Monday, January 26, 2015

Grit, Work Ethic and Bonuses

Here at Estes we are talking about growth mindset with our students and teachers. A mindset is basically what you believe you are capable of doing. Some people believe in what is called a fixed mindset and that means they believe you are either good at something or not good at something based on your inherent nature. A person with a growth mindset believes a person can be good at anything because their abilities are entirely due to their actions.
We are teaching our students that if they believe and put in hard work(GRIT) they will be able to accomplish their goals. Yes, I have written about this before, but I think it is important to keep things fresh on the brain.
Now just like in the real world you get rewarded for the hard work that you put in. All of our students who put in hard work get rewarded in the classrooms everyday. Now just like in the real world bonuses can pop up at any time. One such bonus has already occurred this year with the bike giveaway. I am happy to tell you that the leadership team is working on another bonus that will make at least 24 students extremely happy. The teachers and staff at Estes want our students to know that we appreciate all the hard work they do and that it doesn't go unnoticed. Please stay tuned for more information for the new bonus your students will be working for. Remind them to show GRIT at school and earn those GRIT tickets for their chance to receive the special bonus.

100th Day!

We celebrated the 100th day of school today with a wide variety of activities. Take a look at some of the funs things your children did today!











What is in Your Genes?

Third grade has been studying heredity and where our inherited traits came from. They made Punnett squares and created a Punnett critter from it's parents traits.





Visiting and Showing Off Some Mad Math Skills

Aaron has been visiting Mrs. Jewell's room and showing her his mad math skills. Aaron is showing GRIT and working hard in math class!

5 Surprising Tricks for Keeping Your Child Healthy

Click on the link to read the article.
http://www.greatschools.org/parenting/health-nutrition/5134-5-surprising-tricks-for-keeping-your-child-healthy-this-season.gs?s_cid=eml_weekly_20150125

I'll Huff and I'll Puff


Ms. Ellis' class is working on their retelling skills. They have very convincing characters retelling the story of The Three Little Pigs. They even have kindergarteners reading the part of the narrator! Way to go! Look out Hollywood we have some fantastic actors and actresses headed your way.

Thursday, January 22, 2015

We Need Your Help!

DISTRICT TECHNOLOGY SURVEY
Estes Parents: WE NEED YOUR HELP!
As you are aware, we have extensive technology resources for our students. The Board of Education would like to hear from you on how we are using those resources! Please take 15 minutes or less to respond to an important survey. Data from this survey will be used to make decisions in our
future. Thanks in advance for your help! Survey window closes on February 13th. 
Estes Parents: Copy this link into your browser if the link doesn't open.
http://www.BByt.es/PE8TP

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Something Big is Coming

Can you tell from the pic above what special day is coming? Study the picture closely and make sure you come to school on January 26th to be part of this special day. A big thank you to the Kindergarten students and their teachers for making this picture possible!

Learning About Martin Luther King, Jr.



Our Preschool, Kindergarten and first grade students submitted some art work to the blog to show what they have learned about Martin Luther King, Jr. As you can see from the pics, they have learned a great deal about that special man and his dream!



It's Contagious

Ms. Manqueros found this happening when she walked into her class on Friday morning. She says her class is so excited about reading and taking class books home! Her students are even bringing their own books to school to read in the mornings. In this pic Brad is retelling a favorite story to his friends.

A Future Educator

Autumn Bolmer is on her way to becoming a future educator. This young lady has drafted a plan to help students with their homework. She is practicing all the Seven Habits for Leader in Me! I believe one day if this young lady continues to work hard we will see her sitting behind a desk running her own school!

Look at the Focus

Take a look at the focus these students have while reading magazines in Mrs. McCarty's class. These students are super focused on the material in the magazines! Remember the more you read the smarter you get!

Need Help with Homework?

The link below has ideas on how to help your children with their homework.
http://www.greatschools.org/students/homework-help/7863-homework-help-a-guide-for-parents.gs?s_cid=eml_weekly_20150118


The Born Learning Academy Driven by Toyota

Toyota Born Learning will meet Tuesday, January 27th.  It is open to anyone with a child age 5 and under.  Food and Childcare provided.  Fun activities for all. 

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Challenging Your Thinking On Zoos


Students develop persuasive writing to determine how people can help or harm animal habitats. Students explored a variety of habitats and developed an opinion on how zoos can impact the animals in their care.




Choosing the Right Words: Smart vs. Hard Worker

Yes, we want our children to be smart and successful, but are we setting up our children to be scared of challenges? The leadership staff at Estes has been digging into research to answer the question of how to praise children.
For years parents and teachers have been praising children and talking about how smart they are. I know I have been guilty of talking to my children and telling them how smart they are. What I couldn't understand is how come I couldn't get them to take risks or challenges-basically try something new. I would say you are so smart you can do this or I don't understand why you won't try do this because you are so smart and I know you can do this.
The research that is out there now states it is our fault that our children and students don't want to take risks and challenges because we have set them up to not want to. These so called "smart" children are now afraid of being wrong and it is our fault. The so called "not so intelligent" children believe they can't do anything so why even try. The good thing is that it isn't too late to reverse what we have done.
Both parents and teachers need to speak of how hard the children are working instead of how smart the children are. By changing our choice of words we will hopefully create children and students who will believe they have what is called a growth-mindset instead of a fixed-mindset. What is a growth-mindset and a fixed mindset? Basically, a person with a fixed-mindset believes he or she can't increase their intelligence with putting in more effort and work ethic. A person with a growth-mindset believes he or she can do and learn anything as long as he or she puts in the work.
You all have seen the posters-If you believe it You can achieve it. Well, that is not necessarily the truth. We have to teach our children and students you have to do more than believe. You have to work hard and embrace challenges and failures. I can believe that I will get good grades, but if I don't work hard and plan how to get good grades I will not achieve that dream. So go ahead and dream and believe you are going to do something, but make sure you are putting in the work and challenging yourself to make the dream come true. Nothing in this life comes easy and we need to prepare our students that they will face challenges and obstacles when they are trying to make their dreams come true.
Here is my challenge to you- the next time you are proud of what your child has accomplished say "Look at how hard you worked" instead of "You are so smart".
Have a great week!

How to Develop Your Child's Coping Skills

Here is a great video that lasts approximately 90 seconds and talks about what we as parents can do to help children learn how to cope with various struggles. 



What's the Matter?

Yes, that is a play on words for the next set of pictures. Here we have Mrs. McKenzie's class making Lava lamps while studying matter.