And then there was Friday...

We began the week with two very important day long retreats.  Each year, our new and returning team leaders meet with me on a day in May to tackle school planning for the following year.  This always worthwhile day happened on Monday and much was accomplished, such as next year's master schedule, updated campus map (who goes where!), and the scheduling of many important team and school events and activities.  Always a big relief when it's done.  Following that day, our equally dedicated Special Ed/Intervention Team had their planning on Tuesday and were able to complete their master schedule as well.  Ensuring student IEP specifics are covered and that services are optimally delivered from the beginning of school is time consuming but so worth it.  Enjoyed the time with both groups and the collaboration and teamwork of pulling together for the good of our school and our kids.  Kudos to all who participated!

2012-2013 Team Leaders

Interviews for our open teaching positions are also taking place at a couple of grade levels this week and next.  Teams are actively involved in the hiring process with me and Ms. McDaniel, there are many good candidates to choose from, and yes, we're excited about adding new folks to the Scottie Team.  Look for information in the next couple of weeks on who's coming and who's going at HP.  Bittersweet of course, as we move through the process, but we are making head-way.

And then there was Friday.  For some reason today was chock-full of activity.  Seriously. The day started quite early, with the Young Leadership Program participants giving their final speeches and receiving feedback on their presentations.  I had the honor, along with sponsor Matt Brown, to present certificates to the group and thank them for a job well done.  Arriving on campus at 6:50 am for 8 consecutive Friday mornings says a lot about both student and parent dedication to the program.  Keep up the practice YLP'ers!

Parent visiting day was the norm around here for most of this morning and into the afternoon.  Both Mrs. Finkle and Mrs. Leibick hosted parents for their respective Egytian Unit and Archeology Unit in fourth grade classrooms.  Mrs. Finkle tells me that her language arts students read The Egypt Game and The Magnificent Mummy Maker while simultaneously completing projects ranging from research papers on an Egyptian topic of choice (both online and non-fiction books used for the research), Cartouche replicas, Egyptian themed board games with directions, scroll creations with Hieroglypics, and life size Mummies that students proudly displayed around the room.  I happened to pop down again a bit later in the morning and caught both Mrs. Finkle and her students very enthusiastically dancing around the room to the music and words of King Tut.  Yep, pretty LOL funny!

 

Same time, different place Mrs. Leibick's students were also proudly sharing their projects and activities.  During the unit, her Language Arts students participated in a field trip to the Gault archeology site near Georgetown (went with them a couple of years ago and it is indeed worth the trip), created poetry, excavated their "bedrooms", completed research, and much more.  As always, much integration happening in Mrs. Leibick's LA class.

While 4th and 5th grade classes were at the Young People's Concert this morning, third grade language arts classes hosted more parents for their Badgerdog student writing presentations.  It was wonderful to hear the voice in the writings as students read their individual pieces and see the pride in student faces at the audience snaps and applause.  Well done on the memoirs, the stories, the poetry, all connected to the use of figurative language.  Thanks Ms. Golliher, Ms. McLelland, and Ms. Smith.

The afternoon did arrive today and we ended it with two more culminating activities.  First grade students presented their annual Ocean Odyssey performance for parents in our cafeteria and did a fabulous job as always.  Have to admit that Wilbur the Whale gets me every time.  Loved it!



Austin Film kids concluded today with an after school Film Festival.  They will be back next year, so be sure to check 'em out; the kids love being in the films and love learning the filmmaking process. A good Friday capping off a really good week.





Laine Did It!

As you can imagine, we began our week super excited  that our very own Laine Leibick won the HEB  Lifetime Achievement Award last Sunday evening.  She receives a significant cash award as does our school.  Most importantly, one of our very favorite and deserving teachers was recognized for outstanding teaching - we always knew it and we're glad others now know it too.  WooHoo!

Fifth grader Auveed Rokhsaz was a man with a mission over the last two weeks.  He personally sought me out to tell me about his cause Wheelchairs for Iraqi's, a unique program that supplies wheelchairs to children in Iraq who have none and desperately need them - thus a campus fundraiser was born.  Truly inspiring, I commend his philanthropic endeavor, and was just told today that he was able to raise the $350 needed to supply one wheelchair.  His father has agreed to match this very generous donation, so two wheelchairs will now be donated to children in need.  Thanks Scotties and Auveed for getting behind this cause and helping our world at large.  That's what it's all about.

HP's SCORES program, along with Brian Cox of Austin Film Kids, were busy at work this week filming their very own PSA.  I hear this public service announcement, to be shown on our Scottie morning announcments, will have a space theme with a timely message about honesty.  Kids connected and not connected to SCORES helped with filming and seemed to be having a blast.  Looking forward to it.



On the bus by 6:30 am!



On Wednesday, first grade let me tag along on their annual trip to Sea World in San Antonio.  It was an early start, lots of walking and looking throughout the day, and super fun to hang out with the kids and parents who chaperoned.  We fed the dolphins, learned about penguins, saw the Killer Whale and Sea Lion shows, and really enjoyed this experience that ties to their Ocean Animals Unit of Study.  I have to admit I was bone tired when evening came, something you forget about when you're no longer in the classroom.  Well worth it however. Enjoyed it tremendously.



Waiting for the Sea Lions with Mrs. Powers





Of course, this is the week for all things Greek in fifth grade.  As you can see from just a small sampling of pictures, the kids have been working on their Greek mythology projects and now have them on display.  The level of detail never fails to impress me.  They wrapped up this unit with their performance of original Greek plays (remember the work done with Pollyanna Theatre in early Spring?) and I'm being totally honest when I say they were extremely well done.  The dialogue, the staging, and the humor (Hermes and his Nikes!) garnered more audience chuckles and sounds of appreciation than I've heard before.  I'm glad our kids were able to actively participate in writing these scripts as it made it that much more meaningful.  Well done fifth grade.



Backstage Access...cool!



Special Days



Waiting on Sandy's burgers!



Monday and Friday were the cornerstones of all things Spring Fling winners.  Mrs. McDaniel and I had the privilege of spending time with fourth grader Jack, along with two of his buddies Zach and Nick, for a lovely outing to Peter Pan golf and Sandy's hamburgers.  Overcast but wonderful day to be out with three very well-mannered and engaging boys.  Though sadly I did not "win" at putt-putt, I did have fun and that's what counts!



Raphael and Mrs. Land handing out "diplomas"



Wrapping up the week today was also one of our other admin Spring Fling wins.  My Principal(s) for the Day, Raphael and Gabrielle, helped me in my duties as we walked the grounds, conducted walkthroughs (they left lots of positive comments!), helped with primary reading, emailed, and made announcements.  Raphael additionally was able to be a part of Mrs. Land's Kinder graduation program this morning.  We topped off our day with a very relaxing lunch at CheZee and Berry Austin treat - not a typical part of a principal's day unfortunately - with Mrs. McDaniel and her AP for the Day, Marina.  Both of us look forward to this day every year so special thanks to our three administrators for a job well done.



Gabrielle hard at work













Lunch doesn't get much better!






Volunteerwas the key word this week as we headed into Tuesday's annual Kinder Round-Up.  Parents and key staff facilitated this morning quite nicely, while incoming students visited classrooms.  If you were unable to come for the event, please make plans to visit our office to pick up your packet, sooner rather than later.  Having accurate numbers is key to planning for 12-13!

 

We recognized some of these same hard-working folks at a Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast later in the week.  Staff brought in goodies to the library as our small way of saying "Thank You" to the many, many parents and community members who make our school such a great place to come to each and every day.  Couldn't do it without y'all.

And on that same note, we recognized a pair of ladies at our staff meeting Thursday.  I've written before about the tremendous job both Maria Raper and Jeannine Ripp have done with the Fluency Center program at HP.  Our kids are stronger readers because of the dedication and effort these two have put into this unpaid job, and though they are passing the torch, we appreciate all they have done for this program over the years. 

Other staff recognitions were highlighted at the same staff meeting.  Did you know that we have several teachers who are up for or have received special recognition this year?  Our own Laine Leibick, HEB Teacher of the Year finalist, is in Houston this weekend for her festivities, Mrs. Hunter was selected by the Kennedy Center as one of four teacher reps to attend the June CETA arts integration conference in DC, and third grade teacher Mrs. Kilgore will travel to the Woodlands as one of a few AISD teachers to attend June's Mickelson ExxonMobil Math and Science Academy.  Additionally, Beth Finkle is a nominee for the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Math and Science teaching (PAEMST), while Leah Read was awarded a $1,600 grant to attend the LETRS conference in Missouri over the summer.  This reading training will help further her  foundational knowledge of LETRS, something we are excited to have her share next school year. Proud of all you, but none more so than our SALUTE 2012 Award nominees. Robin Maca, Teacher of the Year nominee, Brian Brannan, the school's Teacher of Promise candidate, and Lynn Bucknall, Classified Staff member of the year, will be recognized on May 23 at the Long Center.  These hard working Scotties were selected by campus staff for all they do for kids each and every day. Can't wait and congrats to all!

Let me end by saying what a thrill it was to see Badgerdog's student poetry readings to second grade parents this week.  The students put on their Sunday best, stepped up to the mic, and read original or favorite published poems for the audience.  I was also impressed with their personal poetry anthologies on display for parents to read, as well as the smiles on our performers faces as they exited the stage to much applause.  Badgerdog writers have now moved on to third grade where they've just begun memoir writing, so I'm looking forward to checking out those writings as well. Lots of reasons to celebrate our week!

I Believe

"I believe in the human race. I believe in the warm heart. I believe in man’s integrity. I believe in the goodness of a free society. And I believe that the society can remain good only as long as we are willing to fight for it—and to fight against whatever imperfections may exist." 

Jackie Robinson delivered those powerful words as part of a recorded essay in 1952.   In that recording, he spoke eloquently of his beliefs and of his fight against prejudice.  This week, Lia Nudelman used those words as part of a culminating hall display (along with art of the time) in connection to her historical fiction novel In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson.  Students listened to Robinson's essay, connected it to the well known NPR This I Believe program, then connected to their own heartfelt I Believe list poems. Stop by her second grade classroom to read through the writings and browse the art they created and the thought behind their choices of artist.  I believe you will walk away inspired by the learning connections and, most importantly, the belief statements of our children.

