November 27, 2013

TOTALLY TERRIFIC TUESDAY TIMES 

(special edition of the Fast Friday Focus)

Curriculum Connections...

I would like to begin by wishing you all a Happy & Healthy Thanksgiving holiday - a much needed four day weekend before report cards and conferences! May it be filled with delicious food, great memories with family and friends, some fun, and some much needed rest and relaxation (no Black Friday for me... Hello Cyber Monday)! Aside from the holiday festivities, we will be celebrating Paul's 9th birthday on Saturday with some laser tag and stuff with his buddies. Should be a fun time!

This time of year always makes me happy (I think it is my favorite holiday) because I am reminded that I have so much to be thankful for – my incredible family, supportive friends, personal well-being and of course, each of you (I could never survive the Penn experience without each of you)! I cannot really express how much you all mean to me and how honored I am to be the Lead Learner of this incredibly special community of learners (teachers, students, parents, etc.)! Not a day goes by that I don't walk around this building with a smile on my face. Although the daily pressures and demands can be extremely difficult at times, one could never tell while walking around this building because each of you handles everything with such grace, high levels of professionalism and pride for our craft as educators. Each of you manages to put the needs of our students and colleagues at the forefront and that is what makes Cantiague so special! I have worked in several other schools and have visited many more and all I can say is that Cantiague is rare... it really is the exception to the rule about schools... Cantiague is the model for all other schools - I wish Dr. King would just visit already! For example, after the Literacy Forum last week, at least 15 different visitors commented to me about the tone in our building - the sense of joy and enthusiasm that permeates our community. That is rare and awesome!

Thank you again for all that each of you do every single day. THANK YOU for your making our Curriculum Fair so awesome last week; THANK YOU for your presence at the Board Meeting last week – it meant the world to me; THANK YOU for your support in my current studies at Penn – I could never do this without your support and encouragement; THANK YOU for your support of my family and for always asking about Paul – that means the world to me; THANK YOU for all that you do and know that I am extremely thankful that each of you are in my life because you make me a better father, educator and person!

Finally, as I mentioned in last week's Fast Friday Focus, I attended my first EdCamp (EdCampNJ) and the experience was AWESOME! If you are interested, I wrote a blog post about it and I am hoping that next year some of you will join me to attend either EdCampNJ or EdCampNYC - maybe we can rent a bus or something! Anyway, check out my take on the whole experience... My First EdCamp: Epic

Please note that this Fast Friday Focus will cover the next two weeks so please hold on to it for the schedule of the weeks!  

 
Over the last week, as I walked around the building, I spotted these awesome things...

• Rosanna & Alex's kids were playing different games on Friday afternoon that were the same games kids played during the pioneer days. The kids played games like jacks and pick up sticks and they were having such a great time. Even I had the chance to join in but got my butt kicked at jacks! Love the way Alex and Rosanna were able to make this lesson in history a connected one for the children - AWESOME!  

• Rande facilitated a robust shared reading experience that focused on the idea of synthesizing what the children had learned throughout the week. The class had been analyzing a nonfiction article about rainbow loom bracelets and Rande kicked off the shared reading experience by showing them a news clip about a school that banned the bracelets. The children were then challenged to reflect on their opinions about the bracelets based on all the information they had accessed during the week and the discussion they facilitated on their own was AWESOME!   

• Meryl had her students present their state research projects using the technological resource of their choice and all I can say is that the end results were beyond impressive! The children took turns coming up and sharing their presentations and in the end they had used a bunch of sites, apps and resources that were great (I learned a lot watching them) and they were so proud of their work - it was AWESOME! It was such a powerful experience that Meryl and I will be planning to have her students present mini-workshops during a Faculty Enhancement Opportunity in January for our entire staff. Instead of teacher led sessions, there will be student led sessions... so excited! 

• In case you missed it, here is the special Thanksgiving videos our kids made - the first one just features our kids and the second one is our collaboration with schools from Jersey and Minnesota - please show them to your class...

