Global Warming, March Madness, Observ-a-palooza, and More!

This Week at GCMS:

With temperatures in the 70’s this week and possibly hitting 80 tomorrow, it doesn’t seem much like February this year!  I don’t want to write a global warming article, but wow, the weather patterns aren’t what they used to be.  It may be time for all of us to look around and start thinking seriously about what we can do to help preserve the environment.  I have just a few notes to share as the week winds down.

Legislation in Frankfort:

There has been much talk about what new legislation will come out of the General Assembly this session.  Senate Bill 1 represents a huge overhaul of education in Kentucky, regarding standards, testing, evaluations, and a whole host of education topics.  Separate legislation is also likely to pass to establish charter schools in Kentucky.  Other education proposals range from restroom choice to carrying guns in schools to site based council powers.  This session may have the biggest impact on Kentucky schools of any session in the past 20 years.  My advice is that if you feel strongly about one or more of the education issues being debated, contact your representatives in Frankfort. 

You may leave a message for any state legislator at 1-800-372-7181, or you may email Representative Tim Moore at tim.moore@lrc.ky.gov or Senator Steve Meredith at stephen.meredith@lrc.ky.gov. 

Assessment Focus/Peer Observation Days:

Teachers, please review the email that Gary Parker sent out yesterday with subject line “Observ-a-palooza”.  Following up on our “next level of work” recommendations for our problem of practice, we are planning two days of peer observations to focus on various aspects of assessment.  This is planned for March 14 and 16, with follow-up conversations during our March 17 PLC day, which so far is still planned as a staff only day.  I appreciate the assessment team and Mr. Parker for organizing this effort.  Our plan is to conduct the peer observation days in place of spring instructional rounds.  Each teacher will get to observe in a colleague’s classroom and focus the observation on a specific part of assessment or feedback where our survey indicated a desire for growth. 

College Fridays in March:

Once again, we plan to celebrate March Madness by wearing college shirts and hats each Friday in March.  Encourage everyone to support their favorite college or university in this way! 

Observations: (repeat from last week)

All formal classroom observations must be completed before the end of March.  Please contact your administrator to schedule your observation if you have not done so already.  Remember, non-tenured teachers need 2 minis, a peer, and a full.  Tenured summative year teachers need a peer and a full, and tenured non-summative year need a mini. 

Quote of the Day:

“What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what lies within you.”

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Coming Attractions:

Feb. 22-24…8th graders register for high school classes through teams

Feb. 28…Home Volleyball, 5:30

Feb. 28…Deadline for spending Classroom Funds

Mar. 2….Home Volleyball, 5:30

Mar. 6….Testing Training after school (app. 2 hours)

Mar. 14 & 16…Peer Observation Days at GCMS

Mar. 15…GCMS SBDMC Meeting, 3:15

Mar. 17…PLC Day (if not a student makeup day)

Spring Comes Early at GCMS

This Week at GCMS:

We have been moving right along at GCMS this week.  The spring-like weather has made our GCMS Cougars very active this week! I appreciate everyone showing great patience with the students and staying on top of things.   I have just a few notes to share as the week winds to a close.

Staff Concerns:

Our GCMS staff has suffered some losses this week.  Former GCMS school resource officer, J.R. Oller passed away on Sunday.  J.R. served as SRO at GCMS during the 2007-2008 school year and was a great asset to our school. 

Vicki Staley’s father passed away this week, and also, former staff member, Charlene Noblett’s mother passed away this week.

Please keep all these in your thoughts and prayers.

Cougar Bucks:

Please remind all students about the proper use of Cougar Bucks.  Recently, we have seen an uptick with inappropriate uses such as name switching, trying to use someone else’s Cougar Bucks, use for other purposes such as buying gum, and some theft issues.  Remind students that the Bucks are supposed to be a reward for that student’s good work and not to reward someone else.  It is always best practice to write the student’s name on the Buck when it is received.  Also, please always keep your Bucks in a safe place where no one with sticky fingers will be tempted.  Thanks for using PBIS to promote positive student behavior at GCMS! 

Observations:

All formal classroom observations must be completed before the end of March.  Please contact your administrator to schedule your observation if you have not done so already.  Remember, non-tenured teachers need 2 minis, a peer, and a full.  Tenured summative year teachers need a peer and a full, and tenured non-summative year need a mini. 

Quote of the Day:

“O, wind, if winter comes, can spring be far behind?” ~Percy Shelley

Coming Attractions:

Feb. 15-17…State Beta Convention

Feb. 20…will be used as a student makeup day (not PLC)

Feb. 21..8th Grade Parent Night at GCHS

Feb. 22-24…8^th graders register for high school classes through teams

Feb. 28…Home Volleyball, 5:30

Feb. 28…Deadline for spending Classroom Funds

The Dog Days of February

This Week at GCMS:

It has been another very busy week at GCMS!  Mrs. Miller is attending a workshop about reducing achievement gaps today, and our counselors are attending a counseling conference, but since Mr. Whitmore and I specialize in “girl drama,” it has been a very smooth day.  I appreciate the leadership team at GCMS.  You may know that this is my 10^th year as GCMS principal and am the senior-most school administrator in Grayson County.  You may or may not know that Mr. Whitmore and Mrs. Miller are the second and third senior-most school administrators in the district.  On top of that, Mrs. Majors and Mrs. Sims have even more experience than the administrators in the position of counselor.  Mrs. Pearl has served as GCMS curriculum coordinator for nine years as well.  I am very thankful for this leadership team which has been a consistent group for so many years.  Each has unique strengths which help to make our school a better place.  Combine this team with our wonderful staff, and we have an awesome combination.  Thank you for all of your hard work to make our school a model of excellence!

