/Reminders for the week: 
 
   January 25th, 2016- Monday- Student Lighthouse Team 8:20 am in Library

   January 25th, 2016- Monday- Jerome students and para-professionals visiting in the morning

   January 25th, 2016- Monday- Grade Level Teaming with 2nd

   January 26th, 2016- Tuesday- Intervention Meeting
  
   January 26th, 2016- Tuesday- Grade Level Teaming for 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th
   
   January 26th, 2016- Tuesday- 2nd Grade to Herrett Center 12:30-3:30

   January 26th, 2016- Tuesday- School Leadership Team 4:00 in Ms. Ardito's office

   January 27th, 2016- Wednesday- Eval Team

   January 27th, 2015- Wednesday- Staff Meeting

   January 28th, 2016- Thursday- Staff Lighthouse Team Meeting

   January 28th, 2016- Thursday- Grade Level Teaming for K

   January 28th, 2016- Thursday- Principal's Lunch with student leaders

   January 28th, 2016- Thursday- Little Miss Dance 6-7:30 in Gym
 
   January 29th, 2016- Friday- 4th Grade Hygiene Visit with nurses 2:30-3:30


Habit of the week/Classroom leading morning announcements:

    Tahiri- Habit 5: Seek first to understand, then to be understood


This whole week is Bullying Prevention Week, and the Great Kindness Challenge. Look for hearts appearing around the school with acts of kindness!

The staff meeting agenda this week is:

1. WIDA/LEP students- Mrs. Buschhorn
2. Interventions for LEP students- Mrs. Nail

Please help remind students about this fun new event Thursday evening:

Little Miss and The Men in Their Lives Winter Ball

We have seven students from Horizon Elementary in Jerome visiting on Monday. They will be learning about Leader in Me, taking a tour, participating in a question and sharing session, and then ending as they eat lunch with student leaders. Students will then take ideas back to their school. What a great opportunity for student voice and leadership.

Just a few pictures this week. A big thank you to our block/specials teachers who have led intervention groups this year, and helped in the classroom during their open times. There aren't very many open times, but the few available have been very much appreciated.

Students who attend Mrs. Kenyon's classroom also worked very hard deciding their own classroom leadership jobs/roles. School is home for our students during the day. Students need to feel welcomed, included, and a part of their classroom. I walked into the classroom and saw a very diligent young man vacuuming, just priceless:

Pictures This Week

Great reminder:

Friday January 22nd, 2016

We have students from Canyon Ridge's early childhood education program observing today at the preschool, and a few days next week. This is great opportunity for them to learn, and to hopefully develop an interest in becoming teachers. Thank you to the preschool staff for welcoming them!

We had a great Spelling Bee Thursday. A big thank you to Ms. Miller for organizing and leading! Thank you to staff for attending and supporting the students!

Have a great Friday! This is a great reminder about how there really is no time to be negative:

Thursday January 21st, 2016

The Spelling Bee is after school in the library, starting at 4:00. We have five very impressive students.

We're getting ready for Monday, when the Great Kindness Challenge starts! It's going to be the happiest week all year. Might be a tie with the 12 Days of Christmas, wearing a costume for 2 weeks straight. Here is another video that could be shared with students to help prepare:

Kindness Matters

A big thank you to the social committee for planning and hosting the bridal shower Wednesday after school!

Just as all of our students have leadership notebooks with goals, so do many of our staff. We all have at least one goal. I hear staff often talking about health goals, classes they are taking, and family goals. Here is a photo that is a great idea, posting and sharing with students:

                                            image: @MrsBalsbaugh

Great thought for today:

Wednesday January 20th, 2016

Choir will be starting again for the Spring semester. A big thank you to Mrs. Dickinson for always looking for opportunities for our students to sing at, like the upcoming singing in Boise at the capitol. Here is a flier with information, and please encourage 3rd-5th grade students to join choir:

Choir

We had the Twin Falls Ed Foundation at our school on Tuesday. We had one student representative from each 1st and 2nd grade classroom using their voice to help pick out colors and the design for another buddy/friendship bench. When the weather warms up, and the ground isn't frozen, we'll have at least three benches on the playground. This articles gives a nice overview and would be great to share with students, and also a picture of the students who were very impressive as they gave input:

Buddy/Friendship Benches

Great list of ideas for students who have experienced trauma; which relates to many of our students:

Responding to Trauma

Great thought for today:

Tuesday January 19th, 2016

Next week is bullying prevention week, and the Great Kindness Challenge. Programs and curriculum programs off the shelf are nice to help with bullying prevention, but it all comes down to kindness and empathy. Kindness and empathy are what counters bullying, and both are free! Here are two videos to share with students this week to help get ready for next week. Look for heart die cuts that student office leaders will be bringing to you, and in the office, so you can have students write the kindness acts that they do. The hearts can then be posted outside your classroom, the office, and around the school.

