It’s dangerous for a school to not have a clear vision and a coherent plan to attain it. When PDs do not align to teacher needs or when expectations for teacher practice conflict with mandated curriculum, teachers become frustrated and student learning slows.
102 will not have this problem. Our focus on student thinking is clear, and gives clarity as all of our decisions and expectations revolve around pushing thinking. On Thursday I shared with you some of our new curriculum, new expectations for teacher practice (Danielson Cheat Sheet), and new expectations for lesson planning (Thinking Generator). United by a common focus, each will support the others as teachers plan to teach for thinking, not just doing.
This is the work for next year, and it is already off to a great start. We received tons of great questions from teachers in every grade and every department, and a FAQ will be sent out in a few days to all staff. Teacher teams jumped into nuanced discussions around Thinking Generators, bringing a level of complexities to an instructional discourse that I’ve never seen at any PD. Special shout-outs to the middle school math and 3-5 STEM teams: seeing clear potential in TGs, both groups went right to work and even created TGs for the following day.
We’re thinking, and so will our students.
Things You Need to Know
June 14th is a regular school day for teachers regarding start and end time.
Optional PD will be provided in the gym for teachers who will be participating in the Staff/Student game. Bring your gear Monday and Tuesday if you’re interested.
End of year events are taking place almost every day from here on out. Please review our end of year calendar for more information.
District 24 will be honoring our Big Apple Award winner Marybeth Meenan on June 20th, 7PM at PS58. She will be recognized along with 4 other District 24 finalist, and I strongly urge all staff to go and support one of our own. Ms. Meenan is the first winner ever from our district; it’s going to be great.
mrkobot.com 