Reflection

 

Without reflection, we go blindly on our way, creating more unintended consequence, and failing to achieve anything useful.

~Margaret J. Wheatley

I was recently sent an article from Forbes magazine that highlighted Dr. Tim Elmore.  While the title of the article was a bit jarring, the content was very relevant.  Dr. Elmore leads a group called Growing Leaders.  This group works to mentor young people and helps them develop leadership capabilities in their own lives.  His list of “crippling” parenting behaviors that keep children from becoming leaders really resonated with me.  I don’t see these as just parenting behaviors, but as societal behaviors that all adults often do.  I have to admit being in schools for the past 15 or so years (don’t want to give away exactly how old I am) I have seen an impact on students due to many of these behaviors. They are one of the reasons I find the Pillars we teach at Eagle Ridge Academy so compelling.  I would be interested in hearing any thoughts from parents who read this list and the accompanying article. I know I thought about how I may have done some of these things in regards to my own family and students I have connected with during my educational career.  I will list the behaviors below, but if you want to read the entire article the link is: 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kathycaprino/2014/01/16/7-crippling-parenting-behaviors-that-keep-children-from-growing-into-leaders/

1. We don’t let our children experience risk.

2.  We rescue too quickly.

3. We rave too easily.

4. We let guilt get in the way of leading well.

5. We don’t share our past mistakes.

6. We mistake intelligence, giftedness, and influence for maturity.

7.  We don’t practice what we preach.

While this list is not all encompassing, it does speak to a lot of things that are becoming societal norms.  At Eagle Ridge Academy, we try not to get caught up in those societal norms.  We do encourage our students to take risks and teach them how to persevere.  We teach students what true excellence looks like and how to honor it.  We let students know we do not have all the answers and make mistakes (sometimes on accident, sometimes on purpose) to model what to do when things don’t happen the way they should.  We expect our adults to model the Pillars on a daily basis to show our students how they should be a part of anyone’s daily life.  We truly are trying to help students become the leaders of tomorrow in the world, our country, and their own lives.

It has been another interesting January week with the weather.  I hope you have all received and read the letter from Mr. Ulbrich regarding the make-up days for our cold weather days.  If you have not read the letter, please note that school will now be in session the days listed below:

Friday, February 14^th

Monday, February 17^th

Thursday, March 27^th

Friday, March 28^th will now be the date for spring parent/teacher conferences (details on conferences will come at a later date)

Please remember if you had plans for family trips on any of the dates listed above, you will need to fill out a prior approval vacation request (on our website) for any of those days your child will be out of school.

The 2^nd Annual Lower School Variety Show is scheduled for March 1^st.  Below is the information about the Variety Show from Mrs. Nimchuk.  We have extra Variety Show applications in the Lower School office.

Saturday, March 1^st                                           ERA Gym                                              Admission: $1

Time:

·         2:30-3:30 for students in Full Day Kindergarten, 1^st and 2^nd grade

·         4:00-5:00 for students in grades 3, 4 and 5

If you would like to perform, a Performance Application must be completed and returned to Ms. Nimchuk by Tuesday, February 4^th.

There will be snacks for purchase!

All participants will perform their act in their class' Share Your Talent Day (see dates below) as a dress rehearsal and so that Ms. Nimchuk has an opportunity to advise students. Students must stay in school uniform during the school day and for their Share Your Talent Day, but may follow free dress day guidelines for the Variety Show.

Guidelines:

-Each student may be in 1 act

-1-4 students may be involved in each act

-Acts should be 2 minutes or less in length

Acts may include:

-Playing an instrument; a piano is available; all other instruments and sheet music must be brought from home. We advise students have several months of experience prior to performing.

-Singing a song; sing a cappella, bring an accompanist, or bring a Karaoke accompaniment of your song on an iPod or cell phone and remove its case before the event. Students may not sing along with a CD/mp3: we want to hear students’ voices, not the recording artists’ voice!*

-Dancing*

-Demonstrating individual martial arts or gymnastics routine*

-Reciting a poem or acting out a scene from a play or musical*

-Demonstrating “tricks” (magic, juggling, yo-yo, etc.)*

-Telling jokes*

*If your act includes words/lyrics, the words/lyrics must be turned in by Tuesday, February 4^th with the registration form to be checked for school appropriateness.

The week of February 10^th through 14^th has been designated Pillar Week.  The plans for each day are listed below.  These were developed by the US Student Senate.

Monday (2/10)- Honor Day:  Honor our country by wearing red, white, and blue or honor someone who serves our country (Military member, Fire Fighters, Police Officers, Government Agents, etc.)

Tuesday (2/11)- Excellence Day:  Dress to Impress by wearing your best formal or dress-up clothes

Wednesday (2/12) Perseverance Day:  Wear a shirt supporting a college or university of interest to you. 

Thursday (2/13) Citizenship Day: This is a Spirit Wear Day.  Wear your ERA spirit wear to show your ERA pride.

Friday (2/14) Valentine’s Day: Students may wear Red, Pink, White, or other festive attire in celebration of the day.  They will also each be given a Pillar sticker by their teacher that they are to give to someone else they may see demonstrating one of the Pillars that day.

In walking around the school each day I see a lot of interesting things in the hallway.  This week I noticed the inside of Mrs. Trow’s door (see the picture below) when it was open.  We talk a lot about assessments and the best assessments are the ones teachers do each day to see what the students have learned after each lesson.  It can be a quick question by the teacher, a short written response to a few questions, or as Mrs. Trow does some days a post-it note on the door after an activity.  These post-it notes allow her to check for understanding and see what each of her second grade students thought was important from a particular lesson.  It makes me want to put a post-it note on my door before I leave each day on what stuck with me from my work day.  It would allow me the opportunity to reflect on my day.  It is always important to think about what we have done each day and for students it is important to reflect in small chunks on what they have learned.  This simple door poster provides Mrs. Trow with such essential information, but as we walk through the halls we might just see a colorful door decoration. Everything our teachers do at Eagle Ridge Academy has a purpose in making our students better learners, even the decorations!

Have a wonderful week!

Mrs. Baier

Oh Mother Nature...

“A great, great deal has been said about the weather but very little has ever been done.”

 ~ Mark Twain

January has been an interesting month so far.  I know the arctic blasts from Mother Nature have played havoc with the schedules of everyone.  I’m glad I am not a meteorologist right now, as all they are stuck with delivering the cold weather news we really don’t want to hear.  As you should know by now we will be having school on February 14^th to make up for our cancellation on January 23^rd.  We are doing all we can to make up for the loss of these precious instructional days in the classrooms and appreciate your support!

Some first and second grade students have been working together as math buddies.  While we don’t do a lot of group work at Eagle Ridge Academy, the structure of younger and older students working together on occasion is too good of an opportunity to ignore.  In this case the students were in groups with an adult assigned to guide them through the process of estimating with each other.  As you can see from the pictures, the groups were really engrossed in what they were doing.  It was interesting to listen to their strategies and to hear the adults give them other ways to estimate.

Mr. Anderson has been busy filling up the “Art Wall of Excellence” outside the art room.  Below is a picture of some of the work that is currently being displayed.

I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable weekend!

Mrs. Baier

Welcome Back

“Spoon feeding in the long run teaches us nothing but the shape of the spoon.” ~ E.M. Forster

The above quote continually reminds me why the mission of Eagle Ridge Academy is always at the center of everything we do here.  We always challenge our students to achieve their best by encouraging them to persevere and learn things on their own.  While sometimes this is difficult and there are easier ways to teach students, we do them no favors as they will not internalize their knowledge. We do not spoon feed our students knowledge.  We teach them truths and how they can use those truths to further their own understanding of the world each day.

Last week I enjoyed hot cocoa with our December Pillar ticket winners listed below.  January’s drawing will take place on January 31^st.  The five winners of this drawing will enjoy time with janitor Steve learning more about the inner workings of Eagle Ridge Academy. 

December Pillar Ticket Winners

Rachel M.

Carter S.

Livia B.

Ananya S.

Madison C.

It was an honor to watch our 4^th and 5^th grade contestants in the first annual Eagle Ridge Academy Spelling Bee on January 9^th.  It was quite the contest.  After 17 rounds of action, the winner was 8^th grader Tharun R.  Congratulations to him!  We look forward to hearing how he does on the next step of the competition.  A special thanks to Mrs. Karen Pettinger for organizing the spelling bee and gathering volunteers to make it possible!

Please note that boots are not a part of the dress code in the Lower School this year.  This includes the tall tennis shoes (not regular high-top tennis shoes) and Ugg boots.  Thank you for your help in making sure your children abide by the uniform policy.

Students in second and third grade have been working on resolutions for 2014.  The second graders are thinking about what how they can get better and new things they can read.  The third graders in Mr. Schloesser’s class have reflected about things they have enjoyed so far and something they might want to improve on in the New Year.  You can see their work in the few pictures below and hanging in the hallways outside the classrooms. 

Mr. Dan O’Brien from the Upper School came down last week to speak to the second grade students about his experiences in Japan.  The second graders are currently learning about the geography and culture of Japan.

Last week our 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th grade students took the OLPA test in mathematics.  The OLPA is a practice MCA test to help us identify how students may score on the actual MCA mathematics test in the spring.  We will finish the testing this week and hope to communicate results to parents by the end of the week.  

Have a wonderful week!

Mrs. Baier