A Priest And A Rabbi

On the third Thursday of every month, a Priest and a Rabbi walk into Finnegan's Wake, in Winston Salem, North Carolina. They discuss various topics from both the Testament and Torah perspectives. You can see their facebook page for more information.

On February 18th I joined the festivities to see what this was all about. Dozens of people gathered around tables, some with friends, some with people they didn't know. Despite that, it seemed like a community, people who get together every four weeks to share food, drink, and chatter. Although the event begins at 6pm, when I arrived at 5:45 I could barely find a seat. People had gathered far earlier and already begun sharing their dinners, drinks and stories. Me and my friend that I attended with were quickly offered a seat at a table with a group of older couples. They immediately introduced themselves, asked us what brought us to the event, and passed over the menus. I felt an instant sense of comfort, which I did not expect when I initially walked in to see so many crowded tables.

The discussion began shortly after we had ordered our dinners. Father Steve of St. Timothy's Episcopalian Church and Rabbi Mark of Temple Emanuel introduced themselves, for those of us who were new. The topic of discussion scheduled for the evening was "love and sex". At first I was surprised, and felt a bit strange that this was the topic of discussion, as I was sitting with strangers. Despite that feeling, I knew it would be interesting. Unfortunately, questions and comments came first - and took up the whole hour! While this did lead to rather interesting topics of discussion, it left me wondering what would have come of the love and sex discussion if it had been played out.

Many people asked general questions which lead to what seemed an introduction of each faith. The various questions were answered with brief yet satisfying answers. What I found most interesting were two of the questions asked that lead to much further in depth discussion.

1.) Can you practice both Christianity and Judaism?
2.) What future do you see for your religions with the growth of millennials?

When asked "do you believe that someone could practice both Christianity and Judaism (not meaning Messianic Judaism)?" both Father Steve and Rabbi Mark agreed to take a moment and think about the question, but quickly reconvened, knowing that they both had the same belief. Messianic Judaism is "a Biblically based movement of people who, as committed Jews, believe in Yeshua (Jesus) as the Jewish Messiah of Israel of whom the Jewish Law and Prophets spoke." (mjaa.org) Both men agreed. "You cannot be both, it negates the other" was the idea behind what they were saying. Because the two religions have such different fundamental beliefs, the two stated that you simply cannot fully practice both religions without negating the other, or becoming something else.

I found this very interesting, as I had never really thought about it prior. I am not a very religious person. I believe in God, but I do not attend a church, nor have I felt inclined to affiliate with a specific religion since adulthood. So it had never really crossed my mind that two religions may try to become one, and if so, what would that mean?

This leads me to the next question that was posed: what do you see for your religions in the future? Millennials are growing and a majority of people are not affiliating with religions. So now what? While both Father and Rabbi expressed concerns about people who they referred to as "nones, neither of them felt as though there would ever be a time when people were not practicing their religion. "Nones" were the people who check the "none" or "not affiliated" box on a survey asking them which religion they practice and/or if they currently belong to a synagog or church. They discussed how in Christianity, many people practice by going to church, where as in the Jewish religion, there are many home rituals. Father Steve stated that he wished there were more home rituals for church goers to practice, while he thought that Father Steve probably the same for more members attending Synagog regularly. They each felt strongly in opposite areas and wished for just a but more in the other. Over all, both felt as though despite these differences, there would always be true followers of their religion.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my experience at Finnegan's Wake, and would highly recommend it to anyone. If you are looking for more information on the differences between Christianity and Judaism, you can find some here. Or, you could just pop into Finnegan's Wake on the third Thursday of each month for an authentic taste of each experience, and some Irish cuisine!


Resources:

"Christianity vs. Judaism." - Difference and Comparison. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.

"Messianic Jewish Alliance of America." MJAA. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

Twitter As The New PLC

PLC was an acronym that I had not heard of prior to becoming a teacher. Professional Learning Communities (PLC's) or Professional Learning Networks (PLN's) (Professional Learning Communities) are defined as "a collegial group who are united in their commitment to an outcome" by the North Carolina Public Schools, specifically with a focus on student learning.

When I began teaching in October, I became a part of two PLC's. One met daily; my second grade team. This time was used for lesson planning, data analysis, the creation of common assessments, among other things. The other met weekly, and was called "vertical planning". It allowed second and third grade teachers to collaborate with other staff such as administrators and support staff (i.e. reading and/or EC teachers) to look at student data and best meet student needs.

Twitter is the newest outlet for PLC's outside of your immediate school staff to interact. Twitter provides a way for many different professionals, from many different locations, to collaborate and share their ideas. It allows people to search and follow their specific interests through a hash-tag (#). It allows educators to ask one another questions and receive an immediate response from someone they may not have ever met.

I first joined Twitter as an educational PLC when I took a graduate Leadership Class with High Point University. It was a way for us to share articles together, as a cohort, and communicate with other PLC's. While I have found that I do not post much, I enjoy reading and learning new things from others. You can see my personal twitter here. 

All Things PLC (PLC Focused Twitter Chat) is a twitter-based group chat that occurs weekly, where educators from around the world have the ability to share and converse about all things education! Although the chat occurs past my bed time, I would like to be able to follow it on real time at least once. I have been able to search #atplc the following day and read what others have posted, but I would love to participate in the chat.

