Buy A Book, Beat Cancer - Update

We're at the half way mark for our Buy A Book - Beat Cancer campaign.  For every copy of The Fundamental 5 sold in the month of April, LYS will donate $1.00 to the American Cancer Society. 

Right now the donation total stands at $272.00. Not a bad start, but I really hate cancer. So remember for the next 15 days...  

Buy A Book - Beat Cancer!

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: 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

Five Assistant Principal Hacks

Recently, I was talking to a first year Assistant Principal who was explaining the challenges of school administration to me (the AP had no idea who I was). I let the AP talk because I’m always interested in the mindset of the person who is new to the job.  After the conversation, it got me thinking about what are some hacks that old administrator, Sean Cain, could go back and share with first year administrator, Sean Cain.  Here are my top 5...

Number 5: It’s OK not to have an immediate answer for every question.

Number 4: Take care of student discipline in the hallway, outside the classroom, not in your office.

Number 3: Always carry a clipboard.

Number 2: If you have a problem with the Boss, it’s your problem.

Number 1: The written apology letter to the offended teacher is the best consequence for student sent to the office, for almost every offense.

All right old timers, what hacks would you share with the younger you?  

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

The Back of the Room Crowd

Yesterday, I mentioned the back of the room crowd in presentations and some of the behaviors that you see.  For example, newspaper reading, crosswords, grading papers, texting, etc.  The question is, “What should be the response to this behavior?”

First, leadership must be in attendance.  When leadership is present, staff participation is noticeably increased.  When leadership is absent, so is staff attention.

Second, if leadership is in attendance, it cannot ignore the overt off-task behavior. Leadership must recognize the behavior for what it actually is... disrespect to everyone in the room.  To address the behavior, leadership has three choices.

1. Give the offending party the “death stare.”

2. Go sit with the offending party.

3. At the next break, go talk to the person. Tell them to put away their distracter and at least fake like they are interested.

Beginning when I was as an assistant principal, I did all three. Then it didn’t take long for my reputation to precede me and the issue became more and more rare.

As a presenter, you have two choices, ignore the behavior or address the behavior.  I do both.  If the person is good at hiding the off-task behavior, I’ll let it slide. But there are those who make a production of being disinterested and off task. I’ll start by moving to present right by them. The Power Zone works on adults also.  If that doesn’t work, at my next turn and talk, I’ll quietly tell the person that if they if they have something more pressing to do that they have my permission to leave and go do it.  Interestingly, of the handful of people (less than 10) that I had made this offer to, no one has taken me up on it. Though one teacher did complain to her principal, claiming, “I have never been treated so unprofessionally in my entire career.”

I’ll take the irony with a side of clueless, thank you.

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

Reading the Room

About 100 days a year I present to / train large groups of educators.  And I have learned something about audiences. Call it a pre-snap read. 

There are two types of front row sitters.  First, there are the people who love professional development.  They are engaged from the get go.  Like kids sitting on the front row of the new blockbuster, pop-corn in hand, their attitude is “let the entertainment begin.”

Then there is the other front row sitter. This is the person who came in late and the front row has the only seats left.  Self-entitled, these people start out mad and miss the first hour of training being upset that they couldn’t sit where they wanted.

The middle of the room sitters are polite, but hedging their bets.  Hook them early and they’ll engage and participate.  But if they sense that their time is being wasted, out come the cell phones and lesson plans.

The back of the room crowd is generally checked out before they sit down. These are either the “cool” kids who like to sit in the back and kill time with their buddies, or the permanently disgruntled.  If you want to see newspapers, crosswords or web surfing, head to the back row.  Which means as a presenter, you have to work the back of the room hard (power zone), because if you ignore them their influence will encroach on those in the middle of the room.

So where did / do I sit? It depends on the presenter and the topic. 15% of the time in the front row, 65% on the time in the middle of the room, and 20% of the time in the back rows.

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 Twees From the Week of April 3, 2016

If you are not following @LYSNation on Twitter, then you missed the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of April 3, 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. When you add in steps that do not add value, you just add complexity. (By @EdieMartin)

2. “Students whose families received home visits were more likely to attend school and to achieve or exceed grade-level reading comprehension.” (By @DrMetz_MJH)

3. Whether in work or personal life, your budget is your vision in action. (By @clwilkens)

4. If an activity doesn't support our strategic plan then why are we doing it? (By @APQCEducation)

5. No research has ever found a benefit to assigning homework (of any kind or in any amount) in elementary school! (By @tgrierhisd)

6. It’s time Texas Legislators to quit waiting on the courts to tell them to do their job. (By @woscholar)

7. Don't put a limit on anything. The more you dream the farther you get. (By @CoachKWisdom)

8. Slow internet does actually stress you out, says least surprising study ever. (By @statesman)

9. Dear Teens,

In a few years, it won't matter if you were the most popular kid in school or the least. It only matters in school, not life. (By @NicholasFerroni)

10. Excited to announce that the University of Louisville is using The Fundamental 5 (Cain & Laird) in its college of education! Go Cards!!! (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