POINTS of PRIDE: Ekstrand Elementary in DeWitt, IA

Mrs. Green and Principal Vance

Principal Jen Vance has much to be proud of in her school - Ekstrand Elementary, part of the Central Community School District in DeWitt, Iowa.

"How did you do?  Did you get to your goal?"  Those are the questions most frequently asked in the first ten minutes of Janet Green's resource room.  Students enter her room knowing their goals and ready to work on the computer program FAST MATH.  It's another day of students working with diligence to achieve their goals in reading fluency and math competency.

Routine is key for the success of this program.  Students enter focused and ready to learn.  They may go to an assigned task on the computer, pick up their book and stopwatch to time their reading, or work quietly with a volunteer at a nearby table.  A variety of seating choices are available - a round bouncy ball, a seating pad, or a comfortable satellite seat.

Students gather round the table and use one minute of think time to prepare for their writing.  Next, it is three minutes of writing using the prompt given. Data drives instruction and helps set attainable goals for each student.  A new reading intervention program RAVO has students intrigued with a one-of-a-kind, small-group reading intervention that teaches students to go beyond decoding words to a deeper understanding of word meanings. Mr. MIM (Many Interesting Meanings) takes their reading beyond sounding out words to understanding their varied meanings and how that meaning is determined through use within a sentence.  Mrs. Green's room is warm, personal, and focused on moving students forward in their learning.

Next was a quick visit to the preschool room - spacious and well-defined play areas within two connected rooms.  One room provides an area for quiet assessment, away from the hustle and bustle of preschool play.  Nothing like preschool play!  Such joy in exploration!

Next stop at Ekstrand was Mrs. Jaeger's third grade math class, Iowa Core instruction at its best.  Class began with number talk. A
wide variety of strategies keep students engaged and discussing their "thinking" as they solve math problems.  As problems are solved, students dialogue about which strategies make sense to them - an array, a number line, skip counting, repeated addition, or a bar model, to name a few.  This is the most engaged and conversation filled math class I have ever attended. As Mrs. Jaeger guides the problem-solving process through questioning, students are building a strong cognitive understanding of math concepts.  The focus is not so much on the answer as it is on the process - a process that can be applied in multiple situations in a variety of settings.  "Good mathematics is not about how many answers you know...it's how you behave when you don't know."  (Author Unknown)

Math class is about collaboration - revoicing and clarifying, thumbs up if you understand, private reasoning time, and partner sharing.  Mrs. Green enters the room to offer an extra set of eyes and a direction, "Show me what your stuck point is." Learning is key and voicing how you are learning is the norm.

Passionate educators making a difference in the lives of students!

POINTS of PRIDE: English Class with Sarah Brown Wessling

We are DRAGONS

It was a joy to spend time in the classroom of Sarah Brown Wessling at Johnston High School in Johnston, Iowa - home of the Dragons.  The banner when you enter Johnston High reads:  WE ARE THE DRAGONS - Driven, Respectful, Accountable, Goal-oriented, Original, and Needed.  All adjectives that could describe the 2010 National Teacher of the Year, Sarah Brown Wessling.  Her drive is manifested through her constant focus on student engagement.  She treats all who enter her classroom with respect and care.  She is accountable to many as she shares her teaching journey through a variety of media.  She has set high goals for herself and encourages others to do the same.  She is original in how she approaches instruction.  And without a doubt she is needed in the world of education as she strives to share her expertise with us all.  Lucky us that she has chosen to dedicate her life to define excellence in education and guide us along the path of change.

Welcome to Ms. Wessling's class

As I moved down the hall way to her room, I could only smile as I saw the sign identifying her room.  After all, Sarah is known all over the world especially because of her presence on the Teaching Channel.  Through that she is providing professional learning for thousands across the nation.  But today was her day to simply be Ms. Wessling - an English teacher who cares enough to bring breakfast bagels for her classes.  A teacher who understands that class should begin by reaching out and capturing the interest of her students - this class was no exception to this as it began with a student analysis of the song "The Anthem" by Good Charlotte.  OPENING TASK:  Identify the meaning behind the title and lyrics - what message is being portrayed by the artist? 

Today's Challenge:  You are a guest blogger for Humans of New York and have been given the assignment of interviewing people with war experiences and taking their implicit truths and making them explicit.  The task - 4 interviews (each with photo and quote) which depict their true war story.

