My very first job was in Mrs. Morris’ first grade classroom at Lindbergh Elementary School. Mrs. Morris gave me best job of all -cleaning the chalkboard erasers! I was thrilled to have the opportunity to go outside for two minutes, bang the erasers together, watch the cloud of dust go up in the air, and wait until it lessened to know when they were officially “clean”. Looking back, that probably was not the cleanest job, but it gave me a small sense of purpose and leadership that I longed for in the classroom.

As a teacher, I want my students to have that same feeling of purpose and leadership in my classroom. When I was at an elementary school, I had the privilege to provide a group of students the opportunity to demonstrate leadership skills through running a school store. Students had to complete an application and complete an interview. Seeing these students feel empowered at their interview as they answered questions such as “what has been your proudest moment this year” or “how would working at the school store help you achieve your goals” made me smile. These interviews provided them a time to talk about themselves and let them dream of their future. Students received training in their job duties and then mentored the “new employees”. I witnessed these students transfer their leadership skills back into the classroom and with their peers.

Creating student leadership opportunities in the classroom can also assist teachers in the daily struggle of juggling all the daily tasks. These opportunities provide students a sense of purpose, belonging, and leadership all while helping you maintain your sanity through the course of the day. Here are some leadership opportunities you may want to consider implementing into your classroom

• Teacher’s Assistant – This student can assist the teacher in day to day tasks such as alphabetizing papers, providing support if they have already taken a similar class, provide extra support to students if they have questions and they know the answers, and any other tasks as directed by the teacher.
• Librarian – Assists in keeping books organized and put away neatly. Brings books to the media center as needed.
• Phone Manager – Answers the phone and takes messages as needed (may want to notify main office staff and provide training to students as to when they can take a message and when the teacher needs to answer the phone immediately). Have a message pad near the phone (or post it notes) so they can take down numbers and who has called.
• Substitute Assistant – Assists a substitute in daily routines and helps them navigate the school as needed. May also show the substitute around the room to find important items (i.e. supplies, books, manipulatives, etc.).
• Confusion Monitor – Monitors the classroom for moments when it seems that students are confused or are in need of clarification. This can be key for students who may be nervous about speaking up or asking the question, even when there is consensus that there is a need for clarification.
• Paparazzi – Takes photographs of the exciting things that are happening in the classroom (students working collaboratively, exciting projects that have been completed, students doing kind works, etc.).
• Social Media Guru - This student leader can post pictures of the great activities occurring in the classroom on the teacher’s Google Classroom or other online platforms that the teacher and/or school uses on a regular basis.
• Supply Manager – Makes sure supplies are put away, pencils sharpened, and distributes papers that the teacher needs to hand out. Notifies teacher if supplies are limited or require special attention.
• Director of Maintenance – This person takes care of the physical space. They enlist the help of other students to maintain the classroom space. For instance, they ensure that floors are clean before the class leaves and kindly ask others to help them clean up as needed.
• Time Keeper – Assists in keeping time during group work or other time-sensitive tasks. This leader can also remind the teacher to end the class at a certain time to do things such as exit slips, formative assessments, or other wrap-up activities.
• Scribe – This student assists the teacher in writing notes on the whiteboard or other places as needed. They may also keep notes during the hour for students that are absent or in a special class.
• Tech Assistant – Assists other students, teacher, and/or substitute if simple technical issues arise (i.e. how to log in to an account, create something in an app that they are familiar with, etc.).

• Create a list of Classified Ads or Help Wanted ads that describes the responsibilities of the job and the time commitment. Provide students the opportunity to also explore authentic classifieds or help wanted advertisements so they can explore what it is like to apply for jobs in their futures.
• Create a short application for students to complete. This provides the opportunity for students to write in an academic manner. Provide a deadline for applications (which makes it even more authentic).
• Conduct a 5 minute interview with students so they can practice interview skills. You may want to enlist the help of volunteers or other school employees (i.e. custodians, media assistants, etc.) who could give a few minutes of time to conduct some of the interviews. You may also want to have other students on the interview team as this is another way to bring in leadership skills.
• Provide students with a congratulatory note that tells them they got the job and information regarding when it begins.
• Train students to know and understand their job. Have them model their job duties and provide feedback as needed.
• Rotate leadership opportunities throughout the year. Allow students to train the new employee so that they can mentor and provide support.

To see student workers in action, check out these videos from The Teacher Toolkit.

If you would like more ideas or to help you implement some classroom leadership opportunities, please feel free to reach out to me anytime!

This post brought to you by Katie Miller, K-12 EL Implementation Associate

Our students will greet us this week with a few questions on their mind:

• Will my teacher like me? 
• Will I be treated with respect in the classroom? 
• Will my ideas and thoughts be honored? 

 
The first week of school is a critical time to set the foundation for the learning and dialogue that will happen the rest of year.  Although it’s tempting to rush to the logistical (how to find the syllabus, online textbook codes,  grading policies, etc.), what students really want to know is how you’ll connect as human beings in your classroom.  Here are five ways to start building positive relationships within those first critical days in the classroom:  

Pair students up (consider using match cards for pairing) and then give each partnership two dixie cups with 6- 8 M&Ms in the cup (you can also use the Fun Size version, although that route is more expensive).  Then, have students sort their M&Ms by color and share information about themselves using the prompts below: ​

• Blue:  What do you value?  
  
• Green:  What do you love to do?  
  
• Brown:   What would you change about the world if you were able?
  
• Yellow:  If you knew it would work out, what are some risks you would take in life? 
  
• Orange:  What is something about your family?
  

​
​Be sure to share your own responses as well!

