On June 1st, our last day of the 2016-2017 school year, the four of us boarded our flight to Atlanta, Georgia, to attend a fast and furious few days of professional learning at the Ron Clark Academy! While our school was being prepped for demolition, we were about to embark on the beginning of our 2017-2018 learning journey. Sure I had read Ron Clark's book, The Essential 55, as well as Move Your Bus, but nothing compares to being at Ron Clark Academy, learning from the teachers, students and parents who make up this learning community!
We traveled in groups to various parts of the school, learning about what makes this place special. As we sat in Ron Clark's classroom, we saw a 5th grade math lesson. This wasn't your typical classroom of students sitting in rows, with teachers standing around the room observing. It was an active learning environment, where students worked in collaborative groups, higher level thinking was encouraged and most of all, learners were held accountable.
Mr. Clark referred to his Essential 5 for the classroom.
*Tracking: All learners should follow, with their eyes, the speaker.
*Stand up when sharing answer & justification
*Class/House points.
*Higher level questioning for each lesson/standard
*Self reflection (If I looked through your window what would I see?)
As he spoke about the essential 5 listed above, he shared some "advice" for all teachers. Be intentional with your time; don't waste it! We must look at how we learn and adjust our learning/teaching speed. As an educator, it is vital that you always face your audience. Our feet should always face the audience, even when writing on the board! One of my goals for this year, based on Mr. Clark's advice is to allow ample wait time for learners to help answer questions.
Mr. Clark shared the story of Ron Clark Academy. It's a process; not one that just evolved overnight. He strongly believes in the motto, "if you build it, they will come." It's taken 10 years for RCA to be where it is today. With that being said, it's an evolving finished product. He focuses on creating the moment! Besides having a structure, you must build your learning community. Mr. Clark reached out to the families of RCA by making home visits. This showed families that their story was an integral part of RCA. Parents and siblings are part of each learner's story...it's vital we reach out to them!
Within the walls of RCA, all learners are members of a House family. This provides much needed support for all stakeholders, while creating a competitive atmosphere! Our school utilizes the house system for our Falcon Way time. I've also seen teachers have house competitions amongst their classes, based on behavior and class performance.
As he spoke about the essential 5 listed above, he shared some "advice" for all teachers. Be intentional with your time; don't waste it! We must look at how we learn and adjust our learning/teaching speed. As an educator, it is vital that you always face your audience. Our feet should always face the audience, even when writing on the board! One of my goals for this year, based on Mr. Clark's advice is to allow ample wait time for learners to help answer questions.
Mr. Clark shared the story of Ron Clark Academy. It's a process; not one that just evolved overnight. He strongly believes in the motto, "if you build it, they will come." It's taken 10 years for RCA to be where it is today. With that being said, it's an evolving finished product. He focuses on creating the moment! Besides having a structure, you must build your learning community. Mr. Clark reached out to the families of RCA by making home visits. This showed families that their story was an integral part of RCA. Parents and siblings are part of each learner's story...it's vital we reach out to them!
Within the walls of RCA, all learners are members of a House family. This provides much needed support for all stakeholders, while creating a competitive atmosphere! Our school utilizes the house system for our Falcon Way time. I've also seen teachers have house competitions amongst their classes, based on behavior and class performance.
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| Officially Slide Certified
As part of the "initiation" into the houses, all learners at RCA become slide certified. At the end of our first day, all of the educators went down the spiral slide in the main entrance of the building. With all of the cheering and music, who couldn't help but feel a part of the RCA family!
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Advice given to a new teacher, can also be followed by us experienced teachers! Remember to take a breath and go for your goals. Have no fear and look at the bumps in the road as part of your story, not roadblocks that hinder success. Change is an opportunity for us to become step out of comfort zone and embrace new ideas. Flexibility is key to achieving success. We must continue to challenge ourselves to be creative, especially when it comes to creating a meaningful learning environment for our school community! As we embrace change and flexibility in our learning community, we must find balance between home and school (a hard lesson for all of us!) It's time to embrace the excitement of our learning journeys!
