It's been great to have met so many parents this summer and to have had an opportunity to talk with all of you about Henley. Over the next couple of weeks, I would like to put together some parent focus groups that will allow more of you to have some input into where we are going at Henley. I think these groups will work best if we limit the number of participants each night to ten. If you are interested in joining us, please contact Alissa Layne or Sandy Conley in the Henley front office (823-4393) to sign up for a meeting date. The spots will be filled on a first come, first served basis. Dates and times of the meetings will be as follows:
Wednesday, August 8, 6:00 p.m. -7:00 p.m.
Thursday, August 9, 6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, August 15, 6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
Thursday, August 16, 6:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.
All meetings will be held in the Henley conference room. If you will be joining us, please come prepared to talk about specifics attributes of Henley that you view as our strengths, and specific ideas you have for ways in which we can get even better. I will be trying to get this meeting information out through our Henley Matters e-mail distribution list as well. As you read this, please help me to spread the word about these meetings to as many people as possible so that we can hear as many view points as possible when we have our conversations.
I look forward to hearing what you have to say! Go Hornets!
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Four key questions
Sorry that it's been over a week since I've been able to update my page. Aside from the mad dash to get everything in place to get the school year started, two things in particular have been taking up a good deal of my time.
The first is a conference I attended last week in Durham hosted by Rick and Becky DuFour, two of the nations most well-known scholars on the topic of professional learning communities. I've been reading a lot of their writing lately and was thrilled to have the opportunity to hear them in person and develop ways to apply their ideas about education and learning to what we do at Henley. The DuFours truly have a mission to take the ways that educators have traditionally developed our lessons, our instructional strategies, and our assessment of children, and challenge us to look at things in a different light.
Teaching is a notoriously isolating profession. When we close the doors to our classrooms it is very easy to slip into our own world where we think that we have all of the answers and that the way in which we do things is the best. When we sit down to reflect and to assess how well we are preforming as educators, we often ask ourselves questions such as, "How well did I teach that lesson?" and "Am I making sure that I have delivered all of the content that the state and the district requires?" The concept of professional learning communities, in a very condensed description, basically tells us that we will only see true gains from our students when we eliminate the isolation that it is easy to slip into as teachers and, perhaps more importantly, when we stop asking ourselves questions like the ones above and begin asking ourselves, "What have my students learned as a result of my teaching?"
Many times in education we do make the time to collaborate, and the DuFours argue that we often find ourselves collaborating on the wrong things: ways to find chaperones for the next school dance, the lunch period that our classes will have next week, this new principal and his crazy ideas. The DuFours propose that when we collaborate we should instead be asking ourselves four key questions:
The first is a conference I attended last week in Durham hosted by Rick and Becky DuFour, two of the nations most well-known scholars on the topic of professional learning communities. I've been reading a lot of their writing lately and was thrilled to have the opportunity to hear them in person and develop ways to apply their ideas about education and learning to what we do at Henley. The DuFours truly have a mission to take the ways that educators have traditionally developed our lessons, our instructional strategies, and our assessment of children, and challenge us to look at things in a different light.
Teaching is a notoriously isolating profession. When we close the doors to our classrooms it is very easy to slip into our own world where we think that we have all of the answers and that the way in which we do things is the best. When we sit down to reflect and to assess how well we are preforming as educators, we often ask ourselves questions such as, "How well did I teach that lesson?" and "Am I making sure that I have delivered all of the content that the state and the district requires?" The concept of professional learning communities, in a very condensed description, basically tells us that we will only see true gains from our students when we eliminate the isolation that it is easy to slip into as teachers and, perhaps more importantly, when we stop asking ourselves questions like the ones above and begin asking ourselves, "What have my students learned as a result of my teaching?"
Many times in education we do make the time to collaborate, and the DuFours argue that we often find ourselves collaborating on the wrong things: ways to find chaperones for the next school dance, the lunch period that our classes will have next week, this new principal and his crazy ideas. The DuFours propose that when we collaborate we should instead be asking ourselves four key questions:
- What is it that we expect our students to learn?
- How will we know when they have learned it?
- How will we respond when they don't learn?
- How will we respond when they already know it?
By using these four questions to guide our work together as educators, we develop clear expectations for our students, we work together to see who is learning and who is not, and we are able to develop clear plans of intervention for those who need more assistance and clear plans for those who are excelling. I would say that by doing this, we will be able to leave no child behind, but that phrase seems to be a little bit too divisive today.
I'm excited to be able to try to bring some of the DuFours' ideas to Henley next year.
At the start of this entry I mentioned two things that have been occupying my time and keeping me away from posting. So what's the second? Bringing a close to the saga of Harry Potter. As I write, I've got about 50 pages to go to finally see what happens to the boy wizard and the rest of the gang. How wonderful it is that these books have gotten so many children excited about reading. The fact that many of our Henley Hornets were chomping at the bit to pick up a book this summer that is over 700 pages long and not put it down until they are finished warms my heart. Thank you, J. K. Rowling.
