Time

I can't believe I haven't been on here since Oct. So much has happened here at O-M since then. We are going strong with the 1:1 initiative. Our student technology afternoons have been successful. We will continue to evaluate student skills and may continue with these lessons this spring. Currently we are preparing for ITBS/ITED assessments. A lot of conversations and lessons on test taking strategies and the importance of the assessments have been taking place. Students have reviewed their past scores and set goals for their upcoming assessment scores. We hope to get a true picture of the learning that has taken place as well as evaluate areas of strength and weakness in our district student achievement plan. We are looking forward to celebrating that success this spring. Please encourage your children to do their best.

Fall is here!!

I love Fall. That great time of year when you run your heater and air conditioning all in the same day. Students here at O-M are really doing a nice job of following the new rules associated with the 1:1 initiative. We have had a few things that we needed to clarify but overall things are running very smoothly. I am proud of our students and staff for working together to make this successful. Plans have been started to run some technology mini courses for our high school students. We will spend one afternoon every other week to teach and practice different skills. This will help the students and teachers use the technology more effectively in the classroom. AEA staff will be on hand to assist us. It will be exciting to see teachers and students learning together. One goal of the 1:1 is that students begin to share the responsibility of the learning for themselves and their classmates. I hope everyone working together to increase our skills will help us meet this goal.

Changes in Technology

Spent the long weekend in celebration. My family and I attended a friend's wedding, a brother's 40th birthday party and a visitation to celebrate the life of our neighbor's 90 year old mother. So many memories shared. Always hard to believe how time flies but fun to think about the changes we have seen. Makes me think about the changes that are coming our way in education through the use of technology. The first computer I remember in an O-M classroom was in the early '80's in the math room. We used it to plot green points and write programs that would make sentences repeat over and over. If someone would have said that some day all students would have their own computer at their desk and could take it home at night we would have thought they were crazy. In a few weeks that will be a reality. It will be exciting to see what changes are ahead in technology and I am proud that we have taken a step to prepare our students to embrace what is coming.

First Days

It has been great seeing everyone back these first days of school. Doesn't take long to feel like we never left. Schedules are getting all the kinks worked out and students and staff are falling back into old routines. A couple changes we want to remember are no bags or purses are allowed in the classrooms this year and absolutely no food in the rooms unless it is given by the teacher for something special. We have new carpet in some areas and students will soon have computers with them all day. We are looking at September 22nd for our roll out celebration. We are continuing to make plans so that we are ready for that day. I am looking forward to seeing our volleyball, football and cross country teams compete this fall. Hope to see big crowds at all our events. Our students and coaches work hard to represent our school at these events; let's show them our support.

SAI Convention

I just spent the last two days with administrators from all across the state. The number of districts going 1:1 is really growing. Many sessions were related to technology. This summer has really brought the term "life-long learner" to life for me. I have spent a lot of time exploring technology and discovering how it expands my personal learning. Another term that I have heard a lot when talking about 1:1 schools is "shift of control" in the classroom. I have given a lot of thought to that phrase and here is the conclusion I have come to. In any classroom the teacher is still the most important factor to determine student success. Students are comfortable with technology; not afraid to try new things and explore but the adults have the skills to guide that learning. The teacher is not most important because they have all the answers but because they have the skills to guide students to ask the right questions, to think critically about the answers they find and to transfer that information to their lives. In my opinion it is not a "shift in control" but a "share in control" that teachers need to be comfortable with to truly make classrooms learning communities.

New Faces

We have completed our hiring for the new school year. We had several good candidates to interview and are anxious to introduce our new staff on the first day back. We even did a couple of interviews using Skype. It was very easy to use and I can see how it would be a useful classroom tool. Just got home from spending a week with my family; always a lot of fun. I will spend the next few days working around home then back to work on Monday. The SAI Conference will be next week and then will spend a few days at the State Fair before seeing teachers back on the 17th.

Summer Events

Just back from watching the baseball team win their first game in districts. The girls had a tough loss last Wednesday at Corning. They played a great game but came up short. I have enjoyed watching them all play this past summer. Many of them I have watched for several years. I will miss seeing the seniors and their families at all O-M activities. I hope those graduating their last child will come back and see us often. I am taking some time off in July but will be back the first of August. The last time I was at school the gym was all taped and ready for paint. I am anxious to see the progress when I get back. Fall registration is set for August 6th and we will be providing a lot of information in August about the 1:1 laptop program.