Where have I been??

Since the last time I've posted on here, I have had intentions to post again each week.  However, between ongoing research, assessments at school, holiday celebrations and schedules, and basically just some major mind-bending with CTEPS meetings....my brain is just now settling in to where I can focus and comprehend my own thoughts on my project.  So here goes...

First of all, a small reflection on the CTEPS process so far since we are half way through the school year.  Have you ever attended a really awesome professional development?  Could've been an hour after school, a weekend conference, a three hour session...but one of those "totally worth it" sessions?  Anytime I can make it through those I am usually filled with encouragement, excitement, and energy to try something new and try that something the very next day.  I almost wish the time away from the PD (even though it's so amazing) because my brain is ready to process, plan, and dive in!  CTEPS provides the same feeling...except the CTEPS is the awesome PD that never ends.   I'm learning how to manage the ideas by taking time to reflect and process intermittently.   After attending a webinar, small group meeting, or continuing the research I come to a "wall".  This is when I feel like nothing makes sense anymore and there's no way to accomplish even a piece of what I want.  This feeling is my cue to put everything away and walk away until the pieces start coming back together.  I need time to just be with the information.  My brain works that way.  Eventually, usually soon (depending on the complexity of school demands at the time...holidays, IEPs, ARCs, etc.) all those good feelings come back to me and I can start talking to people about my ideas again and start putting plans back in place.   Although exhausting at times (as all awesome PD sessions are), this system is something that I can see myself coming back to again and again year after year.  Part of my struggle some days is to maintain focus on this one year and this one project instead of trying to begin a new project for future years (which I've learned to jot down ideas and walk completely away from them so I don't completely burn my poor brain).  I simply cannot say enough about how this is making me a better teacher, coach, and person in my school.

OK.  Now, a quick look at the research I've done.  I didn't want to put full reports here because I think that's not my message.  I did want to share the support in research and list some good resources that are helping with my specific project.  First of all, have I mentioned how awesome my principal is?She has completely jumped on board and read everything I have read, reached out for more research for us, sat through webinars with me (for fun) and continues to share the excitement of this process by asking about what's going on and what we can do together next.  Together we have focused on attention on the following books "One Child at a Time" by Pat Johnson, "What Struggling Readers Need" by Richard Allington, and "The Literacy Teacher's Playbook K-2, and 3-5" by Jennifer Serravallo.  Serravallo has become our warrior in this project.  We try to watch her webinars, follow ideas on Twitter, and share her ideas with staff.   Basically everything she says matches our needs and anything we try that she says seems to work and simply make sense.  We are beginning two of other other books (hopefully with some teachers) called "Reading Strategies" and "Conferring with Readers".   We've also read "The Daily 5" by The Sisters and reach into books by Donalyn Miller on occasion, as well. Second, my small group.  The meetings we have on Monday nights are full of intellect, experience, encouragement, assurance, and innovation.  Without them, the "lost" feeling would last way longer.

Through these resources, research, and support we are making big (and effective) changes in our school.  It's truly an exciting time!

AND NOW.....MY PROJECT PROGRESS

During one of our recent bird group meetings, we were discussing data (how to collect it and what types were most relevant to our project).  As I was sharing my ideas and data process, our fearless leader asked me what my main goal was, "Where do you expect to see your project take off? Who will be affected?"  My answer, "I think the whole school."  We ALL laughed.  Even to me, and I feel incredibly optimistic about this project, a "whole school" approach seems incredibly daunting.   With my unique and awesome situation of working with a supportive principal, team teachers, energetic teachers, and district level support has made me feel like the goal of my project is completely do-able.  Completely.  Which is insane and such an awesomely exciting feeling in this sweet world of education.  Just to clarify, even though we all laughed, my group completely made me feel worthy of keeping that goal and made me feel that they were all as excited as I am to complete these ideas.   They supported my own ideas while also offering more of their own.  

Using the forms provided by CTEPS, here's a look at The Plan (so far)....

With all that being said, here are some other things happening to support this project.  

