21st Century Learning

One topic that gets me excited is discussing learning experiences in the 21st Century!  I ran across a blog titled "14 things that are obsolete in 21st Century Schools."  (You can find the article here.)  I found that Perry Central is right on track for providing experiences for our students that are necessary for living in the 21st Century economy.  Not only are we heading in the right direction according to the article, but our internship experiences, dual credits, project-based learning, etc. are all important parts of this vision.  I believe all of these things are great, but we cannot stop here!!

As we have found, the 21st Century is calling for a new set of skills that our young people need to posses.  Tony Wagner has written many books around closing the achievement gap and defining those skills such as: collaboration, teamwork, creativity, critical thinking, flexibility, etc.  We are so fortunate to be heading in the right direction (and really, leading our region in these opportunities), but as professionals, we need to continue to find ways to increase innovation that will bring excitement to learning for students and teachers!  Can you imagine being a  place where we can measure empathy, innovation, and teamwork instead of only algebra skills? A place where all students are working on real world problems in a cross-curricular manner?  A place where we tear down walls and break open our master schedule to open up classrooms to cross-curricular experts from all over the world!  A place where learning can be about choice, innovation and hope!

Gosh, isn't that exciting to think about?!  Even though we all get bogged down in the political spin-out of policy and testing, we cannot let it stifle our own dreams of what we want education to look like for our students.  I look forward to continuing to build our dream with all of you!!   What are your ideas?


School Notes:

- ISTEP testing - Session 2 is upon us!  The window opens April 17 and runs until May 5th.  We will do most of our testing during the week of April 24th.  There are several sessions this time, so be patient!  A schedule will be sent later this week!

- End of School Year Calendar - Dr. Clark starts this useful calendar, so we wanted to keep it going.  We will update it as needed. Please let me know if you have other events or field trips to add.  Click here to find calendar.

- Lanesville High School will be visiting April 6th to learn more about our Early College program!

- April 6th will also be our Community Partnership Meeting.  The goal of this meeting is to gather information that will be used in our Lilly Counseling Grant.

- Domain 1&3 are due on April 7th. If you need help, please see Phil or Jody.

- PLC Data - Just a reminder about your PLC Data being due on April 14th.  Please let me know when your teams will be meeting about your 4.5/9 Week Data for 3rd Quarter!  Thank you to the Vocational Group and English Group for already setting a date!!


Important Dates:

Monday, April 3 - School Board Meeting 6:30 p.m./ Varsity Softball @ Home vs. Springs Valley 4:30/ JV Baseball @ home vs. Forest Park 5:00

Tuesday, April 4 - Varsity Golf @ Lucas Oil vs. NE Dubois 4:30/ Varsity Baseball @ Corydon 5:00/ Varsity Track @ home vs. North Harrison 4:30

Wednesday, April 5 - Varsity Softball @ home vs. Corydon 4:30/ Varsity baseball @ North Harrison 4:30

Thursday, April 6 - Lilly Counseling Grant Community Partner Meeting 9:00 a.m./ Varsity Track @ Heritage Hills 5:00/ Varsity Golf @ Boonville 4:30

Friday, April 7 - Domain 1 & 3 Due in SFS system/ Special Education Team Meeting 12:30 p.m.

Saturday, April 8 - Varsity Softball @ Heritage Hills 12:00/ Varsity Baseball Home vs North Posey 11:00

Friday, April 14 - GOOD Friday!!  PLC Data Due (remember to let me know when your team is meeting!!)

What Makes You Happy?

One of my Sunday morning routines is getting up early before anyone else in my house, putting in my head phones to listen to Andy Stanley, drinking my favorite breakfast drink, and hiding in the laundry room while ironing mounds of clothes. I know it sounds crazy, but I kind of enjoy my quiet time.  I am able to be productive in some sense, but at the same time enjoy the simplicity of the task!  This Sunday, Andy's series title was "What Makes you Happy?"  His message was based around the fact that our happiness is based on the relationships we have with others.  Sometimes, we relate happiness to buying a new car, living in the best house or wearing the best clothes when in reality our happiest memories are based on the relationships we have with other people. He pointed out that typically when people are on their death beds they do not ask to be taken out to the parking lot to say good bye to their car!  It was a reminder of the importance of caring for all individuals, even those who have different opinions and lifestyles.

This message made me think about the importance of relationships in our schools and the impact it has on learning.  A blog written by Rebecca Alber, shares compelling evidence of happiness and its impact on learning.  A quote by Dr. David Rock says,

                  "There is a large and growing body of research which indicates that people 
                   experiencing positive emotions perceive more options when trying to solve problems,
                  solve more non-linear problems that require insight, [and they] collaborate better
                  and generally perform better overall."

So the question becomes, how do we create positive emotions for all of our students?  How do we help them to feel like they are an important part of the class or school?  How do we help each and every student find their own strengths and build on those each year in our school?  

Rebecca shares several ideas on how we can do this in our classrooms such as:
* Community Building all Year Long -  helping students understand how to express who they are, their thoughts and ideas, building relationships - making the classroom emotionally and intellectually safe 
* Design Group Guidelines Together - Allows students to feel more comfortable when working in groups
* Have Non-Negotiables - No name-calling to help create a safe environment
* Post Student Work Everywhere - Lets students know they belong in this classroom
(You can read all of the article here.)

All of these ideas help build relationships and also help teach students the 21st Century Skills of teamwork that are needed when it comes to being successful in the workplace. The human body is built to interact with others and it is our job to make sure that we are providing positive experiences for all of our students.   

Thank you to all of you who make our students feel comfortable everyday at Perry Central.  Sometimes building relationships can seem overwhelming when you think of all of the other work you are asked to do - but I can assure you that the investment of that relationship will have a positive impact on learning.   

Enjoy your Spring Break!!


School Notes: 

* Adam Dauby was recognized at the Daughters of the American Revolution Banquet on Sunday as Perry Central's DAR Winner.  Congratulations to Adam!

* ISTEP Celebration - Teachers/Staff will have a catered lunch on Thursday and students will have celebration time during 6th and 7th periods on Friday 

* Thank you to Lou Ann Backer and teachers who allowed her to visit classrooms to talk about scheduling for next year!  We have most of our course entries in the system and hope to have a Master Schedule set soon!

* Remember that grades will dump on Wednesday night at 11:59 p.m.!!  Report cards will be distributed on Friday, March 17th. 


Important Dates

Monday, March 13 - School Board Meeting 6:30 p.m. - High School Library

Thursday, March 16 - Catered Lunch and Jean Day for Faculty and Staff/ Winter Sports Banquet 6:00 p.m.

Friday, March 17 - Student ISTEP Celebration 6th and 7th periods/ Grandparent's Day in Elementary/ St. Patrick's Day!    Last Day before Spring Break!  Have a restful two weeks!

Friday, April 7 - Domain 1 and 3 due in SFS system

This week, I ran across an article on Twitter that talked about the importance of soft skills (also known as professional skills or work ethic skills) in our schools.  The article was very interesting as it talked about how soft skills have been shown to have more of an impact on graduation rates than test scores, help students have a larger chance of graduating college, provide long-term economic benefits, and decrease arrest for men.  (Click here for a copy of the article.)

I think most of us are aware of the importance of these skills and work hard to incorporate them into our classrooms everyday.  Not only are you asking students to work in groups,  provide opportunities for problem-based learning, and reporting out a soft skill score every 9 weeks, but we are also bringing these skills to light with the Governor's Work Ethic Certification and encouraging students to get involved with extra-curricular activities.  The College Success Coalition has also launched a county-wide campaign to help promote these skills with monthly themes, because they understand the importance of these skills for our students and our economy.  (This month is ATTITUDE!)

