The Sequence of Literacy

Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

The Sequence of Literacy—

What do we teach first when there is so much that needs to be taught to a student that is missing so much? This is a question I had for years after I assessed students and found those that needed everything in literacy. Here is the sequence from beginning to end. If they are missing any of these pieces, the next steps might improve, but not in any way as much as if the beginning skills are mastered.

1. Oral Language Development
2. Phonemic Awareness
3. Phonics Decoding
4. Fluency
1. Accurate Reading
2. Appropriate Rate
3. Suitable Expression
5. Vocabulary
6. Comprehension

As the first three are mastered, Fluency is the next step. Fluency is not a predictor of comprehension. It is fluency. Vocabulary is the most important factor in reading comprehension. There is no guesswork here. This is the research. This is literacy and eventual master of literacy. Starting at number 1 and mastering each area. We can’t skip any part of tis sequence. If there is a need, there needs to be instruction.

Quote I’m pondering —

“The truth knocks on the door and you say, ‘Go away, I'm looking for the truth,’ and so it goes away. Puzzling.” 

— Robert M. Pirsig

What’s Happening This Week —

Monday, Oct. 29 - Lexia Training (K-2 English Teachers)

Monday, Oct. 29 - PLC Day (DSU classes)

Wednesday, Oct. 31 - Halloween Parade. Staff Picture after school.

Friday, Nov. 2 - Utah Food Bank after school

Friday, Nov. 2 - PTA iParent Meeting at 8:15 am

November 12-15 - SEP Conferences

Favorite Article This Week —

Oprah Winfrey starts every meeting with these same 3 sentences

Focusing our meeting to make them more effective will benefit our students and our focus. These are three great questions to use.

A Big Thank You —

Thank you 2nd and 3rd grade teachers. Thank you for taking extra time and working with your students that need a little extra attention. This has been a hard couple of months for you and we know how hard you are working. You are putting in a lot of extra time and effort to plan and work through the new program in two grade levels as well as work with very active students. Thank you for all you do for them. You are so important to our school and especially to our students.  Thank you for all you have done. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work.

Revisiting a Previous Post “Planning for Substitutes”

Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday.

Revisiting a Previous Post “Planning for Substitutes” —

I was talking with the Community Council on Wednesday afternoon and we were talking safety and concern came up about how substitutes will know what to do in case of an emergency in a classroom. So I thought about this. I would like for every teacher to put together a Substitute Information page that you can leave out whenever you have a sub. It is a page that will not include daily plans but will include information that a sub might like to know to help run your classroom better. Procedures that are used all the time and are not written into lesson plans. Topics like; procedures during an emergency fire drill or any emergency drill, How do students line up, How you deal with situation in your classroom, procedures for students using chrome books or iPads in the classroom, how you call on students, procedures for specials and PE, and any specific times students go to ELL, Resource, Speech, or other places, How you line up to go to iReady… There are many things that are procedures we see every day that you might like a sub to know when they come to your room. When you put this list together just print it and put it next to your sub plans when you have a sub. If you would send Anita a copy of the Sub Info also she can print it if there is ever an emergency. The biggest piece of information we would like on this page is what to do in an Emergency. Where to go, how to line up, who to they report to, and anything specific they need to know that will help them through an emergency. 

Quote I’m pondering —

“When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.”
— John Muir

What’s Happening This Week —

Wednesday, Oct. 24 - 3rd Grade to Symphony

Thursday, Oct. 25 - Reflections Awards 6:00pm

Thursday, Oct. 25 - Jennifer Throndson Observation

Friday, Oct. 26 - Jennifer Throndson Training. 4-5: 7:45, K-1: 10:30, 2-3: 12:30

Friday, Oct. 26 - Red Ribbon Week Assembly

Monday, Oct 29 - Teacher Training Day (out at 12:15, sign up for your training at DSU)

Favorite Article This Week —

A Troubling Side Effect of Praise

A thought about praising students for being smart. Here is an interesting definition of smart in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

A Big Thank You —

Thank you First grade for all the work you are putting into your “Power 50”. Thank you for all the work you are doing in putting the lessons together for each of your groups. We appreciate all the data you collected and how you used it to identify all the different needs of students and are moving them fluidly into other groups, as needed. Thank you for taking the time to spend time with all your students to get to know them. You have really taken the time to show your students you care for them. We appreciate your efforts for your students. Thank you for all you do. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work

The Magic Formula

Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

The Magic Formula—

A couple weeks ago I was talking with Bob Sonju and I notices a huge math formula on Poster paper in his office. I asked him about it and he told me there is a formula for knowing if a student will be successful in school and get a bachelors degree in college. There were many things on it about what courses they are taking and the overall achievement of the student’s cohort and other factors like that. But the biggest factor was the quality of the teachers a student has each year. It also depended on the cumulative effectiveness of teachers in the student's life. High-quality teachers, year after year, is strongly related to student achievement and increase the probability that a student will go on and obtain a Bachelor Degree. Teachers are the number 1 determination that students will be successful. You are the difference in each students life. Teachers put in so much work and worry over students and in the end, it does pay off. We might not see it in the numbers, but we can see it in the attitude and how comfortable they are with being in school. It is amazing how a student relies on the safety and security of a school. It is not the building, it is the teachers. Teachers are the magic formula in education. The math formula proves it. But we already know you are the magic formula. Thank you for all you do.