1.  Winter benchmark data has been released and analyzed with all the teachers.  Tweaks and suggestions were created by the teams alongside the principal.  Tweaks and suggestions were innovative, and focused on the question "What is best for these kids, at this time, during this year?" There wasn't an exact answer, or template, or prescriptive technique.  Teachers worked together to decide what is needed when they return in January.  

2.  Our district leadership has offered up a grant that we have written in effort to take advantage of the funds.  The intent of the grant is to extend time in the school day.  Their theory is that if there is great instruction happening during every minute of the school day, then a variable affecting growth could just simply by time.  Our challenge was to think of something innovative that would encourage our students to want to spend more time at school while also remembering best practice.  Here's what we came up with:

JCES Read and Ride

With our current academic structures, data indicates that our students are able to make a year's worth of growth during each school year.  However, we are searching for new and innovative ways to promote 1 1/2 - 2 years worth of growth.  

We have found a program that we feel will be motivating for our students and provide us with some extra time after school to work with our kids.   The "Read and Ride" program would be an after school club for identified students to stay for an hour twice a week.  During that hour, students will spend the entire time reading brand new books of their choice. They will alternate their time during that hour between reading while riding a stationary bike and reading in a comfy spot where a teacher can provide quick one on one conferences.  We have found significant research connecting more exercise to improved academic performance.  Our teachers will participate in professional development and planning sessions, led by our principal and instructional coach,  prior to the beginning of this program, as an additional way to assure best practice instruction during the after school club.  The teaching that we have during the day is beyond amazing, which leaves us to believe we only need more time with students to help give them the extra push needed for maximum growth.  Students will compete on teams for the most miles and the most pages read.   We will set incremental goals for individual students to meet and will celebrate all victories with our students at the close of the competition.  Students will take their books home with them at the conclusion of the program.

We would like our program to occur during the months of February - May, and then continue during the school year next year.  

An example afternoon in the “Read and Ride” program would follow the following typical schedule:

Time	Team 1	Team 2	Team 3	Team 4
3:00-3:05	STRETCH AND WATER
3:05-3:25 STUDENTS	Read on bike	Read on bike	Read in comfy spot	Read in comfy spot
3:00-3:25 TEACHERS	Monitor and record time, mileage and pages read		Confer with students one on one using strategies from professional learning.  Record book logs and conference notes
3:25-3:30	STRETCH AND WATER
3:30-3:50 STUDENTS	Read in comfy spot	Read in comfy spot	Read on bike	Read on bike
3:30-3:50 TEACHERS	Confer with students one on one using strategies from professional learning.  Record book logs and conference notes		Monitor and record time, mileage and pages read
3:50-4:00	STRETCH, WATER, AND BOOK LOGS

Here is some interesting research about "Read and Ride"...

http://www.fastcoexist.com/3036607/this-school-has-bikes-instead-of-desks-and-it-turns-out-thats-a-better-way-to-learn

www.readandride.org

Through this initiative, we hope that the PD and experience the teachers and students have can create more teacher models throughout the building on best practice and challenge teachers to see how movement or a similar system could be incorporated into their own reading block.  

Fingers crossed this project gets funded.  Fingers double crossed that the data will support, as well.

3.  On our Staff Development Day upon return from Winter Break, my principal and I will be presenting some information on best practice from our research.  

4.  My team of teachers have met twice a week the past month to individually...INDIVIDUALLY...plan for each student.  Have I said how lucky I am to work with such awesome teachers?? We've created, thrown away, re-created, thrown away, created again new plans and structures and ideas for what we want for our kids.  All with this question in mind, "What does THIS reader need to make growth?"  You can imagine the type of intentional and intense (awesome and exhausting) conversations we've had.  Four teachers all working toward one huge goal. creates some major energy.  

OK...so I think you're all caught up now.  Again, my goal is to blog more often.  With the new year upon us this is one of my resolutions.  My other is to maintain focus on reflection and growth, not perfection.   

So, Happy New Year!  Next CTEPS stop...ECET2!!

Fishbones and Drivers

One of the best parts of this project is that I learn strategies for solving problems in any setting that I'm in.  The past two weeks or so, my mission has been to finalize my fishbone and driver diagram.   In the process of doing that, I was able to apply this system to a problem that my principal and I had been working on in a completely different area...and wow, the "a-ha's" we were able to receive were unbelievable.   Such a simple and practical system with big and moving results.

