The mission of Venture Academy is to equip students to achieve their highest potential through individual, flexible and structured educational experiences that enhance their academic growth and prepare them for lifelong learning and success.
Phones... This is a reminder that phones are not allowed during the school day, except for lunch. If there is a specific academic reason to have them, an exception can be made. The kids are not reliable reporters, but they are saying that it's okay to use them in some classrooms, or that it isn't a big deal if they use them. On Tuesday, please reiterate the phone policy with your classes. Nobody wants to make a big deal out of it, but the best place for us to be is united on this policy. I appreciate the work you're doing with kids and phones shouldn't be a barrier to their ability to socialize and collaborate with the living, breathing peers that are sitting right next to them.
Creating Cultures of Thinking: The 8 Forces We Must Master to Truly Transform our Schools.
This chapter explores why the culture of the school and classroom matters and how schools enculturate students into ways of being through the messages they send about learning and thinking. It looks at traditional messages schools have sent in the past, the dominant messages being sent presently, and the new messages we need to send as we think about preparing students for the future. The Eight Cultural Forces are presented as a grounded theory to understand the mechanisms of enculturation.
Pay particular attention to:
Page 17 and the "survival skills"
Page 21 and the metaphor of culture as a story we tell
Page 31 and 32 about the kinds of thinking we value
Trust-Based Relational Intervention is a model for interacting with students that is being adopted by our district and by the Kootenai County Juvenile Justice. Keith Orchard and Andi West are conducting trainings in every building. The first one is for 3 hours, followed by 1.5 hours once a month. We are sandwiched between other trainings that day, hence the late start time. Classified and certified staff are invited to this first session. Because of the weird time, we will serve lunch (Carusos)
Conferences are around the corner. Angie and Val are providing a sit-down dinner for the families. They did this a couple of years and it was quite well received.
What kinds of thinking have your students been doing? How can this be showcased for parents for parents to see and appreciate the hard work their teens have been doing?
Thank you for the AMAZING first two weeks of school!
Every time I visit your classrooms your courage inspires me. Stepping away from traditional teaching and focusing on authentic learning truly makes you the man (woman) in the arena. But, here is the wonderful thing I discovered... None of us at Venture is in the arena alone. In EVERY classroom I've seen evidence of reaching beyond traditional "sit and get" into the realm of meaningful and authentic learning. Let me know when you want to walk around classrooms with me so you can get an overview of what's happening. We will ask Gayle or Marita to watch your class while we take a learning walk.
Speaking of Gayle and Marita... Gayle Mangis is our new Title I math paraprofessional and Marita Durk is our Title I English Paraprofessional. Marita's time will be in the support room and Gayle will be roaming the math hall helping out as needed.
Lutherhaven: I heard very positive things from everyone about this experience. To expand the learning, look for ways to talk to students about their experience. Here are some questions to prompt conversation:
Did you feel supported by your peers during challenging activities? If so, how did they support you?
What did you learn about yourself during these activities? Were there things you tried to do even though it felt uncomfortable or scary?
Do you feel that this activity helped you get to know your peers and advisor in a helpful way?
Do you think Venture should continue to do this activity every year? How could we improve this activity for you?
Safety Updates: Accidental Lock down: If an accidental lock down were ever to occur, the person that triggered it could be the only person knowing that it was an accident--the rest of the staff should treat it as real. The person that accidentally set it off should immediately go to a Safety Hold by dialing 46097 (for Venture), and email all staff and the principal, letting us know what happened. Then the Safety Hold can be lifted, and the day can continue as normal. Safety Hold vs. Lockdown: A Safety Hold is meant to be used primarily when a threat or event is outside the building, and could be used to bring all students inside the building. A Lockdown is meant to be an immediate response when there is an immediate threat inside the building. In this case, students who are outside would stay outside, evacuate to a secondary location and notify the District office. There may be some cases where we would initially go into a Safety Hold (to bring everyone into the building), and then a Lockdown, depending on the situation. We are currently working on a Safety Hold training video, and will follow it up with some FAQs.