Here is also a handout with ideas for the hearts and spreading kindness, but students can definitely think of other ideas. Mrs. Jensen has made copies for every classroom. The great piece to be proud of at Harrison is the size of hearts, both students and staff:

Kindness Video 1

Kindness Video 2

Kindness List of Ideas

When we look at raising student achievement, it all comes down to closing the opportunity gap. This short article discusses tips for reading, and giving students as many opportunities as possible to help build knowledge is crucial:

Reading Tips

This thought fits very well with the training certified staff had on Monday. Something to think about:

Monday January 18th, 2016

Duties for the week: 
     
     AM Bus: Lancaster
                  Moore
                  Lent
     PM Bus: Porter
                  Enders
                  Lindquist
     Lounge: Pauley
 
 
  Meetings/Reminders for the week: 
 
   January 18th, 2016- Monday- No School- Staff Training

   January 19th, 2016- Tuesday- Intervention Meeting
  
   January 19th, 2016- Tuesday- Grade Level Teaming with resource, Title 1, and ESL 
   
   January 20th, 2016- Wednesday- Eval Team

   January 20th, 2016- Wednesday- Wedding Shower for Ms. Goodwin in library after school
 
   January 21st, 2016- Thursday- Spelling Bee in Library at 4:00

Upcoming: January 25th-28th, 2016- Bullying Prevention Week/Kindness Challenge


Habit of the week/Classroom leading morning announcements:

    Miller- Habit 4: Think win-win

We have this flier going home this week, for the Little Misses and The Men in Their Lives Winter Ball. Please encourage and you could share this link via email with families:

Little Miss and The Men in Their Lives Winter Ball

The back side of the flier has information about our new Parent/Family Lighthouse Team. We have a staff lighthouse team and a new student lighthouse team. This is a great opportunity for families to be involved:

Parent Lighthouse Team

The grade level teaming meeting this week will have the grade level teacher leaders sharing what they learned/best practices from the recent math training they attended. The topic is data and measurement, and classified is welcome to attend a grade level if they are interested in learning as well.

We have sledding pictures, readers, career day, chess, the student lighthouse team, and more! Several great learning opportunities, and fun with friends:

Pictures This Week

We haven't shared a Kid President video in a while. Here is a great one to share with students. Synergy, empathy, being positive, choosing and planning for the future, full of promise and potential, and being awesome:

Kid President

We hear about digital citizenship often. It doesn't matter if you are online or in person. We need great citizens, people, regardless of the setting. This articles adds one more item to consider, digital leadership:

Students with Digital Leadership

Friday January 15th, 2016

We have several of these innovative ideas occurring at Harrison. There might be an idea here for classrooms to try that is new. As we've discussed before, learning is not only between the four walls of the classroom. We like to go out on the edge at Harrison:

Grading, Student Choice, and Student Learning

Have a great Friday! Here is a great thought for the day:

Thursday January 14th, 2016

This article is one most of us can relate to. Trauma is usually at the heart of serious disruptive behaviors, and we definitely can relate in almost every classroom. Trying to get at the root cause is the challenging part. There might be something in this article that catches your eye, that can help with a student in your classroom. The picture included is also cute. We include yoga, brain breaks, mindfulness, brain lessons, and more for a reason. High expectations and high support:

Trauma and Emotional Needs of Students

I love this picture. If you've never visited the preschool, I highly recommend it. This picture is from Mrs. Popa's classroom on Wednesday. I was so impressed. These students are in the morning three year old class. They were learning letter names and reviewing the Leader in Me habits. When they got to sharpen the saw, they each shared how they personally sharpen the saw. Priceless! They were sitting so nicely, and very attentive to the teacher and their peers who were speaking:

Wednesday January 13th, 2016

There is a staff meeting after school in the library. We'll start about 3:50. Bring something to write with. We'll be sharing ideas about Leader in Me, and learning/reviewing interventions.

Fourth grade students have been learning this week in their reading lessons about the power of words and using their voice, as they learn about famous leaders such as MLK, Jr. and Mandela. Here is a great thought to think about and share with students. We all have an opportunity to create change, no matter the age:

                                                                              source: one.org

Tuesday January 12th, 2016

We have a family note going home this week. We have fun new activities like an all school Spring music concert, a dance, and opportunities for families to be involved.

Family Note Front Page

Family Note Back Page with Dates

This short video is a great example of kindness:

Kindness

This article mentions the high school level, but the subject is very applicable to elementary as well. How we respond to behavior concerns and frustrations is often different than how we respond to mistakes with academic learning. Yet, both actually have similarities. Students often need multiple opportunities to learn, review, and try again with both academics and behavior expectations. The video would be a great conversation starter with students, taking care of garbage in the lunchroom during breakfast and lunch.

