The Fundamental 5 Summit - Let the Road Trips Begin!!!

A Principal Writes... Minutes Instead of Days - Part 2

In response to the 10/20/15 post, “Credits Earned – Minutes Instead of Days,” a LYS Principal writes the following:

LYS Nation,

The bill allows a district flexibility when it comes to make-up days due to weather.  Most districts build in two weather days.  If you go over those days then you had to add days to your school year.  This allows schools to extend their school day to make up time vs. adding days to the preset calendar. 

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations); American Association of School Administrators Conference; National Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

A Reader Shares... The Power of The Fundamental 5

A LYS Principal shares the following:

LYS (and the LYS Nation),

I wanted you to know that recently I was asked to write about one program that I implemented from curriculum and instruction that made a significant impact at my school. Consider this my personal endorsement.

The one curriculum and instruction initiative that I have implemented that has been most effective with student success is from the book, The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction, by Cain & Laird. The majority of the training provided to my campus addressing Fundamental 5 implementation was provided by the Lead Your School (LYS). I am now a firm believer in LYS staff development. After twenty-three years of education, this is the best staff development I have ever attended.

The Fundamental 5 is an easy to read and simple to understand program that focuses on best practices in instructional delivery. The genesis of The Fundamental 5 occurred when Cain was tasked by TEA to identify what successful schools and classrooms were doing as a resource for struggling schools. This work led Cain and his team to identify some fundamental “secrets” of great instruction.

Sometimes as a principal I am fortunate to see great instruction in the classroom. Most of the time I see good instruction in the classroom. And occasionally I witness poor instruction. The problem is trying to identify exactly what makes the great instruction great and to duplicate this in other classrooms. What exactly do I say to coach the low and average teacher to improve the quality of instruction?

The Fundamental 5 looks at five areas to address and help any educator to develop great techniques and systems for improving instruction. By better executing the fundamentals, teachers can improve their focus and efficiency at lesson delivery. Students are more engaged in the lesson, which lowers discipline issues and increases retention.

Principals are not exempt in this pursuit to improve instruction.  They are expected to monitor and support teachers as they work to improve. To assist in this, LYS has a great classroom observation tool, called “PowerWalks,” that allows frequent and specific snapshots of instruction with data feedback for teachers. In just four weeks of school I have now conducted over two hundred classroom visits.

Our elementary school was failing state standards two years in a row, making it a priority campus. That is no longer the case! Focus should always be on student success, but sometimes we get sidetracked. LYS ensures that sidetracking becomes a thing of the past. 

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations); American Association of School Administrators Conference; National Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Legendary Ledership Badge (October 2015)

There are those that don’t understand the power of reflective observation.  They mistakenly believe that there is nothing to learn after a few cursory visits to a classroom.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  In fact, the most important key to building insight and deeper understanding about teaching and learning is to engage in a steady volume of daily classroom observation.  What we have learned over the past ten years is that after about every 300 classroom observations, the observer will notice, discern, and/or learn something new... something that was previously hidden. It is the “Eureka” moment, and there is nothing else like it in instructional leadership.

In this pursuit, there is the PowerWalks Legendary Leadership Badge that is earned every 300^th PowerWalks Observation. The following instructional leaders have already earned the Legendary Leadership Badge for the 2015/2016 school year (as of 10/31/15).

Wes Brown: October 2015

Todd Durham: October 2015

Edward Husk: October 2015

Van LeJeune: October 2015

Pattie Myers: October 2015

Steve Sherrouse: October 2015

Nassrin Spencer: October 2015

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool)
• Upcoming Presentations: The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations); American Association of School Administrators Conference; National Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

PowerWalks Hero Schools (October 2015)

In furtherance of a LYS Nation tradition, we will take this time to tip our caps to the campuses that have embraced the most important step in creating and maintaining an action oriented professional learning community.  These are the campuses that have conducted an extraordinary number of formative classroom observations in a given month.  For the month of October, the PowerWalks Hero School Targets were as follows:

October Hero School Targets

High Schools – 180 PowerWalks Observations

Middle Schools / Junior High Schools – 150 PowerWalks Observations

Elementary / Intermediate / Combined Campuses – 120 PowerWalks Observations

Alternative Schools – 60 PowerWalks Observations.

With the Thanksgiving Holiday in November, we will adjust the targets to the following levels:

November Hero School Targets

High Schools – 150 PowerWalks Observations

Middle Schools / Junior High Schools – 120 PowerWalks Observations

Elementary / Intermediate / Combined Campuses – 100 PowerWalks Observations

Alternative Schools – 50 PowerWalks Observations.

In October, all of the schools using the PowerWalks Instructional Observation System conducted a total of 13,161 classroom observations. A commendable job, LYS Nation! But now, without further ado, here are your thirty-three PowerWalks Hero Schools for the month of October 2015.  Congratulations!!!

Elementary Schools & Combined Campuses	Middle Schools & Junior High Schools	Alternative Schools	High Schools
Southside PS (CISD) - 547	Cleveland MS (CISD) - 681		George Rogers Clark HS (CCPS) - 564
Eastside ES (CISD) - 474	Marlin MS (MISD) - 453		Fairdale HS (JCPS) - 413
Colonial Hills ES (NEISD) - 452	Bernard Harris MS (NEISD) - 277		Saginaw HS (EMSISD) - 356
Live Oak Learning Center (ACISD) - 425	Rockport-Fulton MS (ACISD) - 220		Morton Ranch HS (KISD) - 323
Northside ES (CISD) - 405	Magnolia JH (MISD) - 206		Marlin HS (MISD) - 294
Marlin ES (MISD) - 340	Borger MS (BISD) - 159		Kilgore HS (KISD - 258
Rennell ES (CFISD) - 336	Canyon MS (CISD) -157		Cleveland HS (CISD) - 257
Gleason ES (CFISD) - 314			Borger HS (BISD) - 255
Dublin ES (DISD) - 264			Dublin HS (DISD) - 206
Little Bay Primary School (ACISD) - 195			Vernon HS (VISD) - 192
Dublin IS (DISD) - 164
Natalia ES (NISD) - 163
Raymond E. Curtis ES (WISD) - 155
Cottonwood Creek ES (HISD) - 151
Gateway ES (BISD) - 150
Ault ES (CFISD) - 150

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations); American Association of School Administrators Conference; National Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Top LYS Tweets From the Week of October 25, 2015

If you are not following @LYSNation on Twitter, then you missed the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of October 25, 2015 when they were first posted.  And if you are on Twitter, you might want to check out the Tweeters who made this week’s list.

1. Did you talk to a teacher today? (By @CabidaCain)

2. For a leader, recognition is the most powerful currency you have.  How do you recognize those you lead and serve? (By @TroyMooney)

3. Nothing dilutes influence more than consistent inconsistency. (By @Leadershipfreak)

4. How can we expect students to learn from mistakes if we record every single one in the grade book? (By @lmayolchs)

5. It's unrealistic to assume all students have the same opportunities and resources available to them after the bell rings. (By @justintarte)

6. The Pope said if you want to be a good shepherd... you must get out there and smell the sheep! Relationships and close proximity! (By @Principal_EL)

7. "Classroom management is complicated when you reactively create rules and consequences based on a particular behavior that comes up." (By @DrMetz_MJH)

8. By my count, the 2017 session will be the 11th that we have wasted taxpayer money on voucher policy. (By @pastors4txkids)

9. Conservative pastors know that pursuing failed education policies, like vouchers, is poor stewardship of God's money. (By @pastors4txkids)

10. Excited to share that The Fundamental 5 (Cain & Laird) has now officially sold over 78,000 copies! Thank you, LYS Nation!!! (By @LYSNation)

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations); American Association of School Administrators Conference; National Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

The Fundamental 5 Summit - One Week From Today!