June 5, 2015

Curriculum Connections...

Happy Friday on this first Friday of June! I want to begin by thanking Rob, Phil and all the specialists who helped out on Field Day - it was the most awesome Field Day EVER and the kids had a blast, which is the most important thing! I am so glad the weather held up and that #Cantiague spirit permeated our building from start to finish! I want to thank our Shared Decision Making Team members - Ally, Matt, Allison, Tali, Sarah and Jessica and of course our two student representatives (Alli Pearlman and Rebecca Cho) who were instrumental in enhancing the Field Day experience this year... from making sure each class had a color to adding two colors to the experience to integrating a more robust Apache Relay - these people (in collaboration with Rob and Phil) were instrumental in enacting change and that has been a powerful theme this year at Cantiague!

Enacting change... we have dedicated a lot of time to that notion this year. We literally pushed ourselves out of our collective comfort zones this year on so many levels. Every classroom has a Twitter account this year to share all the amazing stories unfolding in their space... that has been a HUGE CHANGE! Every child has experienced Genius Hour this year... that has been a HUGE CHANGE! We all came together to plan and execute our first ever Innovation Day.... that has been a HUGE CHANGE! We are shifting from the WRAP assessment to the F&P Benchmark assessment... that has been a HUGE CHANGE! We embraced and integrated the notion of coding and computer science in every room this year... that has been a HUGE CHANGE! We tackled the notion of digital publications by accessing resources such as Google Classroom and QR Codes and Touchcast... that has been a HUGE CHANGE! We basically eliminated test prep this year... that has been a HUGE CHANGE! We amplified student voice this year by having them lead FEOs and PTA Meetings... that has been a HUGE CHANGE! The list can go on and on and the reasons are pretty simple... we have readily availed ourselves to new ideas, we all got more comfortable with pushing ourselves outside of our collective comfort zone (not an easy one), we know the value and importance of collaboration, and, the thing that I believe makes the Cantiague staff so unique and amazing is never wanting to disappoint... we don't want to disappoint our colleagues... we don't want to disappoint our families... we don't want to disappoint ourselves... and most importantly we don't want to disappoint our kids and that is what has allowed us to enact so much change and reiterate the fact that we are the best school on the planet!   


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

• I had the chance to spend some time in Jessica's classroom during writing workshop and I was blown away by how engaged and immersed her students were during the drafting stage in the process. They were all reading over their work, making revisions, drafting and they were all so focused on their work that I could literally hear a pin drop. It is clear that a lot of work has been done this year putting the structures in place for a successful workshop - both in reading and writing - and that was clear during my visit (in the last month of school) based on how dedicated the children were in successfully drafting their pieces!  

• The children in Katie's and Nancy/Carly's classes 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. The changes from last year's performances were great too - loved the way each classroom personalized the experience for their children - BRAVO!

• Although the whole Field Day experience was AWESOME, the Apache Relay must be recognized as a really special event that challenged the children to collaborate and think critically in order to win - it was all about strategy and skill, which are important 21st Century Skills! Thank you Rob and Matt for executing this special event that really challenged our children to access the skills they need to be successful in life!

Tech Tip of the Week...

Going with this notion of enacting change, I wanted to share this great article about creativity and why it is more important now than ever to integrate in the classroom. Check it out... Why Creativity in the Classroom Matters More Than Ever! 


SCHEDULE OF THE WEEK... 

Monday, June 8

"B" Week
Gr. 5 Sailing Trip - Siper, Malone & 1/2 of Levlons

Tuesday, June 9

Gr. 5 Sailing Trip - Cerullo & 1/2 of Levlons
Gr. 1 Waterfront Trip
FEO Cancelled 
Tony out of the building

Wednesday, June 10

Senior H.S. Reunion - 7:45am in the Library
Tony out of the building

Thursday, June 11

CST @ 1:20pm
Extra Extra Assemblies in the AM - check email for schedule
PTA Meeting - 9:30am
PTA Picnic Around The World - 5pm to 7pm
JTA Retirement Dinner

Friday, June 12

Happy TGIF!
Reorganization - Gr. 3 & 4

Kids' Korner

During lunch on Field Day, I explained to the Kindergarten students that they would be able to have an ice after finishing their pizza when one of them got up and said to me, "Thank you Mr. Sinanis - this is the best day ever because I will get dessert twice - don't tell my mom!" LOL!! Love it!!         

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