Zach Scott wrapped up their inaugural after school program this week, with both performances by K-2 and 3-5 on two separate days.  I briefly heard and saw our younger set telling jokes on stage, while our older kids performed the short play Peter Pan and The Lost Girls.  Nat Miller, ed director of Zach, was my seatmate for the latter and we both left impressed that the actors not only had great presence, but also had total responsibility for the behind-the-curtain work (rearranging sets, staging of actors, etc).  Zach does first rate work  and we're exploring additional ways to pump this up for next year, both in and out of the school day.  Special thanks to Rog Wall for a very well done second semester acting class. 



In case you didn't know, April is National Poetry Month.  In honor of this special month, librarian Cheryl Mullins got students fired up about all things poetry and implemented the school-wide Poem in Your Pocket Day on Thursday.  Many big and small Scotties carried a pre-selected favorite poem in their pocket throughout the day - some by well loved poets (mine was Robert Louis Stevenson's At the Sea-Side, a personal childhood favorite) or original ones written especially for the occasion - then pulled them out when asked to share.  So as you can imagine, we had poetry shared in classrooms, hallways, cafeteria lines, and more.   Our after school childcare director and lunch monitor Mrs. Castro was so enthused, that she wrote an original poem to share (very well done!) and had kids performing at the mics while their peers ate lunch.  In fact, we had such fun sharing, we're thinking of making Poem in Your Pocket Day a part of our monthly lunch routine around here next year.  Cool.




The JOY! of poetry



Now, a nod to all things STAAR testing.  I believe our kids did their level best, I believe our teachers (here and elsewhere) "taught their guts out", and I believe this year above any I've had at HP, we all worked hard to keep the learning as inter-connected and creative and meaningful and joyful as we possibly could each and every day for every child.  And we will continue to refine and work hard and grow next year and beyond for the continued good of our children, for the goodness and integrity and humanity Robinson spoke of in 1952.  Because honestly, I do believe, when it's all said and done, these are the things that will matter the most.

Earth Week

Cathy McHorse, Future Problem Solvers sponsor for our identified GT students, sent me this picture over the weekend.  HP had a fifth grade team participate in the State Bowl competition on Saturday, the boys had a full day of "problem solving", then headed  for ice cream when all was done - those must be smiles of anticipation.  Proud of your efforts Scotties!


Andy, Zach, Steven, John Graham, and Ian

Mrs. O"Donnell's fifth grade math students enthusiastically showed me how to use their Promethean Board ActivExpression tools on Monday. These small tools give students an opportunity to "show what they know" through technology applications. AE "promotes classroom collaboration by allowing students and teachers to immediately view responses and to discuss them during the lesson."  Pretty cool.  On this day, students were working in teams answering questions from Measure Works Game Cards.  Though respondents can submit multiple choice answers, I saw students solving open ended questions and submitting text answers.  Loved that component and loved the discussion Ms. O'Donnell facilitated when the answer choices were graphed and displayed on the board.  Instant feedback.  Best of all, the enthusisasm for doing this math activity was overwhelming.  "I feel sophisticated using technology", "We all get to answer", and "Fun!" were the responses I received when I asked students if they liked using these devices.  Mrs. O'Donnell uses these tools for review, pop quizzes, word problems, vocabulary practice, and more.  Great way to build student engagement in all fifth grade classrooms.

Across the hall, Ms. Guimbarda and students were actively working on their historical fiction novel unit (yep, part of that 2-5 planning in language arts) while the sounds of 60's Motown played in the background - who doesn't enjoy Motown!  Students are reading the novel The Watsons Go to Birmingham as the unit anchor, but also including picture books such as Sit-In by Andrea Pinckney, many Faith Ringgold selections, Langston Hughes poetry, and non-fiction texts related to the time period and the settings of the novel (Birmingham, AL and Flint, MI).  Some of the related student activities include setting comparisons (today and in the 1960's), written synthesis/analysis papers, a re-enactment of a lunch counter sit-in with student journal responses from the perspective as a bystander or participant, visual thinking (think DAR) through the use of relevant art of the time such as William H. Johnson and Norman Rockwell, analysis of film clips showing the role of youth during the civil rights movement, and much more.  Learning from the past, working together, keeping it real.  Thanks.

 

We did manage to squeeze in some fun in and around the learning this week.  Student Council sponsored an Hawaiian day, with many adults and kids dressed ready to hula at a luau.  Check out our own Ms. Collins from second grade and some pretty nifty third graders.    

And I absolutely cannot let the week go by without a nod to Earth Week, a celebration of our natural world.  We had Green Monday, Trashy Tuesday, Zero Waster Wednesday, Bring it in for the Bins Thursday, and finally, WOOF! (Walk Over On Friday) to cap off the week.  Our recycling program on campus has really geared up this year through our parent Green Committee's Highland Parks it In the Bin program.  Mother Earth thanks you.

WOOF!- Walkin Over on Friday