May 29, 2015

Curriculum Connections...

Happy TGIF to everyone on this final Friday of May... that's right people... on Monday we officially kick off JUNE!! This has been the fastest nine months of my life but I am so excited about the coming days and weeks with the ABC Countdown, Field Day (so excited about the battle between FOUR colors) our 5th Grade Moving Up experience - it is going to be AWESOME! We have accomplished a lot this year and have experienced a lot of growth as a learning community (whether it is the birth of Innovation Day or the meaningful integration of Google Classroom) so I cannot wait to see how we close out the year... it will definitely be a year to remember and one that we will re-define the #Cantiague experience.  

Of course, this time of year also brings certain challenges - especially as it relates to keeping the children actively engaged in learning when all they can think about is summer, camp and non-school related fun. With that in mind, please make sure that every minute is accounted for during the school day because when the day is filled with activities and there is little down time, the children tend to meet with more success. Whether it is an increase in Genius Hour during the week or a project that pushes the children to access their critical thinking skills, let's provide them with opportunities to learn, grow and still have fun while in school.

When thinking about our upcoming FEO on Tuesday (6/2) I would like to suggest that we all explore educational blogs that can help us organize our thoughts for the summer and our own professional/personal development as we prepare for the 2015-16 school year. Exploring educationally oriented blogs allows me to experience professional/personal development on my own terms - self-directed learning where I can pursue my interests that will help me enhance my skills as an educator. So, instead of physically sitting in the same space together on Tuesday for professional development during the FEO, I am asking that everyone carves out an hour between now and next Wednesday to explore some blogs and learn something new or try something new or establish a goal for next year - blogs are an amazing resources. Here is a link to a Google Doc that features links to some bloggers who have taught me a lot and I think could be useful for our upcoming FEO (remember we won't actually be meeting in person)...

Blogs To Learn From 

Over the last two weeks, as I walked around #Cantiague, I witnessed the following #EduWins...

• Spent some time in the second computer lab with Melissa and her students and was blown away by the work exploring line graphs while also learning about stocks. Melissa set them up with resources within the Google Classroom and then provided them with a link to a site that generated the line graph after the students correctly inputted information. Melissa also provided the children with 3 stocks they could graph and immediately the room was buzzing with exciting energy. The highlight, from my perspective, was that the children didn't spend time trying to draw the perfect line graph; instead, they worked on analyzing data based on the stock info they graphed - WOW!  

• The children in Adam's class did an amazing job with the celebration of the fractured fairy tale unit. Not only did they put on two adorable plays, but they also shared the books they created with their families and everyone was blown away. Their growth over the course of this unit of study was really impressive - BRAVO!

• On Wednesday we had some visitors from Syosset who wanted to see how we are integrating technology and we had the chance to see some awesome work in the following spaces... Ally's class was having centers where they were using the ShowMe app and Sphero; Jen & Jeanne's class were having their kids use PicCollage to label pictures as they reinforced nonfiction text features; Meryl's class where we discussed the 1:1 iPads in her room; Jessica's room where she shared her experiences with Google Classroom and NearPod and then Joe showed off the important work with LEGO Robotics. Overall it was an AWESOME couple of hours - thank you!

Tech Tip of the Week...

Saw this great article about 30 apps a teacher must have for a paperless classroom! Although we are not there (... yet!), I did think it was a great list to check out nonetheless: 30 iPad Apps for the Paperless Classroom. 


SCHEDULE OF THE WEEK... 

Monday, June 1

"A" Week
Gr. 4 Science State Test: Written in the Classroom

Tuesday, June 2

FIELD DAY
Full staff FEO... explore the blogs above!

Wednesday, June 3

Gr. 3 Trip to Brookville - dress comfortably
Gr. 5 Trip to see TomorrowLand (the movie)
Gr. 2 Fairy Tale Celebration - Marsen & Quinn

Thursday, June 4

CST @ 1:20pm
Rain date for Field Day

Friday, June 5

Happy TGIF!
Principal for the Day - Zach & Samantha -be on the look out for us!
PTA Executive Board

Kids' Korner

While visiting a first grade classroom with our guests from Syosset, one of the students said, "Cool Mr. Sinanis - you brought some friends to school!" 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

May 15, 2015

Curriculum Connections...

Happy Friday to everyone - I hope it is a wonderful weekend! It is hard to believe the day has finally come - I graduate from Penn on Saturday. I will definitely try and tweet some pics in my full graduation regalia - hood and all. I am really excited because Paul and my family will be there to celebrate with me. This whole process has meant a lot to my father, especially as someone who immigrated to this country and left everything behind for the "American Dream." Thank you all again for your support and encouragement over the last three years!

In other news, welcome back to Janine - we have missed you! Janine will be back on Monday. Thank you to Caylie for doing a great job in her absence. Also, as of next Tuesday (May 26), Julie will be taking over in the position of ESL teacher for the remainder of the year - thank you for coming back Julie! To Kerry, we wish you the best and know that your new district is lucky to have you!

I also wanted to share a quick Pam update - we miss you Pam! I am thrilled to share that all tests of the mass removed were benign - that is AWESOME!! Pam is home resting but her recovery will take a bit longer than expected so she will be out for at least another couple of weeks (surgery can take a toll on the body). Please know that Pam is trying to get as much rest as possible so she can heal and get back to us so she may not be able to talk on the phone or respond to emails or text messages. She sends her love and thanks everyone for their kindness and support in her absence.

Finally, this week, instead of specific #EduWins, I have to celebrate one of the greatest and most epic school-wide #EduWins during our time here together at Cantiague... Innovation Day!This experience was truly AWESOME! Each grade level experienced something slightly different - whether kids rotated through stations or worked independently throughout the entire day - but there were some critical common threads: enthusiasm... high levels of engagement... and a sense of pride and passion about the work they were experiencing. 

If I could envision what a school of the future would look like, each day would include features of Innovation Day. We heard kids truly collaborating around something they were excited about; we saw children creating and building; and we watched children accessing their critical thinking skills in ways I have never seen! Those are the LIFE skills we want our children to possess when they leave school and enter life. We want them to learn how to take an idea from their mind and make it come to life - that is what they did today over and over again! Thank you all for embracing this Innovation Day idea and supporting it in a way that exceeded each and every one of my expectations - today is a day I will ALWAYS remember as a true educational experience that was child-centered and took into consideration student choice and student voice. BRAVO TEAM CANTIAGUE!!!   

Please not this Fast Friday Focus will cover the next two weeks so hold on to it for the necessary information! 

Tech Tip of the Week...

Check out this article about effectively using technology in the classroom: 7 Characteristics of Teachers Who Effectively Use Technology - some good stuff to think about!


SCHEDULE OF THE WEEK... 

Monday, May 18

"A" Week

Tuesday, May 19

Grade 3 Trip
PTA Meeting - APPY Hour - 9:30am
Full staff FEO @ 3pm in the Library to discuss end of year!
Budget Vote Day!

Wednesday, May 20

Kindergarten Trip

Thursday, May 21

ABC COUNTDOWN BEGINS! (Here is the calendar)
CST at 1:20pm
Gr. 5 Spring Concert

Friday, May 22

Happy TGIF!
Enjoy the 3-day weekend!

Tuesday, May 26

Planbooks Due for all teachers
Gr. 5 Goes to the MS in the AM
SEPTA - 7pm

Wednesday, May 27

Gr. 4 Science Test - Hands-On Portion for IEP students - Gym closed

Thursday, May 28

Gr. 4 Science Test - Hands-On Portion for all classes - Gym closed
CST at 1:20pm

Friday, May 29

Happy TGIF!
Gr. 5 Peer AIDS Education from HS Students @ 9:45am!

