Friday, April 25, 2014

Turn and Talk

"Turn and talk" is a practice our teachers use frequently in the classroom. You may remember your elementary classroom days when the teacher would ask a question to the whole class, and one student who raised his/her hand would be called on to answer the question while the rest of the class sat passively. Fortunately, these days after a teacher poses a question to the class, the teacher often says "Turn and talk." All students then turn and face a partner and have a short, but lively, conversation, taking turns to share responses with one another. After "turn and talk" time, any student can be called upon by the teacher, and the student almost always responds accurately with confidence and enthusiasm. "Turn and talk" increases active student engagement in learning and improves comprehension. However, children are usually not automatically successful at "turn and talk". It takes time, instruction, effort and practice for children to learn how to have an interactive conversation--how to listen attentively, share a thought respectfully, ask a partner to share their thoughts, and provide a positive comment. With repetition and support from their teachers and parents, students become very successful, and "Turn and Talk" becomes a valuable strategy for learning and building positive relationships.



Watching the children have such lively intellectual conversations in the classrooms reminds me how important it is for us as adults to make it a priority to have frequent face-to-face communication, especially in this day and age where so many forms of electronic communication are right at our fingertips. As you can see, the Dryden PTA takes this notion to heart. It was such a treat to see so many families come out for breakfast and conversation at the Moms and Munchies Thursday morning! We thank the Dryden PTA for the lovely breakfast and opportunity for parents to "turn and talk".


Courageous, caring and respectful conversations help people learn about different points of view, find common ground and understand one another's positive intentions. They help us make decisions about or find solutions to "real-life" problems that don't have a clear right or wrong answer. I'm so proud that our students are learning to persist, grapple and cooperatively work through messy problems at an early age. And, I'm so grateful for the families and teachers who are willing to take the time to "turn and talk" with one another and with me about the tough but most important questions about raising our children to ensure their well-being and future success. Let's always make time to "turn and talk" !

Friday, April 18, 2014

Just Move It! Challenge

Last Saturday, many families and teachers from across the school district came together to run and walk in the 5K/1 mile Just Move It! Challenge to benefit the ABC/25 Foundation. The ABC/25 Foundation's mission is to support excellence and innovation in education for students in our school district. They provide grants to teachers and schools and award college scholarships to graduating high school students who attended Arlington Heights School District 25. This year, Dryden received a $2500 grant to upgrade the interactive whiteboard technology in our classrooms.

Last night, the Board of Education recognized the teachers who received individual grants. Library Media Center Co-Director Mrs. Powers acquired a grant to purchase e-Readers for the school. Many favorite children's books are downloaded onto the e-Readers. Students can check out these e-Readers, just like a library book.

Advanced Learning teacher Mrs. Schwarz earned grants for earthworms and microphone headsets. Students in the Ecology Club were able to build habitats for the earthworms, study their growth and learn how earthworms contribute to healthy gardens. The headsets can be used by all of our students for all of the fine arts performances that are held throughout the year.

Art teacher Mrs. Fuglestad received grants for green screens and two iPads.She now has a one-to-one iPad-to-student ratio in her classroom. Students can now easily upload images of their artwork into digital portfolios and communicate feedback with one another. Digital animation is one of the many forms of digital art  that students will be able to learn. The technology skills they learn in art class are also applied to their use of technology in the classroom, making technology a seamless and valuable tool for learning. You can learn all about Mrs. Fuglestad's art program at her website,  http://drydenart.weebly.com

Last year, we received a $3,000 Marian Elliot grant through the ABC/25 foundation to update the Dryden courtyard. With this grant, we were able to install a mulched walking path, classroom meeting space, compost bin, bird feeder, large thermometer, rain gauge and decorative bridge. We also received kits which the Ecology Club will use to make stepping stones for the courtyard.

This year, the Eagle Scouts will be building benches for seating, planting flowers and sprucing up the courtyard with new mulch. They are holding a car wash tomorrow in the Dryden parking lot from 12-3 p.m. to raise funds for this project. Please stop by! We look forward to seeing you there!








Friday, April 11, 2014

Imagine the Possibilities!

Dryden students were treated to two very special assemblies sponsored by our PTA this week. Assemblies like these inspire us to imagine the possibilities of what we can accomplish with our lives. Author Andrea Beatty opened our eyes to how she finds inspiration and ideas for the books she writes. She read excerpts from the books she wrote and actively involved students in storytelling. In preparation for Andrea's visit, many children participated in a lunchtime book club to read and discuss books written by the author. Later in the evening, students visited Andrea at the Arlington Heights Memorial Library to get their books autographed by her. What a wonderful opportunity to meet this celebrity! 




Children were awed by the stunts and talents of the Chicago Boyz Acrobatics Team. Founder Tim Shaw shared a valuable message about the important role that education plays in the lives of each member of this team. Dedication, hard work, healthy choices, positive relationships and a solid academic education opened many doors of opportunity to these performers. As a result of their efforts, this acrobatic team has been able to travel to different places around the world and perform on national television shows. We were all very inspired by the team's energy and enthusiasm! 



Friday, April 4, 2014

Times are Everchanging

Aah... What comfort and joy we all felt to see our dear friend Gertrude the Duck make her yearly return to the Dryden courtyard! This time, she brought Mr. Gertrude with her. Although the temperatures do not yet reflect it, spring is here! We look forward to observing the laying and hatching of Gertrude's eggs, and all the adorable ducklings that will soon be waddling and quacking around the courtyard. 

The comfort in witnessing Gertrude's return this spring has me reflecting on my own sense of comfort, risk and danger when it comes to change. During my 23 years in education as a classroom teacher and school principal, I have experienced many changes in my career. Some of these changes were imposed and some were choices I made. Some had a positive impact, some had a negative impact. All have been valuable learning experiences and help me to remain focused on continuous improvement. 

Change causes us to step out of our comfort zone. Stepping out of our comfort zone can sometimes feel risky in a positive and healthy way--it's very exciting! This kind of change leads to continuous growth and improvement. Other times, change can make us feel defensive, cloud our judgement and make us want to retreat--the danger zone. Each individual feels different levels of comfort, risk and danger. What may feel like risk to one person may feel like danger to another. However, if we spend too much time in our comfort zone, it can become the danger zone when change is needed. 


On Wednesday, I attended training with some Dryden teachers on the Problem Solving Innovation (PSI) time that is being piloted. Our consultant, Sarah Wilke, shared the following graphic organizer as we look at the role we play as educators in taking responsible risks and encouraging children to do the same in their learning journey:
Truly, stepping out of our comfort zone leads us to new heights in our learning and to the innovation, creativity and problem-solving that is so much needed not only for our personal success but also for making our world a better place. 

During our training, teachers shared their responses about the changes they are observing in their students and themselves while students are engaging in the PSI experience. Here is a summary that they created: 
This is fantastic evidence of "the magic that happens" when we step out of our comfort zones!


As we implement the PSI experience at Dryden, we are also changing the way we use technology. We realize the value of using technology to enrich our  learning for all the "right" reasons, as you can see by this visual created by Bill Ferriter: