Comments for Love What You Teach

Comment on implementing an independent reading choice system: part 1 by Jill

Jill — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 19:12:45 +0000

Great post! I recently got my Masters in Reading Education and have been thinking of different ways to do things. I have been using SMART Goals with my students as a way to keep them on track. They seemed more focused now and are working toward their goals every day!

Comment on Getting Started as a Professional Learning Community by sekundarstufe

sekundarstufe — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 09:03:19 +0000

Hy, your post is really enjoyable and I agree to perrywiseman that success of a PLC is upon the effectiveness of the teams within those communities. Thanks for the post. Keep it up.

Comment on Getting Started as a Professional Learning Community by Leann Riley

Leann Riley — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:56:11 +0000

Your blog is very interesting. To put all those teachers from different schools and districts to collaborate for the future is wonderful. All those great ideas to use in different places, can’t wait to see what is coming. Thanks for sharing!

Comment on Getting Started as a Professional Learning Community by perrywiseman

perrywiseman — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:22:29 +0000

a. fox,
I really enjoyed your post. Not only is the content insightful, but you writing is great.

I have completed much research on the topic and my data strongly suggests that the success of a PLC is very dependent upon the effectiveness of the teams within those communities.

http://wisefoundations.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?action=edit&post=202

I recently had the fond opportunity to open a new school—focusing on PLCs and Multiple Intelligences. In my experiences opening the school and leading, I have found that one of my most difficult tasks is to get team members working in harmony. Diversity in staff experiences, personalities, and worldviews makes it tough, and fun!

I commented on another post earlier today. She was speaking of teams and her experiences. I referenced Smith and Berg’s (1987) Paradoxes of group life. Specifically, the leader must extend their own trust in order to earn trust from the staff. Also, the paradox of authority states that leaders gain power when they empower.

Sounds like your team is on the right track and the leadership is supportive. Keep up the great work!
Perry

Comment on the power of professional learning communities by Rob Jacobs

Rob Jacobs — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 02:17:58 +0000

Abbie, it sound like you are well on your way. As someone who has coached PLC for the past two years at my site, I can tell you it is never as easy as it sounds. Culture is a tricky thing to change. But the rewards are worth it. We had tremendous growth last year. I credit our PLCs. Best of luck on your work with your teams and peers.

Comment on implementing an independent reading choice system: part 1 by Jonathan Wylie

Jonathan Wylie — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 01:13:47 +0000

Having a plan is the first step towards success, and your plan looks like a great one. You really sound like you are giving your students ownership of their learning, and promoting independent working skills.

Our district has just adopted a new reading scheme, (Treasures by MacMillan McGrawHill), and it is completely different to what we had before. It is very comprehensive and hits a lot of the targets we have at the elementary level. However, there is so much to it that we are all wondering how we are going to fit it all into one day! We have the challenge of getting staff and students used to the new routines, and although we know it will take time, the end result will be worth it.

I like your end comment about vision and reality. The vision is important. You just need to look long term at what the potential improvements are to your classroom practice. But the vision is the easy part. Reality is where it really hits home…

Comment on homework, week 1: our first reflections by a. fox

a. fox — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 14:02:40 +0000

Thanks, Caley! I’m so glad you’re in 3FX this year. We’re going to have a great time!

Comment on homework, week 1: our first reflections by caley ward

caley ward — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 13:48:23 +0000

Hi I’m Caley,student of Mrs.Fox. I think Mrs.Fox is AWESOME!3FX is a great place to learn.Mrs.Fox helps students do math if they’re stuck. I think I’ll love it this year in 3FX!
Mrs.Fox teaches us alot of fun stuff. We got to do our own fantasy maps.3FX is a perfcet place for me.

Comment on the power of professional learning communities by a. fox

a. fox — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 13:42:01 +0000

Freda: A technology coach sounds exactly like what our district needs. Right now, we have a “Technology Trainer” in the IT department who teaches everyone in the district some basics like setting up our mobile labs and using our new email system. But he doesn’t know curriculum, and there’s no one a position right now to help teachers see the intersections between curriculum and technology. Or how technology can often be a more effective tool for reaching our learning goals than the ones we currently use.

I am WISHING and HOPING that we will get a digital whiteboard at our school this year. And yes, I’ve heard of the digital photo frames, but I never thought of loading up book recommendations in them. What a cool idea!

Comment on the power of professional learning communities by Freda M.

Freda M. — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 14:57:16 +0000

The technology coach at our school was once an ELA teacher in our district, so she also knows the content(subject). Also, we have a grant E2T2 that pays for each student to have a laptop and her position. Through this grant we were able to attend technology conferences that taught us skills with using the Smart board and creating and engaging lessons. Have you ever seen the digital photo frames? One teacher loads a powerpoint that introduces new books and the students love to watch it!