Friday Focus

Great Things Noticed or Heard 

• Fifth grade is working hard at collaboration as they are truly planning together. Ask yourself and your team if you are effectively planning together as well.  Are you talking about what you are going to cover or what you want students to know and be able to do,  and how you are going to ensure this happens?  There is a difference between coverage and instruction. Food for thought... : ) Remember, working together allows you to work smarter, not harder. Think about utilizing your common prep times for planning-prioritize your time together. On my end, I will continue to look for opportunities to give you additional time together - this includes GLM's, staff meetings, and time covered by substitutes when possible. 
• In regards to collaboration, I was impressed and thankful for the way we came together as a community to discuss new procedures for dismissal.  Dismissal is another example of the importance of working together to continue to make Cove School the best it can be. Thank you for putting ideas on the table and listening to each other to come up with an effective proposal. We will be talking more about this soon so we can begin to practice and work out the kinks.
• In classrooms I have continued to observe the following best practices:
• small group instruction
• reciprocal teaching
• use of pre-tests, post-tests, and re-teaching - love the data driven instruction!!!
• turn and talk strategies
• project based instruction
• effective questioning techniques to incorporate higher order thinking
• Keys to Literacy strategies for open response practice and two column notes
• Third grade used extra collaboration time to work with Heidi and Kara around open response. They plan on coming back together to look at student work - fantastic work!
• Great teachers are both prepared and flexible. I saw evidence of this in multiple classrooms. We all know that sometimes the best prepared plans sometimes don't work out the way we thought. The ability to adjust and be flexible in the moment is to be applauded. 

Mark Your Calendar for This Week
Monday, the 14th:  GLM Grade 5 @9:30, TLT@ 2:30
Tuesday, the 15th:  PTO Meeting @6:30
Wednesday, the 16th: Common Core PD in Danvers (1/2 day-Lisa, Heidi, Margy), District GLM @Cove 2:30
Thursday, the 17th: Lisa @NISL
Friday, the 18th: No School for Students-Parent Teacher Conferences, Jenn, Grace and Ilene to half day PD on Trauma Sensitive Schools

KUDOS

• To all Intervention Staff for being so flexible when three subs showed up for the PD when we needed 6! Thank you! : )
• To Pat for helping me organize coverage at the last minute. (We decided we always need a Plan B if subs are missing!)
• To the TLT and Leadership Team for volunteering your time and energy to help move us forward! Greatly appreciated!
• To Tammy for all of the work with MA Book Awards
• To Laurie for organizing the up-coming field trip for 4th and 5th grade (Symphony)
• To Kara for her presentation on writing to the third grade
• To Ilene, Julie, and Meghan G. for patience, never giving up on students when it gets really difficult, and top notch communication with parents.

What are You Reading??

I am reading three books at once. Crazy, right? 

Reaching and Teaching Children Who Hurt, by Susan E. Craig

Explict Instruction, by Anita Archer

Carry the One, by Carol Anshaw (My non-teaching book)  : )

Cove Staff, please reply to the post with what you are reading! I am anxious to see what titles you have to share!