In Strong School Cultures, People Articulate the Following CORE Beliefs Through How They Behave:
All Students Can Learn at High Levels
All Students Will Learn Because of What We Do
Students Do Well if They Can
What WE Do Makes the Difference for the Kids in School
Resource of the Week
Instead of sharing an article this week, I thought of sharing a story that I think can shape the outlook of anyone. It goes along with a concept I've written about before E+R=O (Event + Response = Outcome). Our response to any event that we face (could be hundreds each day) will shape the outcome, and the more we think about how our response to an event will shape the outcome, the more effective our response will be. A true lesson for all of us, and our students...
Once upon a time a daughter complained to her father that her life was miserable and that she didn’t know how she was going to make it. She was tired of fighting and struggling all the time. It seemed just as one problem was solved, another one soon followed.
Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire.
Once the three pots began to boil, he placed potatoes in one pot, eggs in the second pot and ground coffee beans in the third pot. He then let them sit and boil, without saying a word to his daughter.
The daughter, moaned and impatiently waited, wondering what he was doing. After twenty minutes he turned off the burners. He took the potatoes out of the pot and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. He then ladled the coffee out and placed it in a cup.
Turning to her, he asked. “Daughter, what do you see?”
“Potatoes, eggs and coffee,” she hastily replied.
“Look closer” he said, “and touch the potatoes.” She did and noted that they were soft.
He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.
Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. Its rich aroma brought a smile to her face.
“Father, what does this mean?” she asked.
He then explained that the potatoes, the eggs and coffee beans had each faced the same adversity-the boiling water. However, each one reacted differently. The potato went in strong, hard and unrelenting, but in boiling water, it became soft and weak.
The egg was fragile, with the thin outer shell protecting its liquid interior until it was put in the boiling water. Then the inside of the egg became hard.
However, the ground coffee beans were unique. After they were exposed to the boiling water, they changed the water and created something new.
“Which one are you?” he asked his daughter.
“When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a potato, an egg, or a coffee bean?”
Moral of the story:
In life, things happen around us, things happen to us, but the only thing that truly matters is how you choose to react to it and what you make out of it. Life is all about learning, adopting and converting all the struggles that we experience into something positive.
Staff Meeting Recap
Thanks to all for your participation in our staff meeting last Wednesday morning. I'm hoping each of you enjoyed the opportunity to connect with each other and maybe get to connect with someone you maybe have not spoken to in a while. November and December can be two of the toughest months in our profession for a lot of reasons, so focusing on building our staff community is important.
We'll re-share your thoughts for how you will use the new calendar year to reset or revamp the work you do for our students when you return from winter break.
Lunch on Tuesday
A reminder that on Tuesday, Mrs. Moe and I would like to treat all of you to a lunch. We'll have some pizzas and treats in the staff room downstairs starting around 11:00. We are hoping to show our appreciation to each of you in a meaningful way. Enjoy!
STAR Testing Winter Screening Window
Students have been taking the STAR Reading and Math tests as of late, and some will take it in early January. It's been enjoyable to review the results and see so much growth! For our winter screening window, we'll only allow students to retake the test if it's an obvious situation where they didn't try or a score is really out of whack. We'll use this data, along with what teachers are seeing in the classroom to make adjustments to our WIN groups...these meetings will take place in the afternoon of our PD Day on January 17th.
Posted Grades
During upcoming BW Meeting with teachers, we'll work to review the grades that have been posted per class...please double check with the Puma Pride Grading Expectations prior to our meeting.
Holiday Concert Success!
It was a treat to attend our holiday concert and see the talent of our music department and students on full display for our community. Big congratulations go out to Mr. Schultz, Mrs. Graeve, and Mr. Ferkovich for a job well done.
Images from the Week
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