September 16 Collaboration day: Please read Onward ch. 4 by Sept.16 and, for Sept. 23 please readCreating Cultures of Thinking pages 15 - 35. Reading two books over a year rather than one book per semester is something we have never done before. The books are very different with messages worth exploring over the course of the year. Creating Cultures of Thinking is meaty enough that it could provide material for two full years of study and implementation. We will read it slowly and thoroughly to give ourselves time to explore the concepts. Visitors: Because of our commitment to transitioning to student-centered, rigorous and relevant instruction, we will have visitors in the building throughout the year. Dr. Cook, Dr. Caudle, a consultant from PEBC and others will be going into classrooms with me and offering feedback to help us hone our efforts. When we are visiting, please ignore us as much as possible and continue teaching. This isn't evaluative, but rather intended to help us improve our collective instructional practices. Chromebooks: Accountability with the Chromebook has been a challenge. Marita has been numbering and trying to rearrange them so you have enough to check out to every class every period. Please don't borrow or loan them from other classrooms. Instead, talk to Marita so she can assign more to your cart. Thank you for your patience as we hammer out a process that works. Lutherhaven Field Trip
Each teacher will be responsible for their own advisory students. Please make sure that you have the permission slips for every advisory student on your roster. Before you leave Friday, please email me the names of any students without a permission slip so I know who is staying behind.
Christy and Diana are staying behind with any kids who don't go. Probably, anyone not going with us will not come to school at all, but we are ready if they show up :)
Please take attendance for kids getting on the bus both ways using your advisory roster. We don't want to lose anyone! We may have a couple of kids who are not in advisories going with us. If we do, I'll assign them to somebody on Monday morning.
One or two adults need to be on each of the three buses. Please email me if you're willing to ride a bus. If we don't get volunteers, I'll draw names. How much room there is will depend on how many kids don't show up.
Participate in activities to your level of comfort
Lutherhaven is giving us a significant discount, please talk to the kids about being polite, and gracious guests. My hope is that the staff at Lutherhaven will be thoroughly impressed with our amazing students!
Can you think of any details that I haven't thought of? If so, please email me right away. Thank you!!!
Bus/Parking lot duty: Smith and Cooley
Monday 9/9: Lutherhaven Team-building
Tuesday 9/10: Kaiser @ admin meeting am Wednesday 9/11: Thursday 9/12:
Friday 9/13: Bus/Parking lot duty: Gonzalez and Fehling
Monday 9/16: PD day schedule coming soon
Tuesday 9/17: Wednesday 9/18: Thursday 9/19:
Friday 9/20: Picture day Kaiser & Smotherman out in the am
Welcome to the 2019-2020 school year! One of my favorite things about our profession is that every year offers a fresh start and a clean slate and the promise of hope and possibility that accompany new beginnings. This year we are implementing some important changes at Venture High School. We are shifting roles, redefining our work, and, collectively, rethinking what it means to "do school."
Recently, a school in Spokane had a reader board message that said "Fall in Love With School Again." What would it mean if we all, students and teachers alike, "fell in love with school?" What if school ignited our passions and curiosities and learning was connected to real issues that mattered to us beyond the school day? These are the questions I would like all of us to explore this year with our students.
No one needs to tell you how important your job is. It is YOU, not curriculum, class size, or funding, that most influence student achievement. I hope that you are in love with school and the incredibly important work you do. Of course, every day isn't going to be amazing, but if you don't leave school with a smile on most days, proud of the work you did with kids, talk to someone about it. Come see me or talk to a colleague. If we aren't happy, our students won't be either and that is a miserable way to approach learning.
My hope for all of us at Venture is that we all come to see school as a community of learners who gather to do interesting work that matters. Roland Barth in Learning by Heart, 2004 said "Ultimately there are two kinds of schools: learning-enriched schools and learning-impoverished schools. I have yet to see a school where the learning curves of the adults were steep upward and those of the students were not. "Teachers and studentsgo hand in hand as learners, or they don't go at all"
What is the story we will tell of this year? I hope we will share tales of helping kids to learn, to laugh and to belong. I hope we ask hard and interesting questions and try new things. I hope we have the courage to be vulnerable with each other and with our students. Together, we form the human infrastructure that supports rich and meaningful learning experiences for our kids... and for ourselves.
Bus/Parking lot duty: Doering and Baker Monday 9/2: Labor Day
Tuesday 9/3: Wednesday 9/4: Thursday 9/5:
Friday 9/6:
Bus/Parking lot duty: Smith and Cooley
Monday 9/9: Lutherhaven Team-building
Tuesday 9/10: Wednesday 9/11: Thursday 9/12:
Friday 9/13:
Thursday, June 6, 2019
Monday 6/10: We are required to work a full day
As we wrap up the the 2018-2019 School year.... Thank you, everyone, for a great year of learning and growing with each other and with students. A special thank you to Susan Thomas for her many years of helping students. I have literally lost count of the adults who have shared with me that Sue was the reason they graduated from high school. Sue, you have been a life changer for many, many young people. Your confidence in their ability to learn and succeed gave them the courage to keep moving forward when they had doubts in their own ability to grow beyond the struggles they faced. This year, you made a difference in the lives of all of our seniors. Your guidance, support, and gentle cajoling pushed and coaxed them through the senior project process. My words are inadequate to thank you for a career-long mission to guide and support students. I know I speak for the whole Venture staff when I say my best wishes for your future success go with you where ever your life may lead. Godspeed and good luck to you! Marsha, I am so thankful to you for your ENDLESS patience when I joined Venture. You taught me so much and made my transition so much easier. Beyond that, you've made sure that we all had the supplies and materials that we needed for teaching and learning to go forward. Thank you for organizing our trips and sorting out the confusion of P.O's, reimbursements, and grants. You took on the headaches and everything ran smoother because of you. From all of us at Venture, best wishes to you for a fun and happy retirement! Godspeed and good luck to you!
And a final word as you head off to your summer break...
Friday 6/7: Monday 6/10: We are required to work a full day
Congratulations Jessica Gaynor, Coeur d'Alene School District's Rookie of the Year!!!!
Really good teachers understand the connection between quality instruction and the students’ ability to learn the material and allow the new learning to change them in some way. They get the importance of well-planned, standards-aligned and engaging lessons. They create classrooms that are cognitively busy places with high levels of intellectual interactions among students. Jessica does all of that and takes it a step further. She understands that student learning happens within the context of relationships.
Building strong relationships with students can be a tough place to be because it can leave us feeling vulnerable as our teens learn ways to communicate their satisfaction and, sometimes, dissatisfaction, with life, school, classes, and, specifically, what's happening in our classrooms. Excellent teaching requires that we open ourselves up to that vulnerability so that we learn along with students to grow and improve on our own best practices. Jessica's willingness to participate in that learning WITH students and engage with them in the ongoing give-and-take is among the greatest gifts she shares with the young people in her charge.
But...Jessica takes it even a bit further than that. She understands that her influence extends far beyond the confines of a particular content area… that her task is to empower young people to embrace the totality of the human experience and to respond to their own highest calling for themselves. In her classroom, students aren't just learning the standards. They pursue their own interests and use the standards to do that skillfully, empowering them to influence their community in positive ways. Jessica's students are focused on things that are important to learn, not just on things that are easy to test.
And, of course, her learning also happens within the context of relationships. Those relationships, forged with colleagues, compose the fiber of school culture and set the stage for an education that matters. Jessica, we celebrate you for your courage to reject education's status quo. And, as we celebrate you, we celebrate Venture High School's community of learners and our commitment to doing things that matter for our students and for ourselves. Thank you, Jessica, for your hard work, for your insight, and for your courage.
Rising Temperature, Rising Tension
Another school conundrum: Just when everything should feel better, it actually gets worse.
The sun is shining; daylight hours exceed work hours; and tempers get shorter. While there is no magic bullet for keeping things calm and productive as the school year winds down, here are a few tips I've picked up through the years:
Keep the schedule. Free time and boring work is not a friend to teachers or students. Maintaining a schedule that is reasonably rigorous and keeps kids productively occupied from bell to bell is possibly the best way to ward off behavior issues.
Take care of yourself: Maintain healthy boundaries (You don't have to do everything you're asked to do. Prioritize those things that matter most) Move (Most of us don't move enough anyway and we move less when we're busy with lesson planning and grading. Take a walk, play a game, garden, fish, whatever, but move) Give yourself some space (A five minute walk between classes or with kids, a personal day, an afternoon to yourself, take the time to fill your own bucket) Ask for help (you don't have to do everything yourself and, sometimes, two heads and four hands work better)
Take a time out (breathe and count to ten). We've probably all learned the hard lesson that it's easier to avoid saying something than it is to undo the damage of harsh words. If regrettable words are spoken, own it and repair the relationship as quickly as possible. As imperfect human beings, we can model for students how to fix things when we fail.
You're not perfect. Neither am I. Let's just accept it and move on with our flawed selves and do the best we can together.
The Power of Words
A Note From the District Office:
Long Range Planning Committee Needs Members: We are looking for members to serve on the School Board's Long Range Planning Committee. The committee especially is in need of members representing the Borah Elementary and Venture High school zones. But anyone from any zone is welcome to apply.
This group of volunteers creates and reviews the District's long-range plans for facilities. Participation is a four-year commitment. The committee meets once a month, generally on Mondays, from 4:30 to 6 PM at Midtown Center. More information about this committee is available on our website.
To apply, complete and submit this form. All applications will be reviewed by a subcommittee of Long Range Planning.