I think this article, while not life changing, was just a good reminder of why we must always be looking for opportunities to teach these skills in and out of the classroom.  One of the biggest challenges of our jobs is finding ways of providing our students with a well-rounded education; one that is not only focused on academics, but also focused on the life skills that are needed to be successful in this world.  It may require us to make some changes and step outside of our comfort zone to provide these opportunities, but they are necessary.

As a reflection for the week - what are some ways you incorporate soft skills into your curriculum?  Is there a way you can use the theme for this month, Attitude, in your March lessons?

I hope you have a great week!!


School Notes:

* Congratulations to the Varsity Boys Basketball Team on a great season!

* Career Day is this Friday, March 10th.  It is our goal for classroom assignment lists to come out on Wednesday.  Career Day will only be for students in grades 8,9 and 10 during 3rd and 4th periods.  We will do our very best not to interrupt the rest of anyone's day.  More details to follow this week.

* National Honor Society Induction is Monday, March 6th at 6:00 p.m. Everyone is invited to come and support our students.  Thank you to Stephanie and Vanessa for leading this group of young leaders.

* Reminder that Domain 1 & 3 are due April 7th.  This year, we are doing something different.  You need to resubmit your 1 & 3 this year, but after this year, they will be good for three years.  You will not need to update them every year.  Please see Jody for questions.


Important Dates:

Monday, March 6:  National Honor Society  6:00 p.m.

Tuesday, March 7: Commodore Pride Meeting  7:20 a.m. - Vanessa Johnson's Room (Anyone is invited to attend.)/ Purdue Trip leaving at 1:00 p.m.

Thursday, March 9: Lilly Planning Grant Meeting  9:00 a.m.

Friday, March 10:  Career Day!/ End of Testing Window for ISTEP

Monday, March 13:  School Board Meeting 6:30 p.m.

April 7th: Domain 1 and 3 Due!

ISTEP for Math/Science/Social Studies (please see shared schedule for more information)

College For All

Last week, Jennifer Mitchell and I attended a conference in Pharr, Texas at Pharr-San Juan-Alamo (PSJA) Independent Schools.  Our trip was a part of the Lilly Counseling planning grant that we received a few weeks ago.  Pharr, Texas was a high poverty community 6 minutes from the Mexican Border!!  (Interestingly enough, they already have a wall on the border – but a lot of the economic growth was dependent on Mexico.)

PSJA, even though a much, much larger school corporation, had a lot of similarities with Perry Central.  PSJA is in their third year of being an Early College High School.  They worked to build a culture at their school grades K-12 with the expectation that all students would earn an Associate Degree, Technical Certification or at least 15 hours of dual credit in an academic or technical area.  As you can imagine, with the population of students at this school, a very, very large percentage of students are first generation and/or come from high poverty homes.   The core leadership of this school realized that education was the ticket of making their community better.  Just 6 years ago, gangs were ruling the streets with drive-by shootings, fights, etc.  Now, as the school and community has evolved, they are a very safe campus with a rapidly growing population of students who are earning a college credential. POWERFUL!

Jennifer and I took away a lot of great ideas on how we can take our Early College program to the next level, but I think for me, it was just a reminder of how powerful education is.  I am reminded of Nelson Mandela’s quote, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”  Early College is more than a recognition of the programs we have in our school, but it is a ticket for many of our students to have a better quality of life.  This visit gave me a deeper drive to making sure we put supports in ensure students can be successful and a deeper appreciate for our faculty and staff and the change makers that all of you are.  You are providing a foundation that will last a lifetime.  Thanks for all you do!!     

School Notes: 

Boys Varsity Basketball team will play Forest Park Tuesday night in sectional play.  A pep session will be held on Tuesday!  Go Big Green!!

Mike Bishop is working on Career Day.  Career Day will be held on March 10^th during 3^rd and 4^th periods for students in grades 8-10.  More details will follow soon!

Thanks to some extra funds we received for the after school program, a group of 33 students will be traveling to Purdue University for a college visit.  Students will be leaving at 1:00 p.m. on March 7 and returning late on March 8^th.   A list of students will be posted this week. 

Important Dates:  

Monday, February 27 – ISTEP testing grades 7,8 10  (please see email for schedules)

Tuesday, February 28 – Boys Varsity Basketball Sectional/  Pep Session

Wednesday, March 1 -  ISTEP testing grades 7,8 10

Thursday, March 2 - ISTEP testing grades 7,8 10

Presidents' Day was originally started back in 1885, in honor of our founding father's birthday, George Washington.  Over the years, the day has been changed to recognize all Presidents and to give working Americans a three-day weekend.  I believe Presidents' Day is a day to honor those individuals who served our country by leading the American people and often provided us with a moral compass to live by.  So in honor of this special day, I have left a few of my favorite Presidential quotes that have impacted how I view my role as an American!  Hope all of you enjoyed your long weekend!

"Whatever you are, be a good one." -  Abraham Lincoln

"We are the change that we seek." - Barack Obama


"We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone."  - Ronald Reagan

"If you believe you can, and you are half way there."  - Theodore Roosevelt

"Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly." - John F. Kennedy

"It is amazing what you can accomplish if you don't worry who gets the credit." - Harry Truman

"Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." - John F. Kennedy

"We need to live in a world with fewer selfies and more #otherpeoplies" - Kid President


School Notes: 

* We would like to welcome Kevin Koeling to Perry Central!  He was hired last week as an instructional assistant.  We are happy to have him as apart of our team!

* National FFA Week!

* Boys Sectional Draw: Feb. 28th - 1st game: North Posey vs. Mater Dei    2nd Game:  Perry Central vs. Forest Park (7:00 p.m. start)   South Spencer will play the winner of the first game on Friday and Tell City will play the winner of our game.  Come out and support the Commodores!

* We will have a pep session on Tuesday, February 28th to cheer on the Commodores!



Important Dates: 
Monday, February 20 - Presidents' Day - NO SCHOOL

Tuesday, February 21 - Faculty Meeting - 7:20 a.m. /  Commissioner Meeting for seniors - 9:00 a.m. in high school library

Thursday, February 23 - Perry Central Health Fair

Friday, February 24- Boys Varsity Basketball @ Heritage Hills  6:00 p.m.

- Countdown to ISTEP!!  Three weeks until the ISTEP window opens!  Students in grades 7,8 and 10 will be testing.  A testing schedule will be coming soon!  (Testing window: February 27 - March 10th)

This quote by Hellen Keller reminded me of our Trauma Informed Care training this week.  Teachers and assistants alike gained background knowledge of the impact of trauma on our brains and the why behind student reactions.  We know the demographics of our student population is changing.  We are seeing more students involved in the Foster Care System, a larger percentage of free and reduced lunch families and a larger percentage of students who have had at least one parent incarcerated within the past year.

Understanding our students is the first step in helping them overcome these barriers and give them the tools they need to be successful in life.  We must remember to stay calm, do not take what students say personally and always do our best to be a good listener.  We are so fortunate at Perry Central to have faculty and staff members that care so much about our students and are willing to go the extra mile to build important relationships with children.

I know the training may have left you with more questions than answers.  Please know we will be doing a follow up at our next faculty meeting on February 21st.   If you have questions between now and then, please ask!


School Notes: 

* Thursday, Feb. 16th is 8th grade and 10th grade Guidance Night for parents and students.  Thank you to Carol Schwoeppe, Julie Berkhouse, Sean Risse, Carrie Guillaume, Vanessa Johnson, Bo Gibson, Lou Ann Backer and Angie Lubbehausen for helping with the event!  We are trying something new this year, where families will be able to hear from business leaders in the industry as well as teachers.  The event will start at 5:30 and end a little after 7:00 p.m.  It is sure to be a great night!

* After School Programming - we continue to add after-school programming for students.  We have added math and English tutoring, student academic support groups (for students who struggle getting homework completed on time), guidance counseling sessions/activities, and social/emotion counseling as well.  Thank you to: Cheryl Linne, Abbie Brockman, Sean Risse, Diane Plassmeyer, Heidi Zellers, Dana Harris, Kelly Cash, Southern Hills Counseling Center, Maria Sweat, and Jamie Guillaume for making this happen!  Also a shout-out to Mary and Tara for making the funding possible.  These are important supports for our students!

Important Dates: 

- Monday, February 13th - School Board Meeting, 6:30 p.m. High School Library

- Tuesday, February 14th - Happy Valentine's Day!  Don't forget about the sweet treats in the high school office!  

- Thursday, February 16th - Freshman Orientation for 8th grade students and High School Planning for 10th grade students @ 5:30 p.m.

- Friday, February 17th - SENIOR NIGHT- Boys Varsity Basketball vs. Paoli 5:30 p.m./ NHS Silent Auction

- Saturday, February 18th - Boys Varsity Basketball @ Tecumseh 5:30 p.m.

- Countdown to ISTEP!!  Three weeks until the ISTEP window opens!  Students in grades 7,8 and 10 will be testing.  A testing schedule will be coming soon!  (Testing window: February 27 - March 10th)

  

Putting Community First

February is the month of communication.  There are many types of communication: verbal, written, visual and non-verbal (body language).  Effective communication is important as we work to understand and connect with the people around us.  It allows us to build respect and trust and resolve our differences. Communication is also a very important trait of leadership.  It is important for leaders to lead with their actions as well as their words in order to have the greatest influence on others.

At Perry Central, I believe we are fortunate to have many great leaders across our faculty, staff and student body.  We are constantly reminded by their actions the importance of putting others first and that kindness should be at the forefront of who we are.  As I reflect on the special environment that Perry Central embodies, I am reminded of the actions of kindness that our students and staff have exhibited over just the past few weeks:

* Mr. Walsh and Victor Vazquez participated in the polar plunge to raise money for special education

* Mrs. Ball's student led Fed-Ex Project that will be collecting items for children in Foster Care
* Zosha Roberson's Christmas Toy Drive for children in the hospitals
* Advocate's Club who are very active in supporting our students with special needs (even voting in three special needs students to homecoming)
* Student Council's projects to gather food and money for families in need
* Faculty and staff that come to school everyday with a belief that all students can learn

These are only a few examples of the wonderful ways we communicate at Perry Central.  I am so thankful to work in such a giving environment that promotes kindness and caring by their actions.  

School Notes: 

- Faculty Meeting after school today will be led by Lauren Blake, Jennifer Mitchell and Shelly Kunkle on Trauma Informed Care.  We are thankful they are willing to share their knowledge with us.

- On Thursday, we will be hosting schools from across the state and sharing our guidance program with them.  We were chosen as a model school for the Lily Counseling Initiative.  Schools across the state have been awarded money from Lily to research promising counseling practices.   Thanks to Tara, Phil, Lou Ann, Mike and Jody for welcoming our guests and sharing our program with them!

- Countdown to ISTEP!!  Three weeks until the ISTEP window opens!  Students in grades 7,8 and 10 will be testing.  A testing schedule will be coming soon!  (Testing window: February 27 - March 10th)

Important Dates: 

Monday, February 6th - After School Faculty meeting from 3:00 - 4:00 p.m. in high school library

Wednesday, February 8th - Study Island Advanced Training - 3:00 p.m. in Mr. Linne's room

Thursday, February 9th - Lily Counseling Site Visit

Friday, February 10th - Assistant Training (Trauma Informed Care) Lunch/WIN  
                                      Boys Varsity Basketball @ home against Northeast Dubois  5:30 p.m.

Saturday, February 11th - Jr. High Valentine's Dance/ Boys Varsity Basketball @ North Posey 3:00 p.m.