MY BLOG HAS MOVED
My blog - “Mrs. Catoe’s Chronicles” has moved. Please join me on my new blog at
My blog - “Mrs. Catoe’s Chronicles” has moved. Please join me on my new blog at
Thanks for reading along with me this summer and chatting - sharing your thoughts, memories, and stories has been insightful to me. As a matter of fact, my former high school World Geography/AP History/Yearbook Advisor emailed me on Friday. She was headed back to school, saw a great friend of mine who mentioned my blog, and responded. Her email recollection of my high school class and friends brought tears to my eyes. I shared this email with my teachers on Friday to show that we do make a difference….not just in the lives of children, but in the lives of teachers, too. I printed out a copy of her email and saved it in my “Sunshine File” for days when the times get tough. Being resilient is the final message that Ron Clark shares….a meaningful and serious one. I look forward to a great year!
On to Chapter 10…Appreciation! Get ready - the grand finale of our book study is coming up. Be sure to be finished with our book by Monday. We will be discussing this book in our Back to School Staff Development sessions as we build our vision for the upcoming year! Thanks for all you do, DME Dolphins!
One of the great things about our school is that humor abounds everywhere. We are all quick to laugh - sometimes at each other….we laugh with the children and teach them to find humor in difficult situations. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes, we just can’t see it yet. But, it takes teamwork to find that silver lining, and that is the power of our grade level teams and the leadership of our team leaders. I look forward to having more fun this upcoming school year. I wonder what kind of pie I will get pied with this year? May I recommend peach filling, Mrs. Thrall?
On to Chapter 9…Common Sense….We are almost finished with our book study and blogging. How do you plan to incorporate this book in your class? How will you keep this momentum going?
As I reviewed over the chapter, I underlined some key quotes. One particular sentence struck a chord with me: “There are so many individuals out there who have the potential for greatness but never use their abilities for fear of failure or because they don’t believe in themselves” (p. 150). Believe it or not, I am one of those people. However, I applaud my faculty and staff to help lift and support me in all of my personal and professional endeavors. They help me reach goals that I never dreamed imaginable. My family and friends are also a great cheering section!
When I attended my Principal’s Induction Class a couple of weeks ago, Morgan Lee posted a quote on the wall while we were doing an activity…It read: “Remember that we become our conversations. Our lives eventually look like the people we associate with. Surround yourself with people who are innovative, passionate, interesting, provocative, caring and doing great things and your life cannot help but get better” (Robin Sharma). When I read this quote, I immediately thought about my faculty and staff! Wow! Talk about a powerful testament to our school and our faculty. I am so looking forward to a wonderful year here at school, and I know that our school’s potential is yet untapped! We have so much to do, and we have so much more to accomplish! Anything is possible, and together we can do it!
On to Chapter 8….Humor…my favorite chapter…..especially from me the eternal prankster!
Also, Clark writes about having compassion for the elderly. Our school does a wonderful job with performing outreach service learning projects with local nursing homes, etc. However, this year, I want to take this task one step further. I want each homeroom to adopt a Grand. Think about someone in our community who may need a little compassion and “invite” them to your classrooms monthly to eat lunch, volunteer, etc. “What is important is that through these efforts students begin to realize how the elderly in our society should be honored, appreciated, and respectfully treated.”
On to Chapter 7……I look forward to your responses and start thinking about your Grand adoptions!
On a professional level, this chapter hit home with me, too. As a former English teacher, on page 111, Ron Clark discusses teaching writing. As a teacher, I loved to teach writing. This is one aspect of the job that I particularly miss. I hope to co-teach more this year with some of my teachers - if they will allow me to. I would love to work with children to help them develop their individual style and voice of writing. Many of my former students - who are now teachers - I reflect upon their journey as writers. They are magnificent writers - who have grown their craft and intertwined their skills into their careers. I beam with pride when I see them in action in the classroom passing along their knowledge to their students.
Finally, I hope that all of you have heeded Clark’s advice this summer and allowed yourself to recharge. “Recharging is necessary, and it will make us a better teacher and also a better person.” I have received postcards from many of you who have traveled this summer “recharging” with family and friends. As for myself, my summer has been a bit different from the days of old. Working each day this summer has allowed me time to recharge in my role as principal and prepare for the upcoming school year, but I have not had as much time to spend with my children. Yet, being the eternal summer girl that I am, when I get home from work after 5:00 each day, my second job begins….being a mom. We pile in the yard with all the neighborhood children playing games, sports, and exercising….then ride the golf cart until the charge runs out each night. We long for the next sunrise to begin our days all over again. Finding balance is necessary….for work, for family, and for personal health and state of mind!
Have a great weekend. On to Chapter 6….Compassion
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Last week I took my rising fifth grader to purchase school supplies over the weekend. Yes, I know….school is over a month away from starting, but I wanted to get a jump on purchasing these supplies. I am pleased to announce that we successfully accomplished our goal. We purchased everything on his fifth grade supply list - even the “wish list” items which were requested by teachers. I wanted to be able to put a price tag on these supplies to share with parents. I spent $43.97 at Walmart! And, I think that was pretty good! Also, I wanted to purchase the “wish list” items - so often teachers spend money out of pocket to purchase these items throughout the year. I wanted to be able to contribute these items for them at the start of the year. Finally, I received a flier notifying parents of a Back 2 School Bash to be held on Saturday, August 2, 2008, from 9:00 a.m. until 12:00 noon at the Kershaw County School District Annex (Old Pine Tree Hill Elementary School) in Camden. At this event, students in Grades K-12 will be able to get school supplies! Keep this event in mind as you plan your Back to School shopping, and remember - Back to School Registration will be held here at Doby’s Mill Elementary on July 29! See you then!
Teachers, be sure to keep reading Chapter 5. I will be posting my blog this week on this chapter.
As a matter of fact, speaking of reflection, our beach leadership retreat last week with my grade level chairs was fabulous! We were very productive; not only did we revise both our math model and our RA schedule for the upcoming school year, reflect on last year’s challenges and successes, and discuss Clark’s The Excellent 11, we even had time to float down the marsh on inner tubes to the ocean twice….and we didn’t lose anyone on the tubes! That trip was a wonderful team building experience. It was so uplifting to be with my teachers to think about last year and plan for next year. Now, I am back at work this week - putting into motion our plans! Read on….Chapter 5 “Balance” is next!