March For A Cure - March 3, 2016 Update

Legendary Leadership Badge (February 2016)

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 2/29/16).

Two Badges

Wes Brown: October 2015; February 2016
Shelia Ochoa: December 2015; February 2016

Denise Poland: December 2015; February 2016

Cody White: December 2015; February 2016

Glenn Barnes:  November 2015; January 2016

Todd Durham: October 2015; January 2016

Van LeJeune: October 2015; January 2016

Nassrin Spencer: October 2015; January 2016

Pattie Myers: October 2015; December 2015

Janie Snyder: November 2015; December 2015

One Badge

Marissa Bell: February 2016

Vernon Berckmoes: February 2016

Denise Bird: February 2016

Sean Cain: February 2016

Marisol Candelaria: February 2016

Michael Cano: February 2016

Stella Chen: February 2016

Michael Clifton: February 2016

Tonia Cummings: February 2016

Mary Giles: February 2016

Jeff Groseclose: February 2016

Michael Hannum: February 2016

Brandon Harris: February 2016

Julie Hinson: February 2016

Kathy Horvath: February 2016

Derieco Irvin: February 2016

Chris Johnstome: February 2016

David Knobloch: February 2016

Mike Laird: February 2016

Grezelda Ligons: February 2016

Steve Lucas: February 2016

Drew McConnaughhay: February 2016

Tania Merik: February 2016

Keith Owen: February 2016

Regina Raiborn: February 2016

Robin Rice: February 2016

James Russell: February 2016

Janie Snyder: February 2016

Sherrie Tolbert: February 2016

Rose Tran: February 2016

Lisa Watson: February 2016

Brad Weston: February 2016

Gregory Wollenzien: February 2016

Lynn Anderson: January 2016

Teresa Bodey: January 2016

Denise Collins: January 2016

Francisco Delgado: January 2016

Demetrio Garcia: January 2016

Donny Hearn: January 2016

Paige Johnson: January 2016

Daniel Kotara: January 2016

Chesta Schneider: January 2016

Lisa Weaver: January 2016

Pete Armstrong: December 2015

Anna Bryant: December 2015

Shele Coburn: December 2015

Shannon Clancy: December 2015

LuJean Daniel: December 2015

Charlotte Goudeau: December 2015

GayLynn Holt: December 2015

Gail Johnson: December 2015

Stephen McCanless: December 2015

Kimberly McKnight: December 2015

Edna O’Bryant: December 2015

Dawn O’Connor: December 2015

Rebecca Smith: December 2015

Christina Spears: December 2015

Marti Turner: December 2015

Tamika Washington: December 2015

Pamela Williams: December 2015

Esther Boateng: November 2015

Karen Ivy: November 2015

Shirley Jenkins: November 2015

Ana Lopez: November 2015

Erica Moody: November 2015

Jeffrey Smith: November 2015

Sheila Stephens: November 2015

Sandra Wilson: November 2015

Edward Husk: October 2015

Steve Sherrouse: 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: Texas Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Conference (Multiple Presentations); LYS / TASSP Advanced Leadership Academy (Keynote) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

PowerWalks Hero Schools (February 2016)

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 February the PowerWalks Hero School Targets were as follows:

February Hero School Targets

High Schools – 135 PowerWalks Observations

Middle Schools / Junior High Schools – 105 PowerWalks Observations

Elementary / Intermediate / Combined Campuses – 90 PowerWalks Observations

Alternative Schools – 45 PowerWalks Observations

This month, due to the fact that the LYS Nation is taking part in the March For A Cure PowerWalks Challenge, the more PowerWalks you do the bigger the donation to the American Cancer Society! So let’s break a sweat!!

March For A Cure – Cancer Fightin’ Hero School Targets

High Schools – 325 PowerWalks Observations

Middle Schools / Junior High Schools – 275 PowerWalks Observations

Elementary / Intermediate / Combined Campuses – 225 PowerWalks Observations

Alternative Schools – 100 PowerWalks Observations

In February, all of the schools using the PowerWalks Instructional Observation System conducted a total of 16,382 classroom observations. A commendable job, LYS Nation! But now, without further ado, here are your FORTY-NINE PowerWalks Hero Schools for the month of February 2016.  Congratulations!!!

Elementary Schools & Combined Campuses (24 Heroes)	Middle Schools & Junior High Schools (10 Heroes)	Alternative Schools (2 Heroes)	High Schools (13 Heroes)
Southside PS (CISD) - 725	Cleveland MS (CISD) - 405	Afton Oaks School (JWPCS) - 51	Cleveland HS (CISD) – 1,141
Duryea ES (CFISD) - 558	Marlin MS (MISD) - 325	Frederick Douglas Learning Center (CISD) - 51	Permian HS (ECISD) - 976
Eastside ES (CISD) - 528	Rockport-Fulton MS (ACISD) - 282		Kermit HS (KISD) - 523
Live Oak Learning Center (ACISD) - 482	Ector MS (ECISD) - 275		Odessa HS (ECISD) - 394
Colonial Hills ES (NEISD) - 470	Vernon MS (VISD) - 259		Fairdale HS (JCPS) - 360
Northside ES (CISD) - 445	Poteet JH (PISD) - 220		Dublin HS (DISD) - 320
McFee ES (CFISD) - 369	Borger MS (BISD) - 199		Rockport-Fulton HS (ACISD) - 297
Poteet ES/IS (PISD) - 343	Magnolia JS (MISD) - 178		Poteet HS (PISD) - 240
Fulton Learning Center (ACISD) - 274	Farley MS (HISD) - 168		Vernon HS (VISD) - 233
Dublin ES (DISD) - 270	Wilson & Young MS (ECISD) - 168		Morton Ranch HS (KISD) - 197
Marlin ES (MISD) - 263			Marlin MS (MISD) - 164
Rennell ES (CFISD) - 251			Mayde Creek HS (KISD) - 164
Little Bay Primary School (ACISD) - 249			Borger HS (BISD) - 163
Kermit ES (KISD) - 244
Portland ES (JCPS) - 209
Kirbyville ES (KCISD) - 205
Dublin IS (DISD) - 198
Veterans Hill ES (HISD) - 185
Ray ES (HISD) - 135
Raymond E. Curtis ES (WISD) - 134
Gateway ES (BISD) - 126
Johnson ES (HISD) - 100
Hutto ES (HISD) - 93
Cottonwood Creek ES (HISD) - 91

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: Texas Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Conference (Multiple Presentations); LYS / TASSP Advanced Leadership Academy (Keynote) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Top LYS Tweets From the Week of February 21, 2016

If you are not following @LYSNation on Twitter, then you missed the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of February 21, 2016 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. To the principal who has the school take benchmarks for 4 days straight to get good data, here's some data for you. You're now four days behind. (By @LYSNation)

2. Leadership is a service. Service comes with sacrifice. No sacrifice, no service, no leader. (By @JohnSchu76)

3. Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence. (By @CoachKWisdom)

4. The secret to success is doing the stuff other people won't do, and doing it for a really long time. - John Jantsch (By @JReynaldHebert)

5. "Assessments are only as good as the actions that arise from them." (By @norskireader)

6. Kids can't write what they have never read. READ. Then, read more. And, for good measure, read a little more. (By @KyleneBeers)

7. "Readers get good at reading when they read a lot!” says Lucy Calkins. (By @EvanPayneGCISD)

8. People of mediocre ability sometimes achieve outstanding success because they don't know when to quit. - George Allen (By @CoachMotto)

9. Legacies aren’t born; they’re built. (By @UHouston)

10. Just got the notice that, The Fundamental 5 (Cain & Laird), has officially passed 82,000 copies sold! 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: Texas Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Conference (Multiple Presentations); LYS / TASSP Advanced Leadership Academy (Keynote) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

March For A Cure

Get out your comfortable shoes, because The March For A Cure PowerWalks Challenge begins tomorrow!!

Help Lead Your School help you to kick Cancer’s ass!

Here’s how The March For A Cure PowerWalks Challenge works:

1. For every PowerWalks classroom observation that is conducted during the month of March, LYS will donate 5¢ to the American Cancer Society.

2. For every campus that makes the PowerWalks Cancer Fightin’ Hero List for March, LYS will donate an additional $10.00 to the American Cancer Society.

3. For the top PowerWalks Cancer Fightin’ Hero Elementary School, Middle School, Alternative School, and High School in March, LYS will donate $50.00 to the American Cancer Society, in the name of the school.

4. For the overall top PowerWalks Cancer Fightin’ Hero School in March, LYS will donate $100.00 to the American Cancer Society, in the name of the school.

Plus, as I shared last week, every PowerWalks observer who conducts 200 or more classroom observations between February 22, 2016 and March 31, 2016 will get a March For A Cure t-shirt.

So what are you waiting for?

Visit Classrooms – BEAT CANCER!

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: Texas Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Conference (Multiple Presentations); LYS / TASSP Advanced Leadership Academy (Keynote) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook