Firgrove Book Study

Song of Review

2006-06-09T09:32:00.000-07:00

Well ... I am not sure if Ruby will burst with pride or will wince with pain, but we had a fantastic set of group presentations on A Framework for Understanding Poverty and the last group indulged us in a song of review of all we learned. To be sung to the tune of Yankee Doodle Dandee. It was complete with instrumental accompaniment. Well done team ...

The Firgrove bunch, we read a book
And boy it was a dandy!
The stuff we learned sure made us think
And will surely come in handy!

CHORUS (Let 'er rip!)
Ruby Payne, you helped me see
Ruby Payne, you showed me
All those strategies to use
To help kids move from poverty

Now I know ‘bout those hidden rules
In all the different classes
And I’ll teach middle class rules
To our lads & lasses (CHORUS)

Frozen, formal, consultative
Casual and intimate
Are the language registers
And now we are aware of it (CHORUS)

To be successful in this life
Our students need to know
When to use each register
And this will help them grow (CHORUS)

The child’s voice is emotional
The parent’s is demanding
It’s best to use the adult voice
To foster understanding (CHORUS)

For any learning to take place
It must be based on trust
Significant relationships
Are a definite must (CHORUS)

There are some rules for kids to learn
To use while they’re at school
But using those same rules at home
May make them feel a fool (CHORUS)

Teaching is outside the head
Learning on the inside
Those cognitive strategies
Help children learn with pride (CHORUS)

Expectations and support
Must be our guiding lights
So that our students will have
A future that is bright (CHORUS)

We learned from our brave colleagues
When stories they did share
That what really helped them
Was having someone care (CHORUS)

Understanding poverty
Some interesting notions
Got us talking, gave us skills
And stirred up our emotions (CHORUS)

We at Firgrove ate it up
Just like cotton candy
We’ll apply all that we learned
So kids can be just dandy

(Last chorus slower and with emphasis)
Ruby Payne, you helped me see
Ruby Payne, you showed me
All those strategies to use
To help kids move from poverty

Punky Moms and Schools

2006-06-07T08:53:00.002-07:00

ON Mother’s Day I ran across a TNT frontpage article about Punky Moms who are carving out an identity of their own – and a diverse culture that is impacting schools. The opening paragraph sheds some light on this identity, “Their groove lies somewhere between Pantera, the Pogues and the PTA. They might stay at home with their kids – or not. Many sport body art – tattoos and piercings – or dye their hair pink, blue or other unnatural colors. They might not mind if their kids cuss at home.”

From what I am reading, as a whole, Punky Moms possess values that are very important to them and intentionally determine how they raise their children and live their lives. The website, http://www.punkymoms.com/, captures some of these values. Further on in the article, young punk moms are quoted and give examples of how their ideas play out. It is quite clear, that some of the philosophies and practices that are advocated by the punky moms are contrary to the typical middle-class public school institution. AND THAT IS THE POINT! Conformity to the acceptable middle-class values of family and life are to be challenged and questioned. I sense a disdain for conformity and even as I write this, I am sure that I have already raised the pierced eyebrows of many punky moms. “DEAR Punky Moms, I beg your patience as I try to understand and figure out how all this plays out in the public school arena.”

My point is not to squabble about the legitimacy of their choices versus societal expectations. In fact, some of the issues they raise are very much a part of what I know teachers are discussing: the value of children, the individuality of children, freedom to choose, need to work with the diversity of family structures, etc. However, I am concerned that schools will not be given the opportunity by the moms to help understand and figure out how they can support their child’s learning and best interest. My bet is that many of the punky moms, as well as others, are very suspicious of schools and school personnel. I even believe that many of them hated school and were harmed in different ways by traditional schooling. Schools are slowly becoming more culturally proficient, but it will take time and lots of partnerships with the diverse stakeholders. The more aware we become of diversity among our community, the more able we are to competently work with all students to help them succeed. I believe this begins with relationships and that is for another post …!

2006-06-06T09:02:00.000-07:00

Reading this book by Ruby Payne has been an eye-opening experience for me. It is so easy to forget that each and every student is coming from a different family and living situation. After reading Payne's book, I began teaching some of the hidden rules of our society. I was especially encouraged when I found the book called "The Essential 55" by Ron Clark. The rules in this book are about preparing kids for what is to come in school and in life. Also, they are helpful in improving student behavior. On occasion, I take out the book and introduce a new rule to my students. Some of the rules seem very obvious to the kids but others sound foreign to them. It is extremely interesting to observe the reactions of different students during these short mini-lessons. I have noticed many positive changes in my students' behaviors and I hope these skills/rules will stick with them in the future. I really look forward to implementing more of these rules in my classroom. If you get a chance, take a look at this book!

