The Fair! The Fair! The NC State Fair!

The North Carolina State Fair has come and gone for 2010. For those who attended I know you enjoyed fun exhibits, fabulous food and fantastic rides! My family and I had tons of fun, but I can't attend the fair without thinking about our favorite old saying "That's not FAIR!" I chuckle every time I hear either use of the word "fair" and I think of a former principal who said that when students told him "That's not fair" he always responded with "Yes,I know the fair. It comes to Hillsborough Street every October." I must admit that I borrowed his line and used it a few times myself. Yes it is a bit sarcastic and a bit funny too. However, it has often made me think about the concept of fair. Does fair mean equal? As an educator, I must say that fair and equal are not interchangeable words. Being fair is not always being equal. There are so many great books (Wormelli's books for example) that talk about this very concept. As teachers, we must remember that fair isn't always equal and that is a good thing. If we defined fair as being equal, our students would truly suffer. All of us learn in different ways and need different strategies to help us cope. So the next time someone (especially a student) says, "That's not fair!" simply think, "Thank goodness!"

Week of October 18

Whew! It has been another busy week in TOY land! On Monday I finalized my portfolio and had it ready to send to Brandon Patterson at NCDPI. Although I really enjoyed the reflection and research aspect of the portfolio, I am certainly glad to have it finished and ready to mail!

Tuesday was our weekly EPFP meeting. We had the opportunity to read Dr. Robert Bridges book From My Culture to the Mainstream and Back Again and it was so insightful. He talked about his book and his experiences in education through the years. I wish I could have talked with him all day! He was truly an amazing gentleman.

On Wednesday I was in the car early and off to Greenville to spend the day at ECU. Christa Monroe and her team held an excellent Teacher Cadet Day. There were so many schools represented and around 185 students were registered! Amazing! Just imagine what a great group of prospective teachers we could have in a few years! I was also fortunate enough to see Mr. Vann Lassiter, Northeast Regional Teacher of the Year, at this event. Vann is so energizing and his students' admiration and respect for him was so evident. I am thankful to know Vann and I am so proud to call him my colleague. I enjoyed attending sessions and learning more about the Teacher Cadet program. Thanks Christa for all of your work!

On Thursday I spent time with the Clinton Rotary Club. I enjoyed a wonderful dinner and learned about the many great projects the Rotary Club is doing in our local schools. Education does take everyone! In order to truly make in a difference in the lives and education of our youth, it takes the school, the parents AND the community! Thank you to the many civic organizations that provide books, grants, scholarships and time for our local schools.

I was driving 'till the map turned blue (okay well almost blue) on Friday as I traveled to UNCW. I had the opportunity to talk with cooperating teachers who work with UNCW students as they are student teaching. This is such an important job and this group was amazing! Thanks for hosting me and thank you for giving back to education by working with our future teachers so closely.

Week of October 11

I can hardly believe we are in the middle of October! This was another busy - but very exciting - week!
On Monday, I was originally scheduled for a professional development workshop in Onslow County; however, due to the heavy rain in the weeks prior, Monday was used as a make-up day. I really hope to be able to reschedule to attend in January! I took advantage of one of the only days this month I would have in the office and filed papers, worked on some research and visited some classrooms!

On Tuesday and Wednesday our NC EPFP class had a fall retreat at the Aqueduct Conference Center in Chapel Hill. We had a great time getting to know each other a little better and learning so much interesting information. We talked about the major concerns in education today and ways we can work to improve. Then, we had a great experiment called Earth II. We picked our ideal candidate to lead Earth II and talked about the leadership style we thought would be most successful! It was fascinating to look at each others' ideas of good leadership. Then we did our Myers-Briggs personality profiles. It was interesting to look not only our ourselves but at the profiles of other fellows. It is really helpful to know how you operate and how to interact with those who may have a different letter set! The following morning we had the opportunity to hear Dr. James Johnson talk about the greying and browning of America. I was so engaged! His research was interesting and opened many topics of conversation. Our public schools are changing and serving so many different learners with diverse backgrounds. I really learned so much from this presentation!

On Thursday I traveled to UNC Greensboro to spend the day with high school seniors who are interested in careers in education and in attending UNCG. What an exciting group! I enjoyed having lunch with a few prospective teachers and we talked about why good, quality teachers are so important. Ms. Ginger Parnell and her staff had an exciting, informative day planned for these high school seniors! I had a blast!

Kenansville was my destination on Friday. I attended the round table meeting in the Southeast Region and talked about the Teacher of the Year Program. What a great week!

