Where are you headed in your professional work?

Readying for an important conversation, I'm thinking about where I am headed in my professional work. I've mostly read the big books on my list--books including NBPTS What Teachers Should Know and Be Able to Do, Junger's Tribe, Friedman's Thank You for Being Late, and Darling-Hammond and others' Empowered Educators that gave me a broad look at education and society today and into the future. These books helped me to right my thinking and direction with regard to service and education for my students. I will meet the conversation as one more way to direct my teaching/learning efforts in the year to come.

Once the conversation is complete, I'll be ready to zoom in on the community, classroom and student efforts that will be the main focus of the year ahead, a focus that includes the following efforts:

1. Attend MTA Union School and work w/local union team to update website, plan for year ahead
2. Reading, research and writing to support our revised orientation efforts
3. Reading and research to update math teaching/learning efforts for the year to come
4. Good analysis of data points related to last year's efforts and this year's class
5. Team collaboration to map the curriculum, plan orientations, review data, create initial materials and schedule special events including expert visitors and field studies
6. Read new book about classroom set-up, draft grant for modern-day classroom supplies and signage
7. Organize classroom materials, set up the room and purchase additional supplies
8. Prep initial school lessons and signage
9. Attend early-year meetings
10. Embed systemwide goals into teaching/learning program
11. Review mandated trainings
12. Start the school year

Summer is a great time to think big and then to focus in on the year's efforts to come. Onward.