Holiday Thoughts

Sorry, for not updating our blog more often.  Mrs. Neira and I tend to get really busy during the holidays.  We are the connection between the community and families at View.  We help families sign up for support during the holidays through HACAP and the Salvation Army.  Several local groups and families also ask us to hook them up with a family that needs help with Christmas.  This year the Swisher Community adopted a family and not only helped them with Christmas but with some basic needs.  The staff at View also donates money so that we can buy gift cards to help families with the holidays.  Our school has also been collecting snacks for kids this year.  Right before the holidays we sent home a bag of snacks with 30 students who we knew could use a little extra support over the long break.  We plan on sending these bags of snacks out with students when ever we have a long weekend.  The entire student body supports our efforts by making snack donations during out snack drives.    When we gave out the snacks to these students their faces just lit up.  they were so excited with such a simple caring action.  We know that every little bit can help a family that is struggling.  We also participated in a little holiday fun with our Holiday Sing along and Gingerbread house contest.  Mrs. Neira was pretty proud of the Neira Family "Angry Birds" house.  The Gingerbread House contest is a fun way to get families involved at View.

In November the 2011 Iowa State Counselor Conference Mrs. Neira was lucky enough to hear a presentation on the book, Teaching With Poverty in Mind by Eric Jensen.. She learned that there is current research that shows that students in poverty can make academic gains at school with the help of a caring environment  and supportive adults at school.  Students need to have their basic needs meet along with feeling safety and belonging at school.   As she was listing to the presentations she was making all kinds of connections with actions the staff at View already put in place and she was thinking of all the positive actions we could put in place to support students.

Our staff believes in "filling student buckets" everyday.  We believe that we can truly make the difference in the lives of the students we work with by being a caring supportive adult in their life. Student from poverty experience chronic stress with impairs memory. Helping remove the social barriers that make school difficult and providing students with caring relationships can actually decrease that stress and allow their brain to function more productively.  Less Stress=more brain production= higher academic achievement.

Prairie View works to develop that caring environment on several different levels.  First, of all we greet children as they walk through the door in the morning and in the hallways.  We have meaningful conversations with students and get to know their situations and interests.  Next, we use common language and expectations throughout the building and have regular class meetings.  We also monitor students attendance and tardies because we know that everyday and minute of learning is important. We help parents brainstorm ways to get their child to school each day.  Another way we support our caring environment is Mrs. Neira and I  going into each classroom for 12 lessons throughout the year.  Our lessons focus on social skills, problem solving, friendship, self-esteem, inclusion, and managing our emotions. On a more individual level we work with families to connect them with community resources.  Finally, teacher at View try to connect our lessons to real life and create relevancy for our students so they know why their learning is important and how it will help them in the future.

One of the ideas Mrs. Neira had at the conference was in connection to something she was trying to start at View---snacks for kids.  We know that  all kids don't have enough food to eat.  We tried to help with the food pantry--but the rules and regulations were too much.  So after listening to the presentation Mrs. Neira was determined to make something different happen at View.  We already had the snack collected from the sock hop we just had to find a way to get them home with kids.  Right before the holidays Mrs. Neira with some help from another parent sent home a bag of snacks with over 30 students who we knew could use a little extra support over the long break.  We plan on sending these bags of snacks out with students whenever we have a long weekend.  The entire student body supports our efforts by making snack donations during out snack drives.    When we gave out the snacks to these students their faces just lit up!  They were so excited with such a simple caring action. Mrs. Neira and I want to thank everyone for their support on the snacks of kids project!

Last week as we came back from break we were very busy View.  Teachers and students got right to work on reviewing routines and expectations.  When students follow the daily routines and expectations it makes it so much easier for classroom learning to occur.  Teacher reviewed classroom and common area expectations along with reviewing Bucket Filling, our Olweus beliefs, and leveled behavior.

This month we are preparing for Think B 4 U Speak week which will take place the week of January 23-27th.  We are asking students, families, and community members to go on-line and sign a pledge to keep our schools and community bully free.   You can go on-line at www.tinyurl.com/pointthink 
to sign the bully free pledge.  Spread the word anyone in our community can sign the pledge, we've already gotten pledges from across the country. 


