You're the Director!

Our end goal is to teach kids how to succeed in the real world. We start with five year olds and begin to shape their thinking for 180 days each school year. While academics are important, and the focus of many of our days, the character traits of honesty, kindness, compassion, perseverance and leadership are most important in molding the next generation.

As a school principal, I love interacting with kids in positive ways. I am rarely in my office during the school day, something that annoys my office staff, but I love. I am able to be around kids to see how they interact with each other and their teachers. I learn about them by observing them in class and talking to them while they learn. I build relationships with kids in the classrooms, in the halls, on the playground, in the cafeteria, at arrival and dismissal on a daily basis. The best parts of my days are when I am with kids. Just because I am an administrator, doesn’t mean I can’t still be a teacher.

One way in which I connect with kids and teach is by sponsoring our News Crew. We get together three times a week to record the school’s daily announcements. Twice a week we broadcast announcements over the intercom, and the other three days we broadcast recorded announcements on our Youtube channel. Our news crew is made up of eight, fourth grade students. Early in the year, the students learn how to write the script, interview staff members, record, anchor and edit in the filming process. The experience is something that most kids do not have the opportunity to experience at this young age. It is a learning process for our students, who quickly see the demands of a fast paced, high expectation environment.

On each recording day, we rotate jobs so that all kids have opportunities to anchor and film. Quickly, I have been able to observe the news crew to see who is more comfortable with each job and who needs coaching or additional support for certain aspects of the news. As I often do in everyday life, I look for students to emerge as leaders in the work they are doing at school. Sometimes the leaders step up when you least expect it.

During a recent filming session, the students were assembling in the studio. I was busy in the hallway talking with two different teachers. Student J popped out of the room and asked if they could start, saying everyone was ready. Surprised, I told him go ahead. When I finished my conversations with the teachers, I refrained from entering the studio, and decided to just watch through the window. What I saw blew me away. Student J was being me. He had completely replaced me as the director. He was moving the show along quickly, keeping the set quiet, giving all kids opportunities and nervously swaying back and forth anticipating the next segment. MAGIC. That is all. I hadn’t yet met with kids to explain how to run the show. He watched me do it and was ready to step in. I am so proud of student J for taking a risk and stepping up to be a leader. Luckily, I was able to snap a picture of him in action. After the show, I pulled him to the side. I told him everything he did right. I told him how proud I was. I called his mom and gave him a #GoodNewsCalloftheDay. Then I informed him that he was now the director of the news. He rocked my world, and reminded me why I love teaching.

Patience is...

A dad told me this week that he admires that work we do at school, for he doesn’t have the patience that he sees our staff exhibit.

It is now September and we are three weeks into a new school year. The beginning of the year always brings excitement and energy to a school. A new year also means that new relationships have to be built between students and adults that are not yet familiar with each other. Routines and procedures have to be established to create an environment that will foster success for the duration of the school year.

Teachers start day one of the year by teaching their new students how school works in this new grade level. Time is dedicated early and often to practicing routines that will now fill each school day as students work through each subject area and learn how to collaborate with others. Teachers know that pouring time and effort into building routines will help them in the long run as they raise learning and social expectations for their students throughout the year.

The beginning of the school year can be the most difficult time of year for teachers. I am reminded of the amazing individuals we have working in our schools during this stressful time of getting to know our new students and their individual needs. Patience is underestimated in schools, EVERYDAY. Our teachers and school staff pour themselves into finding out what makes our kids tick and what most helps them be successful. They take time to be patient when things are hard and when students need more support.

Schools should be filled with positivity, and one way we show this is by having patience with every situation that comes our way. I am proud that I work with individuals that exhibit patience with their students through the hardest situations, and at the beginning of the school year. Educators are patient beyond words, and when someone from outside the school recognizes this, it is a much appreciated compliment.