For my project, I'd like to share all the pieces of my puzzle.  To begin the process, I started with the affinity map.  In this jumbled list, I just wrote.  To do this, I looked back at all my questions, reflected on new research, and had conversations with teachers and our principal.  This affinity map lists all the "reasons" or "causes" for my "problem".  Here's a look:

From that, the next step is to organize common issues into categories, and place the categories onto the fishbone diagram.  It's funny that I've used this same diagram for reading instruction in cause and effect, but NEVER considered that it was actually useful.  Makes me feel like I should look more carefully at all the organizers I use!  Anyway, here's a look at that diagram (disclaimer...it should look more like a fish, but my google doc skills are still improving):

Now came the BEST part of the process.   Right after finishing what seems like a mess of a diagram (and still feeling pretty lost), it was time to meet with my small group from CTEPS.  The Nightingales came to the rescue! Not only was I reassured in my feelings of uncertainty and in the direction I was going, but I was given such beautiful gifts of ideas!  The meetings I get to be in with such intelligent and innovative people will have an important and direct effect on my students.  I am so fortunate.  During these meetings, I wonder the whole time "How can every professional learning community or development feel exactly like this?"....and then I think, "Is that another project??" So I just enjoy the moment for now. :)

In this meeting, we all shared our fishbones.  During the share time of others, I heard lots of ideas and research that confirmed my thinkings and interesting ways to address similar problems of my own.  The best advice came from one of the presenters who said that as she went through her fishbone, she starred all the items that were in her immediate control.  This will allow her to focus her attention of moving more quickly in making progress.  Luckily, she presented before me so I was ready on my turn! As I walked through my fishbone, it became very clear the areas of immediate action that were under my (or nearly my) control:  "Use of assessments" and "School".  Following that will be:  "Time" and "outside of school hours".   While I mentioned that several questions/suggestions came up that were helpful.  

1.  What assessments are you currently using?

2.  Is there a school- wide assessment to do reading inventories? Is there training?

3.  What is the most effective way to support teachers in showing what to expect in instructional time? How do they know what's most effective in high performing classrooms?

4. How do administrators know what to look for in effective classrooms?

5.  Is there a way to measure impact without a paper-pencil method?

6.  How do you continue and improve upon "Beyond the Bell" (our summer book program)?

7.  Is there a way to utilize after school hours in the most effective way?  Will students participate? Will teachers?  How does this look?

Although this list of questions may seem to be overwhelming, it was refreshing to hear questions toward action.  By answering these questions, I will be begin momentum.

From the fishbone, now I decide what will move us the quickest and what my immediate moves could be.    So, here's the driver diagram:

With all that being said and all the work that has been done, I feel like the work has just begun.  I expect challenges, I expect this to change, I expect resistance, I expect excitement, and most of all I expect results.  I really do.  Like my coach said after the Nightingales met, "I'm not exactly sure what your project is going to look like in the end, but I know that something is going to happen that's wonderful!"    How strange to feel like there's so much to do and so much to begin, and to not know what any of it really looks like.  How strange, especially for someone who loves and finds comfort in knowing a destination and following the ABC route to get there.  However, I've never felt more intentional or motivated toward a goal that this moment.   

Brain explosion!

This has been one of those brain busting weeks in this world of research, reflection, and try sometime new world.  Sooooo many "ah-ha"s!   One while talking with my principal, that I hope to return to later.  We have an action plan and some research to do, so I don't want to count my chickens before they hatch.....kinda like I did with my last post.  Because THAT post let to the biggest piece of humble pie I've had in a while. AND more changes.  Thank goodness I work with such wonderful people.

**Disclaimer** I'm using the faces of my second child in this post to help hide my red embarrassed face.**

This was how I felt last week as I was posting.....

I was all "oh, yea, I figured something out...Look at these awesome changes!"

