General

I’ve thought long and hard about my #OneWord that I wanted to focus on for this year (2016).  I wanted a word that had several meanings to me. So after much thought I finally chose my word.  This year my word is…Ours. I think so often I can focus on things like “my” students, “my”…

So when reflecting on a year, there’s a lot that comes to mind.  There’s accomplishments, failures, deepening of friendships, new friendships, those lost, new adventures, and so much more. It’s always been hard for me to write a good comprehensive post over a year of time because I know I always leave people or events…

I still remember the advice someone gave me…they said, “Now you’re dealing with adults.  And you’re exceptional at handling children, so just remember, adults are just kids in bigger bodies.” At first I laughed at that, but the more I’ve worked with adults the more I see it’s true. One thing we started at my…

A good leader will always be a servant leader.  That’s a belief that I was raised with and one I’ve tried, sometimes unsuccessfully, to live out. As a campus leader now I try to continually find ways to show my staff that I appreciate them and that I can serve them as well.  From covering…

Kids Deserve It!   Writing our last chapter! Sometimes things just fall into place.  It doesn’t make sense all the time, but it always seems to happen at just the right time. The important thing to remember is – just go with it, there’s a reason it’s all happening! Who would have known that six months…

Time and time again, I have shared about the power of social media.  The power of taking time to connect with others. One of those people I’ve connected with is Ben Gilpin. Ben is a principal at Warner Elementary in Michigan!  I’ve known Ben for a few years now, and through daily Voxer conversations (with…

So my wife is a huge Charlie Brown fan.  Every year, we must sit down and watch all the holiday specials.  And when she heard the Peanuts Movie was coming out she made sure it was scheduled in for us to see.  And if I must admit, I haven’t ever been that big of a…

Back in August I wrote a review on a little book called “Crash Course” by Kim Bearden.  You can read that post HERE. Well our staff read that book together as our fall book-study book.  To say that it was a game changer is an understatement. When we began reading the book we decided we…

This week I was able to do something I haven’t done before as a leader.  I listened to my students. Now let me clarify.  I’ve done anonymous surveys, I’ve had kids write letters, and more.  But I have never really taken the time to just sit in their presence and listen. I started with 3rd-5th…

Well, the conclusion of my “I Wish You Knew…” series is here.  This has been such a learning journey for me to hear from administrators, then teachers, then parents, and now students from all over the world. I think there’s so much to be learned from all these groups as we move forward and make…

Welcome to the 3rd part (in a 4 part series) of “I Wish You Knew….”.  Part 1 was all about what Administrators wished you knew, part 2 was all about what Teachers wished you knew, and now Part 3 focuses on Parents! I really wanted to gather great ideas and honest opinions from parents.  So,…