I'll go ahead and tell you, the title of this blog is directly related to the video of the week posted below. As many of you know, I am a highly reflective person. This can be a blessing and a curse. When you look back on a period of time, a decision, a relationship ... so many things come to mind. While preparing for this blog, I reflected on our pursuit of best. The definition for best we will use for this blog is the highest degree of effort that a person, group, or thing can make. I am a highly competitive person and since day one of my principalship I have wanted PVES to be the best. Forgive me Dabo Swinney for stealing the line that Best is the Standard. This remains true, but I have been forced to confront the additional qualities that make up "best". Am I, are we ... working hard to achieve to be the best in the world or for the world? When we wake up each morning and drive to school, do we pursue a vision much larger than a unit test, a parent teacher conference, an IEP, or even a state standardized test? In our pursuit of best, do we remember that kindness, compassion, and love often times supersede all other factors? Our culture is worth protecting and continues to grow stronger. Let us not allow negativity, temper and exhaustion to cost us our opportunity to be the best for our students and for one another. If we can manage this well, I have no doubt that we will be the best ... on state testing and in much deeper and more meaningful ways.
One way in which we can create this culture of best is by giving back to the profession we love so much. We have many future teachers who visit our building and learn from our incredible faculty and staff. I am thankful for the efforts of all of you who host these college students and show them how to truly make a difference. Mrs. Barnhill and Mrs. Horn are participating in the Master Teacher program at Clemson. This is the first year long teacher residency program in South Carolina and it is sorely needed. I am proud of these ladies for answering the challenge to be the best and give back the best.
Our Father Daughter dance was again our biggest and best yet. It was an incredible experience to see fathers and father figures connect with their little girls. I am reminded that we are at our best when we work with parents, communicating well and engaging them, to benefit our students. Just because we are 2/3 of the way through the school year does not mean we need to reduce our attempts at communicating to our parents how we can best meet the needs of their children.
The best way to learn is to be actively engaged. Our fractions units of study have or will be concluding soon. Our school-wide celebration was postponed until Friday, but some of our students were preparing for the final projects. Let us be intentional about student engagement during this most crucial time. Just because you teach it doesn't mean they learn it.
PRIDE Rock, all 18,000 pounds of it, was delivered on Friday. Our PTSO wanted it to be a point of PRIDE. An indication, evidence if you will, that we are proud of our school and our students. You will learn more about it in the coming weeks, but it will be offered up as a means to write/paint positive messages. We want to convey to our school community that our culture of best is taken seriously and celebrated.
Our School Improvement Council meeting was an opportunity to give our parents and community members the ability to provide feedback to us. Our best takes place when we are willing to listen to feedback and then take positive actions as a result of said feedback. As evidenced by our plus/delta charts above, we do so many things well and still have much to pursue in the name of best.
Monday Technology Training:
Nicole Alford will be in our building on March 5th to work with you during planning. The Apple Classroom app is now compatible with your new iPads. It will allow teachers to control student iPads, lock students into apps, push out apps/websites, and lots more. This is very much needed! Related arts and specialty area teachers are certainly welcome to attend any session listed below.
- 8:45-9:15 - Melton's Room (313)
- 9:35-10:05 - Wilcox's Room (310)
- 10:20-10:50 - Payne's Room (103)
- 11:05-11:35 - Nix's Room (409)
- 12:15-12:45 - Henderson's Room (203)
- 1:00-1:30 - Barnhill's Room (303)
- 1:45-2:15 - Hughes's Room (306)
OLWEUS Class Meetings:
On Monday, all classrooms will work through lesson 5 of our OLWEUS bullying prevention program. Don't forget about our shared folder with the lesson plans and other information needed for these meetings. Mrs. Tollison and I always look forward to visiting classrooms during this time. I have heard some invaluable discussion in classrooms thus far. Like many "programs" the teacher leadership and buy-in will make all the difference. Don't be afraid of silence when you pose a question for discussion. Engage students. Make them think and reflect. Instill in them the language and rules we follow through this program. In lesson five, we tackle the final school rule: If we know that someone is being bullied, we will tell an adult at school and an adult at home.
Tornado Drill:
Powdersville Elementary will participate in a state-wide tornado drill on Wednesday, March 7th. We will make an announcement with instructions around 8:45-9:15 A.M. When the drill begins, you will assist students as they seek shelter in the hallway. Students will get on their hands and knees and put their lowered heads against the wall while protecting their heads with their hands/fingers. It would be a great idea to spend the final few minutes or PRIDE Time explaining this procedure and the importance of quick, quiet and intentional movement based on teacher instructions.
Moore's Musings:
There will be no LIVE PD on Wednesday this week. As always, we do ask you to keep Wednesdays open for meetings and other PD opportunities. Mrs. Tollison are very close to finalizing the final dates and topics for Live PD and will send this information out ASAP. Our goal is to provide relevant PD based on school needs while also being respectful of our teachers during this busy and stressful time.
Mark Your Calendars:
- Technology PD with Alford - March 5th during planning
- 4th Grade Parent Field Trip Meeting - March 6th at 6:00 P.M. in cafeteria
- Tornado Drill - March 7th around 9:00 A.M.
- Progress Report Folders - March 7th
- 3rd 9 Weeks EAFK Names Emailed to Booth - March 8th
- PVES Skate Night - March 8th from 6-8 PM (blue jeans on 3/12 if you attend)
- Blue jeans for all - March 9th
- March Book Madness - continues March 6-9 this week
*Don't forget to SPRING FORWARD next weekend!
Video of the Week: Be a Mr. Jensen!
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