NATIONAL THANKFUL VIDEO

Tech Tip of the Week...

As an alternative to the typical tech tip, this week I want to share a video that I think is worth watching featuring a Twitter friend of mine George Couros. This video inspired me and I hope it does the same for others...

  


SCHEDULE OF THE WEEK... 

Monday, December 2

"B" Week
Happy December

Tuesday, December 3

Faculty Enhancement Opportunity (all staff) - discussion of a Problem of Practice- bring it to the space!
Holiday Boutique
REPORT CARDS ARE RELEASED!

Wednesday, December 4

Holiday Boutique 

Thursday, December 5

CST at 1:20pm
Parent/Teacher Conferences - PM
Holiday Boutique

Friday, December 6

Happy TGIF!
Parent/Teacher Conferences Continue - School Closed for Kids!
Tony out of the building at Penn!

Monday, December 9

"A" Week

Math Benchmark this week Gr. 3-5! 

Tuesday, December 10

Faculty Enhancement Opportunity - please let me know if you are interested in leading a mini-PD session!

Wednesday, December 11

Happy Wednesday!

Thursday, December 12

CST at 1:20pm

Cultural Arts

Board of Education Meeting at Jackson

 

Friday, December 13

Happy TGIF!

Kids' Korner

During the EdCampNJ experience last weekend, one of the people who sat through my presentation came up to me afterwards and asked how much coffee I drank to stay so energized. When I explained that I do not drink coffee she said, "Oh gosh, your poor teachers!" LOL! Sorry I am so wired..     

Pics of the Week...

No pics this week because it is such a short week!

November 22, 2013

Curriculum Connections...

Happy TGIF and here is to an awesome weekend! I am excited because tomorrow I am attending my first EdCamp (has come to be known as the "Unconference" and you can click the word for a short blog explaining the philosophy) in New Jersey. This is a wonderful opportunity to connect with other dedicated, passionate and like minded educators! I cannot wait to share everything I learn and I am presenting with a Twitter friend of mine from Wisconsin who I have not met - should be fun!   

On another note, thank you all for making our annual Curriculum Fair such a huge success last night - it was truly an AWESOME night for our entire school community! Walking around the building from 6:30pm to almost 7:30pm was an incredible experience for me. Watching parents experience math with their children made it an incredibly powerful moment. I am so happy we moved this event from March to November - it is an awesome way to get ready for Thanksgiving because we have so much to be thankful for as members of this community! A special thank you to Lois Z. for transforming our school into a beautiful work of art. The Faculty Room looked amazing and the Board of Education Members could not stop raving about everything they saw in that room and throughout the building - BRAVO LOIS! Another special thank you to Joey, Joe, Lisa, Omar and Edwin for getting our building ready to host yet another Board Meeting. First off, our Blue Ribbon Wall is a sight to behold - I smile every time I walk through our lobby! As if that weren't enough, our building looked spotless and I repeatedly heard people commenting about how it looked like we could eat off the floors - BRAVO Joey and team because no matter what the request, you always make it happen with ease and grace - THANK YOU!!

Finally, thank you all for joining me last night at the Board Meeting - it was humbling to be honored for the Bammy Award but it was an honor as well to represent our amazing community. Thank you to Joe and MaryAnn for that awesome Student Leaders presentation - it was ADORABLE!

     

Over the last week or so, as I walked around the building, I spotted these awesome things...

• Carolyn's class was doing writing workshop where they were studying poetry and she introduced the concept of personification, which can be challenging because it is relatively abstract. Carolyn made the experience engaging, meaningful and she pushed the children to apply the concept in their own writing. The children had such a good time learning the concept and then trying to use it in their own writing notebook. Not only was the lesson Common Core aligned (not really my main concern) but it was really fun too! BRAVO! 

• Rosanna was extending the reading workshop experience to build on the students' ability to visualize. The children had be talking about visualizing as part of the shared reading experience and throughout the workshop and as a way to build on the experience, Rosanna connected it to poetry and art - it was AWESOME! The children were broken up into four groups and rotated through four stations where they read a different poem and then using water color paints, had to create what they visualized and they had such an amazing time and were highly engaged throughout the experience... WOW!   

• Lorraine was working with Melanie's class and the whole lesson revolved around the idea of helping them expand their collective reading diets! The experience was wonderful to watch because they were challenged to explore texts they had never read before and the children literally generated lists of new texts and at the end, commented on how much they enjoyed the experience. Once again, Lorraine proves that the library is the hub of all things literacy at Cantiague!

• In case you missed it, here is the Video Update of the Week featuring Christine's and Donna's students - please show it to your class...

Tech Tip of the Week...

The other day I discovered PBIS World on Twitter and I think it may be one of the most awesome resources I have ever seen as it relates to behavior management. So, basically you pick a behavior (disrespectful, disorganized, hyperactivity, frustration, etc.) and then it lists a bunch of characteristics related to that descriptor and if that child fits the profile you click yes and then it takes you to a page of potential interventions... AWESOME!  


SCHEDULE OF THE WEEK... 

Monday, November 25

"B" Week
ALL Planbooks due for all teachers by Tuesday afternoon

Tuesday, November 26

Gr. 2 Trip
Faculty Meeting Cancelled
Teach Like a Pirate Book Club Discussion - 3PM

Wednesday, November 27

Happy Wednesday!
Tony Being Shadowed All Day

Thursday, November 28

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Friday, November 29

Happy TGIF!
SCHOOL IS CLOSED!

Kids' Korner

On Wednesday, there was a little kid left over because his babysitter was running late. While he explored my office he asked how old I was and when I told him to guess, he said, "I don't know, in your 60's?" To which I responded, "REALLY?!? Do I look that old?" So he says, "Let me see your hands," and after looking at my hands, says, "You are definitely in your 30's - you have young hands!" LOL!       

Pics of the Week...

Check out Cantiague's Week in Tweets - click on the following link to see our Pics of the Week...

WEEK IN TWEETS - NOVEMBER 22

November 8, 2013

Curriculum Connections...

Happy Friday to everyone! I hope we are all ready to enjoy a much needed three day weekend. I am so excited about having Monday off because I have a major part of my dissertation proposal due Sunday night, which means that Monday will be a day for some fun, rest and relaxation. My fingers are crossed that Paul does not have too much HW this weekend! 

Please note that this Fast Friday Focus will cover the next two weeks so please hold on to it for the next two schedules of the week!  

 I want to thank you all for an amazing day yesterday. As many of you know, my friend and mentee (all through Twitter), John Fritzky, spent the day at Cantiague and we literally spent the entire day visiting every classroom in this building. Words cannot begin to describe how proud I felt as we walked around this building. Our staff is really the most incredible in the world and our collective dedication to doing what is best for children and in ensuring that our children are feeling happy, respected and valued is awesome to observe... truly AWESOME! What we value as a school community was visible everywhere - we value 1:1 instruction; we value small group instruction; we value sound literacy instruction rooted in the gradual release of responsibility of learning from teachers to students; we value empowering and challenging our students with varied learning opportunities; and, most importantly, we value taking risks with our teaching and learning! BRAVO! Thank you for your collective dedication in aligning our instruction from kindergarten through 5th grade so that our children have learning experiences that build on one another - it was so clearly apparent to me yesterday. Our growth as a team over the last six years (and we were pretty amazing to start) is indicative of our dedication to excellence. THANK YOU!

Another special thank you to Joey and Joe for making our Blue Ribbon wall become a reality in the inner lobby. It looks AMAZING because of these gentlemen! This would not have been possible without Lois' artistic vision - thank you! I cannot wait to see the finished product!  

Last week I forgot to mention that November is National Picture Book Month. It is always exciting to celebrate some sort of literacy event and what is more perfect than celebrating picture books at the elementary level. I am hopeful that between the Making Meaning resource and any other fun picture books each of us chooses, that our kids might hear a picture book each day this month! If anyone is interested, I would be happy to stop in and read a picture book to the children - just let me know when and let me know if there is a specific book I should read. Click on the following link to GOODREADS for a list of great picture books - it would be great for our oldest children to hear some of their favorite books that they heard in the primary grades - how awesome would it be for our fourth or fifth graders to analyze a book like The Giving Tree with their current skill set? In my 17 years as an educator, I am constantly reminded about the instructional power of picture books so let's have some fun this month!     

Over the last week, as I walked around the building, I spotted these awesome things...

• Melanie's class was launching their writing workshop experience. They listened to the picture book Wilford Gordon McDonald Partridge, one of my favorite picture books of all time and then they gathered on the rug and shared a personal item that was important and meaningful to them. Melanie modeled sharing using her grandfather's rings and then showed them how to create a memory chain using the rings as the inspiration to show that she didn't necessarily have to write about the rings but instead any memory the rings could spark. The kids then went off and created their own memory chains and ensuing entries - they did an impressive job using their special objects as a motivation. While the children worked independently, Melanie facilitated a small group conference and then met individually with a couple of students all the while taking notes on her iPad - IMPRESSIVE!!

• Rande introduced a rubric to her class for their reading responses. Rande asks the children to write her a letter periodically and has explicitly laid out what she expects them to include in their letters, which she reads and then responds to each one in detail. The rubric was a wonderful way to explicitly show the students what they needed to do and include in order to achieve a Level 4 Reading Response - I encourage everyone to stop by her room and learn more about the process!   

• Jill was working with her first graders in the area of mathematics and was launching a unit on geometry. This initial lesson was so comprehensive and in the 45 minutes or so, Jill explained the difference between plain shapes and solid shapes, showed the children a video about shapes in the real world and had the children do a scavenger hunt looking for specific geometric shapes in the classroom. As if that weren't enough, she then explained the concepts of sides and corners and challenged the students to classify and sort the shapes based on varied parameters! I was so impressed by the students to synthesize all this information and apply it correctly - BRAVO!

• In case you missed it, here is the Video Update of the Week featuring Melissa's students - please show it to your class...

Tech Tip of the Week...

As an alternative to writing in the traditional sense, why not offer the children an opportunity to create a comic strip? Comics are a powerful and appropriate way to challenge kids to tell a story with all the necessary components. If this is something you want to try, maybe even for enrichment or a challenge to have a child retell a chapter book in comic strip form, check out ReadWriteThink Comic Creator!  


SCHEDULE OF THE WEEK... 

Monday, November 11

"B" Week
SCHOOL CLOSED

Tuesday, November 12

Faculty Enhancement Opportunity (all staff) - JoEllen McCarthy, literacy consultant, will be our guest presenter!

Wednesday, November 13

STAFF PHOTO - 7:50am
Shared Decision Making - 3pm

Thursday, November 14

CST at 1:20pm
PTA Executive Board
Cultural Arts
Staff Recognition Ceremony

Friday, November 15

Happy TGIF!
Tony at Penn - out of the building all day!

Monday, November 18

"A" Week

Literacy Forum hosted at Cantiague (Library & Computer Labs closed for the day)! 

Tuesday, November 19

PTA Meeting - 9:30am
Faculty Meeting - get ready for Curriculum Fair - Math Night

Wednesday, November 20

Happy Wednesday!

Thursday, November 21

CST at 1:20pm

Cultural Arts
Curriculum Fair & Bd. of Ed. Meeting at Cantiague

 

Friday, November 22

Happy TGIF!

Carvel Sale

Kids' Korner

Yesterday, while walking around the building and visiting classrooms with John, a student came up to us and introduced himself to John and then proceeded to say, "Are you going to come and work for Mr. Sinanis? If you are, wear comfortable shoes because all he does is walk around all day!" LOL!     

Pics of the Week...

Check out Cantiague's Week in Tweets - click on the following link to see our Pics of the Week...

WEEK IN TWEETS - NOVEMBER 8