This is where the TPLC Community can come learn about some of the latest happenings of Turning Point Learning Center students and staff. Check back regularly, as we're updating often!
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posted Nov 26, 2009 5:10 AM by Ginger Lewman
TPLC students shared what they feel their blessings are and we created this wonderful Wordle. We hope everyone has a delightful and warm Thanksgiving Break with family,
friends, and loved ones.
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posted Nov 12, 2009 7:43 AM by Ginger Lewman
By Maya Ballester
On October 30th, Turning Point Learning Center had a fall celebration party at Parker Wood’s house. Parker’s mom, Dr. Trish Wood sent all the kids a Google document with the details and location of the party.
We wore our Halloween costumes and had a costume contest. The awards were, most enchanting, most creative, most comical and most technical. We had food, drinks and candy. The kids also got to play on Parker’s Wii game.
I thought the party was well prepared, and awfully fun!
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posted Oct 15, 2009 12:30 PM by Ginger Lewman
By:Brianna Dougherty
The end of the quarter has come!
Today was the end of the quarter at school and unfortunately some of us were not prepared for the work. The ones who did get their work done though were rewarded, they were allowed to go to Charlie's room to play on Scratch® an animation program on the computer, stay out for break longer, and get hot chocolate. The others (including myself) came inside for most of the day and caught up. Some of us were grateful, others were mournful and some are really good at not showing their emotions.
Mrs. Lewman, the Lead lead learner, has told us all though that we are extremely lucky to get this chance to catch up. I think that we all believe her.
Even with getting a chance to make up the work we didn't get done some of us still spend their time slacking off.
And I will hope that more of us will be in the group of people in Charlie's room.
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posted Oct 3, 2009 8:23 AM by Ginger Lewman
Here's a terrific article that outlines various tips for how to help your kids learn to manage their time better. I like the bit that reminds us that it takes a couple of months for change to occur after a big change in schedule and operations have occurred. So for all you newbie families out there, have patience. Your child will eventually begin to realize that homework time really is time to work. Often emotional memory is the strongest teacher for many teens/tweens. If they don't learn how to find that internal motivation now, when will they? Failing in high school is too costly in terms of scholarships, and failing later has even tougher consequences. Check out the article below for some really helpful and calming tips:
by Alexandra Myerson
Now that your child is a tween, with increased academic demands bumping up against raging hormones, is disorganization inevitable? Will you be plagued with late-night
study sessions, overdue assignments, and missed events? Not
necessarily. With guidance, your middle schooler can learn to manage
her time and set priorities. Your first step: Get her buy-in. She won't
respond well if she feels she's being babied, so have her weigh in.
What are her big challenges? How might she resolve them? Offer up these
strategies as good options.
A Time and a Place for All Things
On average, your middle schooler will need to set aside an hour or two each night for... Go to article |
posted Oct 1, 2009 6:22 PM by Ginger Lewman
10-1-09
Emporia, KS
By Peter S. 6th grader
A few weeks ago Ms. Fitz, a teacher at TPLC, proposed that students make a garden. The project was soon finished, one problem remained though, its October! Soon Ms. Fitz had yet another brilliant idea, why don't we make cold frames? A cold frame is a structure designed to allow plants survive the harsh winter.
Students went to work immediately, the plants were put in small cups while the student planned out the cold frames. Soon they were finished and they started working on their individual group's unique design. Day one of building has just been finished. Will the students finish their work before the imminent winter closes in?
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posted Sep 27, 2009 6:01 AM by Ginger Lewman
I just finished registering TPLC for a Global Nomads Group
video conference regarding African Conflict Minerals for November 17 and 19. I'm not sure on the time; although it's stated to start at 10:30am CST, these are often adjusted at the last minute.