Teaching Behavior Expectations

First, read this posting. Also, we have always given out alarm clocks to kids who need them. Just let us know in the office. We have students in similar situations:

Then, consider this great question. What we say to kids matters:

Monday January 11th, 2016

Duties for the week: 
     
     AM Bus: Miller
                  Jensen
                  Owens
     PM Bus: Triner
                  Pauley
                  Goodwin
     Lounge: Lent
 
 
  Meetings/Reminders for the week: 
 
   January 11th, 2016- Monday- Student Lighthouse Team- 8:20 in Library

   January 11th-14th, 2016- Monday-Thursday- Pizza Pie Cafe Fundraiser

   January 11th, 2016- Monday- Getting Ready for Kindergarten with United Way 6:00-7:30

   January 12th, 2016- Tuesday- Intervention Meeting
  
   January 13th, 2016- Wednesday- Eval Team 
   
   January 13th, 2016- Wednesday- Staff Meeting
   
   January 14th, 2016- Thursday- Lighthouse Team


Habit of the week/Classroom leading morning announcements:

    Hammond- Habit 3: Put first things first


The big fundraiser this week is with Pizza Pie Cafe. Please help remind students and families, and please invite your friends and family as well. Harrison receives 25% from meals, and people can ask for a ticket at the front counter of the restaurant if they don't have one. The nice piece is that people can go for lunch or dinner anytime Monday through Thursday. We have extra tickets in the office as well.

Lincoln staff will be visiting on Monday, similar to when Perrine and Jerome schools visited, but just one day.

Super exciting to be having our first student lighthouse team meeting Monday morning. We have an awesome group of students who applied and interviewed.

The agenda for the staff meeting this week:

    1. Leader in Me check In- Mrs. Jensen
    2. Interventions for IEP referrals- Mrs. Kenyon
    3. Interventions for LEP students and ELP Plans- Mrs. Nail

We don't have school for students on Martin Luther King Jr. Day next week, Monday the 18th. Please try to include something this week with lessons. There are several great topics that could be integrated, such as leadership and service.

We had a great first week back after the break. Here are a few pictures:

Pictures This Week

This thought is so true:

Friday January 8th, 2016

A big thank you to Mrs. Mason for leading a great Science Day. Thank you to everybody who helped set up, lead activities, assist with rotations, and helped with cleaning up.

Student leaders will be selling pencils and candy during morning recess and afternoon recess. They are super excited.

This article is great for all staff, not just teachers. This is nice overview of best practices that includes a reminder about social media. I had to smile at number five, that mentions letting students know that you are on their side. That is a frequent comment we often share with students even when they are displaying the most unloving behaviors:

10 Things Master Teachers Do

Have a great Friday, and here is great thought for the day that looks like outside:

Thursday January 7th, 2016

The big event today is our annual Science Discovery Day. We have some new presenters this year and this is a great opportunity to expose students to future careers.

Please remind students about Friday fun, dressing as a favorite character from a book.

Please remind students about the Friday pencil/candy sale with student leaders. They will be selling items during morning recess and afternoon recess.

Great reminder for today:

Wednesday January 6th, 2016

One of my favorite things to see on Monday was a former student who had started back at Harrison, and he was giving a tour of the school to another student who was also starting his first day on Monday. He was explaining the 7 habits, as well as other things about our school.

School hadn't even started yet for the day, it was the first day for both students, we had a sea of new kids and families, and there was a student welcoming another student as they were smiling, talking, and walking around the school for a tour. That's the power of empowering students with skills that will be used throughout their life. That's being proactive, finding your voice, and inspiring others to find theirs.

This is a short article about Leader in Me and student voice. This article, like the impressive young man giving a tour on Monday, is a great reminder of successes we have seen. When there are struggles and challenges, remember the successes:

Leader in Me and Student Voice

Every child and every adult has strengths. Tuesday afternoon was full of changing pants and socks, cleaning coats and shoes, and listening to such interesting stories about how each incident happened. Students managed to find every mud pile, water puddle from melted snow, and what snow was left on the ground. Yes, students have strengths for sure. Good thing we have extra clothes and shoes on hand. Great thought for today, look for strengths:

Tuesday January 5th, 2016

Monday was a day like most weeks this school year. We enrolled several new students, but our highest number in one day. This article is one most can probably relate to. Thank you to everybody, not just certified, who have smiled and welcomed every student as they have arrived this year. The circumstances that bring a new student are usually out of their control. In contrast, we get to choose how we welcome and respond when they arrive. Kindness and empathy:

Importance of Caring Classrooms & Schools

Please note the added activity this week about the annual Science Discovery Day. This is an all day event in the gym, during block times on Thursday, and is always a great experience for students.

In order to raise student achievement, students must also be developing social and emotional skills. School provides academic learning, as well as a safe place to develop and provide basic needs for students. The following article is a great reminder and overview of the importance of social and emotional learning during the school day. Such an important and relatable topic, and fits with the article above. This is also important as you look long term, with students being leaders in their families and communities. When the classroom and school is a safe inclusive place for learning, not just academic learning, all students grow. We need kids with healthy emotional and social skills:

Social-Emotional Learning

Empathy, It Matters

Great thought from Pooh: