January 31 2020

Mr. Browne's Precept

"There is no shame in not knowing. the shame lies in not finding out." ~ Assyrian Proverb

Honey- Do List 

Names of students for possible retention to Jodi- January 17th

Complete form with Cell Phone #- January 24th

Select a time for me to read to your class in Feb.-January 31st

Fly on in

 Voluntary homework meeting on Thursday, February 6th 4-5

 The Buzz in My Brain

As I write this (before I join you at the Bowery), I have so many thoughts that I cannot settle on one to write about. How do we do things radically different to capture the interest of our kids? Does it have to be radical? How can we support their mental health needs better? How do we support families that are working so hard just to survive? What is the most important priority of our work? How do I support my work family as you do this hard work? How can these beautiful children have such kind behaviors and 30 second later have such mean ones? Damn, I never got to write that letter. I am so happy that he had a good day. I can't believe he lied to me. I am so happy David saw him. Thank God for this team. There was always someone there when I needed them. Why am I so tired? The brain is pretty buzzy at the moment. 

Budget Update

We remain in a holding pattern for the budget. 

National African American Read-In

The National African American Read-In is the nation’s first and oldest event dedicated to diversity in literature. It was established in 1990 by the Black Caucus of the National Council of Teachers of English to make literacy a significant part of Black History Month. This initiative has reached more than 6 million participants around the world. (NCTE Website)

I would like to propose that we have a Lee Academy African American Read-In on Friday, February 14th.  I know this is a quick turnaround but I literally just found out about this on Monday. 

There is a toolkit here. I am looking for some interested people to help plan what our day could look like. I am also trying to connect with the Frugal Bookstore in Nubian (Dudley) Square for some resources and perhaps to do a bookfair for our students and families. 

El Dia de Los Ninos, El Dia de Los Libros

This even we have a bit more lead-in for. El dia de Los Ninos, El dia de Los Libros is celebrated annually on April 30th.   April Children’s Day, Book Day are celebrations that unite communities. April book fiestas are held in libraries, schools, homes, parks, etc., often on or near April 30th. DIA is also used to mean Diversity In Action. This will be an opportunity for us to celebrate our Latinx students, families, and authors.

I would propose that we hold our own book fiesta on April 17th. Once again this effort has an organized planning effort. The planning booklet can be found here.

You may have noticed that each of these Fridays are a Friday before vacation. They will provide our students with an opportunity to celebrate literacy and have a great send-off for the vacation. 

Governing Board-Family Council

I am creating a meeting experiment. We are combining our Family Council and GoverningBoard meetings. Much of what we discuss in one venue is repeated at the other. I would also like the Governing Board with the expertise of our chair to think about ways to revitalize the family council. I am curious to see how it goes. 

January 27, 2020

Mr.Browne's Precept

"There is no shame in not knowing. the shame lies in not finding out." ~ Assyrian Proverb

Honey- Do List 

Names of students for possible retention to Jodi- January 17th

Complete form with Cell Phone #- January 24th

Huddle with CSR-January 28th

Select a time for me to read to your class-January 31st

 The Buzz in My Brain

The homework issue that I wrote about in last week's hive continues to nag at me with a persistent low buzz. I am still inviting your thoughts and perspectives on this. Thank you to those of you that took the time to email me. 
I would like to invite each of you to a voluntary meeting on Thursday, February 6th from 4-5 to discuss homework and how we could implement potential changes in a way that makes sense for our students and families. 

Budget Update

We remain in a holding pattern for the budget. Our next major milestone should have been Friday. I will update you as soon as I know anything. 

Homeless Liason

Samantha "Rockstar" Betti is our new homeless liaison replacing Michelle who used to serve in this role. Sam will be working closely with the central office team in charge of the Homeless Education Resource Network (HERN). Please let Sam know ASAP of any families that are currently homeless or facing homelessness. 

If you would like to learn more about the BPS HERN this is a link to their website.  

HERN has a toolkit for schools that Sam will be using in her expanded role. There are resources that you may want to review for if/when families approach you with concerns. 

Cell Phone Numbers

In order to improve our communication during a crisis, it is critical that we have a group cell phone chain. Please complete this form with your name and cellphone # by January 24th. Please share the form link with your colleagues who you know do not read the Hive. As of 8:33 on 1/24/20 we only had 13 responses. Thank you to those that responded. 

January 17, 2020

Dr. Jodi's Precept

"All, Here, and Now" ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

Honey- Do List 

Names of students for possible retention to Jodi- January 17th

Complete form with Cell Phone #- January 24th

Huddle with CSR-January 28th

Select a time for me to read to your class-January 31st

 The Buzz in My Brain

Spotify has an amazing playlist called "We Shall Overcome". I have been listening to it all week in the car during my commutes. I even suspended listening to my murder mystery podcast so I could dive into this. What makes the playlist so great is that the majority of the content is recordings of Dr. King's speeches both the famous ones and some of the less famous. It has been powerful to listen to. Unfortunately, much of the power comes from how applicable his words remain to our country today. I have found myself increasingly inspired as I listen and often relisten to these amazing speeches. I encourage those of you that have Spotify to give this playlist a listen. 

Budget Update

We are in a holding pattern for the budget. Our next major milestone will be on January 24th. 

Paper Consumption

Noreen suggested that we purchase some much cheaper manilla paper for projects. Is this something that you would be interested in?

Shelter in Place

I had no idea on Tuesday morning how timely our conversation would become. I want to commend each of you for the job that you and your students did sheltering in place. It was truly amazing. I was caught up in the incident and I did not realize how quiet the building was until I gave the all-clear and the building "woke up". 

My one takeaway is that we need to be clearer in our language when calling a shelter in place. By having people go to individual teachers there was confusion whether we were having a lockdown or a shelter in place because the message was muddled. Though infrequent, I anticipate that Shelter in Place will be the safety protocol that we have to use most frequently. When we shelter in place we stay where we are when the protocol is called. Shut our doors and keep our students out of the hallways. Until the all-clear is given. There is no need to have students be silent (quiet is good enough), or hidden. 

I want to thank everyone that was directly involved in the incident. your professionalism and dedication to the welfare of our students and families were noticed and appreciated. It was because of you that the incident went so smoothly. Your actions allowed me to support the sibling and the significant other in the manner that I believe they needed. 

I also want to thank everyone who checked on me to make sure that I was alright. I can't say that I want to do that every day but there is no other team I would rather be playing on than ours in that situation. Your support helped me to the finish line and lifted much of the stress and anxiety I was feeling. 

Cell Phone Numbers

In order to improve our communication during a crisis or just because we're the most awesome group of colleagues, I want to create a group chat for us. Please complete this form with your name and cellphone # by January 24th. Please share the form link with your colleagues who you know do not read the Hive. 

Homework

Why do we give our youngest learners homework? Research does not support the practice. Homework is often the worst part of a child's and family's day and for our learners may potentially hurt their curiosity and love of learning. Do we see benefits from the homework that we are assigning? 

I have been pondering these questions and wondering if a monthly activity sheet might be more engaging for children and stimulate conversations between our students and their families. Some examples of what I am talking about are below:
Example 1
Example 2
Example 3

I would like to hear your thoughts and opinions on this. I am trying to figure out how to best facilitate a community conversation about the issue. If you have any ideas feel free to share them! 

January 10.2020

Mr. Browne's Precept

"And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who do not believe in magic will never find it. " ~ Roald Dahl

Honey- Do List 

Names of students for possible retention to Jodi- January 17th

 The Buzz in My Brain

This was a tough weekend. The boy went back to sunny Phoenix  Arizona where it was actually colder than it was here in Boston. I am thinking he will not be waking up to snow squalls today. 

One question that has been bopping around my brain is, How are we getting kids excited to use their emerging literacy skills? How are we showing them the power that these skills give them to uncover content?

I don't have an answer just questions. I would love to hear your thoughts.   

Budget Update

We are in the thick of budget season now. 

• We started the season with a deficit.
• At our last Governing Board meeting, the board voted to reduce the budget by the.6  behavioral specialist position.  
• If the district allows us to switch to average salary vs. actual salary this will be a savings of $82,000. Three years of data to show that this change would work in our benefit is required prior to district approval. The district is conducting that analysis now. 
• This $82,000 would result in the elimination of the deficit. 
• My probable org meeting is on Monday, January 13th. (Today)

Paper Consumption

I know I sound like a broken record but we are using too much paper. Our third shipment is coming in today. I believe that mindfulness is the solution to many problems. In order to increase our mindfulness around paper use (mine included), we will be installing a tap card system on the copiers. This will require us to tap our ID on a pad prior to copying. We will be able to get a weekly report on how much paper we are using as individuals and a school community. By increasing our awareness I am hoping that we can consciously take steps to reduce our footprints.

January 24th Potluck 

You are such an amazing staff! I am hoping that you will donate a few hours of your time to the family potluck on January 24th. I know that this is an event enjoyed by our families and your presence ake for a true Lee Academy family event. 

One School One Book

The books are finally here. It only took 2 months! I would like to come to read to each class during the month of February. The first book that I will be presenting is Just Ask by Sonia Sotomayor. 

I really want to spend time in each classroom. So send me 2-3 times that will work for you and your kids.