Truly, this topic wasn't my
first choice for the conference (both Charlie Mahoney and I preferred the video conference topic of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq that coincided with Veteran's Day), but the vote of the students was 50/50 on the two topics. Finally, the Conflict Mineral group convinced us to go their route, which is
still really good learning, by stating that with a little searching in the news, we can learn about what's going on in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq; that the African Conflict Minerals topic wasn't so readily accessible. I had to concede and so the decision was made.
The kids are apparently becoming transfixed with the complexities of the Africa they're learning about, beyond the ever-present famine photos. I'm so proud of them! All interested parties are welcome to come observe the kids preparing and/or participating in the conference. More details will come out later.
Email Ginger Lewman for more information.
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posted Sep 23, 2009 4:17 AM by Ginger Lewman
We're going to be showing your kids the US Government's Health and Human Services video winners from their Public Service Announcements contest. Many of them are funny but very informative. We thought you may like to see them as well As always, we're sanitizing tables, door handles, chairs & bannisters, as well as giving kids frequent reminders to wash their hands - before lunch,
- after using the bathroom,
- after we see them sneezing/picking noses w/o out proper hygiene,
- after break and
- at other times of the day.
We've also taught them the proper techniques/duration to wash their hands, as well as providing alcohol hand-sanitizer in each room. While the rest of the district seems to be getting hit hard with absences, we're holding steady for now. If you child attends regular events with other community children, please remind them to wash their hands during and after the events. Also, if you child has a fever, please be sure to keep him/her home for 24 hours after the fever breaks. The staff here also promises to keep ourselves at home when we're sick, which will be difficult to do! Health officials are also recommending the flu vaccine for many people, so be sure to check with your health provider for more information for yourself and family. Just a friendly reminder in this interesting flu season! |
posted Sep 22, 2009 4:14 AM by Ginger Lewman
With the change of weather and season, be sure your child is dressed appropriately for changes in room temperature. Living in a school nearly 100 years old, it's impossible to keep the ambient temperature static. Be sure to talk with your child about dressing in layers and wearing full shoes (with socks!) and a couple of shirts if s/he insists on wearing shorts or skirts still.
We will be going outside to play well into the fall and colder seasons. We often will have the windows open for air circulation. Keeping the air fresh in the rooms seems also to help with stemming the spread of the flu and the cold.
Your child can also get into the habit of checking the weather forecast on the home page of this website!
And as always, as the rest of the district is starting to see more students fall prey to flu-like symptoms, please continue to urge your child to incorporate good hand washing techniques and habits, as well as using a tissue for picking their noses! Our little population can't afford to lose too many to illness!
Thank you for your help in these matters!
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posted Sep 20, 2009 4:57 PM by Ginger Lewman
[
updated Sep 20, 2009 5:08 PM
]
An article that encapsulates the idea of Project Based Learning, Scholastic's Administr@tor Magazine does a great job of explaining our PBL goals at Turning Point. Several of my mentors/network colleagues are quoted in the article, ending with an interview with Chris Lehmann, Administrator of the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia and all-around nice guy. Lehmann and Lewman, 2008, SanAntonio
Why new schools are choosing an old model to bring students into the 21st century.Here’s a riddle: Imagine there is a learning technique proven effective
through 100 years of use that is now enhanced by the power of today’s
technology. Imagine it can excite learners to continue their work well
past the parameters of the school day. What is it, and would every
school in the country do it?
It is project-based learning, and
the answer is yes, and no. Project-based learning can be traced back to
John Dewey and it has come and gone since the early 20th century. As a
pedagogical method, it often meets resistance since it doesn’t fit the
skill-and-drill model that typically dominates education. But today, it
is enjoying a comeback as cutting-edge schools demonstrate just how
effectively it imparts the skills students need in today’s workforce.
Read the rest of the article here |
posted Sep 19, 2009 9:29 AM by Ginger Lewman
[
updated Sep 19, 2009 9:41 AM
]
You set a Goal whenever you say, "I want to..." Your Goal might be that
you want to get a pet dog. Or that you want to learn to dance - or to
play football well. Or your goal might be to get better grades at
school.