Quote I’m pondering —

Worrying does not take away tomorrow's troubles, it takes away today's peace. -- Anonymous

What’s Happening This Week —

Monday, Dec. 3 - First Grade Activity

Monday, Dec. 3 - Jennifer Observation Day

Tuesday, Dec. 4 - Jennifer Training Day

Wednesday, Dec. 5 - Dental Presentations 3rd, 4th, 5th grades

Friday, Dec. 7 - Utah Food Bank at 2:15

Friday, Dec. 7 - Staff Christmas Party

Favorite Article This Week —

You’ll miss 100% of the shots you don’t take

There is a sentence in the end that says “Fear leaves us trapped, but it oddly squashes future fear about giving things a shot.” Don’t let fear prevent ourselves from doing things in that might make us better. Mistakes are ok. 

A Big Thank You —

Thank you fifth grade for all you have done this year. Power 50 in the upper grades can be frustrating because of the learning spectrum from Pre-K to above 5th grade. Thank you for taking the time and working through the best way to differentiate and work with your students. I also want to thank you for letting Oyunn work with you as groups are identified and lessons are planned. Thank you for all your hard work out in for the students. Thank you for all you do for your students. Thank you for all you do. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work.

What’s your Motivation

Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

What’s your Motivation—

How do we get our students motivated to learn? Each class has a student or two or more that seem like they don’t feel what we are doing will matter to them. They feel unmotivated by education or anything in front of them. This is a tough situation.  I found an article that talks a little bit about how to motivate people in general. It is not what we might think would motivate someone. Sometimes we think that finding someone successful and trying to do what they do will get us to where we want to be, but a couple leading psychologists did research on motivation and tried something a little different. Instead of having the unmotivated listen to advice or someone that knew the concept, they had the person teach the concept to someone else and give advice to them. They found that giving advice or teaching increased the person's confidence and gave them a little more motivation in their lives. I wonder how this would work with students? If an unmotivated student can, in some way, help another student learn a concept it might give them a little more confidence to keep learning and teaching. Interesting thought about motivation. 

Quote I’m pondering —

“If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.”
— Jack Kornfield

What’s Happening This Week —

Mon., Oct. 8 - Ballet West Assembly

Wed., Oct 10 - Vision Screening

Thurs.-Fri.- Oct. 11-12 - Fall Break

Oct. 18 - Dance Festival

Oct 25-26 - Jennifer Throndson Training

Favorite Article This Week —

How to Teach Self-Regulation

We are finishing up our Wellness Center and hope to have it ready to go right after Fall Break. 

A Big Thank You —

Thank you Heather B.for all you have done this week. Working two jobs (yours and Stephanies) to keep the Power 50 and Sped going at the same time. You have done an amazing job keeping the groups up as we search for a replacement sped aide. You are so positive with students, so helpful with teachers, and so flexible in your job to make sure everything is in place. And then to be planning for a wedding, what an amazing person you are. Thank you for all you do for students. Thank you for all you do for our school. Thank you for all you do. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work.

Surfing

Teachers,

Sorry, I thought this went out Thursday Night. Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

Surfing—

We were sitting on the beach watching the birds and the waves roll in and out. Then I started watching the surfers. It was about 4:30 when they started making their way to the waves. It looked like some high school students, some college students, and a few that had their brothers or dads drive them. What I noticed is how they grouped up and worked with each other as they each took turns catching their waves. There was a respect and a way of sharing the waves as they worked on their craft. When two would go at the same time, one would bow out and wait for another wave. They took turns. The younger took almost twice as many as the older surfers. Was that on purpose or were they just taking every chance they could and the older surfers let them at it. As I sat there I thought about how learning would be if students used this same kind of idea. Helping each other. Cooperating with each other. Letting those that need a little extra help get the extra help or helping them out to bring them up to the level of everyone else. How can we teach students about how the group together can move further than one on their own. The ideas and support can bring everyone to the level they need to be and they will learn more about how the world should work than trying to do it on their own. We should not work alone. The ideas we can put together as a team or group will take us further than we could ever do by ourselves.

Quote I’m pondering —

Many a calm river begins as a turbulent waterfall, yet none hurtles and foams all the way to the sea. -- Mikhail Lermontov

What’s Happening This Week —

Mon., Sept. 23 - Short Day. Out at 12:15. Training Day.

Mon., Sept. 23 - Start with Hello Week

Wed., Oct. 3 - Picture Day

Wed., Oct. 3 - Storytelling Festival - Please promote this.

October - Fall Break, Dance Festival, Halloween

Favorite App This Week —

Bouncy Balls

This was something I was looking at to curb sound in the lunchroom. It is an app that listens to sound and the balls bounce. If you use something like this, use it sparingly. The sound sensitivity can be changed. It was just fun to play with.

