This week consider choosing one of these suggestions and try to practice it.

• Be more positive and accept what can’t be changed. David Holmes writes; “You need to do this in order to deter a pattern of complaining that is so easy to begin, the discipline of dealing with ‘what is,’ not what you wish things to be, is an important principle.”
• Lead in your classroom more side by side in a supportive, helping manner. It is easy to tell others what to do. It is a challenge to really understand why others are behaving a certain way. This week, get closer to others and see if it makes a difference in their performance.
• Fight isolation by not eating alone, invite others into you classroom, and look for opportunities outside of our school to connect and network with others. You don’t have to be alone, reach out.

There is an older traditional thought that says practice makes perfect. Let’s forget about being perfect and just begin practicing.

Here’s our week at a glance:

Monday, October 17th
Happy Birthday MaryBeth D’Andrea 🙂
1st Grade (Rooms 110, 100, 102, 108) Field Trip to Goebbert’s Pumpkin Farm
Fire Prevention Week <–click to see schedule
New Teacher Meeting @ 2:55pm

Tuesday, October 18th
1st Grade (Rooms 101, 109, 103) Field Trip to Goebbert’s Pumpkin Farm

Wednesday, October 19th
Happy Birthday Eva Popowska 🙂
WEAR ORANGE! Nationwide UNITY Day! Wear orange to show that you are united in supporting bullying prevention in our school!
PATS Field Trip to Heritage Farm
Adam from Forester’s Financial Visits (in lounge)
TAPS (2nd/3rd Grade)
ABC Parent Meeting @ 6pm
Board of Education Meeting @ 7pm (LMS)

Thursday, October 20th
Kindergarten Field Trip to Dider Farms
The Great Shakeout (Earthquake Drill) @ 10:20am *See email in Kennedy conference for more info!
SLT Meeting @ 3:00pm

Friday, October 21st
5 by Friday! Are you making 5 positive connections with parents by Friday?3

(10/22) ABC Fall Fest @ LMS 11am-3pm

Tech Tips:
Share A Bundle of Links with Sqworl

Kudoboard – Create a Digital Group Greetings 

Fall Resources for SMART Boards

Fire Prevention Activities (Click picture to take you to the idea)
           

I hope you had a wonderful 3-day weekend and enjoyed this beautiful October weather with your family & friends! Congrats to our Chicago Marathon runners, Kristen Stringer & Mandy Vanderwaal! Here’s our week at a glance:

Monday, October 10th
No School: Columbus Day

Tuesday, October 11th
Life Safety Visit
NO FACULTY MEETING (CANCELLED)
Mentor Meeting @ 3:45pm

Wednesday, October 12th
WEAR YOUR FAVORITE SPORTS GEAR!

TAPS (PreK/K/1st Grades)

Thursday, October 13th
Hearing & Vision Screenings (in gym)
PreK Field Trip to Johansen Farm
Think College Thursday

BPAC Meeting @ 3:45pm (Kennedy gym)

Friday, October 14th
Hearing & Vision Screenings (in gym)
1st Fun Fact Friday!
BUB City: Social Event after school

(10/15) Happy Birthday Rose Karas 🙂

(From Venspired)

I don’t think anyone knows the meaning of the phrase “Only so many minutes in a day!” better than someone in education.  There is always something waiting for us. Meetings. Papers. Calls to make. Email to answer. Things to file. Things to look up. Lessons to plan. Committees. Grad classes. Tech tools to figure out. Family. Commitments. PD.   There may be days when we are stretched to the limit, feeling more like some human version of Stretch Armstrong with our arms pulled in different directions, about to break off.   But, at the end of the day, it’s true.  The things that matter?  We make time for them.   Those people that say,  ”Oh, I don’t have time for that…”  Is this an insinuation that some of us just have more time than others?   Time is not something we just ‘have,’ it’s something we make.  It’s something we make when things matter to us. Children matter to us. Remember….what you do each and everyday at Kennedy School is in the best interest of the children we serve.

Here’s our week at a glance:

*Congratulations to Justine Samuels, PreK Para, who got married this past weekend! 🙂

Monday, October 3rd
Parent Visitation Day (9-10am and 1-2pm)
Dental Screenings

Tuesday, October 4th
Dental Screenings
3rd Grade Field Trip to Goebbert’s

Wednesday, October 5th
Dental Screenings
Happy Birthday Barbara Brzozowska 🙂

Thursday, October 6th
THINK COLLEGE THURSDAYS officially begins! *Wear your college gear*

Foresters Financial Rep in Lounge during Lunch Periods
SLT Meeting @ 3:00pm

Friday, October 7th
PreK Screening (PreK students still in session)
Reading Room Plan Day
2nd Grade Field Trip to Goebbert’s
Happy Birhtday Nicole Novak 🙂

(10/09) Happy Birthday Mandy Vanderwaal 🙂
(10/10) NO SCHOOL: Columbus Day

Apple just announced Apple Teacher, a new program created to support and celebrate educators. The program provides a self-paced learning experience with tips, inspiration, news, and learning materials to help teachers unlock the magic of iPad, Mac, and built-in apps in the classroom. Earn badges and an official Apple Teacher logo so you can share your achievement with the world. Sign up today!

The first 5 Kennedy School teachers to become an “Apple Teacher” will receive a $25 iTunes gift card & a $50 credit to use towards ordering any “accessories” for your iPad. So far, Monica Sloma & Heather Longo have achieved the Apple Teacher recognition! Way to Go! Who’s next? 

Here’s our week at a glance:

**Do you have surplus property to add to the list? Please do so ASAP!

Monday, September 26th
Happy Birthday Jill Michalski 🙂
New Teacher Meeting @ 2:50pm (Room 132)

Tuesday, September 27th
1st Grade (Rooms 110, 100, 108 & 102) Field Trip to Safety Town
Faculty Meeting @ 2:50pm <–click for agenda

Wednesday, September 28th
1st Grade (Rooms 101, 109 ,103) Field Trip to Safety Town

Thursday, September 29th

Friday, September 30th
1st Spirit Assembly @ 9:00am
5 By Friday!

(10/01) Happy Birthday Sarah Sicher 🙂

Apple just announced Apple Teacher, a new program created to support and celebrate educators. The program provides a self-paced learning experience with tips, inspiration, news, and learning materials to help teachers unlock the magic of iPad, Mac, and built-in apps in the classroom. Earn badges and an official Apple Teacher logo so you can share your achievement with the world. Sign up today!

The first 5 Kennedy School teachers to become an “Apple Teacher” will receive a $25 iTunes gift card & a $50 credit to use towards ordering any “accessories” for your iPad.

Have you Heard of FLIPGRID?
Video Responses for Classroom Collaboration: Flipgrid.com allows teachers to create an online space (or grid) where students can answer questions and discuss information through recorded videos (Awesome for our 1:1 iPads!) Great for reading responses or literature circles!~ Once a teacher creates a FlipGrid, students can visit the grid to record their video in response to a teacher’s question! Recordings are limited to 90 seconds 

PBS YOU CHOOSE
Designed to help elementary school students understand some of the key points of the 2016 US Presidential Election. The site features short biographies of Trump & Clinton, create little campaign posters, and collect “Presidential Trading Cards”. A collection of short, animated videos is also included in PBS Kids You Choose. The videos feature familiar PBS Kids characters singing and/or talking about things like the importance of voting, the first Presidents & frequency of elections.

TECH TIP: HOW TO INSERT COLUMNS INTO GOOGLE DOCS
Last week, Google announced a change to the way in which search works in Google Drive. Buried at the bottom of the announcement was a note about column formatting in Google Docs. For years, the only way to create columns in Google Docs was to insert a table. FINALLY, you can insert columns into your Google Docs by opening the “format” do-down menu and selecting “columns” (see video below):

Draw & Tell App
Draw & Tell app allows students to easily create an animated screencast with voice, drawings, images & objects. This app makes it simple for emerging learners to create digital stories or presentations on any number of topics!

Here’s our week at a glance:

Monday, September 19th
Happy Birthday Roger 🙂
Cycle 1 Assessments This Week….
Evacuation Drill @ 9:00am
Technology Committee Meeting @ 2:35pm (Room 202)
RTI Committee Meeting @ 2:40pm

Tuesday, September 20th
Happy Birthday Michelle McMorrow 🙂

Wednesday, September 21st
Happy Birthday Bridget Elliott 🙂
1st SIP Committee Meeting (2:40pm-3:05pm) <—click to see where committees will be meeting. Have you signed up for one yet? ALL staff sign up for ONE committee!
ABC Parent Group Meeting @ 6:00pm
Board of Education Meeting @ 7:00pm
*New Early Childhood Wing being featured as Example of Excellence

Thursday, September 22nd
PreK/PATS Field Trip to Lincoln Park Zoo
SLT Meeting @ 3:00pm (Conference Room)

Friday, September 23rd
Happy Birthday Amanda Peterson 🙂
FALL Picture Day
RSVP to the 1st Staff Social Event @ Bub City on Friday, October 14th….

Have you filled out the “THINK COLLEGE THURSDAYS” Google Form yet? We need everyone’s responses so we can create our bulletin board!

(09/24) Happy Birthday Britney Lane 🙂
(09/25) Happy Birthday Marta Ocon 🙂

Here’s our week at a glance:

Monday, September 12th
1st Day of Reading Room
Morning Interventions in Full Swing….

Tuesday, September 13th
Faculty Meeting @ 2:50pm <–click for agenda

Wednesday, September 14th
Half Day of School  (AM PreK dismisses @ 10:30am, K-3 dismisses at 10:55am, NO PM PreK)
SIP Agenda <–click to view

Thursday, September 15th
Bus Evacuation Drill <—K-3 teachers, have you signed up for a slot yet?
Boy Scouts of America Sign-Up (6:30pm-8:15pm in main lobby)

Friday, September 16th
Fire Drill @ 9:00am
*Questions on where to exit the building, please ask an administrator
5 Positive Connections by Friday! 🙂
Spiritwear Orders Due!

Reminders:
-Please fill out the Google Form for our Think College Thursdays bulletin board
-All Staff should please sign up for a School Improvement Committee for this year (see Kennedy conference for an email sent with link to sign up). Our first ‘check-in’ will be this Wednesday at the end of our SIP day work.
-Certified Non-Tenured Staff: Please be sure to schedule your first observation with your administrator

“What makes a good school has very little to do with how rich or poor the students are, or the type of curriculum that’s taught. It has very little to do with the special programs, expansive playing fields, snappy uniforms, or whether the school is wired to the Internet. What makes a good school, whether it’s public or private, religious or nonreligious, charter or non-charter, is a feeling. A feeling shared by the entire staff that their particular school is special. The feeling that their school really belongs to them.” (Manna, 1999).

At Kennedy School, each member of our team has a distinctive character that cares deeply about each and every one of our Kennedy Kubbies. Your unique attributes and talents contribute to the feeling people get when they enter this building. As a result, our children will remember you long after they leave Kennedy.

“Schools are not buildings, curriculums, and machines. Schools are relationships and interactions among people.”

I hope everyone enjoyed a relaxing and enjoyable weekend with friends and family. Here’s our 4-day week at a glance:

Monday, September 5th
NO SCHOOL: Labor Day

Tuesday, September 6th
**Please park at St. Maria Goretti Parking Lot
1st Day of PreK (Meet & Greet for first 30 minutes of the session)
Book Fair (Preview Day) <—did you sign up for a slot to preview the books with your class?
*Media Center time begins

Wednesday, September 7th
Book Fair (Buy Day)

Thursday, September 8th
Book Fair (Buy Day)
SLT Meeting @ 3:00pm
Curriculum Night 6:00pm-7:30pm

**Check out our Kennedy School Curriculum Night Pinterest Board & pin your ideas to the shared board.

Friday, September 9th
GO GOLD for Childhood Cancer Awareness
Reading Room Plan Day
*5 by Friday — Have you made 5 positive connections this week? Phone call, email, positive postcard….

(09/11) Happy Birthday Beatriz Diaz 🙂

Blog Posts Worth Checking Out:

An Easy Way to Distribute Contact Info During Open House

Begin the New School Year with a Positive Mindset

Two Ways to Visually Show Classroom Noise

As I visited each classroom in our school this past week, I observed each of you setting the tone for a culture of caring in your classrooms; classrooms where teachers and students care about learning, about each other, and care about our community. The first weeks of school set the tone for the entire year. If our students leave school feeling excited about themselves as learners & about you as their teacher, then we’re doing something right!  Always remember that our kids will meet any expectations we set for them, as long as we are firm, fair, and consistent with these expectations and build relationships with our students so that they will want to meet them. The primary way to accomplish this positive relationship-building with our students is simply caring deeply about them as learners and young people and taking the time to get to know them, as well as showing them just how much you care.

Here’s our week at a glance:

(08/26/16) Happy Belated Birthday Melissa Berlanga 🙂
*Remember: Emergency Drills will be rescheduled to future dates, after Pre School begins! 

Monday, August 29th:
New Teacher Meeting @ 2:50pm (Room 104)

Tuesday, August 30th
Mentor Meeting @ 3:45pm

Wednesday, August 31st

Thursday, September 1st

Friday, September 2nd
Pre School Meet & Greet (9-10am and 12-1pm)

(09/05) NO SCHOOL: Labor Day

What a great first week (technically 3 days) at Kennedy! As expected, there were a few tears, but the smiles and giggles outweighed the few. I appreciate everyone’s help and extra care during arrival. With the new traffic patterns & arrival procedures, it would not have gone as smoothly without everyone’s help and patience. Thank you to ALL staff for going the extra mile to help get our year off to an amazing start.  Let’s continue on the path with a smooth week ahead — any and all help is greatly appreciated as we help our Kennedy Kubbies acclimate to the arrival and dismissal procedures.

As we prepare for our first full week with the students, I hope you will take a few quiet moments to put aside lesson planning, forget about your “To-Do” list and consider our purpose (as a school, and as individual educators). When we walk in on Monday morning, please remember that you are a difference maker! The small gestures you make to welcome students and show an interest in their lives will have an impact. This year, you will have opportunities to build confidence where it hasn’t existed, develop connections that have never been present, and generate hope with your students. Our classrooms are filled with individuals with a variety of needs, and it’s up to US to make sure they thrive! The only way for that to happen is to build a connection with each student. When we truly know them all as individuals, we can understand them as learners. Please take some time to read this blog post entitled, “Dear Teacher…” as it perfectly captures the life of an educator.

Here’s our week at a glance:

(08/21) Happy Birthday Lisa Bilotta 🙂

Monday, August 22nd
Aimsweb Fall Benchmarking Begins

Tuesday, August 23rd
Faculty Meeting @ 2:50pm

Wednesday, August 24th

Thursday, August 25th
MAP Testing will begin with 3rd Grade

Friday, August 26th
5 Positive Family Connections by Friday
Please use the Positive Postcards in the office, as well as any other form (phone call, email, note home, certificate) to make 5 positive connections with your students’ families by Friday!  🙂

Sunday, August 28th ABC Pool Party Event for Kennedy Families
**Please talk this event up with your students this week 🙂

Grab a piece of paper and try to answer the above questions as you reflect on the 2015-2016 school year.

It’s hard to believe we have reached the point in the year where we only have 4 days left! It has been a great year of teaching & learning, and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for your friendship and support.

In the middle of packing away materials, finishing report cards & last minute projects, there is one part of the year that is so bittersweet….the good-byes! Remember to take time to tell your students what they mean to you this week. Have lunch in the classroom or outside. Ask each student to share their favorite memory. Share your favorite memories with your class. Send a Kennedy Kubbie positive postcard to every student and put it in the mail on the last day of school to wish them a great summer! ENJOY THESE LAST FOUR DAYS! It’s the happiest & saddest time all in one. So, while you’re counting down the last 5 days and trying to cross off those final items from your never-ending to-do list, remember to enjoy your final time together & make your end of the year count! 

For those of you moving on to new adventures, remember that you’re only as good as your last exit…….and for those of us returning, know that students remember the educators that we are the last week of school…..so let’s make sure they remember the best of what we have to offer. This last week (4 days) is going to FLY by so please commit to making them count. Let’s all feel great about what we’ve accomplished this year! Finish strong and wrap up the year with a beautiful bow…Have a wonderful week and remember to be great for our Kubbies and each other.

“No one has a problem with the first mile of a journey. Even an infant could do fine for a while. But it isn’t the start that matters. It’s the finish line.”

  ― Julien Smith

Here’s our final week at a glance for the 2015-2016 school year:

Monday, May 16th
PreK Celebrations
3rd Grade “Fly Up Day” to Washington School
Kindergarten Graduation Rehearsals @ LMS
Multiage Picnic
8th Grade Graduation @ 7:00pm (E. Leyden HS)

Tuesday, May 17th
Kindergarten Graduations @ LMS (9:00am and 11:00am)

Wednesday, May 18th
2nd Grade Bowling Field Trip
3rd Grade Dinosaur Fair
1st Grade Picnic

Thursday, May 19th
Last Day of School for 1st-3rd Grades (Full Day)

Friday, May 20th

“Just know that, even if nobody said “Thank You,” today, there’s a kid somewhere who loves you, who appreciates you, and who is wondering about something because of something you said in your classroom. Right now there might be a parent who thinks you are the best thing under the sun because you might be the very first person who has understood her child. There’s an administrator who is grateful to have you on staff at your school. At this very moment, there is a student close to graduating high school who found a photo from your classroom that she has saved all these years because you were her favorite. Tonight, a colleague of yours will go home with a smile because something you took the time to say today. One of your students that pretends not to care about his work will be working extra hard tonight, because he wants to show you he can do it.

You’re appreciated. You matter to more kids than I can count on my fingers and toes, and your message to the world will travel well into the future in the hearts of kids who will grow up with dreams and passions that all started right where you are. In your classroom.

Just in case you forget.”

BLOG POSTS WORTH READING:
Until the Final Bell

I Don’t Want to Leave

Thank You To All The Teachers Who…