Staff Concerns:

It was good to have Chris Drake back to work at GCMS this week.  Mr. Drake has been recovering from back surgery and is working through a lot of pain.  We appreciate him being here.

Pam Armstrong returned to work this week as well, but will be having surgery on February 20.  Please remember Pam in your prayers for a speedy recovery.

Please continue to remember Stacy Pierce in your prayers as she continues her cancer treatments.  As always, she is a trooper and wants to return to work as soon as possible.  We wish her all the best and hope she is back with us soon as well. 

Congratulations:

Hats off to the GCMS future problem solving team!  Our GCMS team won first place in the region and will advance to State Governor’s Cup competition next month.  Also, congratulations to 8^th grader, Eli Helm, on winning 2^nd place in the region in social studies and also advancing to state.  Great job!

Karen Van Metre took part in a recognition ceremony yesterday in Frankfort for being chosen as one of three finalists for the Kentucky Math and Science Teacher of the Year.  We are very proud of Karen receiving this honor based on the great work that she does at GCMS. 

Congratulations to the winners of the Grayson County Spelling Bee!  From GCMS, the winners in the 6-8 division were 1^st place-Colton Glenn, 2^nd place-Sandon Paddock, and 3^rd place-Jerry Majors.  Great job!

Thank You!

We appreciate the central office for providing our staff with hot chocolate on Wednesday morning!  This was very nice.  Thank you to Kristy Hodges and Kaylean Hart for preparation and to Sheila Meredith and Caryn Lewis for serving! 

Quote of the Day:

“Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” ~John Wooden

Coming Attractions:

Feb. 13…Home Volleyball, 5:00

Feb. 15-17…State Beta Convention

Feb. 20…will be used as a student makeup day (not PLC)

Feb. 21..8^th Grade Parent Night at GCHS

Feb. 28…Home Volleyball, 5:30

Feb. 28…Deadline for spending Classroom Funds

Happy Groundhog Day!

This Week at GCMS:

Happy Groundhog Day!  For fear of jinxing us, I am not talking much about the mild winter that we have been enjoying so far!  I talk to my son Scott every few days, and he comments about how the folks in Minnesota don’t blink at a foot of snow or below zero temperatures.  They are used to it every year and know how to deal with it.  Here, south of the Mason-Dixon line, we all know that a few flurries can leave us scurrying for bread and milk and shutting down schools.  The truth is that when we have winter weather in Kentucky, the right call is to cancel school.  If it’s not that bad, there’s no harm done, but if we go to school and then there are accidents or someone gets hurt, then everyone rushes to blame someone.  I for one, hope that our mild winter continues, we do not miss many days, and our students finish up the school year in May. Sounds nice, doesn’t it?

The Problem with “No Problem”

Sometimes we fall into the habit of saying certain things that may have meaning that we may not really want to convey.  The prime example is when someone says “how are you”, most of us say “fine” or “I’m doing well” whether we really mean it or not.  Just being polite.  Another one that I am personally working on cutting out of my repertoire is “no problem”.  It is a common response when someone thanks us to respond with “no problem”.  It seems an appropriate response, but when you think about it, are we saying “it should have been a problem, or it might have been a problem, or it should have been someone else’s problem”?  A good response to “thank you” is “you’re welcome”, and an even better response is “I’m glad to be of help”.  That’s one of my self-improvement goals, to quit saying “no problem”.  If you have this same issue, let’s all eliminate “no problem”.  I’m glad to be of help to you on this issue!  J

Good Luck Cougars!

I want to wish the best of luck to our GCMS academic team in Regional Governor’s Cup competition.  Our FPS team competed on Monday night, and the other events have been postponed until next Monday and Tuesday evening because of sickness in a neighboring district. 

Good luck to all of our GCMS students who will be competing in the annual Grayson County Spelling Bee this coming Saturday. 

Parent/Teacher Conferences:

We have parent/teacher conferences scheduled at GCMS on Tuesday evening from 4:00-6:00.  Take this opportunity to have some positive and productive conversations with parents about student learning and progress.  Hopefully, we will have a good turnout!

Quote of the Day:

“Don’t knock the weather, nine tenths of the people couldn’t start a conversation if it didn’t change once in a while.” ~Kin Hubbard

Coming Attractions:

Feb. 4….Grayson County Spelling Bee at GCMS

Feb. 6-7…Academic Team at Regional Governor’s Cup

Feb. 7…Parent/Teacher Conferences at GCMS, 4:00-6:00

Feb. 15-17…State Beta Convention

Feb. 21..8^th Grade Parent Night at GCHS

Feb. 28…Deadline for spending Classroom Funds