So, I'm off, muggles, to end the saga. I've made it a week without hearing a spoiler and can't wait to see how it all ends. Until next time...Go Hornets!
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
A new face in Hornet Country
It is my pleasure to announce that Jason Crutchfield will be joining the Henley team as our new assistant principal. Jason comes to us from Stuart's Draft Middle School in Augusta County where he served as an assistant principal for the past two years. Prior to that he worked for nine years as a classroom teacher at both the middle school and high school level. We are very excited to have Jason on board and look forward to what he will bring to Henley. If you would like to introduce yourself to Jason, his e-mail account is up and running at jcrutchfield@k12albemarle.org. I'm sure he would love to hear from you about what a great place Henley Middle School is for students, teachers and parents.
On another note, blogger.com has just added a feature to its site that allows me to post poll questions and collect data from users. I'm interested in getting some feedback about how this tool could be used to allow for input from parents, students and community groups about the happenings at Henley. I've posted a sample poll to try and gauge just how many of you in the blogosphere would be interested in using a tool such as this. Please think about whether or not this would be something that you would like to see used on occasion by responding to the poll that you see on the right side of this page. Unfortunately, this tool does not provide for free response answers, which would likely give me much better feedback. However, you can always reach me via the e-mail link on the top right of the page to let me know how you feel.
I've enjoyed hearing from many of you this week and hope that I have been effective in addressing this issues that you've brought to my attention. We're spending a great deal of time at Henley finishing up our staffing and working on the master schedule. We're also beginning to set some of the major dates for the 2007-2008 calendar. Right now, there are two dates that I would like everyone to be aware of:
On another note, blogger.com has just added a feature to its site that allows me to post poll questions and collect data from users. I'm interested in getting some feedback about how this tool could be used to allow for input from parents, students and community groups about the happenings at Henley. I've posted a sample poll to try and gauge just how many of you in the blogosphere would be interested in using a tool such as this. Please think about whether or not this would be something that you would like to see used on occasion by responding to the poll that you see on the right side of this page. Unfortunately, this tool does not provide for free response answers, which would likely give me much better feedback. However, you can always reach me via the e-mail link on the top right of the page to let me know how you feel.
I've enjoyed hearing from many of you this week and hope that I have been effective in addressing this issues that you've brought to my attention. We're spending a great deal of time at Henley finishing up our staffing and working on the master schedule. We're also beginning to set some of the major dates for the 2007-2008 calendar. Right now, there are two dates that I would like everyone to be aware of:
- Monday, August 20 from 10:00-12:00 will be our Henley open house. Students should have received their schedules by this time and can come to the school to make sure they know where they are going on the first day of school.
- Wednesday, September 5 from 7:00-9:00 p.m. will be the Henley Back-to-School Night. This is a night where you can come to the school to spend an evening going through your child's schedule and hear about the types of things that they will be studying for the coming year.
We hope to see all of you at these informative events. Until then......Go Hornets!
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Some welcome suggestions
It's been a busy week and a half so far in my new position. Summer school is well under way and, from what I've seen, has been very successful so far. I've been meeting many new faculty members, staff members, students, and parents, from whom I've been trying to gather as much information as I can about Henley and where we can go this year. Everyone I've spoken with has had some good insights and ideas for the future.
One of the highlights of my short time here, and one of my best sources for suggestions for next year, came across my desk just the other day. Two of Mrs. Harder's classes took the time to write letters to me that told me what is was they loved about Henley and what they would like to see next year. I wanted to share some of their ideas here. Reid wanted to bring lacrosse to Henley, Arthur suggested some new basketball hoops to replace the old ones behind the school, Kaitlyn thought eighth graders should be able to eat lunch outside, Ignacio wanted to see more seventh grade students represented on the field trip to Wallops Island, Emma thought we needed more air conditioning in the gym, Peter was concerned about bullying, Bryce was adamant that we should erect a statue to honor his favorite drag racer, and many other students from Mrs. Harder's class had more fine ideas for Henley.
I wanted to make sure that these students were aware of two things. The first is that their voice has been heard. While some of the ideas had more sound reasoning than others, I will take all of them into consideration. The second is that I was incredibly impressed with the quality of their writing and their ability to justify the reasons they felt that their ideas were ones that should be considered. Solid communication skills are the backbone of a strong academic career and of success in the global economy. These students are well on their way to both achievements.
Great work kids, and great work Mrs. Harder. I can't wait to meet you all in the fall and discuss some of the ideas that you had.
Until next time--Go Hornets!
One of the highlights of my short time here, and one of my best sources for suggestions for next year, came across my desk just the other day. Two of Mrs. Harder's classes took the time to write letters to me that told me what is was they loved about Henley and what they would like to see next year. I wanted to share some of their ideas here. Reid wanted to bring lacrosse to Henley, Arthur suggested some new basketball hoops to replace the old ones behind the school, Kaitlyn thought eighth graders should be able to eat lunch outside, Ignacio wanted to see more seventh grade students represented on the field trip to Wallops Island, Emma thought we needed more air conditioning in the gym, Peter was concerned about bullying, Bryce was adamant that we should erect a statue to honor his favorite drag racer, and many other students from Mrs. Harder's class had more fine ideas for Henley.
I wanted to make sure that these students were aware of two things. The first is that their voice has been heard. While some of the ideas had more sound reasoning than others, I will take all of them into consideration. The second is that I was incredibly impressed with the quality of their writing and their ability to justify the reasons they felt that their ideas were ones that should be considered. Solid communication skills are the backbone of a strong academic career and of success in the global economy. These students are well on their way to both achievements.
Great work kids, and great work Mrs. Harder. I can't wait to meet you all in the fall and discuss some of the ideas that you had.
Until next time--Go Hornets!
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Okay, Let's Get Started!
Now it's official. I have become the principal of Henley Middle School. I still haven't gotten used to hearing that, or to telling that to people I've been meeting around town. I feel very blessed to be in this position and I know that there will be many long days in the years ahead as I get to know the culture of Henley and the community we serve. I can truly say that there is nowhere else I'd rather be right now than right here, and I'm looking forward to the challenges and triumphs that my time here will bring.
Summer vacation, for me at least, is now just a fond memory. My family had a wonderful time, and we were able to relax and rejuvenate, and now it's time to get down to business. I spent a good deal of my time at the beach thinking about what these first few weeks would be like and of everything I needed to learn as I begin my career at Henley. As I've said before, it's all a little overwhelming, and at the same time incredibly exciting.
While I was away, a major change took place for the Henley team when Clare Keiser was named the new principal of Hollymead Elementary. Clare had been an assistant principal at Henley for the past three years and had a well deserved reputation as a strong school leader. In fact, I knew from the first day I met Clare that she was bound for a principalship in the very near future. Personally, I just hoped it wouldn't have been quite so soon. Our loss will certainly be Hollymead's gain. I certainly looked forward to working with Clare, and I know that she will be missed by many members of the Henley Team. We all wish her the best.
The search for a new assistant principal has begun, and we hope to be able to make an announcement in the next few weeks about who will be coming on board.
I hope you will notice that my e-mail address has been updated to reflect the activation of my Albemarle account. I can easily be reached through that link and will do my best to respond to all of your requests and questions within one working day. Albemarle has a pretty intensive training program for new administrators that will require me to be out of the building for several days over the next couple of weeks, and I'll be bringing my laptop with me each day and will be checking e-mail as often as I can. I look forward to meeting all of you in person, and will be sending out some communication soon with some dates, times and locations when we can all sit down together and come up with some strategies to make Henley better than ever.
As of this posting, there are fifty days until the start of the 2007-2008 school year. That may seem like a great deal of time now, but we all know that summer days slip by much faster than any other days of the year. One thing I've noticed about Henley in the few days that I've been here this week is that it is too quiet. A school just doesn't seem complete without the chorus of young, excited voices echoing through the hallways. That joyous sound can't return to Henley soon enough.
I hope everyone has a fabulous Fourth of July. Go Hornets!
Summer vacation, for me at least, is now just a fond memory. My family had a wonderful time, and we were able to relax and rejuvenate, and now it's time to get down to business. I spent a good deal of my time at the beach thinking about what these first few weeks would be like and of everything I needed to learn as I begin my career at Henley. As I've said before, it's all a little overwhelming, and at the same time incredibly exciting.
While I was away, a major change took place for the Henley team when Clare Keiser was named the new principal of Hollymead Elementary. Clare had been an assistant principal at Henley for the past three years and had a well deserved reputation as a strong school leader. In fact, I knew from the first day I met Clare that she was bound for a principalship in the very near future. Personally, I just hoped it wouldn't have been quite so soon. Our loss will certainly be Hollymead's gain. I certainly looked forward to working with Clare, and I know that she will be missed by many members of the Henley Team. We all wish her the best.
The search for a new assistant principal has begun, and we hope to be able to make an announcement in the next few weeks about who will be coming on board.
I hope you will notice that my e-mail address has been updated to reflect the activation of my Albemarle account. I can easily be reached through that link and will do my best to respond to all of your requests and questions within one working day. Albemarle has a pretty intensive training program for new administrators that will require me to be out of the building for several days over the next couple of weeks, and I'll be bringing my laptop with me each day and will be checking e-mail as often as I can. I look forward to meeting all of you in person, and will be sending out some communication soon with some dates, times and locations when we can all sit down together and come up with some strategies to make Henley better than ever.
As of this posting, there are fifty days until the start of the 2007-2008 school year. That may seem like a great deal of time now, but we all know that summer days slip by much faster than any other days of the year. One thing I've noticed about Henley in the few days that I've been here this week is that it is too quiet. A school just doesn't seem complete without the chorus of young, excited voices echoing through the hallways. That joyous sound can't return to Henley soon enough.
I hope everyone has a fabulous Fourth of July. Go Hornets!
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