Top LYS Tweets from the Week of November 5, 2017

If you are not following @LYSNation on Twitter, then you missed the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of November 5, 2017 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. School culture doesn’t happen by accident. It is built one positive adult action at a time, by all adults, every day. (By @LYSNation)

2. If you are OK with teachers using less effective practice because your scores are “good.” You are sacrificing student opportunity for adult comfort. (By @LYSNation)

3. Success and failure aren’t based on a program. They are based on you. (By @DrKing_BBJH)

4. It is not about who is in my classroom, it's about what I'm doing with instruction. (By @Faith4learning)

5. Real instructional relevance is student developed, not teacher delivered. (By @tra_hall)

6. Quality trumps quantity... But I still am a firm believer in bell-to-bell learning. When secondary classrooms end early, lots of time is lost. (By @justintarte)

7. The coach doesn't sit in his/her office while the game is being played. (By @jackson_carrie)

8. Bad instruction is better than no instruction. Some schools are operating at 20% nothing time. (By @jackson_carrie)

9. The antecedent to most student misbehavior in the classroom is adult inattention and lazy practice. (By @LYSNation)

10. Scott Milder Makes It Official: He is running against Texas Lt. Governor, Dan Patrick, in the GOP primary. (By @texasisd)

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
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Relevance is...

Relevance is not a teacher’s explanation, “You will need this when you balance your check book when you are older…”

Relevance is the student connecting today’s content to some other part of her world.  That could be other content concepts, other courses, or outside of school.

Now, why is this important.  Forget all the edu-triva and mumbo-jumbo, relevance is important for one reason. Retention. The more a student connects today’s content to other parts of her World, the stickier today’s content becomes. Relevance is glue.

The easiest ways to increase student connection of today’s content to other parts of her World are to embed more of the following in your daily lessons.

1. More multi-step process questions. 

2. More purposeful student talk, with the appropriate prompt.

3. More critical writing, with the appropriate prompt.

In summary, have your students engage in more complex tasks, talk more, and write more, and you will effectively increase relevance in your classroom.

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 
• Upcoming Conference Presentations: Texas ASCD Summer Conference, Virginia Middle and High School Principals Conference; The National Principals Conference; The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote) 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Your Critical Writing Cheat Sheet

You want students to write critically in your class.  Why? Critical Writing is the most effective and time efficient way to increase both rigor and relevance in all content, in any instructional setting.  Don’t argue... it’s a fact.

The secret to increasing the amount of critical writing that occurs in your classroom, no matter who or what you teach, is to leverage the “Critical Quick Write.” The Critical Quick Write is not polished or formal writing.  It is writing to increase connections and cognition.  Two elements that need to be increased dramatically in the typical classroom. 

So now the questions become “when and where?”  The answer, pick your spot for a given lesson and then have students write to the following prompts.

The Critical Quick Write Warm-up Topics (partial list)

Steps

Process

Strategy

Connections

Critical facts and concepts

The Critical Quick Write Main Lesson Topics (partial list)

Note making

Steps

Process

Connections

Examples

Similarities / Differences

Applications

The Critical Quick Write Lesson Closure Topics (partial list)

Process

Connections

Strategies

Non-examples

Similarities / Differences

Applications

Pro/Con

Evaluation

Other uses

These quick writes can be accomplished in less than 5 minutes and force the student to think deeper about content and connect the content to other concepts and ideas.  The key is frequency. The more students do this the better their thinking and understanding becomes.

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 
• Upcoming Conference Presentations: TASSP Aspiring Principal Workshop (Multiple Presentations), Learning for a Change Spring Summit (Keynote and Multiple Presentations) 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

The Critical Writing Song

I would like to share the lyrics of my new favorite song with the LYS Nation.  Feel free to hum along.

Critical Writing

Lyrics by the educators from Livingston ISD

To the tune of “Red Solo Cup” by Toby Keith

Now a critical write is a big misconception

For teachers, mentors, aides and principals

And you, Teach, don’t have intestinal fortitude

If you prefer the Scantron way

A critical write is quick and purposeful

And after 12 years they’re still retainable

And unlike state tests, they are not so unreasonable

T.E.A. can kiss my glass. Woo!!!!!!!!!

Critical Write, easy to do

We all teach writing, we all teach writing

I love you critical write, must grade you up

You add the rigor, You add the rigor

Now I really love how you’re easy to use

But I really hate how you’re often confused

‘Cuz when notes are only copied from the board

Well that my friends is quite a bore

But I have to admit that students start squint’n

Admiring how tiny my class notes are written

On the board with a marker that should’ve been darker

Just something to keep them busy

Critical Write, easy to do

We all teach writing, we all teach writing

I love you critical write, must grade you up

You add the rigor, You add the rigor

Now I’ve seen you organize and I’ve seen you clarify

But only you, write, can totally analyze

‘Cuz you are the Rigor to my Relevance

An you are the read to my write

Critical write, you’re not time consuming

You don’t need revising; you’re more than free writing

And believe me that I’m not the least bit sarcastic

When I look at you and say:

Critical Write, you’re not an abstract.

(No, no, Heck no!)

You make it concrete, you make me stick

Thank you for being concrete

Critical Write, easy to do

We all teach writing, we all teach writing

I love you critical write, must grade you up

You add the rigor, You add the rigor

Critical Write, easy to do

We all teach writing, we all teach writing

I love you critical write, must grade you up

You add the rigor, You add the rigor!

A big thank you to the great educators in Livingston ISD!

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 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook