Week 15: I Am Thankful...

When I thought about writing this week's blog, my first thought was, "It's only a two day week, did I even do enough to write about?", then I realized I have so much to reflect upon.... 

I was busy Monday and Tuesday assisting teachers with lessons, Mystery Skypes, Skype in the Classroom, and just simply brainstorming ideas (that is sometimes the most valuable thing we do as a team). I am so thankful I work with such amazing educators!

The past two days were also filled with finalizing things for the Southwest  Makerspace, accent paint has been purchased and all paperwork has been turned in for purchase orders, it is getting real! I am so thankful for the guidance, and for the vision, that our campus has put together!

I initially wasn't going to do a Southwest Weekly Recap, but  when it came down to it, I just couldn't have Week 14 and skip to Week 16, so I took pics from our #swelem twitter and put one together. 

I am  thankful this year for my wonderful husband, amazing children, our sweet little grandson (and for the one on the way),  and  my amazing co-workers. I am thankful for their daily encouragement, enthusiasm, cooperation, collaboration, tweets, emails, and smiles.  

Thank you for allowing me to share my journey as I learn and grow each week,

Mrs. Hime

Week 14: There is Excitement in the Air!

It is good to be a Red Tornado, not just this week, but every week! 

This week I was invited into a Mystery Skype with Mrs. Oyler's class. It was their second skype of the year,  it was fabulous to offer support as they used critical thinking skills and teamwork to determine the location of their opponent...North Carolina! 

It was the third week of the month, so that meant Innovation & Tech Tuesday! It was a wonderful time of connecting, sharing, learning, and growing. There were twenty Southwest staff members present, so exciting! After snacks and share time we played an innovative game, Human Tic Tac Toe, it was  blast!  As a wise man once said, "You don't have to be bad to get better", so I am asking all SW faculty and staff to complete this feedback form. 

Our Makerspace is moving right along, this week's meeting was very productive. We had more teachers attend and offer fabulous ideas. CPS carpenters now have the stage and the Chrome Bar complete. Things are coming together! 

I have started filming the Weekly Recap on Thursday afternoon so that we can get the link and QR Code to the office Friday and onto the weekly newsletter that is copied on Friday and can go home in Monday folders. 

Friday's date will go down in history as a big day for Clinton education. The Leadership team and BOE staff put together a day of celebration that included gift bags, coupons, photos, and stipend checks for every employee of our school district. It was a day of joy and excitement for all! Thank you Clinton Board of Education for investing and supporting Clinton Public Schools. I feel very blessed to be able to grow and learn from one of the best Superintendents in Oklahoma, thank you for your vision and leadership Mr. Hime (AKA my best friend & hubby). 

Thank you for allowing me to share my journey as I grow and learn each week,

Mrs. Hime 

Week 13: Each Meeting, and Discussion, is Necessary to the Growth of Our School

As I prepared to write this reflection I looked over my past week's calendar and notes. I felt as though I didn't have anything exciting and innovative to write about. Over the past three years my reflection has been a starting point for the following week. I tried to "out do" myself each week. It really kept me on my toes and made my lesson planning authentic. But, at first glance this week, it seemed that my week was boring, just meetings. Then, I realized that each meeting was necessary to the growth of our school. 

Mrs. Gaunt and I meet with each Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten teacher this week. Each meeting was very important so that we could discuss the students we see:  keep them, move them, and gain new ones. Some meetings were easier than others, but that means we are all passionate about our students and willing to do what is best for each individual student. The reading coaches were able to join us in the Kinder meetings so that we were able to serve more students between us. I am so thankful for each teacher that meet that us, and for the willingness of Mrs. Taylor to make it all possible. 

So many exciting things are happening each day at Southwest. This week I was able to work with Mrs. Gaunt and Ms. Perez to lay out the plans for the Southwest Makerspace. We took the plans our teachers had shared, added to them, and went to work. I am thankful for the leadership of Mr. Meget and his willingness to allow us to move forward with the vision. It is amazing to see changes each day and realize it takes all of us to make it happen. 

My week ended as it does each week...organizing, producing, and publishing the Southwest Weekly Recap. 

Thank you allowing me to share my journey as I grow and learn each week,  

Mrs. Hime 

                                                   

Week 12: A Different Busy...

Week 12 was busy, but a different busy... I have been known to say, on many occasions, that each job/position in a school district is necessary or we wouldn't have them. I am grateful that I have been able to assist in many areas this year and see first hand what goes into so many different tasks, and the value of each one. 

The book fair was in full swing this week. I volunteered to help an hour a day, and I am so glad that I did. I was able to see what goes into hosting the book fair, see former students and meet new ones, guide them in the selection process, and then check them out.  It was a very enlightening experience! 

Southwest faculty and staff hosted our annual Literacy Night this week. It was different this year, instead of having it in each classroom we all set up in the cafeteria. We each had a partner, dressed as book characters, shared a literacy activity, and had a takeaway for each student. I dressed up as a pilgrim, and my partner (Ms. Jaime, our ELL assistant) dressed up as Pocahontas. Our literacy activity was "Move, Groove, Read". The students walked in a circle on sight word footsteps to the song "It's All About Those Books", when the music stopped they said the word they were standing on, then got a bookmark and a takeaway sheet that had qr codes that took them to games they can play at home to practice sight, vocabulary, and spelling words. Our table also gave away six Thanksgiving themed books. It was a great night! 

I published the November Edition of Southwest Innovation & Technology News this week. This month I have challenged the teachers to 4 tasks, in 4 weeks, then their names will go into a 'Lottery", if they are selected I will sub in their classroom for 4 hours on December the 4th. 

 "Is 4 your lucky number?". 

I had several meetings this week to look at ELL data, re-adjust, and move forward. As a classroom teacher I did that regularly for my students, now I am doing it on a larger scale, seeing the bigger picture. 

My week ended as it does each week: organizing, producing, and publishing the weekly recap. I added a new layer to it this week... I filmed Friday's Rise & Shine so that parents/community could get a glimpse of how their students day begins at Southwest. 

Thank you for allowing me to share my journey as I learn and Grow each week, 

Mrs. Hime