Kids' Korner

As the children were leaving school after Innovation Day, at least five of them screamed out... "Thank you Dr. Sinanis, this was the best day EVER! When can we do it again?" That was literally music to my ears!      

Pics of the Week...

Check out Cantiague's Week in Tweets (special Innovation Day edition) - click on the following link to see our Pics of the Week...

WEEK IN TWEETS

May 8, 2015

Curriculum Connections...

Happy TGIF to everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful week - our first week in a while without any state tests or make-up tests - WOOO HOOO!  I would like to begin by wishing everyone who is celebrating a HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY on Sunday! I hope each of our Cantiague moms has an awesome day and weekend because you all deserve to be celebrated and honored for all that you do each and every day—both here at school and at home. I am seriously in awe of each of you because somehow you manage to fill the roles of teacher, parent, psychologist, caregiver and advocate all day at school and then go home to your own children/families and fill these roles (& more) with grace and patience—you are all an incredible inspiration! Thank you for sharing so much of yourselves each and every day! 

It seems rather appropriate that Teacher Appreciation Week leads up to Mother's Day! I hope everyone enjoyed the week and the mini celebrations that unfolded throughout the week. Feel free to send a thank you note to our PTA because I know they really enjoyed celebrating each of you. I know I have said this before but it bares repeating... It is an honor and privilege to learn from and work with each of you on a daily basis. Your dedication, incredible work ethic and positivity makes this a space where all learners - children and adults - can thrive and prosper. 

Finally, I want to thank all of you for the congratulatory texts, emails and phone calls earlier in the week after I successfully defended my dissertation. You each played a role in my journey to this point - thank you for the support, patience and encouragement whenever I needed it. The whole dissertation defense process was quite a surreal experience and the notion that I can officially call myself "Dr. Sinanis" has yet to sink in... fortunately, I still prefer Tony - except when my mom is yelling at me.  :) 


This week, as I walked around #Cantiague this week, I spotted the following #EduWins...

• Huge shout out to our Team K teachers who put together an awesome first day of Incoming Kindergarten Orientation. The kids were engaged in some great activities and it provided us an opportunity to get to know them - as individuals and as learners. The team also created the most amazing introduction to Kindergarten at Cantiague video that left our incoming families excited about next year. AWESOME WORK!  

• I recently visited with Tali's class and they were inspired by the Caine's Arcade video where a child created an entire arcade using cardboard. Well, her class took the idea and ran with it and have created their own cardboard arcade and are excited to host their own carnival. This is definitely an example of the power of Genius Hour and giving kids an opportunity to create and think outside of the box - no amount of test prep or worksheets would yield the same results! 

• I had a chance to spend some time in Adam's room and was blown away by the fact that the children were discussing potential Genius Hour projects over the summer inspired by their exploration of expository text as part of reading workshop. The children were so engaged and were so excited to share their ideas - AWESOME!

Tech Tip of the Week...

As we continue to explore the importance of Digital Citizenship (our in-house committee will be meeting soon), check out this article for some great tips and resources: Teacher's Guide To Digital Citizenship.


SCHEDULE OF THE WEEK... 

Monday, May 11

"B" Week

Tuesday, May 12

Grade 4 Trip
PTA Meeting - APPY Hour - 9:30am
Full staff FEO @ 3pm in the Library to discuss final plans for Innovation Day!

Wednesday, May 13

Incoming Kindergarten student orientation - Library closed in the AM!

Thursday, May 14

INNOVATION DAY is here!!
Ralph's Ices
Board of Education Meeting - 7:30pm at MS Library

Friday, May 15

Happy TGIF!
SEPTA Movie Under The Stars - 7pm @ Cantiague
Tomorrow... Tony graduates from PENN!!!

Kids' Korner

While visiting a kindergarten classroom one of the kids asked, "Now that you are Dr. Sinanis, can we come to your office instead of Nurse G?" LOL... ummmmm.... NO!   :)       

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