Books:  The Things They Carried, Sparta 300 (a graphic novel), and Art of War.

Quotes for Contemplation

Seeing through a different lens

Johnston High School uses 1:1 iPads in their building and today's challenge seamlessly integrated this tool into class work.  Ms. Wessling emphasizes the importance of students seeing the perspectives of characters through the eyes of a different lens than their own.  In order to include photos, students took selfies or pictures of one another representing the character.  Some used a drawing app to add detail.  Student engagement was high as Sarah moved about checking for understanding and encouraging students to take their understanding of characters to a deeper level.

English classes in this room emphasize critical thinking with metacognition examined through questions like, "What did your brain do to figure this out?" or "How is your symbol functioning in your book right now?"  Sarah emphasizes that we must tell our stories over and over again; stories bring people back to life.

Next steps for Sarah Brown Wessling as she continues to write her life's story?  At semester, she will be stepping out of the classroom to work with CCSSO (Council of Chief State School Officers) in the area of the National Teacher of the Year program.  She will also continue to share her perspectives via The Teaching Channel.

"Teaching is more than imparting knowledge, it is inspiring change. Learning is more than absorbing facts, it is acquiring understanding." (William Arther Ward)  Thank you, Ms. Wessling, for inspiring change and helping educators in this world acquire understanding.

As the quote states:  "The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires."  It goes without saying - Sarah Brown Wessling is one great teacher!

POINTS of PRIDE: Carlisle High's Physical Science

Carlisle Community Schools proudly proclaims:  Our mission - CHARACTER, SERVICE, and EXCELLENCE in everything we do."  All three qualities are evident as you enter the freshman physical science class conducted by Kari Murray, a finalist for the 2014 Iowa Teacher of the Year.  Kari greets her students as they enter and prepares them for what awaits in physical science.

I like to visit classrooms where the expertise in the content knowledge is well beyond what I know.  Kari's physical science class is one such place as they studied the periodic table and were busy drawing Bohr Models, displaying "a small, positively charged nucleus surrounded by electrons that travel in circular orbits around the nucleus—similar in structure to the solar system, but with attraction provided by electrostatic forces rather than gravity showing how electrons are arranged in an atom."  (Wikipedia) Whoa!  Well beyond my 8th grade literacy experiences!  The class was busy reviewing for a test with a focus on Iowa Core Essential Concept/Skill:  Understand and apply knowledge of the structure of atoms.

DEMOGRAPHICS of Carlisle High School:
HS - 625 students
Free and Reduced Lunch - 27.9%
Five communities served - PEACH - Palmyra, Easter Lake, Avon, Carlisle, and Hartford (Each spring there is a fundraiser called the "PEACH Affair" which raises Dollars for Scholars.)

Kari loves to use technology in her instruction and today was no exception.  She was using Mimio Votes and the Mimio Pad to make
learning come alive for her 21st Century students.  Kari's instructional style is interactive as she constantly moves about the room checking for understanding of concepts.  Her class began with an entry ticket asking students to reflect upon their knowledge related to today's concepts from 5 (I've got this) to 1 (I don't have a clue).  Using this information, she was able to adjust her instructional practices for the class.  Kari systematically calls upon students by

making sure she is calling on at least one person in every row.  She also employs a thumbs up/thumbs down reflection to gauge instruction for her students and to encourage them to analyze where they are in the learning process.  All of her strategies were ones that informally assess her students' learning and provides them with an opportunity to reflect upon their own leaning.

Jacques Yves Cousteau is credited with saying, "What is a scientist after all?  It is a curious man looking through a keyhole, the keyhole of nature, trying to know what's going on."   I like that idea of each scientist looking through a keyhole with curiosity and a desire to know what is going on.  Science classes such as Kari's not only provide keyholes for gazing through but instills in students a desire to open the door and enter into the world of science.

POINTS of PRIDE: Iowa's Middle School Mock Trial

Maquoketa Middle School State Qualifying Mock Trial Team

Coaches

Middle School Mock Trial competition is big in Iowa.  This year was its 31st year in existence, and the process began with over 170 teams competing statewide.  This participation makes it the largest mock trial competition in the nation. The entire process is organized and supported by the Iowa Bar Association.  The top 32 teams are selected to go to state, and Maquoketa Middle School Mock Trial had a state-qualifying team, our first in over 20 years. 

