Special Letters
Here is where I keep those very special comments... the one's that grab my heart. I read them often and especially before I speak.
Mr. Gross,
I attended your professional development seminar today at Brandywine, and I was SO impressed! I have been teaching since 1985....I am now 60. In all my years of PD days, you are the most inspirational person I have seen!
You reminded me of why I decided to teach! My heart.....because I love kids & I wanted to make another child feel worthy & valued. I was going to retire after this year because of all the red tape of testing & tests scores, but you inspired me to hang on until I physically can't anymore.
I would always get all the SPED & Title 1 students because the principal knew I would work with them. After "no child left behind" & Common core, I still got all of them, but of course now my eval was based upon performance points.
If a teacher has 'on-level' kids, they only have to grow 3 points, while below level kids have to grow 15-19. Last year I had 3/4 of my kids below level coming to me, some reading at 1st grade level. Even though they grew 10-14 points, it didn't count. I was evaluated as "effective". Teachers who had all the above level kids, all got "highly effective".
To go back to my original point, I realized today that I am still going back in my classroom & remember why I came there in the first place....because of you...you reminded me that it was my heart all those 30 years ago...thanks, XXXXX
I attended your professional development seminar today at Brandywine, and I was SO impressed! I have been teaching since 1985....I am now 60. In all my years of PD days, you are the most inspirational person I have seen!
You reminded me of why I decided to teach! My heart.....because I love kids & I wanted to make another child feel worthy & valued. I was going to retire after this year because of all the red tape of testing & tests scores, but you inspired me to hang on until I physically can't anymore.
I would always get all the SPED & Title 1 students because the principal knew I would work with them. After "no child left behind" & Common core, I still got all of them, but of course now my eval was based upon performance points.
If a teacher has 'on-level' kids, they only have to grow 3 points, while below level kids have to grow 15-19. Last year I had 3/4 of my kids below level coming to me, some reading at 1st grade level. Even though they grew 10-14 points, it didn't count. I was evaluated as "effective". Teachers who had all the above level kids, all got "highly effective".
To go back to my original point, I realized today that I am still going back in my classroom & remember why I came there in the first place....because of you...you reminded me that it was my heart all those 30 years ago...thanks, XXXXX
Kara, 2016 Shepherd Grad
|
"I met Mr.Gross half way through my junior year of high school (last year). And like you may be thinking, this man is actually crazy, but this madness that comes from him is his pure passion that he has for his students. Out of the 50 some teachers I have had throughout my schooling experience I have never met someone so involved with their students. The level that he connects with each and every one of us is unbelievable-- and this is all within the course of anywhere between one trimester to a full school year. He truly is an amazing man." Kara
|
|
"You cannot not listen to Mr. Gross." Taylor |
Taylor, 2015 Shepherd Grad
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
"Jay Gross’ presentation on Motivation and Student Engagement was by far one of my favorites this week. He began the day focusing on the importance of establishing relationships with, noting several personal stories of his own relationships with his family, students, and staff while also sharing various related quotes. Jay provided many examples of strategies for developing these relationships before transitioning to providing teachers with an overflowing toolbox filled with various technology tools. There were so many amazing ideas that were provided that it was overwhelming. What I appreciated most was that Jay provided us with his website where all of his examples and suggested tools are accessible for future exploration. Still, there were some specific tools that I plan to implement as soon as possible and can not wait to take back to my department and other teachers.
One of the things that excited me the most today was related to Google Docs and research. Citations and citation formats have proven to be a consistent struggle for our students and in turn, our teachers. My mind was blown when Jay showed us how to open up Research under the Tools tab, including choosing Google Scholar, and how from there, students could click on an article, copy the evidence they wanted to use, paste it, and then easily cite the information with one click. Furthermore, he showed that we could easily have students switch between or choose different formats. In addition, he shared about the add-on Easy Bib that allows students to generate their works cited pages quickly and correctly. This is going to be extremely useful for our English Department, and I cannot wait to go back and share with others. In Jay’s words, this would allow us to “work smarter, not harder.”