Take a large piece of paper (ideally, cardstock) and fold it in half to make a table tent.  Ask students to complete their own interactive nametag following these prompts:  

Once they have created these tabletop place-cards, have them share one item with their tablemates.  You can ask students to keep these up throughout the first week to help you and other students learn the names of those in the class. 

George Couros suggests we ask five questions of our students at the start of the school year.  His suggested questions are: 

1.  What are the qualities you look for in a teacher? 
2. What are you passionate about? 
3. What is one big question you have for this year? 
4. What are your strengths and how can we utilize them? 
5. What does success at the end of the year look like to you? 

Check out his blogpost on this topic for more information!

One of the simplest ways to build positive relationships is to be intentional about greeting students at the door each day.  This gives us an opportunity to set a positive tone for our classrooms and engage in some social conversations with our students. 

This year we interviewed student panelists as a part of our new teacher orientation. One of their recurring messages was: “we value teachers who care about us as people and get to know us outside of class.”  

Students love the idea of having a "snowball fight" in September! 

1. Have students write a unique fact about themselves on a small piece of paper. 
2. Ask students to roll this up into a ball and then divide your group in two. 
3. Engage in a snowball fight, trying to have the least amount of snow balls on your side. 
4. End the fight. Then, pick up one snowball and form a circle.
5. Read your fact aloud.  Whomever's fact it is says, “That is Me!” Then, that student grabs a snowball from the floor and reads the fact aloud.
6. Have each student repeat 'step 5' until there are no paper snowballs on the floor. 

​The more we know about our students as learners and humans the better we’re able to support their growth.  Here’s to a wonderful year of human connection!

This post brought to you by Heather Willman, APOSA overseeing Secondary Curriculum and Instructional Coaching

Our back-to-school schedule is packed: there are classrooms to dust, bulletin boards to design, meetings to attend, and handouts to order from Paper Tiger. That said, consider adding one more item to your ‘To Do’ list: becoming less socially narrow.
 
In March of 2017, Tanya Menon shared her Ted Talk, “The Secret to Great Opportunities? The Person You Haven’t Met Yet” (imbedded below).  

Menon, and organizational psychologist and author, notes that we commonly connect with those who we feel most comfortable; surrounding ourselves mainly with those who share the same beliefs, are of the same race, and who even dress similarly. For me, I know this is certainly true. My closest friends share similar values, had similar religious upbringings, enjoy the same types of activities, and wear similar styles of clothing. We all are roughly in the same income brackets, run into each other at the same concerts, and share similar political viewpoints. I would guess the same might be true for you, too. Humans simply tend to find solace in strong ties.
 
However, Menon shares that while strong ties might feel good, there is strength in weak ties. Paraphrasing the work of Mark Granovetter, author of “The Strength of Weak Ties,” Menon points out that most people get their jobs from and have creative ideas sparked by those who share only weak ties. In other words, individuals you just met or know only tangentially are often the ones who will foster your creative thinking and create greater opportunities for you.
 
There are three suggestions that Menon provides for how we might widen our social universe. As she shared these, I saw clear connections to how these ides might impact us as educators, which I summarize below. 

​Menon notes that those who find the most success in the world (those noted with high status on the graph) tend to broaden their social networks when times get tough--such as when losing a job or experiencing a sudden a financial burden. Where as those who tend to connect only with those who give them comfort in tough times, often struggle career-wise and/or fiscally. 

​Finally, Menon offers the suggestion that we nix the common metaphor of “life’s a journey,” because in this metaphor “you're a passenger on the train, and there are certain people with you. Certain people get on this train, and some stay with you, some leave at different stops, new ones may enter. This one [metaphor] is passive: being a passenger on that train, and it's quite linear. You're off to some particular destination. ” Instead, she suggests replacing this metaphor with that of an atom; one where you’re “bumping up against other atoms, maybe transferring energy with them, bonding with them a little, and maybe creating something new on your travels through the social universe.” While in real life I love a train ride (those of you who know me realize how true this is), I love the poetry found in the atom metaphor—there is something beautiful in the constant change, growth, and renewal found in this scientific imagery.

Imagine classrooms and school buildings were our students and our staff become atoms rather than passive passengers: their potential for creativity and opportunities skyrocketing both inside our schools and out! 
 
If you would like to explore Menon’s ideas further, or should you think of more applications for the world of education, we here at Secondary C&I would love to collaborate with you. Together, we are sure to foster some creative thinking and create some great opportunities! 

This post brought to you by Heather Lyke, Secondary Implementation Associate

The new school year is just getting started and  we are beginning the year with a lot of new learning opportunities. Not only is this a great way for us to learn new curriculum, teaching strategies, and skills; but as teachers, this often serves as a great reminder of what it's like to be a student in a classroom before we reverse the roles back into what we are used to (being the teacher). 

Below is a short overview of some of the Professional Development opportunities happening this week and next. 

In addition to the two days above, new staff will also have a meeting at their home site: at most schools, these meetings are scheduled for Monday, August 12th (today). 

​During BTS week, there will be one teacher workday, two site planned Professional Development (PD) day, and two district PD days.

During the district PD days, REA staff, paraprofessionals, MHPs, early childhood, and ABE staff will have their choice of learning sessions that will be taught by district staff or external presenters.

Access the August 21st PD day options HERE, and see the schedule for August 24th.  
​Sign up for your courses on PD Express by clicking HERE.

Based on job assignments, some staff will be required to attend a certain PD session. For example, math training will be required for all teachers of mathematics. If you are required to attend a specific PD session, you will automatically be registered for the course in PDExpress. You will receive an email indicating that you have been registered for those classes so you can plan accordingly. Other sessions will be self-selected based on staff choice. This guide features elective courses for all REA members, MHPs, early childhood, and ABE staff.

Certified staff are required to attend both August 21st and 24th.
Paraprofessionals are only required to attend August 24th.