My Visit To Wonderland: The Ron Clark Academy

When I signed up to attend teacher training at the Ron Clark Academy, I had no idea how much this visit would impact me.  I wasn't sure what to expect.  I mean, I knew who Ron Clark was-- I'd read The Essential 55 (several years ago), and I had seen news clips of his students performing on various news programs.  I knew there had been a movie made about him.  I even followed @ronclarkacademy on Twitter.  However, I was completely unprepared for the pure joy I felt the moment I entered RCA and the lasting effect this visit has had on me.  I felt as if I had stepped into a magic wonderland--the type of school we educators can only dream of.

My day began by driving into what appeared to be a sketchy area of Atlanta.  I pulled into the parking lot across the road from the school at 7:45.  We had been instructed to wait until 8:15 to approach the gate of the school, so I sat patiently waiting in my car.  This school looked incredibly out of place for the area.  The large wrought iron entry gate was topped by an iron archway that read "Altruismo, Isibindi, Nukumori, Reveur, Pinal, and Amistad."  Intriguing, I thought.  I wondered what those words represented.

I continued sitting in my car and observed students dressed in their school uniforms piling out of their parents' vehicles rushing to get inside.  I observed the security guard  happily opening the large gate for staff members as they arrived and parked inside the compound.  I also began to see other educators arriving for our first day of training.  As I sat there waiting, I began to wonder...What would this day be like?  What will they possibly have us do over the course of 2 days?  What impact will this experience have on me?  I really hoped that there would be something I could take from this training that would have a meaningful impact.  I had no idea what was in store for me!

At 8:15, our facilitator told us we could enter the gate.  We were given name tags and instructed to go inside the building that houses the school library.  Upon entering, I knew this was not going to be your typical school, your typical training, your typical anything--and I was pumped!  Students were lined around the perimeter of the library.  In the center, there was a giant trampoline, complete with a hydraulic harness.  I instantly recognized Kim Bearden (whom I also follow on Twitter @kimbearden).  She is the co-founder of the Ron Clark Academy.  Kim was standing on the trampoline, hand on the trigger of the harness as a student enthusiastically jumped high in the air.  Music blared from the sound system, students were singing and dancing, every single person had a huge smile on their face.  Two students instantly came up to me and shook my hand, introduced themselves, asked my name, where I was from, and what brought me to their school.  Each of the students was beaming and made me feel like they were waiting for me to arrive--that they had a genuine interest in me. They carried on a great conversation with me, and as we talked I noticed that some of the other educators had been coaxed into getting into the contraption and jump to the music.  One of the students I was chatting with took me by the hand and said, "C'mon, you just have to try out our trampoline.  It is the best."  I said, "I don't know if I really want to do that."  However, the look on her face sold me and the next thing I knew I was kicking off my pumps, getting strapped into the harness, jumping to the beat of the music, and having a BLAST!

After our initial welcome, Ms. Bearden dismissed the students and then proceeded to welcome us to the school and tell us a little bit about what they stood for and what we could expect over the course of our training.  Then we were directed to head over to the main building.  She didn't have to tell me twice!  I quickly walked outside and ended up being the very first person to go in.  Again, I was not expecting what awaited.  Rihanna's "We Found Love" was blaring from the sound system, all RCA students were in the lobby clapping, dancing, singing and smiling.  As I made my way in, a beautiful young lady came and took me by the hand.  We danced our way through the lobby and standing in the center of the lobby was none other than Ron Clark, also clapping, singing, and smiling.  We made eye contact, I waved to him like a starstruck school girl, and joined the cluster of students.  As everyone entered, we all continued singing and clapping.  It was a grand entrance!  They really know how to make you feel welcome!

Then it was Ron's turn to welcome us to his school.  He jumped up on the counter and began to speak to us about his passion for teaching, his school, and his desire to revolutionize education.  He made us feel like we were about to be a part of something magical.  And believe me, he did not disappoint!

