The week's activities will focus on the following:
Numerical Expression
We're still in the midst of our introductory math unit, a unit that lays the foundation for all math learning to come. During this unit, students learn to use many math tools, work in teams, use a growth mindset, lead their learning, and understand how numerical expressions work. It's a positive unit that's worth the time and effort. This week students will continue this work by learning to use Graspable Math, practicing the skills learned so far online and offline via the learning menu, working with patterns and variables, and completing numerical expression performance tasks.
Quiet Reading
Thanks to our reading teacher, students are engaged with a good number of wonderful books. Next week, students will continue to find a cozy place in the classroom and read, read, read several times during the week.
Portfolio Prep
With family-student-teacher conferences around the corner, students will continue to prep their portfolios to share with family members and teachers as they lead their fall conference.
We'll support the reading teachers' efforts to engage students in the Global Read Aloud by making time to read Front Desk aloud in class.
First Student-Led Assembly
This week marks the first student-led assembly. Students in my homeroom are in charge of stacking the chairs. Fifth grade students lead the assembly each week which is a great opportunity to hone their public speaking and leadership skills.
Buddies
Each week fifth graders have read books of a different genre to their first grade buddies including fairy tales and folk tales, favorite children's books, and funny poems. Next week we'll choose another genre for our Friday afternoon buddy time--this is a great way to end the week.
Student Service Meeting
At this week's meeting we'll look at the schedule with some scrutiny to iron out a few snags for specific students to make their week of learning better.
PLC
We have an extended PLC to look closely at students' reading data to inform our Response to Intervention efforts in reading. Essentially, via these efforts, our school has been able to support apt reading development for every child. It has been amazing thanks to the leadership of our reading specialist and many classroom teachers who are also reading specialists.
Faculty Meeting
This will be our first faculty meeting with our interim principal. Due to illness, our principal stepped down, and now our former math curriculum director, has stepped up to be the interim principal. Monday will mark her first faculty meeting, and a new start for our school. While people have mixed feelings about faculty meetings, I do look forward to the chance to meet as a collegial team to review our collective focus for the year. I believe that faculty meetings are an integral component of a positive school climate, focus, and overall success.
Organization and Prep
There's not a lot of extra after school meetings this week, so hopefully that means there's more time for some organizational work and curriculum prep. We have a new little teacher work room which is actually quite cozy and a good place to xerox while you do other work at the same time. I plan to take advantage of this bright and useful space.
Student work review and response
I've got a one-foot stack of student papers to review. I want to do this as I want to see how students' responded to a host of important math questions and tasks. This information will inform next steps with regard to student service and the math program.
Positive Routine
This week marks one of the first weeks of the year when we have a good overall routine, a routine I want to support as we've spent a lot of time putting it into place for many good reasons, reasons that will support students success.
Advocacy
I continue to work on advocacy in a number of areas to improve the conditions for excellence in our school and school system. I'm working to look at ways we can revise math RTI to better serve students and I'm working with colleagues to update our standards-based, interdisciplinary environmental science efforts. This work demands research, teamwork, and discussion. I look forward to continuing these efforts with an open mind. As I've noted before I enjoy the work of bettering what we can do with a few irons in the fire at all times with regard to better teaching and learning .
Personal Health and Positive Routines
The greatest challenge to teaching well is that it is a limitless job that requires educators to create boundaries so that they stay positively energized and healthy. With our routines finally taking shape, I'll focus in on this area of school life too.
Team Meetings
Our team will receive epi-pen trainings, get out our weekly newsletter, finalize dates and a permission slip for upcoming field studies, and focus in on a number of other grade five issues during two or three of our common planning times this week.
School Committee Meetings
This week's school committee meeting will focus on a number of issues I'm aware of and interested in as a teacher and the local Union secretary. Rather than go to the meeting, I'll likely watch it on the computer if available (I could not access the schedule this morning).
As you can see, it is a busy week ahead. I write this list to get my schedule and focus in order as well as to let the public know the kind of varied week educators have. It will certainly not be dull, and as you can see, it will be busy. Onward.