As we end one year and start preparing for our upcoming year, it's time to remember why we are teachers. We are teachers because of the impact made on others, as well as ourselves. We must make each individual feel special. Adam Dovico spoke with our group about how to make others feel special, by using the following acronym:
S-shake hands
P-posture
E-eye contact
C-charm (smile)
I-introduce yourself
A-ask a question
L-listen & lean
As the first days of school approach, it's important to know each child's name. I can speak from experience how much this matters to both the learners in our rooms, as well as their families. Back in 1989, my parents sat in a parent conference with my science teacher. After 60+ days of instruction, the teacher could not remember my name; she had no idea who I was. Just because I was a quiet child and did as I was told, did not mean I didn't have a story to tell. The feeling of shock and dismay resonated with my parents and impacted who I am as a teacher today. It is my goal to know each child's name within the first week of school, as well as a bit about who they are. It's time to be intentional and invest in our leaners!
I began and ended my time at Ron Clark Academy in Kim Bearden's classroom. She served as a reminder of why we are teachers, despite when things seem way out of our control and making the most of every opportunity! During our last session, we split into grade level groups and talked about issues we faced. From K-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12 and administrators we began collaborating. To be completely honest, these breakout sessions served as a reminder of how different teachers are and where we are in the process of becoming 21st century facilitators.
One of the most talked about topics was discipline. I was amazed at how many became fired up when this was brought up. Most believed the best solution was to send the child to the office. I wondered how many paid attention to our two days of learning, where building relationships with all stakeholders is vital to the success of the learning environment. As a solution, it was suggested to have scenarios (based on the previous year's discipline referral data) for teachers to look at during the week of professional learning, leading up to the first day of school. This would allow teachers to listen to each other and become like minded in their approach to handling various situations.
One of the most talked about topics was discipline. I was amazed at how many became fired up when this was brought up. Most believed the best solution was to send the child to the office. I wondered how many paid attention to our two days of learning, where building relationships with all stakeholders is vital to the success of the learning environment. As a solution, it was suggested to have scenarios (based on the previous year's discipline referral data) for teachers to look at during the week of professional learning, leading up to the first day of school. This would allow teachers to listen to each other and become like minded in their approach to handling various situations.
Questions arose about how to get parent support, especially as kids get older. Just because kids get older doesn't mean parents don't want to be involved in their child's education! Our group shared ideas about hosting parents workshops. I immediately thought of the power of hosting various technology workshops for our parents such as one on Google classroom and Skyward. One school brought up the importance of having parent conferences. I had to chime in on the power of our digital goal setting conferences when it came to building relationships with our parents. One mom even told me, "You are a breath of fresh air!" Why you ask? Because I was open to guiding parents through the process of embracing technology rather than looking at them as unknowing. We must remember, we are all life long learners!
As each groups shared out about their discussion, Kim shared her advice on coping with life, when things don't seem to be going well.
- Remember that you write the pages of your stories...don't allow outside factors to define who you are!
- Empower others, as the exponential effect goes on forever!
- Lifting others up only lifts you up; you have significance!
- Seek significance (being someone), not achievements (things)!
A glimpse into a few of the classrooms, I had the pleasure of visiting while at RCA!
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| View from a 6th grade history class that was girls only! Today's lesson focused on Tupac and his music |
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| Summit Attack...great review...team of 3-4. Teacher reads problem, no WKSH. After 1st completion, 10 seconds to ensure everyone knows the process...error analysis. Roll dice. If 6, group 6, call on member to explain answer. If correct, Place 3 xs on board. Continue play! |
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| Advice to first year teacher, use Class Flow and be FLEXIBLE! |
As we begin the 2017-2018 school year, I am encouraged to be intentional with all opportunities that I encounter. It's vital to remember that I am a teacher for all learners, not just the students in room 1215. Intentionality will serve as my guide as to who I surround myself with. It's important to fuel my soul with positive energy and life-long learners, listen to others and remember it is me who brings magic to our classroom, not things. It's the love & believing in our learners that makes our classrooms a safe place for learning, where learners are willing to take risks as they reach for their goals!
It's time to change the perception of school...especially on social media...it's time to tell OUR story!
