“When asked to identify what made the school so good, every person, without fail, said it was the people of the school: the children, the families, and most importantly, the staff. Nobody said, ‘We have a really great computer lab’ or ‘a brand new reading textbook.’
(Eaker, DuFour, & DuFour, 2002)
With the Thanksgiving holidays quickly approaching, I thought it was a great time to simply offer heartfelt thanks to all of you for enriching the lives of our students. Whether you are a returning teacher, a teacher in a new role, or a teacher new to Kennedy School, I am sincerely thankful that you are here. Donna and I have the best jobs in the world because we are surrounded by the hardest-working teachers in the world. In the above quote, Eaker & colleagues have clearly stated what makes our own school great: It is not our facilities, or our curriculum, or technology; instead, it is each of you performing great deeds day in and day out. THANK YOU for teaching us so clearly what effective teachers do differently, and thanks for teaching with passion each day!
The timing and relevance of this blog post are most appropriate ….. Please take 2 minutes to read Beth Houf’s post, entitled Exhausted Educator, I See You! As she says:
Here’s our week at a glance:
Monday, November 14th
Vision/Hearing (K-3 Students)
Motivational Monday
1st Grade Data Review Meeting @ 2:45pm (E221)
New Teacher Meeting @ 2:50pm (D205)
Tuesday, November 15th
Vision/Hearing (K-3 Students)
Happy Birthday Sandy Montes de Oca 🙂
New Teacher/Mentor Meeting (4:00pm)
Wednesday, November 16th
Staff Thanksgiving Feast in Lounge (sign up to bring something here)
CPT Meetings
Board of Education Meeting @ 7:00pm
Thursday, November 17th
November Buddy Event
Kennedy Singers @ 2:30pm
TWD @ Bub City (3:15pm)
Friday, November 18th
NO Spirit Assembly Today (we are waiting on the new sound system in the gymnasium)
(11/19) Happy Birthday Shandi Hammer
(11/20) Happy Birthday Rosa Worwa
11/20 – 11/25 THANKSGIVING BREAK
(11/21) Happy Birthday Emily Kronlage
(11/22) Happy Birthday Suzanne Schoepke
(11/28) No Student Attendance / Full Day Parent-Teacher Conferences