April 15, 2013

After several conversations in the building, I can tell that we, as a school, may have benefited from a weekend as beautiful as this one.  These past two weeks have been challenging, I understand, and your diligence and attention are both appreciated and valued.  Thank you.

Hixson High Five Awards
It's time to begin thinking about whom you might nominate for the Hixson High Five award.  Please take sometime out of your busy schedule to recognize students, who may not otherwise be recognized, for their readiness, respect, and responsibility.  Students really do value and benefit from this personal feedback.  Click here to read more information about the High Five Award.  Click here to e-mail Mrs. Davis your nominee.

8th Grade Recognition
This year, the plan for 8th grade recognition is changing somewhat, and I will need your help.

• Essentially, we will only be recognizing students during the program who receive awards and recognitions from Hixson only (e.g., the Franey Award).  In order to recognize all students and to account for recognitions beyond school (e.g., participating in an all-suburban band or a Destination Imagination competition), Mr. Anderson and Mr. Heisel have created a PowerPoint in the WGCloud with a slide for each student.  
• I will send an e-mail soon with instructions for how you might add to this presentation which will run twice before the event begins and once after; the presentation will be open to all faculty and staff.  Click here to see a sample slide; I'll do my best to answer any questions you might have.

. . . from an earlier blog post:
Art and Science of Teaching: DQs 7, 8, and 10
Given that our faculty meeting time is running short, you will be left on your own to review Design Questions 7, 8, and 10 in The Art and Science of Teaching. I do not anticipate that review the following chapters will be difficult or take a long time:

• Recognizing and Acknowledging Adherence or Lack of Adherence to Rules and Procedures,
• Communicating High Expectations for All Students, and
• Developing Effective Lessons into Cohesive Units.

If you are interested in the PowerPoints provided by the district, you may click here to review them.  Reviewing the action steps in the text will also be helpful.  Taking some department or team time may expedite the process as well.  

 . . . and thank you, Dr. Miller, for arranging THIS for us!