Winfield Middle School Parent Blog
February 1st, 2016
From the first sunset I ever “saw”...
One evening over Troy, we noticed this stunning setting and images blew up social media from all over Lincoln County.
Back in the Day
As a young man, I remember driving a 1969 Ford Bronco across the country to Colorado, fixing or repairing it daily, spending time working on a ranch, waiting for what was next in my life. Summer parlayed into the following ski season so I just stayed, got a job at Winter Park Ski Resort and began a semi-professional career as a “ski-bum!” One evening, while after working on the mountain, I looked up and saw my first sunset. (The above picture is not that sunset.) It was the first time I had ever noticed a sunset. Of course I had seen sunsets before but it took me until that stage of my life to take complete notice of my surroundings. As a youngster, I couldn’t get past thinking only of myself. Recently I came across this saying: “Humility is not thinking less of yourself but thinking of yourself, less.” (Thanks KG) Before that sunset, my focus was on today, right now and what’s right in front of me. But then I “saw” that sunset and had one of those aha moments where things just clicked. I even thought to myself, “I wish I had a set of paints.” I imagined I could just put some colors on a page and it would look as cool and inspiring to others as it did to me.. As I watched that sunset unfold, develop, grow to it’s apex and then fade to black, I knew I would never see a sunset the same way again. It seems the LESSONS COME ALONG WHEN THE PUPIL IS READY. Prior to this date, I ignored sunsets, but now, a sunset seems like a pallet presented just for me, whether driving west home from work or walking the dogs at the end of the day.
February Warrior Word of the Month - CONSIDERATION
Consideration means careful thought, especially over time, payment for an item or holding others in higher esteem.
In the middle school, our students are still learning to consider or think of classmates, friends and strangers. Neurology confirms our students are still growing, developing, maturing and transitioning from childhood to adulthood. Our middle school students are in neither group completely, with aspects of the former and the future, both childlike in some and adult wise in others. The group of students we work with are still developing these skills. We spend many hours teaching content as well as teaching manners, consideration, integrity and other “soft skills.”
Snow days - Mark your calendars
As addressed in our district calendar, our SNOW MAKE UP DAY will be a full day slated for Feb 15th, President’s Day.
Upcoming Schedule
Monday - 2/1 -
Tuesday - 2/2 - GroundHog Day
Wednesday - 2/3
Early Release -
The Megan Meier Foundation will present to parents after school at 6pm at Central Office.
Parents, our students have taken this survey from the Megan Meier Foundation prior to the presentation to allow our speaker some perspective and background on her audience ahead of time. See http://www.meganmeierfoundation.org/ for additional details.
Friday - 2/5
9:00 - Followed by a presentation from Tina Meier, founder of the Megan Meier Foundation at the Middle School.
Upcoming
Feb 17- The brief plug to publicize the Harlem Wizards has been rescheduled for Feb 17th, at school. Details will follow.
Feb 19 - “It’s a Pretty Big Deal” (a surprise event) THEN the Middle School Glow Dance right after school until about 4:30pm. Please plan accordingly. Special discounts will be available for students earning Black Card or Red Card status.
This name of this “holiday” gave teachers plenty of things to talk about.
One room full of students responded to the prompt this way.
...To
“The teacher arrives when the pupil is ready.”
This sunrise looking to the east shows the distant edge of our “snowmagedden” easing over Lincoln County and preparing to dump over eight inches of snow, shutting school down for days.
Point of the sunset story.
Sometimes we have to continue with the same story, over and over again until the learner is receptive to the message. I did not notice the sunsets for quite some time, but finally, when I was ready, they caught my attention. Similarly, we have to continue admonishing, encouraging, supporting and urging our students to reach their potential, even when they may appear so far away from “the goal”. They may not get it the first, second or even 12th time. Yet, we stay the course, persist and continue to allow them opportunities to learn, get better and improve. We are teachers.
From our daily announcements:
Show respect, even to people who don’t deserve it,
not as a reflection of THEIR character,
but as a reflections of YOURS!
Thanks Ms. Gross for always mining such good nuggets for us.
Communication?
Too much communication? How much communication is too much. We have progress reports every three weeks between quarter and semester grades. Some teachers use Remind 101.
How often should Middle School Teachers update grades in SIS?
- Daily
- Weekly
- Progress Report time (3 weeks)
- Other (why)
We would like to hear from parents on the frequency of our current communication. Of course there may never be too much, but we would like to work alongside parents to send a consistent message of accountability, responsibility and enthusiasm for the value gained by a formal education.
Thank you
Tom McCracken
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