2006-06-06T05:14:00.000-07:00

As I reflect upon the readings and discussions we have had this year, the word that keeps coming to mind is time. Building relationships with students and parents and other staff is crucial to success, but in an environment that constantly stresses academic achievement it is often difficult to find time for personal connections. I remember my own elementary education as being more fun and less hurried than what I see happening with my own children. How can we get through all the academic content and still allow time to help students connect to school? When I see over 800 students each week for less than 30 minutes at a time, this task sometimes feels overwhelming. One way I try to connect with my students is by relating my own responses and thoughts about books and allowing discussion time for them to do the same. What are some other ways you are finding to create those connections within our rigid academic environment?

What Next?

2006-06-02T16:41:00.000-07:00

As my first year of teaching comes to a close I am very reflective of my performance. I have learnt a lot at the expense of all of my children. I have been told that I have come to Firgrove at an opportune time because of a focus of change and the implementation of efforts that strongly suggest a worth of purpose. I am able to see this first hand with the study of Ruby Payne's work.
Now that this study is coming to a close I keep asking myself what is the next logical step. Here is a suggestion.
We can create a conceptual framework to demonstrate support to students through the model of a student strengths bank.
The purpose is to build up a student using their strength regardless of how limited, to facilitate a foundation of firm support.
What will this look like? The use of only positive language to show students we care. The use of actions to demonstrate the effectiveness of knowledge, application and the implementation of the hidden rules, ie, show how being organized can help a student.
The creation of one concept for every two weeks. Similar to how the GWM is organized. Introduce the concept in a limited window, then come back to it in detail in order to create the concept as school culture. Groups of teachers should take ownership of the management of all concepts - not administration but one to another.

Need help with a child

2006-05-31T17:50:00.000-07:00

I service a child who is unmotivated. Rewards and consequences don't seem to phase the child. I have even gone as far as letting the child chose his/her own reward but that doesn't help. This child has made up his/her mind that they are done for the school year. Does anybody have any suggestions?

Small Group Follow-up

2006-02-18T16:37:00.000-08:00

I like this idea of blogging. It allows us all to learn what others are thinking - at least those who take the time to write/read. The posted question "what are we going to do with this info., if anything?" is a great one. I feel that the most powerful thing to come out of this work is personal growth that will lead to change in the way each individual tackles his/her work at Firgrove (or anywhere else in the future). If that is all we get out of this, I think it is time worth spending....afterall, when stripped down, what else is there in life besides growing and making a difference in the lives of others? At the same time, I really enjoy getting into small groups and conversing with my colleagues on a real and meaningful level - sharing what we've learned and how it impacts us. This type of sharing is never done enough in the educational setting, let alone a huge (ultra-mega) school like ours. Finally, I agree that we should look deeper at the next step of how to apply, more globally, what we have learned. How can we make a collective difference at Firgrove because of our time spent in this book? What does it mean to accountability and our "professional commitment"? What does it say to how we spend our stipend, extended learning, and I-728 budgets? Does this info. influence how we approach communications and conferences? Should it affect discipline and consequences? Does it change anything at all? I truly wish I had the time to converse with each staff member to get their input on these ideas and questions. I encourage you to post your related thoughts!

Participants Comments Ask WHY?

2006-02-17T21:58:00.000-08:00

To conclude the book study for session 2 I asked participants to comment as to what is working well and what they would like to see improved. Most the comments stated that they are enjoying the book and that they are finding value in the discussions. My thoughts are you will get out of it what you put into it. If you read the text and come prepared to offer up ideas or ask questions it will make the discussion only that much richer.

The constructive feedback that occurred the most frequently was, "Why are doing this and is this more than information?" or "Are we expected to do something with this information?" I have my ideas about the purpose of this book study, but I wonder what others are thinking.

Formal Language

2006-02-17T21:50:00.000-08:00

Our group has had a lot of discussion about the use (or the lack of) formal language by kids. WE think that we as teachers and school staff, have a lot of power to help kids understand the need to use formal language, model it, AND to directly teach it. I am at fault in not directly teaching it when I have a chance and I am doing a disservice to kids when I don't take the opportunity to instruct them how to use the formal language register. How about you? Our two book group members that have learned the Queen's tongue would totally agree dudes with that cool idea!

A FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING POVERTY

2006-01-06T16:21:00.000-08:00

A FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING POVERTY - Firgrove Book Study

How do we at Firgrove continue the conversation from our small book groups? How do we learn about all the neat reflections and ideas that we each have as we engage in our reading?

Introducing the Firgrove Book Study BLOG

Post your questions, reflections, or comments so as to keep the ideas flowing.