I had a great time celebrating my 50th with my family on Tuesday night and with my staff on Wednesday. It was a great way to bring on my 50's! I literally danced until Wednesday morning to Indian music!! The skits Jaxson created were hilarious and the guys did a great job creating a video to one of my favorite Indian songs.
Happy Holidays from the Wright Family
Thank you for everything you DO for our students!! I hope that you have time to enjoy some time off with family and friends. I am going to say it again, I am so lucky to work with such a dedicated group of teachers that will take NO EXCUSES to ensure that our students are successful!! Happy Holidays and have a Happy New Year!!
Observable Fish Moments at SV:
Be There: Thank you 2nd and 3rd grade for treating coffee and breakfast treats for our support staff.
Play: Thank you Heather M. for hosting a fun birthday get together. Thank you Daniel for planning fun reindeer games for our 7th and 8th graders.
Choose your attitude:Be kind. Be kind. Be kind. Be kind.
Make Their Day: Thank you for making a your classroom a safe and fun place to be.
As many of you know, I lost my mom when I was 11 years old to cancer and my dad last year. During my birthday I always tend to miss her the most and now my dad as well! She was only 41 when she died and since my 41st birthday I feel so lucky to be alive and to be with my family. Instead of getting gifts from my family, every year I participate in random acts of kindness. Chris, the kids and I will do 50 random acts of kindness. My mom and dad were immigrants and taught all four of us the art of giving back to our community. She was a teacher and because we lived in a community of immigrants many of the women would come to her for guidance. Our house was always that house, there was always someone over. I learned so much from my mom and dad. The above picture of my mom I keep on my desk by my laptop. The one with my dad I keep by our dining room table. It is something I look at multiple times a day! It drives me to be a better mom, sister, friend, wife, and educator. I am constantly thinking how can I grow.
Congratulations to Valerie who has taken a position with Napa County library. Her last day with us will be January 4th. We will miss you!!
Observable Fish Moments at SV:
Be There: Thank you Heather M., Daniel, and Kristin for helping out with fun friday.
Play: Please make sure you fill out at least one good news referral a week.
Choose your attitude:Be kind. Be kind. Be kind. Be kind.
Make Their Day: A huge thank you to Kristin making phone calls and ensuring we had 100% of our meal applications in. We won $2,500 for our site budget!! WOOHOO!!
We, as educators, can be that one person in a child’s life that can make a difference. Watch the video below: Brings tears to my eyes every time!!
Why Teaching Kindness in Schools Is Essential to Reduce Bullying
Phrases like "random acts of kindness" and "pay it forward" have become popular terms in modern society. It seems that we just can't get enough of those addictive, feel-good emotions -- and with good reason. Scientific studies prove that kindness has many physical, emotional, and mental health benefits. And children need a healthy dose of the warm-and-fuzzies to thrive as healthy, happy, well-rounded individuals.
Patty O'Grady, PhD, an expert in neuroscience, emotional learning, and positive psychology, specializes in education. She reports: Kindness changes the brain by the experience of kindness. Children and adolescents do not learn kindness by only thinking about it and talking about it. Kindness is best learned by feeling it so that they can reproduce it. A great number of benefits have been reported to support teaching kindness in schools, best summed up by the following.
Happy, Caring Children
The good feelings that we experience when being kind are produced by endorphins. They activate areas of the brain that are associated with pleasure, social connection, and trust. These feelings of joyfulness are proven to be contagious and encourage more kind behavior (also known asaltruism) by the giver and recipient.
Increased Peer Acceptance
Research on the subject has determined that kindness increases our ability to form meaningful connections with others. Kind, happy children enjoy greater peer acceptance because they are well liked. Better-than-average mental health is reported in classrooms that practice more inclusive behavior due to an even distribution of popularity.
Greater Sense of Belonging and Improved Self-Esteem
Studies show that people experience a "helper's high" when they do a good deed. This rush of endorphins creates a lasting sense of pride, wellbeing, and an enriched sense of belonging. It's reported that even small acts of kindness heighten our sense of wellbeing, increase energy, and give a wonderful feeling of optimism and self worth.
Improved Health and Less Stress
Being kind can trigger a release of the hormone oxytocin, which has a number of physical and mental health benefits. Oxytocin can significantly increase a person's level of happiness and reduce stress levels. It also protects the heart by lowering blood pressure and reducing free radicals and inflammation, which incidentally speed up the aging process.
Increased Feelings of Gratitude
When children are part of projects that help others less fortunate than themselves, it provides them with a real sense of perspective. Helping someone else makes them appreciate the good things in their own lives.
Better Concentration and Improved Results
Kindness is a key ingredient that helps children feel good about themselves as it increases serotonin levels. This important chemical affects learning, memory, mood, sleep, health, and digestion. Having a positive outlook enables greater attention spans and more creative thinking to produce better results at school.
Reduced Depression Dr. Wayne Dyer, an internationally-renowned author and speaker, says that an act of kindness triggers an increase in serotonin, a natural chemical responsible for improving mood. This boost in happiness occurs not only in both the giver and receiver of kindness, but also in anyone who witnesses it. This makes kindness a powerful, natural antidepressant. (PDF, 14KB)
Less Bullying
Shanetia Clark and Barbara Marinak are Penn State Harrisburg faculty researchers. They say, "Unlike previous generations, today's adolescents are victimizing each other at alarming rates." They argue that adolescent bullying and violence can be confronted with in-school programs that integrate "kindness -- the antithesis of victimization."
Many traditional anti-bullying programs focus on the negative actions that cause anxiety in children. When kindness and compassion are taught instead, it fosters the positive behavior that's expected. Promoting its psychological opposite is key in reducing bullying to create warm and inclusive school environments.
Maurice Elias, Professor at Rutgers University Psychology Department, is also an advocate for kindness. He says:
As a citizen, grandparent, father, and professional, it is clear to me that the mission of schools must include teaching kindness. Without it, communities, families, schools, and classrooms become places of incivility where lasting learning is unlikely to take place . . . [W]e need to be prepared to teach kindness, because it can be delayed due to maltreatment early in life. It can be smothered under the weight of poverty, and it can be derailed by victimization later in life . . . Kindness can be taught, and it is a defining aspect of civilized human life. It belongs in every home, school, neighborhood, and society. It's become clear that education must encompass more than just academics, and that matters of the heart must be taken seriously and nurtured as a matter of priority. How do you teach kindness?
The HourofCode is "a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify "code" and show that anyone can learn the basics to be a maker, a creator, an innovator." Coding is the process of writing a program to make the computer do something. Everything that is done on a computer, like websites, games, applications, word processing, videos, and photos, has been coded to do its specific feature. The process of coding may seem daunting, but learning the basics can be quite easy.
Every year we participate in HourofCode during Computer Science Week - December 6-12. This short video explains a variety of ways to get your students involved in HourofCode.
It will be a year next week that we lost our dad. Not a day goes by that I don't think of him.
I know that phone calls can home be a LONG process AND think about an email....or a post card....or a note to send regarding something GOOD one of the students in your care has done. Can you remember getting one of these when you were a student? This could be the one thing that makes a difference in ANY students' life. It could be one of the ONLY nice things that they hear all day. It could be the one thing that gets a student to produce work for you. Take a look at THIS ARTICLEand read all about the benefits of showcasing the GOOD in our students in a few simple minutes....
Jennifer McGuinness will be on leave from Nov. 29- Dec. 17. Dina Gabbart will be subbing for her.
I am thankful for a wonderful school community, loving family, friends, and that we are all healthy. This holiday season we are thinking of others and sending as much financial support that we can to help families.
National School Psychologist Week. Garrett works very hard to provide social emotional support to us, our students, families, and staff. Thank you Garrett for everything that you do!
Observable Fish Moments at SV:
Be There: Thank you Fern and Ebony for leading our student council :)
Play: Do something fun over break!!
Choose your attitude: Your attitude can decide how you will feel for the rest of the day- EVERY DAY!!
Make Their Day: Take some time and thank our yard duty staff for their help to support our students every day.
As an educator and a parent myself, conferences can lead to a perspective where I can understand both positions. Parents want their children to feel safe, be happy and learn at school. I know EVERY parent wants this. That is why it is SO important that we make them feel welcome and part of the team when making decisions. Parent/teacher/student conferences is a great time to build relationships with parents. A great question to ask yourself is what do I want from my child's teacher? How would I want to be included? If my child was being disruptive or struggling in class how would I like to be approached?
Have you planned to have your students lead part of the parent/teacher conference? This can easily be done by using the RIT goals students have set for themselves. Great Article Click Here
Observable Fish Moments at SV:
Be There: Thank you Katie, Jamie, and Heather H. for keeping up with our weekly AR slides and planning a fun AR party!
Play: Thank you for doing something fun with your students!!
Choose your attitude: Your attitude can decide how you will feel for the rest of the day- EVERY DAY!!
Make Their Day: Make sure you start off your conferences with something positive.
Thank you for sharing Garrett. Great video on ADHD. I feel like it gives some great insight to what many of our students with ADHD (or have similar symptoms) are experiencing and also gives some great tips on working with these students.
(I got this from Kristen Cherry's newsletter- thank you Kristen) Stressed and burnout seem to be a common word we hear, especially in November! Are you feeling irritable? Not wanting to attend social gatherings, even the easy ones that involve food? Increase in complaints? Fatigue or insomnia? You aren't alone. I think we are all feeling these warning signs in one way or another.
So, how do we reverse this and charge ahead, focusing on the positive/great/wonderful things that are happening in our lives- both at home and at SV? It's time to TAKE ACTION!! Take these easy ideas, (even something as easy as loading the "momentum" app to your computer) including remembering to smile, shift your focus to your home, laugh uncontrollably, try teaching something new, take up yoga, go for a walk during your prep, and share with your colleagues. I know, I know, easier said than done sometimes, but very much needed so you have work/life balance.