Twitter has allowed me to begin "following" classmates and professors at High Point University, important names in education such as Arne Duncan and Sean McComb, as well as twitter's dedicated to STEM Education and other focus areas of interest. Twitter allows you to stay connected at your fingertips with all that is going on in your field.

Positives of PLC's (via twitter, at your school, etc.)

• Collaboration is key!
• New ideas form from new people working together!
• Technology is utilized
• Positive feedback and constructive criticism
• Meeting people that you wouldn't otherwise
• Common goals = student learning and success
• and the list goes on and on!

I really enjoy following and finding new education twitter's to follow. As a new teacher, I am always open to finding new ideas and expanding my horizons. Twitter is an excellent way to do that, as well as a way to expand by professional network outside of my immediate workplace. I feel as though I have found true and positive educators through Twitter as a PLC.

Teamwork Is Most Important In PLC's!

References:

PLC-Focused Twitter Chat. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.allthingsplc.info/tools-resources/twitter-chat/

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITIES. (n.d.). Retrieved May 24, 2015, from http://www.ncpublicschools.org/profdev/resources/proflearn/

Growth Is More Important Than Proficiency

I truly believe that growth is more important than proficiency. Even as a first year teacher, this statement has already become such an important mindset of mine. When I started teaching in October, as a mid-year hire, I was given children of all different reading levels. In second grade, the goal is to have students come to you reading independently. I had students ranging from beginning kindergarten to middle of year third grade. When the middle of year tests came along, I hadn’t even gotten to the core of my reading instruction, so I was worried. Assessments didn’t go so well – so I knew something had to change. What was I going to do differently from now until the end of the year so that my students showed growth and truly understood what I was teaching them?

First Steps

• Set new guided reading groups based oh MOY scores (accurate reading level and skill to focus on in consideration)
• Implement “The Daily 5” starting the first day after Winter Break
• Collaborate/plan with teammates to “bounce” students for guided reading across grade level in order to best meet student needs
• Look at each student’s data individually. Focus on what they need: accuracy, fluency, oral comprehension, written comprehension
• Generate question stems and incorporate TRC type language into guided reading groups and ELA common assessments
• Set individual goals for students
• Progress monitor to see what is working, what is not working

Palm Beach Schools  (Growth and Proficiency) defines proficiency (status) as “a method for measuring how students perform at one point in time” and growth (progress) as models to measure the amount of academic progress students make between two points in time.

Focus On The Students

One student in my class, who has truly touched my heart, is the perfect example of why growth is more important than proficiency. This student came to me reading at RB (reading behaviors), which is an early kindergarten level. He had been reading at that level since he began school in kindergarten. He had never been held back, and went through 3 different teachers during his first grade year. Needless to say, this student needed a teacher who was willing to put in the effort to meet his needs. When I organized my guided reading groups, I chose to keep this student in a group on his own. I did not use the daily 5 for his centers as I did for the rest of my class. I organized three centers a day for this student.

• Work with TA on sight word practice (example: word worksheets to write, trace, cut, find, etc.)
• Work with me for “guided reading” which included sight word flash cards (one bag of “words I know” and one of “words I want to learn) so that student can see growth
• Raz-Kids  (Raz-Kids) online (listening/reading website)

I then began adding more complex materials as he grew. I am beyond proud and pleased to say that at the end of year, this student read a level D book for his TRC assessment. Not only was this my proudest moment as a teacher thus far, but he was so proud of himself. Everyone that had worked with him was able to congratulate him on all of his hard work and how much progress he had shown. His growth was so important to him as well as those who helped support him along the way. It would have been far too much to ask a student reading at a kindergarten level to meet the third grade expectation of a reading level M in one short year. But, the growth that he has shown has instilled confidence in his reading ability, which makes for a bright future.

Another student who had stayed on the same level at her beginning and middle of year reading assessment (level H) was one who I wanted to work with closely. She showed great potential in class as well as joy for reading. I worked with this student at first on just focusing during class. She had a tendency to daydream. I also involved her parents and they became actively involved reading with her at home. I would take a few moments to work with her individually before centers to go over the assignment she was to work on and then check in with her when she was finished. She was able to use self-discipline to truly focus on her schoolwork. I instantly started noticing a difference in her test grades. I could tell that she was using our “close reading” technique on her tests and thus answering questions much more accurately. Whenever there was a spare moment, she would take out a book. She is now reading at a level K at end of year.

Examples of Student Growth
MOY to EOY

• I to L
• J to N
• K to O
• M to P

Greensboro Science Museum Fieldtrip

As The Year Closes, We are Proud
I worked with each of my students to meet their individual needs and help them set goals for growth. Some, I knew would be able to meet goals far above the expectation for entering third grade, while others, I knew would not quite yet be at that point. None of that mattered to me. I knew that if my students put in the effort to try their very best, I would be there to support them the whole way. Through this, they would grow.

Check out Focusing on Growth - Defining Growth and Proficiency (Focusing on Growth- Defining Growth and Proficiency) for more information!

References

Focusing on Growth- Defining Growth and Proficiency. (n.d.). Retrieved May 17, 2015.

Growth and Proficiency. (n.d.). Retrieved May 17, 2015, from http://www.palmbeachschools.org/dre/ProficiencyGrowth.asp

 Raz-Kids. (n.d.). Retrieved May 17, 2015.