Towards the end of March, grade levels were asked to compose an essay about what they would do if they were principal for a day. After a couple weeks, essays came in from all grade levels. Out of those submissions, and they were all great, two emerged as winners - Hannah and Cole. Little did they know that they would actually have the opportunity to each shadow their principal for a day. Last week, both of them spent time on separate days to experience the role. The following is a picture journal of the things they did. It was a wonderful experience for me as much as an eye opener for them. I don't know that they realized that being a principal requires a lot of flexibility and the need to try to be everywhere to support the staff and the students each day. Although a list of things gets made, a good day and exciting day probably doesn't mean that everything on that list gets done. Thanks to Hannah and to Cole for their insight, hard work, and essays.
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| Hannah writing a note to a para (Mrs. Boyer) about how appreciative she is of her helping in her classroom and specifically answering questions of students when her teacher is not immediately able to. She was able to deliver the rock during class when she was finished composing her note. As a principal, it is extremely important that we recognize and celebrate great work that occurs within the building on the part of students and staff. Thanks again Mrs. Boyer for all your hard work! |
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| Cole spending some time "supervising" the lunchroom. He just had to stop and get a quick picture with his younger brother. How cool is that? Lunchrooms are a busy place aren't they Cole? |
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| Cole scheduled a Google "Hangout" Conference call with his boss, Dr. Funk. Why? Principals have meetings regularly and that includes meeting with the Superintendent. Agenda items ranged from teaching and learning to supporting staff (including principals), and being a Colonel in the Army National Guard. How do you do both? What happens when you are not able to be "in-district" as a Super? |
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| "Hello, this is Cole, Sibley's Principal for a Day. The reason for my call is to make sure that the experience that you and your child are having at Sibley school is a great one. How are things from your perspective as a parent? Are we meeting your needs in helping support your child academically? If so, great! If not, how can I help? Are there things you would like me to share with your child's teacher that you might not have shared that could help us continue to work together?" Cole realized that communication is a very important piece of being a principal. Visiting with parents and making sure they are enjoying their experience is a small topic matter for parent/principal discussion. The goal through those conversations is to make sure that if there are things that we don't know that may be getting in the way of a strong parent and school relationship that we figure out what that is. In the end, if we don't, then students may be impacted and nobody wants that. After all, students and their success is why we are here. |
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| We did not plan our shirts for the day. However, we look sharp, don't we? Great minds think alike? |
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| Cole provided a "thank you" note to his classroom teacher, Mrs. Schulz. In that note, he was appreciative of her work with him, particularly in the area of math and science. He also was able to deliver his complimentary, "YOU ROCK" rock to her. Again, recognizing and celebrating great work and effort in what we do is hugely important to a school and those that work within it. Teaching is not an easy task and teachers don't teach to be recognized. However, in any organization, the culture you create should allow for creativity, risk, collaboration, and trust. When you take the time to appreciate each other in genuine ways around common goals, great things will continue to happen. (Emphasis on genuine :). |
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| Cole had the opportunity to sign and approve some book orders for our book room. In all, he was probably signing away about 2500 dollars that day. In the past few years, Sibley has invested greatly in SD surrounding Guided Reading and really a balanced literacy approach. Having resources to teach that are updated and aligned to a building and district's focus is exciting. Our book room continues to grow with this approval. All teachers in the building access our leveled library to ensure that when they are working and teaching students in small guided reading groups, kids are engaged in meaningful texts at their instructional level. |
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| Hannah is double checking a shared document that lays out the MCA testing schedule for grades 3-5. The reason that she was verifying times was to be able to run a fire drill at the end of the day. Because we were testing as well, she wanted to be sure that no classes were impacted by the drill. State law requires that schools run 5 practice fire drills a year. Hannah did communicate with the staff in the office prior to the drill and actually helped clear the building and made the call as to when it was clear to come back in the building. |
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| Calling parents about their experience with our school was something that Hannah also did. She called a parent of a Kindergarten student and they were thrilled to tell her how their child was doing so well with their reading. It was fun. |
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| Colleagues |
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Conference call with Dr. Funk was pretty cool. "Why would you want to be a Superintendent?"
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