Don't be afraid.

What does 21st century learning look like to you? That is a question you should be able to answer. If you do not have an image of this, then you need to research and develop a vision that you can believe in. We are no longer preparing students for knowledge based jobs. Our students need to be creative, flexible, citizens with the ability to utilize technology. They must be able to collaborate with those they work with and those across the nation or the world.

Watching my son Ryan who

is only seven navigate the computer is an amazing thing. This

evening he was using the flip video to record movies that

he was creating with his legos. I remind you he is seven and

he is zooming in and out, editing the different videos and saving them

to a CD. He plans to merge them together with help from dad. He needs to have the ability to create in school.

If you want your students engaged and excited, let them create.

Our students need to see that the curriculum they are experiencing is relevant. They must have the ability to utilize technology. They must understand how they connect to our community and the world. They must gain the ability to analyze data and develop plans to improve it.

I want you to think about how these things are reflected in what I am asking you to do. Collaborate on Moodle, use the technology in your classrooms, connect your lessons to your students lives, reflect and use data to improve instruction. For many of you this is challenging, but we cannot stop the momentum we have gained. It is our responsibility to provide our students with these opportunities and we ourselves must model these skills. I know this can be scary for many of you but I ask you to step outside of your comfort zone to give our students what they need. Remember an amateur built an arc that survived the great flood and the best engineers in the world built the Titanic, which did not survive its first voyage. You do not need to be an expert, but you do need to take the first step. OUR STUDENTS DESERVE IT.

Change The Way You Think

Albert Einstein once said "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them". I ask you all what that means to you and how does that relate to what we do as educators. To me he is clear, we need to think outside the box, we need to stop doing things just because we have always done them that way and we need to teach our students to challenge the status quo.

Just this morning I had a teacher talking to me about a student that is struggling in reading. I asked the teacher to explain what she was doing and she listed lots of great strategies. My follow up question was how long have you been doing these things and she replied all year. The next question was simple, if you have been doing the same things for months and they are not working why are you still doing them? This child has probable had the same strategies used for the past few years and they have fallen further and further behind, so they are not effective strategies for this child. As educators it is very easy to get sucked into a comfort zone where we do what we have always done. Be sure you are looking at your students and you are reacting to their needs.

This year our goal is to become an Honor School of Excellence. We will never reach this goal if we just do what we have always done. Historically we have almost always been a school of distinction, which would lead one to believe we will again fall short of our goal unless we change something. Step back tomorrow on the workday and reflect on what you have done this year to raise the level of instruction in your classroom. Einstein also stated "information is not knowledge". We need to be sure we are providing our students with more than basic information. Teach them to think and problem solve. Strive for the goal and keep that as the focus when you make educational decisions in your classroom. I know we can get there, but we must remain focused.

Count Your Blessings

As I began the weekend I could not help but thank god for the blessings I have. Looking at the devastation that has occurred in Haiti just reminder me how lucky we all are. Life is so fragile and we never know when we might suffer a tragedy. I hope that you all will take some time to reflect on the wonderful life you have.

I plan to make the most of this weekend. I spent the day making my first Pinewood Derby car with Ryan and playing games with Sam. These are the types of blessings I hope popped into your head when I mentioned them earlier. I hope you all are able to take some time this long weekend to enjoy your family and loved ones, but don't forget those in need.

As we enjoy this long weekend in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I challenge you to make a difference. Usually I am asking you to make an difference for the students in our building. Today, I am asking you to keep those in Haiti in your thoughts and prayers. I am also urging any of you that are in the position to help the support efforts to do so. You can do this through many different organizations. Enjoy the long weekend it is well deserved.

Why Am I here?

What is the point? It is too cold? Break was too short? You fill in the blank. What other negative comments have you heard or worse yet spoke this week since returning.

We have all been given the opportunity to work in the most rewarding profession. We have been given the privilege of helping shape the minds of the children that will some day be running our county and the world.

Over the break I was able to step away from work for a while and I did not have any classwork to complete for my doctoral program so I spent a ton of time with my family. It was by far the best break I have ever had. Was it hard to get out of bed to come to work Monday? Absolutely. Not because I don't love my job, but because I wanted to stay home with my kids. With that said, I was here on time standing out front for 30 minutes with my wonderful car rider line troopers with a smile on my face. Why is the smile important? Because the students deserve that from me. The issues that come with running a school did not come back slowly. They all came rushing back the minute I walked in the door. We had to address teacher assistant reassignments, we have some staff members dealing with health issues, others having difficulties at home, children that were not taken care of over break, etc.

Why do I share all of this? Well that is simple because this week it has never been clearer to me that I am in the right place, doing the right thing. I have always loved working here, but this week cemented my love. I was able to listen to a few of you that were struggling with your home life and I was able to put a smile on the face of a few children that have been miserable the past few weeks while we were on vacation. Home is not as good for many of our students as it is for us. While dealing with the teacher assistant schedules I was able to make a decision that I believe in my heart is best for students. This was a tough process. I could have stuck to my decision and ignored the issues you all were seeing, but that would not have been best for students. I also could have made all teacher assistant placements with teachers' feelings in mind, but again that would not be best for students. I slept well last night knowing that I did what I believe was best for students. I have said this over and over and here I go again. I will not run Antioch by making decisions with what is best for parents, teachers, or administrators. I need to do what is best for the 800 students we serve each day.

I take you back to the quote from the weekly update "Individual commitment to a group effort - that is what makes a team work". We are a team and we all need to be committed if we are going to reach our goals. Whether you have the schedule, the partnership, or the plan that you wanted is not important at this point. What we all must do is step back take a breath and adjust. It is time that we all step-up and commit to the success of all students at Antioch. Ask yourself what that means for you. What can you do to better utilize your TA? to support your teachers? to improve the efficiency of operations? or whatever it is that will make Antioch the best school in Union County. I know I have the staff to accomplish this goal, but we must all commit.