A Big Thank You —

Thank you for all your preparations and work you put into literacy night. The karaoke was a big hit. The parents I talked with enjoyed the presentations by the teachers and felt what they were shown could be used at home to help their students. We appreciate the time you put in for our students. Nights like literacy night are so important for us to get to know and help our parents. I appreciate what you put together to help the ones that came. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work.

Busy, Busy

Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

Busy, Busy—

This year is moving along. It has been very busy. You have put in long hours and stressed over how you will get everything expected into your shortened day, and we are starting the Power 50 which will throw another wrench in the fire. Don’t forget to stop and take a breath. Get everything done humanly possible and just do your best. My mom told me once that Angels could do no better. We appreciate all that you are doing in your classrooms. If the students are not doing what you need, stop the program and restart procedures. The program will be there tomorrow or the next day. This is not a license to not teach once a week because you want a break, but to let you know that sometimes you need to stop and breath. Check the structure of your class. How is everything set up? Are students clear on how you want them to get places, pick up supplies, and get in and out of the room? If they are not doing those things the way you need them to, stop and retrain. After each long weekend, there should be a little retraining. Retrain on real long weekends and after Christmas and Spring Break. We are busy, and there is a lot to teach, but we are in the business of teaching students, not teaching programs. Teach the students how to learn and what they need to do to be ready to learn and they will learn. You are amazing at what you do. I just want you to know that. 

Quote I’m pondering —

You're braver than you believe and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. -- A.A. Milne (in Winnie-the-Pooh) 

What’s Happening This Week —

Monday, Sept. 17 - Constitution Day. Every teacher needs to teach a short lesson about the constitution. Read a book. Talk about how it came about. 

Monday, Sept. 17 - Power 50 starts. Hopefully, you have touched base with the Aides so they have an idea what they will be doing.

Tuesday, Sept. 18 - iReady Training (refer to your email for times. Please be ready and back to your class for the next group. Thank you.

Thursday, Sept. 20 - Jennifer Throndson Observations

Thursday, Sept. 20 - Literacy Night from 6:00-7: 30 pm.

Friday, Sept. 21 - Jennifer Throndson Training Day. (refer to Emil for training times)

Favorite Article This Week —

Teacher Learns Valuable Lessons From Students When One Smashes Cup on a Desk

Sometimes stunners can teach us more than we know.

A Big Thank You —

Thank you, Jeremy, for picking up when Kirby left. He has some big shoes and Jeremy has done well with lunch and getting the main things Kirby did for us. Thank you very much, Jeremy, for cleaning up the things we don’t really want to also. Teachers, please make sure you tell him thank you and let him know if there anything you need. We also have some substitute veering custodians filling in and Jeremy has jumped in when something has not been done in the evening. Thank you again, Jeremy, for your help. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work.

How Do I Learn?

Teachers,

Here is your weekly dose of “5-Point Friday. 

How Do I Learn?—

One of the most important things we can teach students is how to learn. They should know that what we are doing is beneficial to them and, the most important thing, that they can learn it. Some students come to us with a fixed mindset and tell us they can’t do something. Some come to us and act as if it is not important to them. Everything we do is important to students and we just need to show them or convince them that what we have will help them grow. How do we do this? Relationships is the first way. Students learn to trust what we are teaching them is important because they know we will not lead them astray. We show them they can do things that are hard and make it through. They also need to know they can fail and life will still be ok. Students also learn how to learn when they track their own learning. Giving them a goal to work towards and then have them track their learning on the journey to that goal. Students want to learn. Look at all the things they do outside of school. They are searching to learn something new. The lessons we teach will open their worlds and provide more opportunities for them to learn and grow. We just need to teach them how to learn.

Quote I’m pondering —

Every day of our lives, we are on the verge of making those slight changes that would make all the difference.

— Mignon McLaughlin 

What’s Happening Next Week —

Tuesday, Sept. 11 - Grade Level training for all Kindergarten 8:30-11:30 (K)

Tuesday, Sept. 11 - Grade Level training for all First Grade 12:30-3:30 (1st)

Wednesday, Sept. 12 - Grade Level training for all Second and Third grade. 8:30-3:30

Wednesday, Sept. 12 - Worldwide Warrior Student Leadership Training Thursday, Sept. 13 - Grade Level training for all Fourth Grade 8:30-11:30 (4)

Thursday, Sept 13 - Grade Level training for all Fifth Grade 12:30-3:30 (1st)

Monday, Sept. 17 - Power Hour-10(Power 50) Starts

Thursday, Sept. 20-21 - Jennifer Throndsen Observations and Training

Thursday, Sept. 20 - Literacy Night 6:00 - 7:30pm

Favorite Podcast This Week —

Thoughts for Teachers: What is Your Label?

Three important ideas to remember as we start this year.

A Big Thank You —

Thank you kindergarten for all thou have done to prepare for your first couple weeks of school. Starting a new schedule and figuring out how OEK and English Classes will work has been a long process, but with the team working together it is working. Thank you for all you do for the students and making sure they come first. Thank you for all you do. Thank you.

I appreciate all of you and your hard work.