In less than 24 hours, I had a conversation with my principal, a conversation with my team teacher, and then...watched this webinar (and the three links she refers to within the webinar):

To say, my mind was blown was an understatement.  I even read her books this summer! This was the moment, I began to feel like this..

Dang it.  I thought I was going the right way, but maybe, just maybe, I went the more complicated route. 

So, big girl britches on... I talked with my principal, talked with my co-teacher, took a minute (or 2) to myself and have reconfigured the reading block in effort to support our students on this journey to two year's growth.  

We didn't completely change everything, but it is clear that conferencing with readers has a huge impact on growth.  Growth mindset has a huge impact on growth.  Focusing students (and teachers) on one goal at a time has a huge impact on growth.  

So here's a look at our new schedule:

We have a plan for conferences, some strategies for each individual reader, and a shared outlook that we are going to take this project one week at a time.  Feeling like we could do some good...here we go!

Project update:   I'm at least feeling a pull towards one of the areas of questions I had in my questions post.  I battle with where to focus because I want to spend my effort in an area where a school's actions or a teacher's actions has the most influence.  At this point, I'm feeling like it's in the classroom.  Should I continue to focus here?  Should I go back to looking at what happens before school? Or after school? What are other similar school's doing that need to make this much growth..does it matter if our demographics are the same or different?

Crossing my fingers that we are moving in a good direction. These kids, and their success, mean the world to me.  And even though I feel like never opening a book or listening to another webinar because I don't know how much my brain (or my sleepless mind...did I mention that I'm also pregnant so sleep is rare anyway?!) can take, here's to another week of finding the best and doing what's best for kids.  

I may be lost, but I'm taking action!

I may not understand all of the answers yet to all of my questions, but I do have a what and a why.  Having a what and a why puts my engine in gear..time to do something!

With our WHAT being "make two year's growth", and our WHY "because our kids need to leave us reading on grade level", there isn't a teacher in the world who wouldn't think that something needs to happen right away.  Eventually, I'll work on the proactive piece.  Right now, kids need something.  What can I do, reactive or not, to make the WHAT happen.

What's happening so far?
A LOT!
Thank goodness I team teach with an ahhh-mazing teacher and person who is willing and (most importantly) ready to go on this crazy journey with me.  We have changed everything about our reading block.  When I started talking to her about my plans and my what, and my why she was totally on board.  Immediately our brains (almost) exploded with ideas.

First, re-assess.  After 8 weeks of instruction and our new drive, we immediately took time to do a basic reading inventory.  With new data, it was time to analyze.  We decided to look closer this time, meaning that we wanted more than "just a level" by asking questions like "what exactly is this one student missing?" "what could be the one changing factor?" "what patterns do we see overall?", etc.  When you ask so many questions...surprise surprise...you get a lot of answers.  Here are the results:

This is different than our first data analysis with the first assessments, which only showed student name and which reading level they were on.

Now, with lots of information, comes lots more questions because once we teachers knows the information we teachers wants to do something about it all!  We narrowed down patterns, discussed what's most important.   After we decided we couldn't "do it all", we focused on the 80/20 principal of creating goals.  We narrowed down our groups like this:

 I know it's hard for you to relate the data because I've taken out names, but please understand I have to remain respectful and confidential.

What I'd like for you to notice is that now we have two types of groups: guided reading and skills.  Students are fluid through guided reading, and may occur more than once in a skill group.  My team teacher focuses on guided reading and I focus on the skill instruction.  To do this all within our reading block, our reading block schedule had to shift.  We needed time to meet with all of these small groups, conduct whole group lessons, and have time to conference one on one with each student each day.  Based on our data, our students need all of these every day.

So here's what we came up with:

This is a sample of one day's lesson plan for one focus lesson.  We repeat this same process 5 times (except the flashback only occurs during this rotation) during our reading block of 2 hours.  Another note, while the guided reading time is set of 20 minutes, the skill group is set to 10 which frees me up to do 2 conferences.  If you do the math,  that means we are counting every...single....minute.  We and our students are strapped to the clock.  There cannot be any loss of instructional time.  

My team teacher and I are exhausted at the end, and planning for all of this makes our brain hurt.  BUT, we both look at each other every day that we've switched to this schedule and say..."wow, we got a lot done today.  I know what I need to do next." I've never felt more intentional or more reflective than I do with this system we have put in place.  I feel like we're looking at EACH student every day.  

How does this relate to my project?

The immediate action that I felt as I put the pieces together of my questions and discovering my what and why is first and foremost how this relates to my project.   Now, I see what intentional planning looks like.  Now, I feel what it is to look at individual results and set goals.  Now, I have experienced a new level of coplanning and coteaching.

With all of this action, I still have many many questions to my project.  I still want to know the initial problem and how to address it.  I think that the system we've created now is a higher level of the systems that were already in place, and will help the answer to the problem but are not the answer.

So....more reflection, more research, more action.  We're moving in the right direction...I think.

Questions leading to research

The (late 😥) Yogi Berra said, "If you don't know where you're going, you might not get there." This is how I'm feeling at this stage in my project.  I'm trying to decide where I'm going and what questions I need to focus on to get there.  

So far, here are my thoughts on paper...

Completely clear, right??

My first response to research was to simply check the research I had done.  What is happening in our building and what have I read so far? Looking at just this helped to narrow in on a few ideas, but ultimately led to more questions.  

After sitting with these ideas and letting them roll around for awhile, I've decided to categorize the questions. Maybe this will help me narrow in on my research? Maybe this will point me exactly to what I need to focus on in my action steps?

So here they are....

Is there a pattern in need for growth in all schools with our percentage of free/reduced lunch?  Is there something we can do before our students enter our building? Is there something schools similar to us are doing that creates growth?

Is there something we can do at school that were not doing? What systems support most growth? What do kids think? What do teachers think? 

Are parents a key player in making this much growth? Do we need them in the building? Do we increase communication? Do we share resources? Would the community be a necessary resource? Are parents and community so necessary that we give all effort here, or would it be ok to spend most energy on our school day and "our circle of influence"?

 

Although it may look like I'm still completely lost, I don't feel that way.  I

feel accomplished because I feel like I've at least narrowed the questions down.  I know what I'm looking for in research.  

 My team coaches are promising that we will narrow the topic on our met webinar. I'm really looking forward to that webinar...😄

And of course, anyone reading this that knows an answer- I'll take one!

First CTEPS

First of all, my first CTEPS experience was more than I can ever describe.  Make sure you do visit www.kycteps.org to learn more about their message and plans for us.  Second of all, to say that I left our first face to face meeting "inspired" would be an understatement, but I'm not sure of another word!  When we, teachers, are invited to three days worth of training (and yes, that's three full days with a 30 minute lunch at our table each day) we can sometimes look forward to the city we will be visiting, the people we will meet, the hotel, the nights without our normal responsibilities, and maybe some extra sleep!  This, however, turned out to be the BEST event I've attended...something that I only wanted to leave so that I process all that I'd learned.  I cannot express my gratitude for the time and effort placed into making this experience special, inspiring, informative, and something that will make a difference for kids.  It has literally taken me an entire week to digest all the information because I can't help but immediately (try to) apply what I had learned.

During our weekend together, we worked on identifying our project, what are "why" is, and pinpointing the actual problem.  To me this is all still very blurry, but I'm moving in a direction that is focused on making two year's growth in our young readers.  This involves trying to determine why we need so much growth, what are our barriers, what are the systems that are working/not working, and why are those systems successful/not successful, and how to make changes one classroom at a time until we make school wide gains.    When I get to work in a school and school system that is full of administrative support and THE BEST teachers, I know the problem is a system or something that we can pinpoint and fix to make the gains we need; because ultimately, a good teacher makes all the difference and we already have that.  

This is such an exciting and important process.  My "why" is that the kids I work with deserve this attention and 100% of them deserve to leave our school reading on grade level...no matter what.  The rest of this blog will be my messy reflections hopefully full of pictures and videos and my organized chaotic thinking on these questions and my experience throughout the CTEPS process.  As I share information, ask questions, look at research, or sound completely lost.... I would love to hear any ideas.  Your time is greatly appreciated.

So, here we go!  This is the beginning!