No competition can exist without the dedication of coaches who spend hours preparing students for the rigors of mock trial.  They are truly the unsung heroes of a team's success.

Our lawyers

The mock trail competition is run just like a courtroom with  defense and prosecutors, lawyers and witnesses, judges and courtroom etiquette.  A courtroom situation is given for a team to develop both offense and defense related to the topic.  Through the years the topic has varied:  a bedbug case, accident related to the shooting of a hot dog gun, and this year's case - a head injury and concussion due to soccer.

The process is professional and allows students to develop confidence and self-expression.   It was amazing to watch middle school students display eloquence and poise as they made their case in front of real-life lawyers serving as the judges.  The top two winning mock trial teams are given an opportunity to battle their final courtroom scene in the Iowa Supreme Court building along with meeting real supreme court justices.  Mock Trail competition makes a "case" for the importance of clear and concise communication - a lifelong skill we all could use.

POINTS of PRIDE: Durant Community School District

What makes Durant unique?
Just ask Tony Neumann, high school principal, and he will begin with the fact that Durant cares about every student, caring enough to bring the very best in instruction through departmentalization grades 1-12.  This allows teachers to specialize in their focus of standards-based instruction.  Durant also cares about its community, and the district has organized service learning activities (a graduation requirement) on Friday to capitalize on the high school youth's heart to serve.


DISTRICT DEOMOGRAPHICS:
District enrollment  - 703
Free and Reduced Lunch  - under 30%
One building with a PK-grade 4 wing, a grade 5 - grade 8 wing, and high school
Technology - year 4 as a 1:1 school - K-2 ipads; 3-12 Macbooks

The high school has developed creative Language Arts options - poetry/creative writing, American Gothic, American West Lit, War Lit, and Adventure Lit.  Students can earn concurrent credit for classes through Eastern Iowa Community College - Muscatine.  There's a "BE THE CHANGE" club, organized by parents and providing opportunities for high school students to mentor younger students.  Late start Mondays allow for staff to work in collaboration.   Working for continuous improvement, topics of discussion are organized in a January to January format as they strive to enhance instruction for all students.

Mr. Neumann is a reflective leader who likes to challenge both his students and his staff.  Instead of using the term CHANGE, he prefers to use the word EVOLVE.  It is his belief that we evolve as we challenge ourselves to set goals and improve.  He asks those around the following questions:

• What are you going to do to improve yourself this year?
• What are you going to do to help someone else improve this year?
• What are you going to do to help your school improve this year?

Tony knows what it means to evolve through goal setting, having gone from 340 pounds to 210 pounds.  His example of goal setting and committing to that goal speaks volumes to others.

This year's challenges for students and staff?

• Build positive relationships each day!
• Do one great thing every day!
• Make this the BEST experience it can be!

  

  Tony and a returning teacher who is giving back to the school as a sub

"The purpose of life is to build doors for yourself.  You don't have to go through them but you do have to build them."

Durant is one example of a district that is providing opportunities for students to build doors with many possibilities ahead as they choose their own direction to travel.

POINTS of PRIDE: Colfax-Mingo Community School District

If there is one prominent word abounding in the hallways at Colfax-Mingo it is the word PRIDE.  Hallways are adorned with the word PRIDE and the student council created a pride stripe with the word PRIDE written in multiple languages.

DEMOGRAPHICS
Enrollment:  656
Free and Reduced Lunch:  over 50%




Todd Jones, principal of the Colfax-Mingo Junior-Senior High School, explained two points of which he is most proud:

1. For a school district their size, the schedule is flexible enough to fit both the needs and wants of all students - dual credits are offered as well as a career academy at DMACC.  Some students attend Central Campus in Des Moines for advanced classes.
2. Another point of pride are the wonderful teachers - Teachers have high expectations in a wonderful and acceptable way.

Mr. Jones is also quite proud that their school hosts a Nursing Home Prom every year after the school prom for senior citizens in the community. 