Mrs. Neira

Next on the project list is a presentation to the para professional staff on Teaching with Poverty in Mind and motivational quotes around the building!  Keep your eyes and ears open to see if you can spot the quotes around View!  Oh, yeah---snack for kids--30+ bags of snacks going home with students on Wednesday:)

Costume Update!

As promised here is a picture of my "Bucket Filler" costume!!  We hope to see you at the parade!  Parade and parties begin at 2:30 today!

Fall Fun!

I'm currently still recovering from the big night we had Thursday at the Sock Hop.  Typically the day ends for me at 4.  On a night like Thursday I'm on duty until 7:00 PM.  Man, that is exhausting!!  I'm not a talented dancer so I just sat back in my costume and watched the kids dance.  I worked the crowd and did provide some crowd control as the PV kids would pause their dancing to pet me or pose for a picture:)  The great new is that the PV teachers raised around $1000 to use to help PV kiddos and their families. Besides that we collected tons of snacks for PV kids.  Thank You PV families for your help!

I've got to rest up tonight to get ready for the parade tomorrow!  Check out my costume!  It is kind of humiliating to be dressed like a turtle--but I'll do it for the kids:)  Besides it goes right along with how Mrs. Neira and I teach kids the turtle strategy to calm themselves when angry.  Students learn to cross their arms across their chest and take deep breaths to calm down.

We also had the pumpkin carving contest last week.   Wow! There were some amazing enteries!   Mrs.  Neira and I decided to make a Felicia Flower pumpkin.  Felicia is a puppet we take to kindergarten to teach students about all of their different feelings.  You can change her face to go along with her feelings, so we are learning about non-verbal communication at the same time. We also begin to learn about I-messages when each Kindergarten picks a feeling face to tell us about.  They say  "I feel  ________ when I  ___________ .  In Kindergarten we focus on the feelings of: happy, sad, angry and scared.   Even the 4th graders remembered Felicia Flower when they saw our pumpkin.

Be on the look out for Mrs. Neira tomorrow at the parade.  She has been working very hard on a costume that all of you Bucket Fillers out there will love. I can't give you anymore clues right now but--- watch for pictures after the parade!!

Bye for Now!  Marley and Mrs. Neira

We are a Bucket Filling School!

I am amazed everyday by the amount of bucket filling I witness everyday at Prairie View.  It starts right away in the morning when kids stop by our office to see me.  Students stop to say hi, pet me, and snuggle.  They always remember to say hi to me, if Mrs.Neira is lucky they will notice her and say hi to her too:)  Every adult is greeting students too!  Kids are so happy to see each other.  It makes Prairie View such a great place to be. 
Everyday I get to tag along with Mrs. Neira and visits rooms.  Students are so excited to when we get there!  We always follow the same routine so that students know they will get a chance to pet me before we leave if they like. 
Mrs. Neira has been working with kindergarten students to help them learn about "I Care Rules" with I Care Cat.  They have learned about listening to adults and friends, identifying their feelings, using "I Care language" or Bucket Filling words, and the Turtle strategy," which is a way to calm down when angry.
Mrs. Neira brings Carmen the Cool Cat to visit the 1st graders.  They are learning about how to be a good friend, noticing how their friends are feeling, including others, ways to calm them self when angry and accepting everyone just the way they are.  Carmen even taught the students a cheer they can say to themselves to help them calm down.
2nd graders are learning with their friend Wagner.  He is a dog like me, but I would have to say that I am much more popular:).  The students got to make dog puppets that they use in role plays to practice friendship skills.  We have talked about being unique and special, learned the Stop Song and identified calming strategies that work for each of us.  Students are also practicing using I-messages to solve conflicts.
When we go to leave a classroom Mrs. Neira has been singing a Bucket Filling Song with the classes.  We sing it to the tune of Frere Jacques.  Fill a bucket, Fill a bucket.  Everyday Everyday.  I can fill a bucket, I can fill a bucket.  You can too, You can too!
You may have heard the Prairie View Bucket Fillers singing the song in the homecoming parade.  Man, those kids sure know how to have fun!  Bubbles, ribbon streamers, colorful buckets, clapping hands, and singing, Hooray!!
Be on the look out for bucket fillers near you.  I heard the teachers are going to be wearing some bright and colorful bucket filling shirts very soon!  Our school is going to look like a rainbow---I can't wait!!!