Tuesday September 21st, 2021

It's important to remember to find some time during the day to pause and breathe. Yes, it is hard to find the time. Even just a few minutes is helpful. We have a nice walking path outside that you could walk on for a few minutes during a break. We also have exercise cards that were purchased to use with the walking path. 

This is a great article to save. You could try some of these calming yoga poses by yourself as you take a few minutes during the day for yourself, with a colleague, or you could even try a few of these with students that you work with. We also have yoga mats that you could use in one of the flex rooms during your break:

Yoga Poses

Some ideas for quick brain breaks:

Classroom Ideas

Thought for today:

Thursday February 28th, 2019

Please help remind students and families about the Friday fun super hero theme and the Dr. Seuss notepad sale with student leaders.

This is a great article to print and read later as a reference. Social Emotional learning and Leader in Me complement each other very well and we strive to integrate both throughout the school day. SEL and Leader in Me, foundational pieces at our school:

3 Tips to Incorporate SEL into Everyday Literacy Instruction


Thought for today:

Thursday January 31st, 2019

As we continue kindness week and prepare for bully prevention week, Be a Buddy and Not a Bully Week, this article is a nice review of proactive skills that assist in building an inclusive school where all students, staff, and families feel welcomed, valued, safe, and know that they matter. Social-emotional learning is essential:

Schoolwide SEL to Prevent Bullying


Thought for today:

Thursday May 17th, 2018

We have our first Spring Play performance tonight at 6:30, at Canyon Ridge. We had great performances on Wednesday for students, so this is a night not to miss if you haven't seen the play.

Second grade will be attending their end of the year swimming field trip today after they eat lunch.

Please help remind students that student lighthouse applications are due tomorrow.

This is great resource to print and refer to for ideas that you might emphasize next year. This fits well with Leader in Me. We all want our students to have self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, positive relationship skills, and responsible decision making skills. We focus on these items daily, all day long:

Social-Emotional Skills in the Classroom


Thought for today:

Thursday November 2nd, 2017

We have a new bulletin board for staff and classroom mission statements. Feel free to add yours if you are interested. They are great to read.

This article is a great read, and it relates well to Harrison. There is also a video to view. It is so important for kids to know that they matter, and that we notice them. We need all students to have at least one adult who they think is crazy about them. That connecting for students is essential for classrooms in so many ways, from a reduction in behavior incidents, to a feeling of safety amongst peers when challenges are presented. Knowing our students, all of our students, is a key piece of social-emotional learning. Welcome rituals like morning meeting and greetings, interactive teaching like with modeling, and end of the day reflections:

The Power of Being Seen


This fits with the article above:

Interactive Modeling


This pictures fits perfectly with the Halloween theme this week, especially the day after on Wednesday:

Monday October 31st, 2016

Duties for the week: 
     
     AM Bus: Schroeder
                 Sharp
                 Pauley
     PM Bus: Fullmer
                 Nail
                 Rodriguez
     Staff Room: Wolden
 
 
  Meetings/Reminders for the week: 
 
   October 31st, 2016- Monday- AM Kindergarten Parade 8:40 am

   October 31st, 2016- Monday- Halloween Parade 1:30 pm, and Parties After
  
   October 31st, 2016- Monday- Eval Team   

   November 1st, 2016- Tuesday- Intervention Meeting

   November 1st, 2016- Tuesday- Grade Level Teaming 1st-5th, with ESL, Title 1, and Resource
 
   November 1st, 2016- Tuesday- Art Lunch for 4th Grade with Mrs. V in the Library

   November 1st, 2016- Tuesday- Preventative Health and Flu Shots, 2:30 pm
 
   November 2nd, 2016- Thursday- Grade Level Teaming for K, with ESL, Title 1, and Resource
 
   November 4th, 2016- Friday- Friday Fun- Career Day

   November 4th, 2016- Friday- Bookmark sale with student leaders: .50 cents each

                                       
Habit of the week/Classroom leading morning announcements:
 
  Thomason- Habit 3: Put first things first


If students don't have a Halloween costume, please send them to the office when it's a good time. We will help create or find something so every student can participate in the parade.

As classrooms are integrating classroom meetings and writing activities that include opportunities for social and emotional learning, we are hearing situations that are just heart breaking. This isn't just one or two students, but almost the whole classroom. School is truly one of the most safe and loving places for our students. Thank you for reaching out to students so they know they have people on their side.

The following two links are great resources that fit well with classroom meetings and writing prompts/discussions:

Control, Being Proactive, and Restorative Practices

Being Thankful


This is a great resource for increasing student engagement and voice in the classroom:

More Student Talk


A big part of our story at Harrison is providing learning, closing opportunity gaps, closing the digital divide, and ensuring our students have opportunities to be a kid. Many of our kids are living adult situations, and they need to experience laughter. The pictures this week are great examples of learning, smiling, friendship, spreading kindness, student leaders, and more. You can click on the pictures to see them larger, and these would be great to share with students:

Pictures This Week


Here is the weekly schedule post to share with families:

Family Weekly Note


We have such a great special education staff. Here are most of them, but we have even more awesome staff at the preschool. They all truly have such big hearts and advocate often for students, and that includes all students in our school:

Remember this thought as you check in with students this week. Sometimes you need to set aside the content and address the emotions. When student needs are met, the learning will take off. Thank you for finding even just a few minutes to talk with a student. Every staff member matters, especially to our students:

Friday September 23rd, 2016

We have seen the importance of addressing and integrating social and emotional learning, SEL, and we have witnessed the amazing growth of those skills with our students. Once students have those skills, academic skills take off. We can't address academic gaps without addressing social and emotional learning. This blog lists one theme per month, with September being 'welcoming.' Even though the direct links for September and October say middle school and high school, the conversation and writing prompts include several that would be great for elementary students as well:

7 Monthly Themes for SEL

September: Welcoming

October: Accepting Change

This thought fits well with think win win, emotional bank accounts, and bucket fillers. Our students hear about those items often: