No Good Ever Comes From Clicking Reply All

One of the challenges of my new position has been juggling email overload. For anyone who understands this struggle, I have composed a list of some super simple practices that have helped me. 

• Take time to unsubscribe to marketing emails you are no longer interested in receiving.

• Know what is better communicated face-to-face or through a phone call.
  

• Create organized folders by topic to save emails you may want to refer to later. Take time to carefully plan your folder structure. Schedule time daily to practice using it and give yourself a celebratory fist bump when you have cleared your inbox.
  

• Give yourself a break from your email by setting aside periods of time throughout your work day to check and resist the urge to peek all day long.
  

• Use your “out of office” feature to decrease email overload when you are away.
  

• If you can respond quickly, do so immediately. If not, use the “flag” feature and try to respond within 24 hours.
  

• And most of all, use Reply All sparingly.
  

Our district email defaults to a “Reply All” setting.  To learn how to fix this, take less than ONE minute and watch this video. It will show you how to change your default settings to “Reply.”

Let's learn from each other. Share below you own email management tips.

Classroom Screen

Written by Kelly Skillingberg and Monica Champagne

Our first favorite tool of this school year explores ClassroomScreen, a classroom management website that takes the most commonly used classroom widgets and organizes them onto one screen for you and your class. 

Need to display a

Timer?

Random Name Generator?

Calculator?

Simple Text Box?

QR Code Maker?

Drawing?

Clock?

Traffic light?

Take TWO minutes and see how this tool can simplify your classroom management by providing all of these things on ONE screen. You will be glad you did!

Have two more minutes?  Watch this video to see how ClassroomScreen can help you manage groups.



Which widget would be the most useful in your classroom and why? Comment below.

A New Digital Learning Coach's Vision

232 staff members, 72 new to our school educators, and 3,124 students, these are the people I serve as a first-year digital learning coach. I do not take the term serve lightly. As I navigate this enormous campus and slowly began to build relationships with one amazing educator after another, I feel humbled to be called a “coach”. Listening to these educators share their “why” and verbalize their passions for our learners’ successes makes me feel so lucky to be in this position.

As coaches we are often referred to as leaders, but I see my role as more of a servant. I am not the reason for the mission or vision of these educators, they are and I am here to support them in their goals. Instructional leaders that have had the most influence on my career have given me the power of choice. They valued my professional judgment regarding not only what my learners needed, but also regarding what I knew I needed for my own growth. They actively supported my own goals by planting seeds through freely sharing strategies and knowledge, but allowed me to adapt and apply those strategies only when I was ready. They allowed me to feel safe enough to respectfully disagree with their viewpoints and listened without judgment exercising empathy.

This is the type of Digital Learning Coach I hope to become this year. I look forward to the many new relationships that I will have the opportunity to foster and am excited to learn from each other. #reciprocity

Love Letter to West

There once was a teacher who lost her direction 

So, she turned her car West in random selection 

Little did she know her life would be blessed 

By all of the people this new school possessed

Though she was the teacher, she learned as much as she taught

From the admin, teachers, and students her broken path sought

Cheri and Lesa taught me grace under pressure

Just keeping a smile is truly a treasure

From Laila I learned to say yes more than no

While current admin provided new ways to grow

Poullard taught me to make learning fun

Allison and Franci did this like no one

Vern gave me recognition, which of course I repeated

Our nurses stayed calm when my blood pressure was heated

Catherine and Cary glammed my world and my hall

Shari, Brandi, and Pam taught divine call

Nolte showed me how set the bar high

And Polly said always be sure of your "why"

Trisha and Angie encouraged and coached

Laura held me together with true friendship and jokes

Carson and Howell truly loved all the learners

Marci's service and sacrifice was like no other's

A true partner and coach Victoria became

She gave me courage to lead and helped keep me sane

These lessons sound small but a big impact you've made

Because of your love my new path is laid

Over a decade has brought so many so dear

but I'll end with my kids to my heart your most near

Perseverance, forgiveness, patience, and heart

I've learn the most from you, that I just couldn't part

You see, this isn't good-bye, but I'm following you now

I'm off CHS after this one final bow

Thank you all friends for showing me the West way

Please stay in touch Westies I'm not far away. 

WESTV 2016-17 Final Episode

To the parents of my learners:

Thank you so much for sharing your amazing, talented, compassionate, and funny children with me this year. As promised, here is the link to our final show. Enjoy your summer!

Please comment below and let us know which Multimedia project or WESTV show you enjoyed the most this year.

IMPACT CBL Project Wrap Up

By: Media B Learners

Three thousand dollars. That’s the amount of money raised from the UNICEF dance. The turnout was very successful. Many students from all grades came and had a lot of fun. There was a professional DJ hosting fun games in the gym, raffle tickets to pie teachers, food in the cafeteria, and simulations. A Snapchat filter was even created for the event, showing on anybody’s Snapchat app during that time.

This CBL project has come to a close. With the dance being the final solution for the sixth graders, they have accomplished their challenge. Coppell Middle School West has made an IMPACT on UNICEF and children around the world. Media B enjoyed documenting the process. Below you can view our finished documentary.

If you were a part of this project in any way, tell us how it IMPACTED you.

Teacher Tech Tools in Under Two Minutes-Google Keep

Welcome to my new obsession, Google Keep! My list making talent has always been a joke in my family. There are so many ideas going on in my head, not to mention being a working mom of four. Writing down my "to-dos" is the only way I can rest. Do you ever have trouble sleeping because of all the things you need to remember to do the next day? Or, do you ever have some late night great idea pop into your head that you don't want to forget? When that happens to me, I now grab my phone and get it out of my head and on to a Google Keep list. I can sleep knowing the information will be easily accessible on all of my devices whenever I need it again.

Google Keep allows users to create unlimited lists, color code them, label them, move and organize, and share them with other collaborators. You can add photos, create drawings, and set reminders. You have a variety of note types you can take including, text, audio, or checklist. But, my favorite part is how it works with other applications. Searching online and find something note worthy? Just launch the Google Keep extension and take your notes. Oh but wait, you want to start a Google doc with these notes.  Just, go to "Tools", "Keep Notepad", and drag your content over.

Are you thinking about how useful this could be for students? Besides the obvious time management, to-do lists, and daily habits, they could create bookmarks with the Keep Extension, organize research for projects, create vocabulary or spelling lists, take class notes, organize reading logs, and collaborate with team members.

Below is a quick overview of Google Keep from my Teacher Tech Tools in Under Two Minutes video series.

I am looking forward to starting my learners off next year with this organizational tool, so that they too can learn to love the satisfying feeling of ticking off a task. Are you already using Keep with your learners?  I would love for you to  leave a comment below and share with others.