Recalculating...

Have you ever turned off your GPS because it began to repeat...."recalculating." Lola (my GPS named so after Lola from RV) has often and in her best British accent kept me going in the right direction! I was listening to Dr. Atkinson at a meeting and she talked about how wonderful it is to have these modern tools to tell us if we are going in the right direction. She compared this to the tools we have in our schools. We now have access to tons of useable data about the academic growth of our students. DId that students master goal 1? Do I need to find a way to reteach objective 4? With this data we know sooner rather than later if we need to reteach a concept. Rather than waiting for EOG/EOC scores at the end of the year, we can measure a student's progress all along. I am certainly glad Lola tells me I am going the wrong directions quickly rather than waiting until I am a few hours down the highway!

How often do we hear or recognize the need to recalculate in our classrooms? Do you turn off your GPS or stop to think about ways to reteach?

Have a great week!

Week of October 4

The month of October is going to be a very busy month! Looking at my calendar makes me TIRED!

On Monday I attended a study group meeting with the NC Public School Forum. I also learn so much at these meetings! We heard from Dr. Peele and had good conversation about quality leadership. One of Dr. Peele's slides really stood out to me. According to Marzano, school leadership is second only to quality instruction on student performance. Wow! We all realize the importance of effective teachers on student performance, but I don't think we really think about the importance of our school's administrators in this process. In teaching, like all professions, the best want to work for the best. Great leadership attracts great teachers! Great teachers create effective, quality learning environments.

On Tuesday I had a great experience at NC EPFP. We heard from John Davis. He had some fascinating data and information regarding politics in NC. He made some predictions for our great state in regards to November elections. I guess we will find out soon!

On Wednesday and Thursday the SBE met. Some great topics were discussed during committee meetings on Wednesday. If you have not take the time to really look at the work with ACRE, I encourage you to spend some time on the DPI website learning more. Again, a link to the SBE highlights is found to the right!

I left the SBE meeting on Thursday and drove to New Hanover County. I spent the evening at UNCW with U.S. History teachers from New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender Counties. We talked about strategies for goals 6,7 and 8. What a great group of teachers! I left so inspired!

On Friday morning I was back at UNCW to talk with Teacher Cadets. I absolutely love this program and I had a great time talking with future teachers about finding the path to a teaching career! Once I left UNCW I traveled down the road to Brunswick County. I had a wonderful Friday afternoon with some really amazing Social Studies teachers! We talked about making the leap from good to great! It was a great way to end the week!

Whew! What a busy week!

Week of September 27

After Sunday's festivities, I was exhausted....but too excited to sleep! I spent Monday in the office working on presentations and researching a little more on some new and innovative programs in NC!

Tuesday was an exciting and very informative day! Our NC EPFP group participated in the NC STEM Community Collaborative event held at Marbles Kids Museum. I learned so much about NC STEM programs in NC and some innovative ways to teach science and math. Following lunch, we heard from a few dynamic presenters. One I remember in particular talked about how necessary collaboration and teamwork are in education. He made the point that all professions...from Doctors to Superheroes work in teams! For years education seems to have operated in a culture of isolationism. But does that best serve our students? Not at all! I am so excited to see the shift from isolationism to collaboration! The event was concluded that evening with a keynote address from Lt. Governor Walter Dalton at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences.

On Saturday morning, I was fortunate to meet and spend some time with future science and mathematics teachers! The PERSIST Scholars met at The Friday Institute in Raleigh. These were some very bright, articulate and dedicated students! I was energized by them and I was so glad I could spend the morning with them! You guys are such intelligent, focused, and out-going young adults. I look forward to the day when I can call you my colleagues!

I Love Midway!

Sunday, September 26 was truly an amazing day. My school hosted "Fatch Day" in my honor and invited the community to join in on the celebration! There are not words to describe how special this day was for me and my family. Our School Improvement Team, our Principal, our art teacher and so many others worked to make this a day I will always remember! The food was delicious (Thanks Mrs. Emily) and the banner that Ms. Powell created was beyond awesome! I am so fortunate to be surrounded by such a caring, supportive and genuine school community.

One of the most exciting parts of the day was visiting with my former teachers! So many special people who touched my life in such numerous ways stopped by to give a hug and say hello. To all of my family, friends, former teachers, colleagues, and community, thank you for making this day one I will never forget.

To my MHS friends, thank you for making this so wonderful! You guys know how to celebrate in style! I love you all very much.