The hallways exhibit students artwork and many rooms are colorful and welcoming.  This year's initiatives include:

• Accountability with the implementation of the Iowa Core
• Improve reading and math achievement
• Post purpose statements in each classroom
• Implementation of Iowa Core Literacy standards across all content areas
• A focus on quality formative assessments

Colfax-Mingo is 1:1 with eventually all having Chromebooks at the high school level and Chromebooks in the rooms at the middle school level.  At the elementary there are learning pads being used.

With a focus on differentiation, Mr. Jones said that they are working hard at being flexible to accept varied ways for students to express what they know.  Positive Behavior Interventions &  Supports (PBIS) is a focus across the buildings with common rules and expectations posted around the building.  Students of the Month are posted outside classrooms to reward and encourage all students to exhibit positive behaviors and a strong work ethic.

As the website states, the Colfax-Mingo Community School District's mission is to ensure a community that fosters life long learners, independent thinkers, and productive citizens of character.
WHERE students will be safe, comfortable, and respected by faculty and fellow students.
WHERE the rigor of our curriculum will challenge students to achieve at their full potential on each level of their learning process.
WHERE our faculty is committed to developing long-term mentoring relationships with their students.

While visiting Colfax-Mingo, several classes were out in the community participating in a MAKE A DIFFERENCE activity - a focus on service to bring into action the mission statement words:  ensuring productive citizens of character.   As one quote on the wall boldly proclaims:  "We are the HERO of our own story."  Colfax-Mingo is providing opportunities for their students to write their own story and exemplifying hero to each other and the community.

POINTS of PRIDE: Calamus-Wheatland Community School District

In the FFA Building with Mr. Ewers

Duck Blind

ATV ramps and Deer House

Calamus-Wheatland stands for family, an extended family that includes not only the elementary in Calamus, the middle/high school in Wheatland, but also the entire Cal-Wheat community. One organization that helps to bring that family together is the Cal-Wheat FFA - providing supper before the school musical, serving as valets at the funeral of a respected community member, creating a deer house or a duck blind or ATV ramps.  All add to the hands on experiences given students at Cal-Wheat.  With over 90 in the FFA grades 7-12 much can be accomplished.  Whatever needs to be done is done in house because that's what families do for each other.

DEMOGRAPHICS
Enrollment:  529
Free and reduced lunch:  under 50%

Superintendent Lonnie Luepker

Principal Christine Meyer

The buildings are run by capable and focused leaders, Superintendent Lonnie Luepker and Principal Christine Meyer.  The district described their annual Veteran's Day Assembly where a mini-van brings the people from Wheatland Manor to the school to honor our veterans.  Gary Metivier was the keynote.  Poster contest and essay contest winners were announced. The band and chorus performed, and the names of all area vets were read.  The color guard was present and taps were played.  In TAG the students are involved in the Library of Congress Veteran's project, creating a record of the stories of veterans to be archived in the Library of Congress.

Cal-Wheat's professional development is focused on implementation of the Iowa Core.  They are also implementing a new math series.  Multi-Tiered Systems of Support along with the Iowa FAST tests are changing the framework of instructional delivery.  There is an advisor-advisee program in grades 7-12 where each teacher has 14-15 students that meet twice a month to check on grades and to discuss any issues they may be facing.

Another active group at Cal-Wheat is the FCCLA - providing meals as needed for special occasions and using PD days to make visits to the local nursing home.  The focus for all school groups is to constantly give back to the community.  Most recently, Cal-Wheat was awarded $10,000 from Monsanto to purchase Vermeer probes for testing water temperature and quality.  These resources will be used in both the science and the Ag classes.

Cal-Wheat is in year 4 of its 1:1 initiative.  They are moving from MacBooks to Chromebooks.  Grades 7-12 can take the computers home.  There are computer carts at the elementary.  Stacy Luepker has a technology class with a 3D printer and students are involved in a virtual reality course. (VRep)

At the elementary, the day I visited was National World Kindness

Words of encouragement

Day.  Lockers were adorned with encouraging notes to everyone.  Good News reports are placed in a mailbox in the hallway - completed by staff as they observe the traits of character being displayed by students.  These notes are read once a week by Superintendent Luepker, hung in the hallways, and at the end of the year, each students gets their stack of Good News reports to take home.

Good News notes

"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass...it's about learning to dance in the rain." We can all learn from Calamus-Wheatland about feeling like a family, the importance of giving back to the community, and the value of recognizing the good in others.