Attitude is everything. Everywhere. In every situation. A person’s attitude not only contributes to one’s own feelings, but also the feelings of others. A person’s attitude is contagious. If you have a positive, optimistic, attitude, that is what you will receive in return, for the most part. If you possess a negative disposition, you will getContinue reading “Positively Positive – Attitude IS Everything!”
Category Archives: Personalized Learning
Self-Assessment – Oh the Horror!
Self-Assessment … it’s a (long) process. We all know the importance of Assessment AS learning …. This is when students (and adults, for that matter) reflect, and self-assess their learning that real long-term learning and growth can occur. When the students in my Health and Career Education classes completed their end of the term self-assessmentContinue reading “Self-Assessment – Oh the Horror!”
Attendance and Engagement
Engagement is what makes the difference for kids! I am the vice principal of an inner-city school. It has been determined that our school is in the top ten percent of schools in our district of 124 schools with the highest rate of absenteeism. So, you may wonder what is being done to help increaseContinue reading “Attendance and Engagement”
Twitter for Newbies
Having been on Twitter for almost 7 months now, I am still amazed at the professional development I experience on a daily basis from people on Twitter. Some days, I only spend 10 minutes on Twitter in the morning, but even in that time, I still learn a great deal! There are always gems thatContinue reading “Twitter for Newbies”
Powerful Student Engagement
All 4 of my classes completed their 100 Minutes of Genius this week (my take on Genius Hour). It was a powerful experience for all of us. Here are some things I noticed: Students didn’t need any direction. Students knew what they wanted to learn about. Students were self-motivated and excited. From the moment theyContinue reading “Powerful Student Engagement”
100 Minutes of Genius
I am in the midst of completing individual conferences with my students about their learning this term (and their grades). The end of the term is coming. It is a natural break in units and the focus on prescribed learning outcomes. Sure, I could start a new unit with my 4 classes and work onContinue reading “100 Minutes of Genius”
My Struggle With Letter Grades
Much of my teaching experience, prior to becoming a vice-principal was teaching primary students. When teaching primary students, we do not assign letter grades. Instead, we look at each prescribed learning outcome for each student on a continuum of learning: not yet within expectations, approaching expectations, meeting expectations, and exceeding expectations. I very rarely indicatedContinue reading “My Struggle With Letter Grades”
Confession
I’ve got a bit of a confession to make. Over the past few months I’ve been doing a great deal of learning online and that has been so very exciting! It allowed me to start the year very excited and pondering the impact technology would have with the students I teach at my new school.Continue reading “Confession”
My Messages
Here I sit, pondering the first time I will meet my teachers and my students at my new school. While I have met some of the teachers in passing, I have not yet met the students I will be teaching – Grade 5 Health and Career Education and Grade 6 – Physical Education. What isContinue reading “My Messages”
Relationships are Key
Since I started on Twitter a month ago, I have found so many wonderful people to add to my PLN. They have posted articles blogs, research and, more importantly, they have been inspiring. Their enthusiasm, their love for learning, their passion and their generosity have been infectious. I have been very fortunate to build veryContinue reading “Relationships are Key”
It's All About Learning 