Our department has also been struggling with our curriculum development for our English 12 classes. I absolutely loved the online portfolios. We have a career unit where students complete a research project/presentation on a career interest, create a resume and cover letter, and participate in a mock interview. However, this unit lacks enthusiasm and creativity, students are often bored, and the results are less than stellar. Requiring the creation of online portfolios could bring some fresh air to this unit and to the class overall as students create something unique, self-reflective, and creative. In addition, many of our students enrolled in English 12 at the high school are going straight into the work field as they do not plan to go to college, so these portfolios may give them a leg-up on competition. I envision students having great pride in their creations and future classes feeling eagerness to get started on their own.
One final thing that I plan to use right away is creating a video of my syllabus and class rules along with a quiz on Moodle (while also creating a Moodle account). Covering these items at the beginning of the year is a requirement, but it is often long, tedious, and boring, setting a tone for the class that is the exact opposite of what I do not want. This will help my students to be more engaged and will allow us to cover this necessity quickly, leaving us more time to move into the actual class and building relationships sooner.
These tools only begin to scratch the surface of all of the new things I am excited to explore further and implement. Jay Gross was a relational, engaging, and generous presenter. My hope and desire is that I can take all that he presented and become more like him. In fact, I texted my husband and told him, “I want to be him!.” My husband did not miss a beat in his response, “I would prefer that you stay a woman!” Of course, I appreciated the laugh, but it also reminded me that I have been created as my own unique personality with my own gifts and talents, and while I can utilize all of these wonderful technological ideas, I need to remember to be true to myself and focus on what Jay and our other presenters stressed this week: establishing relationships with my students, making it clear that I care more about them than their test scores and academic achievements, is the most important thing I can do as a teacher. As Jay shared in the words of Maya Angelou, ““People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
One of the things that excited me the most today was related to Google Docs and research. Citations and citation formats have proven to be a consistent struggle for our students and in turn, our teachers. My mind was blown when Jay showed us how to open up Research under the Tools tab, including choosing Google Scholar, and how from there, students could click on an article, copy the evidence they wanted to use, paste it, and then easily cite the information with one click. Furthermore, he showed that we could easily have students switch between or choose different formats. In addition, he shared about the add-on Easy Bib that allows students to generate their works cited pages quickly and correctly. This is going to be extremely useful for our English Department, and I cannot wait to go back and share with others. In Jay’s words, this would allow us to “work smarter, not harder.”
Our department has also been struggling with our curriculum development for our English 12 classes. I absolutely loved the online portfolios. We have a career unit where students complete a research project/presentation on a career interest, create a resume and cover letter, and participate in a mock interview. However, this unit lacks enthusiasm and creativity, students are often bored, and the results are less than stellar. Requiring the creation of online portfolios could bring some fresh air to this unit and to the class overall as students create something unique, self-reflective, and creative. In addition, many of our students enrolled in English 12 at the high school are going straight into the work field as they do not plan to go to college, so these portfolios may give them a leg-up on competition. I envision students having great pride in their creations and future classes feeling eagerness to get started on their own.
One final thing that I plan to use right away is creating a video of my syllabus and class rules along with a quiz on Moodle (while also creating a Moodle account). Covering these items at the beginning of the year is a requirement, but it is often long, tedious, and boring, setting a tone for the class that is the exact opposite of what I do not want. This will help my students to be more engaged and will allow us to cover this necessity quickly, leaving us more time to move into the actual class and building relationships sooner.
These tools only begin to scratch the surface of all of the new things I am excited to explore further and implement. Jay Gross was a relational, engaging, and generous presenter. My hope and desire is that I can take all that he presented and become more like him. In fact, I texted my husband and told him, “I want to be him!.” My husband did not miss a beat in his response, “I would prefer that you stay a woman!” Of course, I appreciated the laugh, but it also reminded me that I have been created as my own unique personality with my own gifts and talents, and while I can utilize all of these wonderful technological ideas, I need to remember to be true to myself and focus on what Jay and our other presenters stressed this week: establishing relationships with my students, making it clear that I care more about them than their test scores and academic achievements, is the most important thing I can do as a teacher. As Jay shared in the words of Maya Angelou, ““People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
|
|
|
|
|
|