The installation of the bricks as part of our Fall HOOT carnival happened over spring break. The arrangement looks great and the dedications enscribed on each of them are well done and meaningful. To celebrate, the
Scottie Brick Road committee (yep, we have one), had a special dedication ceremony last Sunday afternoon. It was a lovely event, with Crenshaws' Gil and Candace Elsass and family, Russell Millner of Russell's Bakery, as well as Scotties Jeff and Sean Ryan doing the ribbon cutting honors. Committee members Amy Martin and Sheena Walter, along with the HOOT chairs, put much into the sale of the bricks and the reception. Thanks ladies and to
all who contributed to this cause. Teachers and staff were a bit bowled over when they found out there were bricks dedicated to them...including me. How very cool and check 'em out by the flagpole in front of our school. A small sampling is below.
 |
| Setting up for the reception |
 |
| 4th grade teacher Mrs. Finkle "bowled over" |
I was able to stop by one of our fifth grade language arts classes on Tuesday to hear AISD's Angela Ward speak to students. Mrs. Dean had arranged this visit (something new she tried this year) as part of her annual language arts unit around themes connected to the civil rights movement. Though I was only able to catch one class, Mrs. Ward, who works in our district's Cultural Proficiency & Inclusiveness office, fielded lots of good questions surrounding stereotypes, talked about memories her own parents shared with her when they were children themselves, and also briefly touched on the timely topic of
micro-aggressions in society. There was a recent
NY Times article on this very topic ("our increasingly diverse culture"), so naturally I was intrigued. Though the discussion really didn't go into depth given the age of the students, it was interesting to hear their perspectives on "slights" that happen in real life...those
sometimes unconscious statements that are
sometimes said without malice intended...and yes, these "slights" are related to race, gender, learning differences, and so much more. Thanks for inviting me Mrs. Dean - I know she will be reviewing and refining the unit again for next year, but I applaud her efforts to jump in and give our kids opportunities to think critically on real life topics that are important to them and build connections to learning.
Sally Hunter had some amazing artwork posted as part of a recent unit of study and I was so impressed, I have to share a few pictures here. She does some first rate things always, but the creativity that these kids expressed copying the "masters" was spot-on. Loved them all!
 |
| Ez's Warhol |
 |
| Asia's Catlett |
 |
| Zoe's Balthus |
 |
| Kathleen's Pollock |
Finally, here are some latest snaps from our Process and Product Boards. I continue to see these really concrete displays evolve over the two year's we've done them (yes, and I do have thoughts on possible next steps to make them even more meaningful for teachers, students, and staff), but this week I was struck by mostly a couple of things. First, the teacher and student reflections on their individual learning connected to the concepts covered - where to go next and what each liked - or didn't like - about the work. Simple, but important to do. Specifically interesting was Mrs. Guenther's second graders' reflections as part of their Japanese Unit/Haiku writings - they decided to put a bit of DBI in place and did something called a
Reflection Web. Very doable, great verbal share-out, and a different take on the traditional written reflection.
Second, I was really thrilled to hear some hallway conversations around a couple of these displays one day. Conversations not being had by teachers, but by parents, students, and even grandparents. Very cool to hear our parents and kids explaining to their visitors
the processes that went into the
product. Have to admit, it kind of gave me shivers. Schools are about community and this type of
building understanding communication is a huge part of
building a community - who we are, what we do, and where we go next.
 |
| Mrs. Guenther's Reflection Web activity |
 |
| Ms. Brunello's Reflection |
 |
| Mrs. Golliher's Reflection |
 |
| Jr. Coach Cameron's Reflection after Scottie Olympics |
Final kudos to Maria Satterwhite for another fine Scottie Singers Spring concert. Always first rate, loved the
Texas, My Texas and
Lean on Me selections especially (shed a few tears), and those who accompanied the singers on their performances. It was a nice evening to a very hectic Thursday, and really, just a perfect end to my day. Scottie Singers Forever!