Why are Goals important?
When you have a Goal, it makes you feel full of energy. Having a Goal
makes you feel good about yourself and about everybody else. It makes
life much more FUN!!!
When is a Goal a good Goal?
It's always good to have a Goal. But there are ways to make Goal-setting even more fun! Here is a list of four things
that make a good Goal:
1) A good Goal says EXACTLY what you want. For instance, you might
say, "I want a pet." That's not a very exact Goal, is it? If you said,
"I want a pet DOG," that would be a good Goal. But suppose you said "I
want a dog, that will be a little bit smaller than me, it will be brown
and black, it will have big pointy ears, and a nice long tail," then
that would be an EXCELLENT Goal, because you are saying EXACTLY what
you want.
2) A good Goal says WHEN you want it.
If your goal is "I want to get good grades at school," to make it a
good Goal, you would say something like: "I want to get grades that are
one grade higher than the ones I got in my last report card. And I want
to get these grades by the time I get my next report card." That way,
you're saying EXACTLY what you want, AND you're saying EXACTLY WHEN you
want it!
3) A good Goal is when you believe it. If you said, "I want to learn to
fly like a bird," that's not a good Goal, because you can't believe it,
because you know you haven't got wings! But if you say, "I want to
learn to hang-glide next summer," then that's a good Goal, because you
know that it is possible, so you can believe in it!
4) A good Goal says HOW you're going to get it. To have a good Goal,
you need to make a PLAN. This is great fun! The plan will be different
for every Goal, because
every Goal is special. You will need a big piece of paper. This is
how to do your plan:
Plans for Goal Setting
a) Write out your Goal at the top of the page. When you write it,
pretend you are already in the process of getting it now! For instance,
you might write, "I’m going to get a pet dog," or "I play football
better and better." There is a part of your brain called the "Lower"
brain, and this part thinks about your Goal all the time, even when
you're thinking about something else. This part of the brain doesn't
understand
about "now" and "later". So you must write your Goal as if you're
starting to achieve it already, so that the Lower brain can understand
it.
b) Under your Goal, write WHY you want it. Try to think of as many
reasons as you can! If you write, " I want to learn to get better
grades in school to please Mom and Dad," that's very good. But it would
be even better to write: "I want to get better at school to please Mom
and Dad, and so that school will be more fun, and so that I can help
other children with their lessons, and so that later on, I'll be able
to choose from many different subjects at school, and so that, when I
grow up, I'll be able to do whichever job I most want to!” If you wrote
that many reasons, then your Goal would be so
special, nothing will stop you from getting it!
c) Next, write WHEN you want your Goal. This could be a week, or two weeks, or even a year!
d) Now, you need to write down exactly what you will need to do to get
your Goal. To do this, work backwards. Take your Goal, and say, "What
is the step BEFORE this?" For instance, if you want to get better
grades at school, the step BEFORE that might be to do your homework as
soon as you get home each night. It’s often a good idea to ask Mom and
Dad for help with making your plan. They might have had similar goals
in the past and can suggest steps to help you complete your plan.
What if I don't get my Goal first time?
It doesn't matter!
Mr. Edison, the man who invented light bulbs, tried thousands of ways to make light bulbs before he found a way that worked!
And each time he tried something and it didn't work, Mr. Edison said
"I've learned another way not do make a light bulb!" - and he was
happy, because he had learned something.
Then he tried a NEW way, until he got his Goal of making a light bulb!
So, we must remember:
1) Always look for what you can LEARN when something doesn't work!
2) NEVER, EVER give up, - you WILL get your Goal in the end!
******************************
SMART Goals:
A useful way of making goals more powerful
is to use the SMART mnemonic. While there are plenty of variants, SMART
usually stands for:
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S Specific
-
M Measurable
-
A Attainable
-
R Relevant
-
T Time-bound
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