Observable Fish Moments at SV:
Be There: Thank you
Play:Thank you for taking time and connecting with your students.
Choose your attitude: Your attitude can decide how you will feel for the rest of the day- EVERY DAY!!
Make Their Day: Thank you Fern and Ebony for leading our Treats for Troops.
Below are the guidelines for parent-teacher conferences:
Parents DO NOT need to show proof of vaccination to attend their child's parent-teacher conference;
All conferences are in-person UNLESS a parent requests a virtual conference. Parent requests for a virtual conference should be honored.
Teachers should not be scheduling virtual conferences UNLESS it is by parent request. All other conferences should be scheduled as an in-person conference. All attendees shall be masked during the conference.
The Suisun Valley K-8 School’s New Library and Administration Building was recently awarded Outstanding Project by Learning by Design - Awards of Excellence Fall Edition.
This project is exemplary in being a custom building respecting the small nurturing feel of a rural K-8 school located in a prime agricultural area of Suisun Valley. The design makes emphasis on natural lighting, natural colors, and views that allow the building occupants to connect with the surrounding landscape. The new building houses 7,728 square feet of administration offices, a waiting area, teachers’ lounge, workroom, conference rooms, library, and two instruction areas.
Remote schooling has painfully demonstrated the critical role that in-person schooling plays in simultaneously meeting many developmental needs. Besides academic learning, in-person schooling provides children with socialization and support from caring adults, peers with whom they can test out various identities as they discover themselves, and access to skilled physical and mental health practitioners. And for too many children, school is where they experience sanctuary from unsafe homes and communities, get reliable meals, and have access to other social services.
The loss of these supports last year, possibly on top of traumatic events at home, means many students will begin this academic year displaying symptoms that could meet the criteria for a range of mental health disorders. It will be tempting to manage the challenges their behaviors create by isolating these kids through extended time outs, separating their desks from the rest of the class, or even removing them from the general education classroom. However, we must resist the pressure to use exclusion and the special education system to manage behavior and learning challenges associated with adversity and poverty.
The Basics of Relational Discipline
Relational discipline is grounded in research showing that leveraging positive educator-student relationships is more effective than punishment in motivating students to adhere to classroom expectations (Marzano, Marzano, & Pickering, 2003). The strongest educator-student relationships are built on a foundation of understanding each student as an individual and genuinely caring for each one's well-being, although the relationship-building process won't look the same for every educator.
Halloween costumes: follow school dress code, no weapons, no blood, no masks, no blow up costumes.
Observable Fish Moments at SV:
Be There: Thank you for supporting us to try to find out who is vandalizing our girls and boys bathrooms.
Play:Thank you Heather M. and Kristin for planning a fun Friday.
Choose your attitude:BE POSITIVE!!! I now some days are hard.
Make Their Day: Thank you Fern, Melody, Monica and Garrett for holding efficient IEP meetings.
Love this Boss's day card! Thanks for the thoughtful cards and gifts :)
No matter how many times a student tells you they don’t care about school or whether they succeed, remember that no child wants to be a failure. Some will try and convince you otherwise, but it is in those moments that they need you most. Believe in all kids and believe in your own ability to influence them.
Students still struggle asking for help when they are failing
Knowing which students are struggling reach out to them and make an appointment with them during class time instead of waiting for them to make an appointment- this was a suggestion from a student
Students feel overwhelmed with too much busy work
Send feedback surveys to students and see what they have to say
NO EXCUSES UNIVERSITY – INTERVENTIONS
Culture of Universal Achievement
Collaboration
Standards Alignment
Assessment Plan
Data Analysis
Interventions
“Once children are taught what they need to learn and then assessed for their levels of proficiency, there needs to be appropriate, data-driven academic interventions to help students who are not on track to be proficient by the end of the year. There also needs to be similar social interventions, because children who are emotionally well adjusted are much more likely to be academically successful.”
During our Academic Conferences at our staff meeting we discussed interventions for our students. In reviewing the data, we have moved past the excuses and how we can help them at school :)
When we review data, we focus on what the students don’t know and how we are going to provide interventions to support the students learning.
We have now completed MAP assessments or formal/informal data you are collecting. What are you doing with the data? What interventions have you put in place? Here is an example:
If your student scores have low RIT score. You are able to drill down into the results to determine on which standards the students need support in. As an example in Math, when one drills down further into the data, you may notice that the majority of the students struggled with expressions and equations. A smaller number also struggled with use functions to model relationships. Then the teacher is able to develop very targeted lessons that can be delivered in a small group setting. The teacher does not have to re-teach the entire class. Targeted, immediate intervention will have a positive impact on student achievement.
Observable Fish Moments at SV:
Be There: Thank you for taking the time and building relationships with your students.
Play:Thank you Heather M. for offering another fun virtual cooking class.
Choose your attitude:BE POSITIVE!!!
Make Their Day: Thank you for the cards and gifts for Boss's day!
