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8/23/2021 0 Comments

Principals: Your Team needs to know this from you as your start the year

For the first time in 14 years, I'm not in the trenches launching a new school year because I am on sabbatical working on my dissertation and a second master's degree. However, my mind, heart, and friends are all launching the new school year and I can't help but share some thinking with you about launching the new school year.

As an administrator, there are things teachers are dying to know right now (and some things they may prefer not to know, but deep down crave). Here's my starting list:

Teachers Need to Know.... from Their Principal as the New School Year Starts:

You value them as professionals and have high expectations for their work
Our collective priorities are: A, B, C ... our instructional approach and expectations are ... A, B, C Clearly state these priorities! Help your team determine what's the most urgent priority.
You are here for them and available when they need you.... and specifically tell them how and when to contact you with different types of information (how to get you in an emergency, how to share an idea, etc)
You are approachable and care about them as a human, a professional, as an educator, and as a colleague
You know that COVID stressed everyone and changed everything and we are all adapting to the changes, the stress, and moving forward. The stress hasn't just magically ended. The pain/stress/challenges linger.
Our work is hard and emotionally draining. Teachers need to hear you give them permission to take care of themselves, to be balanced, AND to be committed to high quality work.
Teachers want to know your expectations in a crystal clear way now. You may think they are universally understood, common knowledge... they aren't, and they very from school to school, leader to leader. Make sure you are clear about:
- Time expectations (on time, end of day, responding them to parent emails, what to do if running late)
- Priorities--- our children are first! All decisions are made with kids at the center or the decision.
- Sick leave--- it's for sick days, not vacation.
- Substitute plans-- be crystal clear and consistent about your expectations across your school.
- Communication expectations--- how often should all teachers share general information with families, what is needed ahead of meetings, how should concerns/problems be addressed?
- My personal favorite--- no surprises! If something happened and you wonder if the principal needs to know about it or if it will just go away..... don't take the gamble. When the principal is aware and ahead of it, the reaction will be far better planned and received than if the principal is caught off guard with an angry family, crying student, frustrated colleague.... give a quick heads up--- a simple text message or email to let your principal be able to be in the know and be prepared rather than surprised.

There are so many more things that are needed to be shared now. What would you add to the list?

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8/19/2021 0 Comments

Trauma+Pandemic+Stress= We MUST Treat Others with care

I saw this image earlier today and it hit me pretty hard.

We know the impacts of trauma. We've been talking about them for years. In a regular year, we know we need to be mindful of the past experiences our students have had and how they impact them now.

Now we are living in a pandemic with all the stressors that emerged with it and things are HARD for many students, families.. AND EMPLOYEES.

I urge you to study this image and to pause. Consider your students. Consider the families. Consider your employees.

Now, make a plan about how you will internalize this to:

Create a plan to pause when you are interacting with others to remember you don't know their whole world or situation so don't pretend to or make assumptions.
Recognize that pretty much every single person was impacted by the pandemic and related stressors and are still being impacting.
Be mindful of your language. Avoid judging statements. Seek to listen and be compassionate, not judge (avoid "I think you are overreacting; it's not that bad...)
Know that children don't always have the words to tell you what they are worried about or why. Sometimes they just need to know it's a safe space and they can unload on you when needed and still be loved.
Know that you staff are also impacted. Many are frankly stressed to the max and barely hanging on. They want to do well. They are worried. They have adapted to a zillion changes in a short amount of time and done well.
Remember the stages of grief.... there are many stages and they don't go in order and weird things can trigger loss/grief/sadness/anger/frustration. Remind people who are struggling with these emotions they are normal and encourage them to talk to a professional.
Know that you are not the professional (unless you are a certified counselor). Know your limits. Be a listening, supportive ear--- refer them to professionals for support.
Consider a system in your school/office to notify appropriate people only to "handle with care" when you become aware of a stressful situation impacting a student, family, or employee. Protect confidences and don't share much info. Just put a few trusted people on alert to keep an eye on those who are going through a lot.
Wrap around your people! Build a supportive, caring community.

Now, make a promise to treat everyone with kindness and respect. Create a culture where everyone on your team is mindful about the stress load on families, students and colleagues.

What's the best approach:

Listen with compassion.
Offer to be a resource, a support, a safe space.
Maintain high expectations and be supportive, full of grace and compassion.
Open a conversation about stress, impacts of the pandemic, supports available within in your district or community.
Be Kind!

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8/17/2021 0 Comments

New Employees, Re-Onboarding Everyone

To all my Principal colleagues (and other leaders),

I found this artcile in the Harvard Business Review to be very important and timely! As we prepare for the return to school this fall and are working so hard to kick off the year on the right foot, we are thinking about our new teachers and new employees and getting onboarding right is essential for a successful launch. However, this year is far more complex and we truly need to be thinking about reonboarding everyone.

Check it out... powerful tips: https://hbr.org/2021/08/its-time-to-re-onboard-everyone?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter_daily&utm_campaign=dailyalert_actsubs&utm_content=signinnudge&deliveryName=DM146121

I loved the three month mission idea. Also, the notion of ensuring that team mates know who to go to for specific supports is important! That could be a great opening activity --- either name tags sharing your expertise area (like attending a TedTalk event) or having your team lead- go tos each at a 'booth' to share their expertise in a way that builds relatinships and invites new teammates to seek them out. What ideas do you have to ensure that onboarding new employees and reonboarding all employees is positive, helpful, and serves its intended purpose?

In education, this is a critical topic right now as we need to retain the talent that comes to us, especially top talent.

By: Rachel Amstutz

Inspiring education reform, supporting school leaders, leading innovation, committed to all things education.

Is your child ready to return to math class in the fall?

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It’s the beginning of August and likely one of the last things you are thinking about is your child’s math education.

We interrupt this lovely summer day to share some facts with you:

The pandemic and its impacts on schools resulted in significant learning loss with math taking a bigger hit that other content areas [1, 2, 3]
- One report found that: “We analyzed assessment data from the Curriculum Associates i-Ready platform and found that students in their sample learned only 67 percent of the math and 87 percent of the reading that grade-level peers would typically have learned by the fall.” “On average, that means students lost the equivalent of three months of learning in mathematics and one-and-a-half months of learning in reading.” [2]
Math proficiency in the United States is significantly lower than most other countries and we are not gaining in progress [4]
- In 2018, there were 8 education systems with higher average reading literacy scores for 15-year-olds than the United States, 30 with higher mathematics literacy scores, and 11 with higher science literacy scores. [4]
Math struggles that begin in early elementary school compound each year and make it harder and harder for a child to achieve math success
- “Students in upper elementary school and those transitioning into middle school struggled the most” during the pandemic [3]
As many as 1 in 5 U.S. adults report severe math anxiety and 67% of teachers reported students’ math anxiety was a challenge. [1]
- The last time many students were in class five days a week for a ‘normal’ school day was over 480 days ago, and the nearly 1.5 years ago

Now that we have your attention--- we have one important question for you: Is your child ready to return to math class in the fall?
We are here to help! We will:

1) Determine your child’s current level of performance, strengths, and challenges and provide you with a detailed summary and consultation free of charge. Simply contact us using the contact information below to schedule a free diagnostic session.

2) Provide individualized programming to help your child plug any gaps that may exist, develop fluency with multiplication facts, shore up grade level expected skills, and gain confidence.

The Summer Math Intensive programs were created to solve these challenges, boost math confidence, and solidify math content, skills, and fluency before students return to school in the fall. Our target audience is rising 4th, 5th, and 6th graders (however, interest in a 7th grade program has been expressed and we are seeking students for it). Our Summer Math Intensive offers two pathways: Fluency and Core Content. Fluency will teach your child the strategies to become completely fluent and automatic with their multiplication facts 0-12. With many years of teaching middle schoolers under our belts, we can tell you with confidence that most middle schoolers are not fluent with their facts. This results in frustration and wrong answers on content such as area, geometry, and all problem solving. It’s time to help your child stop drawing millions of dots or using hashmarks to access information that should be stored in their long term memory and we can do that with them! Core Content focuses on the grade level core content your child should know well and shores up any missing areas or misconceptions. Our diagnostic allows us to know your child’s needs and to plan accordingly.

Sessions are:

- August 2-6 Summer Math Intensive Fluency
- August 9-20 Summer Math Intensive Core Content

For more information:
- To learn more, register, and find discount codes https://www.atozeducationconsulting.org/summer-math-intensive.html
- Read about the instructors and the Summer Math Intensive in the Severna Park Voice: https://www.severnaparkvoice.com/stories/passionate-educators-address-math-fluency-gap,34345
- Email us: AtoZeducationconsulting@gmail.org
- Follow us and message us on Facebook: facebook.com/AtoZeducationconsulting

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Principals: Your Team needs to know this from you as your start the year

Trauma+Pandemic+Stress= We MUST Treat Others with care

New Employees, Re-Onboarding Everyone

By: Rachel Amstutz

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Is your child ready to return to math class in the fall?

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