2017.12.8
A Week in the Life of...
“Outtakes”. A snippet of thoughts to kick off this blog post:
This is a busy time of year for everyone.
What I am looking forward to putting into practice, or continuing:
A moment for me. Remembering to take time to keep everything in balance and perspective.
Quote(s) that resonated with me this week:
“We must find time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives.” ~ John F. Kennedy
“I've failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed.” ~ Michael Jordan
After a week off from writing a blog post (life/work sometimes has a way of loading up the calendar!), I am back with a reflection on a “week in the life of…”. You may insert teacher, educator, student, administrator, or anything education related, in the latter part of the title and it would apply to this time of year. It is a time of excitement, activities, and business. This is by no means a critical look at the calendar, just a snapshot of the balancing act that takes place during certain times of the year. Meetings, observations, conversations with students/staff, emails, etc. are the constants, the rest of the schedule ebbs and flows
Monday was a typical day start to a week during the day, followed by the Board of Education meeting that evening. Making the best of an extended day, I was able to grab a bite to eat with a colleague from Saxe and talk shop in a different setting (Note: The Lime Restaurant in Norwalk has a great veggie burger!). It was exciting to see Melinda Meyer and Jonathan Adams present on their specific content areas, Science and Health Education, respectively. NCPS is fortunate to have smart, talented, dedicated leaders in all disciplines. Melinda focused on the transition to Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) while Jonathan covered the importance of comprehensive, quality Health Education.
Tuesday included a Tri-State Assistant Principal study group, which I found engaging and professionally enriching. That evening, the NCHS Orchestra held their Annual Orchestra Festival. I was not surprised, but I was amazed at the talent that these students displayed during the concert. Mr. Ficks and company do a great job of preparing this impressively large group and keep it interesting for anyone in attendance by having their music range from Bach to Pixar to Star Wars. Tremendous.
Wednesday began with one of my favorite events of the week, the Rising Above Ceremony. This recognizes students who have helped others, put forth extraordinary effort to reach a goal or “risen above” difficult situations. Parents were invited and it was a nice celebration for these well deserving students. Later in the day, the Health and Physical Education program had an impromptu meeting with a regional representative from the US Games OPEN program to consider ways to continue to improve and provide quality, meaningful Health and Physical Education for all NCHS students. The day wrapped up with a district administrative meeting that included conversations ranging from facilities to budget to transportation to programming, and everything in between. It is always nice to get this talented group of educational leaders together and I always feel as though I grow professionally after these collaborative meetings.
Thursday began with a Wellness Walk that was put together by our amazing Nursing Coordinator, Janet Reed. This is one example of offering opportunities that benefit employees, physically, socially, and emotionally which ultimately allows staff to perform at an optimal level for their students. I will be writing more about the recently developed Employee Wellness program (@BeWellNCPS) in the near future. Thursday evening was rounded out by a community event in my hometown (Bethel) by the best-selling author of the Kinesthetic Classroom books, Mike Kuczala. It is always nice to experience an event given by someone who is the best in their respective field, in this case, the brain-body connection. Today, he will be working 130+ educators for one of their professional development days.
Friday, looks to be another “standard” day. It began by greeting students out in front of the building as they arrived (my favorite), followed by a visit to a class doing a shark dissection (very cool) and will conclude with a conference call this afternoon with a colleague (Sam Karns) in my PLN to discuss ideas and details about the great Employee Wellness program they have in place in Spring Branch, Texas. Finally, I hope to round out the week with a nice jog in Waveny. A great opportunity to de-stress, experience nature right in our “backyard”, and build some new brain cells through some aerobic activity! Have a great weekend and thanks for taking the time to read my post this week.
Tags: @BeWellNCPS, @NCHS_CT, @NCPShealthPE, @Samuel_Karns, @kinestheticlass, #NGSS, Melinda Meyer, Janet Reed
Please feel free to contact or follow me:
Email: david.gusitsch@ncps-k12.org
Here a few pictures from this past week:
Molecular Geometry simulation in AP Chemistry
Jonathan Adams presenting to BOE
NCHS Orchestra (amazing)
Rising Above Ceremony
Mike Kuczala (Bethel)
Dogfish shark dissection in Marine Science
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