Advancing the Vision September 3rd

Gone But Not Forgotten...

As August ends we conclude our "Whatever it Takes" theme.  I chose the "Whatever it Takes" principle to begin our year because it is, what I believe, to be one of THE greatest determiners of student achievement.  If a teacher has this trait you know it immediately when you walk in his or her classroom.  It doesn't matter if the teacher uses Kagan strategies, traditional approaches, or small group instruction, there is a sense of urgency that you can feel when you are in the room.

Students in these rooms know what is expected, they get to work immediately, and they know they will be held accountable.  Teachers in these rooms intuitively do the work we are striving to do as a school in our PLC learning teams and in our intervention blocks--They respond to the question:  "How do we respond students do not master the target?" and they RESPOND.

Portrait of a Master

One such master is Tammy Fain.  The first week of school I stopped by her classroom and heard her say, "I guarantee that by the end of the year you will make an 85% or better on this."  Her high expectations are only matched by her incredible results.  She can tell you exactly how her students will score on the end of the year testing and her powers of prediction are uncanny.  This no-nonsense attitude and focus on results have made her a legend in our school and a huge part of the reading success we have enjoyed as our percent of students proficient and distinguished in reading continues to rise each year no matter the demographics of the group. 

Of course, our proficiency rates would not continue to climb were it not for the foundation provided by the primary teachers and interventionists in our school.  Let's take a peek at what's going on in intervention...

Check out Mrs. Evans' class!  Here you have Mr. Prewitt working on number sense with first graders as Mrs. Evans does reading checks with the students.  Mrs. Griffin has prepared these math materials for an intentional progression of number sense activities and binders to track mastery of facts.  These materials are enabling Mrs. Valentour and Mr. Prewitt to respond immediately to our students and build their number knowledge. 

Mr. Prewitt is doing whatever it takes as he teaches whatever is needed without question and keeps careful records of student progress along the way.  

We are so blessed to have an amazing staff here at Paint Lick!  We really do "whatever it takes!"  Next month, we will explore our teamwork theme.  Working as a team will truly amplify our efforts as we strive to do big things here at PLE.