Over the course of two days, I got to observe Ron Clark, Kim Bearden, Adam Dovico, Gina Coss, Sarah Hildebrand, and Ken Townsel teach their classes.  I participated in a "Blues" workshop with Susan Barnes.  And each of the aforementioned teachers also did breakout workshops with us on how to implement some of the creative ideas at RCA in our own classrooms and schools.  I was thoroughly inspired by each of these educator's creativity, their commitment to excellence, their high standards, and their love for their students. They all teach with passion, integrity, and a desire to see each of their students achieve to their highest potential.  I absolutely fell in love with each and every staff member and student I came into contact with.  I even became "slide certified" at the end of the first day, complete with a huge ceremony that involved music, dancing, cheering, and one speedy blue slide.  (Yes, each of us educators got to take a ride on "big blue.")   It truly felt like "Wonderland."

I also learned what the words on the iron gate represented--four of the words were the names of the "Houses" that each RCA student belongs to.  At RCA, when students are welcomed to school, they are selected randomly into a House.  Altruismo, Amistad, Isibindi, and Reveur are the four houses.  Each house holds special meaning and serves as an instant family for the students at RCA.  The houses compete for house championship points by earning points for academics, behavior, manners, and accomplishments.  A video screen in the main hallway keeps score for each team, with one team being crowned House Champions at the end of the school year.  Students in each house proudly wear the crest of their house on their uniforms and are proud to tell you all about their house, what it represents, and where they are in regard to the House Championship.

At the end of the second day of training, we were given the opportunity to have Ron sign books, posters, t-shirts, etc. and have our photos taken with him.  I was thrilled to be able to interact with him personally.  As I approached him, I felt the inner starstruck schoolgirl again, but I kept my composure.  As I introduced myself to him again, he was so genuine and kind.  He signed my copy of The End of Molasses Classes, and his final message to me is inscribed on the inside of my treasured book-- "Lead with passion."  I plan to do just that!  (And, by the way, I plan to someday cross paths with Mr. Clark again.  I am  making it my personal goal to work with him in some capacity in the future.)

A Comparison:The Daily Five and Writer's Workshop

Overall objective
Improve Writing Instruction

Today's Learning Objective
Teachers will be able to identify similarities and differences betwen D5  practices and the Writer's Workshop approach.

Marzano's research in best practices has identified comparing and contrasting as a highly successful instructional strategy.  My goal in utilizing this best practice with the staff today was to help them recognize that they already have many of the tools to take our writing instruction to a new level.

Teachers list the similarities and differences between
D5/CAFE and their current Writer's Workshop

The Task 
Each grade level team was given a sheet of paper to make a comparison chart between Daily 5 and Writer's Workshop.  They could come up with a chart, a Venn diagram, or any other visual means to show the similarities and differences.  After each team completed the task, we discussed and recorded some of their ideas.

After each grade level made their own comparison charts, I recorded some of their ideas
for the whole group to see

It became quite apparent that there were far more similarities than differences.  The middle column shows how D5/CAFE and Writer's Workshop are similar.  Some of the similarities listed included:  conferencing, mini-lessons, building stamina, modeling, independent practice, read-alouds, and sharing.  Some of the differences included the amount of time built into their schedules for each--90 minutes for reading vs. 60 minutes for writing and during D5 the writing the students do is in response to texts.

It was my goal for the staff to see that many of the procedures they have taught their students and the practices they employ each day during their reading block will transfer quite nicely to the writer's workshop.  Realizing we have been on a 2.5 year journey to school-wide Daily 5 and CAFE, I know that there is still some work to do-- professional development, support and encouragement.  However, after today's comparison, I feel the staff believes that improving our writing block will be an easier path due to the foundation the D5/CAFE has provided.  Just one more reason to thank the sisters.  Thank you Gail and Joan! 

Kindergarten, Here I Come!

Last week, our school held it's second annual Kindergarten, Here I Come! event for incoming kindergarten students and their families.  This evening is dedicated to meeting our new students and their families and providing them with readiness activities that they can do over the summer to help prepare for kindergarten.  We began the event last year as a way to build a bridge between students' preschool experience and Kindergarten.  We have found that the outreach has proven to be a successful way of welcoming our students and their families and making them feel comfortable with our school. 

Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. M. explains a fine-motor activity
the families will complete in her classroom

We begin the event by having a meal in the cafeteria.  Families are encouraged to buddy up and sit with each other to network and get to know others.  We feel this relationship-building time is a key to helping our families meet others and develop friendships.  We then send siblings to the daycare room--another bonus for our families!  After all siblings are out of the cafeteria, we then dismiss our families to the first of four rotations through each of our four kindergarten classrooms.  Each rotation lasts approximately fifteen minutes.


During their visits to each classroom, the families have the opportunity to learn about our curriculum and complete activities with their child.  Some of the things we introduce are Daily 5 and CAFE--our school-wide philosophy and structure for teaching reading, fine-motor activities, counting, letter naming, writing, and other expectations of what their child should be able to do upon entering kindergarten.  Families leave with a file folder full of activities and several books for their child.

Mrs. B. explains a counting activity parents
can do with their child

We end the evening by having our parents complete an exit survey so that we can improve the event from year to year.  The majority of parents request more time with each rotation--a good indicator they are enjoying each activity!

We were very proud to note that over 2/3 of our future kindergarteners were in attendance at this year's event.  Building strong partnerships with the families now will undoubtedly have a positive effect on the students and their academic success.  What a fun and productive night!

Common Core Math Standards

Teachers learn more about
the common core math standards

The learning objective of our professional development time this week was to begin to understand the common core math standards with an emphasis on seeing the vertical alignment of the domains in grades K-5.  We began our sessions with a short video that gave some background on the common core standards and why they were developed.  As a staff, we discussed our current Indiana State Standards in Math and how difficult it is to "cover" everything.  Reflecting upon that last statement, I believe the word "cover" says a lot.  In the past, we have tried to "cover" all of the requirements of our state due to the high demands of standardized testing and the weight those scores carry.  It became a race to see if we could make it "through the textbook" or "through the entire set of standards."  Unfortunately, with an exceptionally high number of concepts to teach, not enough time was given to develop a deep understanding of the concepts before it would be time to move on to the next standard on the checklist.  This has led to our instruction becoming more about how many standards/concepts we can teach during our 36 week school year versus how much our students truly understand the mathematical concepts before moving on to the next topic. 

Through the process of unpacking the common core math standards, it became apparent that many of the concepts we are currently teaching at each grade level will remain the same.  However, it also became very apparent that we are going to need to kick our instruction up a few notches.  As someone in the video mentioned, the way our past state standards were written, they led to us to teaching "an inch deep and a mile wide."  With the move to the common core, the goal is to slow down and spend the time to really develop a deep understanding of mathematical concepts so that we are creating a solid foundation of mathematical reasoning.  We will need to focus our efforts on developing units of learning that will put more emphasis on the higher levels of Bloom's taxonomy.

Each standard was written on a sentence
strip and added to our standards chart to
create a visual of the progression of
learning from grades K-5

We also learned that it is going to be important for teachers to not only collaborate with their grade level teams, but for teams to collaborate across grade levels to ensure that students are able to build upon their learning from year to year.  The level of understanding that is expected with the new common core standards has definitely raised the bar for all educators.  We look forward to the challenge of developing ways to take our students to the next level.  We also look forward to the challenge of taking our instruction to the next level as well.  It's time to slow the pace and deepen the knowledge.  We are all in this together!

Creating a visual chart of standards from grades K-5 and

having each team present their standards with an explanation allowed the entire staff to see the vertical alignment of each domain

Strengthening Our Writing Muscle

5th grade teachers

"Writing taught once or twice a week is just frequently enough to remind children that they cannot write.  They are like athletes who never get in condition, yet have to play the game before cynical spectators." -- Donald Graves

This quote spoke volumes to me.  I ran across it as I was preparing an instructional improvement session for my staff.  I immediately began thinking about how we  "condition" our students and build their writing "muscle."  Any fitness enthusiast or coach would agree that a good conditioning program takes time, energy, practice, concerted effort, application, dedication, and consistency to build strength, stamina, and muscle.

Imagine the following scenario.

Bodybuilder A:  This bodybuilder lifts weights only once or twice a week and learns just the basic mechanics of weightlifting.  In isolation, she uses proper form but does not apply the moves in a cohesive, logical format.  There is no authentic feedback given to the bodybuilder, and she has no real purpose for her workouts.  She often gets distracted and off track and is inconsistent in her routine.   She hasn't spoken to anyone about her trips to the gym and does not interact with others while there. 

Bodybuilder B:  This bodybuilder has a purpose.  She is training for a competition and is excited about her journey.  She trains 5 days a week, pre-plans each day's workout, and learns not only the mechanics/techniques of effective lifting but applies them with concerted effort.  She gets constructive feedback from her peers and self-reflects.  She tells her friends about her workouts and reads the latest fitness magazines for inspiration and ideas.  She revises and edits her program based on what is working and the areas that need improvement.  She analyzes the effectiveness of her training regimen and begins to see incredible results. When it comes time for the competition, she has gone through many phases of preparation and gets the opportunity to share the fruits of her labor.  Whether she wins or not, she feels confident in her work and gets a great deal of satisfaction from reaching her goals.

Just imagine the strength, stamina, and muscle Bodybuilder B would gain from this type of conditioning!  The same holds true for our students.  In order to build their strength, increase their stamina, and gain muscle in their writing, they must follow a well-designed daily regimen. 

Building Strength
Too often, writing instruction is reduced to teaching mechanics and grammar in isolation.  While these skills are necessary and must be taught, they are sometimes reduced to worksheet-driven learning.  We can help build a writer's strength through exposure to rich meaningful texts and multiple genres that demonstrate the skills and strategies we are teaching.  Lessons should be followed by opportunities that allow students to apply what is being learned via their writing--authentic practice!

3rd grade teachers

Increasing Stamina
Imagine a beginning runner training for a marathon.  She will not be able to run the entire distance on day one, and it will take many days of conditioning to prepare and build the stamina necessary to endure the rigorous challenge.  Students also need to build their endurance in writing --their writing stamina.  This is the independent component of writer's workshop.  Students are encouraged to build their stamina by writing independently for 30-45 minutes a day. If this opportunity does not exist for our students, we are not giving them the chance to go the distance.



Gaining Muscle
As hard as it may be at times to convince myself to get up and get moving after a long day at work, I have never regretted a workout once it has been completed.  When I leave the gym, I feel amazing!  The endorphins are coursing through my veins.   Some of our students may also be tough to convince to "get moving" with their writing.  They may need extra encouragement and support.  However, once they begin writing and practice and improve,  they will feel the endorphins after sharing their piece of writing.  They will be so glad they began moving!  They will be gaining the muscle that is needed to express themselves via the written word.

Kindergarten teachers 

As my staff diligently worked on writing about one of their favorite memories, I was busy crafting my own piece.  The memory I chose was the moment I got the call from my superintendent offering me the position as principal.  It was truly a life-changing moment.  It was a moment that led me here--leading my amazing staff through another learning opportunity.  At the end of "class," some of my teachers shared their writing by reading it aloud to the group.  It became evident to me that I was in a room full of writers with incredible stories to share.  It is my hope that as we continue this journey of learning they will inspire their students to become writers through meaningful daily instruction. 



Students, get ready!  Your teachers are preparing to help you build the strength, stamina, and writing muscle we all know is lying beneath the surface.  Let's work out!