The Five Fundamentals of Classroom Environment

School is starting in the next couple of weeks, so now is a good time to review the Fundamental 5 for cultivating classroom environments that enhance student performance.

1. When it comes to classroom displays and decor, LESS is more. For most teachers, a good rule of thumb is in comparison to what was in the room last year... reduce it by ½.

2. Reduce the amount of clutter in the room.  This means that any non-instructional decor or accents, leave them at home.

3. Get you room organized and keep it organized. This also includes the teacher’s workspace.

4. Keep the room clean.  The good news is with the reduced clutter and improved organization, this will be easier than ever before.

5. Keep the lights on, and if available, keep the window blinds open.  Long story, short: More light engages the brain, less light slows the brain down.

Embrace these 5 environment fundamentals and you will quickly notice improved student focus, engagement, and performance.

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: Illinois ASCD Fall Conference (Multiple Presentations), Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Fall AP Conference, The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Pass / Fail

Too many of our school policies de-motivate more students than they motivate, and grading is right up at the top of the list.  At the high school level, we be begin grading 9^th graders on Day One, when most of them are still trying to learn where their classes are, how to the navigate the building and which restrooms to avoid at what times.  Why?

What if we did this instead? What if we made the freshman classes “Pass / Fail.”  Either the student meets the learning standard by the end of the semester, or he/she doesn’t.  Then the Freshman Year becomes about learning the school, learning the culture, and learning the content, without worrying about digging a hole so deep in the first semester of high school, that it is impossible to recover.

And before I hear about how this is watering down expectations (which it isn’t) and students won’t try (they will), consider this... Harvard, MIT and many of the other schools in the Ivy League grade freshman courses as pass / fail.  And no matter how high the standards are at your high school, Ivy League standards are higher.

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: Illinois ASCD Fall Conference (Multiple Presentations), Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Fall AP Conference, The Fundamental 5 National Summit (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 August 9, 2015

If you are not following @LYSNation on Twitter, then you missed the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of August 9, 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. What if the Texas Legislature looked at the 5.1 million public school students as an investment rather than a line item? (By @cheadhorn)

2. The truth is we have to teach kids stuff we're just learning to do ourselves. - Lucy Calkins.  (By @HeinemannPub)

3. Read aloud to your child everyday. It models fluency. It builds vocabulary. It establishes an understanding of the story structure. (By @DowdenA)

4. Persevere: Most astronauts take 4-6 tries to be selected. (By @ShannaPeeples)

5. Talk to create understanding must become the norm with new Tennessee academic standards. (By @jbriannorton)

6. Technology does not equal engagement. (By @julie_deleon)

7. Ever notice how the rudest teachers at faculty meetings are generally the ones who tolerate the least amount of noise in their classrooms. (By @pinaugle)

8. The critical factor remains... Leadership. (By @Dee551)

9. ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) Admits School Vouchers Are for Kids in Suburbia. (By @pastors4txkids)

10. Woke up this morning and all I can say is God is GOOD!

Peace and Love,

EC

(By @EarlCCampbell)

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: Illinois ASCD Fall Conference (Multiple Presentations), Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Fall AP Conference, The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Champions Work When Others Rest

This is what the hard working staff of Socorro ISD do on their off day!!!

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: Illinois ASCD Fall Conference (Multiple Presentations), Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Fall AP Conference, The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

A Reader Asks... Teacher Practice Targets

A LYS Principal asks the following:

SC,

When you last presented in our district, I recall a document that showed targeted observation frequencies for many of the practices that can be observed during a PowerWalk.  Would you mind sharing those targets again?

Thank you.

SC Response

No problem, but do remember that what I am about to share assumes that PowerWalks is being used correctly and there is above average inter-rater reliability among the observers.  It has been my experience that these are two huge assumptions.

When it comes to instructional practices, campuses always work back and forth along a quantity / quality continuum.

The campus should first work to get “quantity at a given quality” to a targeted level.  When those targeted levels are consistently met, the campus instructional team then redefines “quality” and begin the process anew. It is thru this process, that great campuses pursue targets that other campuses cannot imagine. They begin to play a game that requires a skill level beyond that of the rank and file campus. That is why site visits are such a powerful practice. When you visit an exemplar campus (defined as a campus that consistently outperforms its peers) you get to see in action a picture that your “reasonable” mind has told you is not possible.

This is also why comparing anything other than the observation total of campus based, self-reported walk-thru data is a waste of time for most outside observers. Because the seemingly objective data (cross campus) actually is not.

That being said, here are some recommended frequency targets for The Fundamental 5 instructional practices. 

Lesson Frame - 90%

Power Zone - 75%

Frequent Small Group Purposeful Talk - 35%

Recognize and Reinforce - 35%

Write Critically - 20%

Remember that these quantity targets are never met quickly.  One to three semesters is the norm. When a target is reached, the campus redefines the quality required to meet the new standard and moves forward.  This is why as a campus improves, to the uninitiated outsider it may look like the campus has plateaued or is moving backwards.  In fact, if this described data pattern is not observed, it is telltales sign that campus leadership and the PLC are shortchanging the walk-thru process.

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: Illinois ASCD Fall Conference (Multiple Presentations), Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Fall AP Conference, The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

A Reader Asks... A Room Set-up Rubric

A LYS Principal asks the following:

SC,

Quick question... Do you have any examples of room set-up rubrics I could provide for my team as we prepare for the start of school? 

We are trying to make sure we don’t give away any student performance due to sub-par room set-up decisions.

Thanks.

SC Response

Kudos to you and your team for recognizing that the set-up of the classroom can either augment or impair student performance.  I don’t have a specific rubric for you but I can provide some guidelines for developing a rubric specific to your campus.  Which in my opinion is the optimal solution.

The rubric should define and be oriented towards "True North" in a classroom (for our southern hemisphere readers, use “True South”).  “True North” is the wall with the main display or white board, and usually is the direction that students face in that particular classroom.

Based on “True North,” line out how classroom items and decor should be situated.

Then line out what should be displayed and what should not be displayed.

Address what are allowable teacher furnishings and what would be considered excess furnishings.

Set base parameters for classroom clutter, organization, cleanliness and lighting.

And finally, use picture and diagram examples as much as possible.  After all, a picture is worth a thousand words.

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: Illinois ASCD Fall Conference (Multiple Presentations), Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Fall AP Conference, The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook