Thank a Veteran!!!

This past week at school we focused our attention on the Veterans who have served our country. At the beginning of the week we had 5 veterans who serve as an Honor Guard come and speak to our 3,4,and 5th grade students about what it means to be a veteran and some stories of their time serving our country.

On Wednesday all of our 3,4, and 5th grade students went to the Veterans Day parade in Tulsa. Over 200 students were able to see many men and women in our community march through the streets of Tulsa. Amazing Day!! Check out these pics of the Veterans Day Parade on our school website. www.baschools.org

On Friday we had our Veterans Day Assembly. All grade levels participated in this event. From singing to readings and to essay winners, the entire event was awesome.

We had the pleasure to have Mr. Jack Ramsey Korean War Veteran. He spoke about what it means to be a veteran. He shared about his relationships with the men and women he served with and how special they were. During our assembly our 5th grade presented the story of the Code Talkers. During the presentation Mr. Ramsey wept through the whole presentation...Very Moving!!

Also during the assembly we recognized all of the veterans that were in our audience. Many of our students have famiy members who have served our great country..Thank you for your service!!

Don't take your FREEDOM lightly. Our FREEDOM is a result of a giving spirit from many men and women in our country. Thank a veteran today, they are living among us.

Lastly, if you are a resident of Broken Arrow a big day in our school history is coming up on December 8th. It is our schools multi-year bond issue. Get out and Vote on December 8th!!

Truth Hurts

I was watching a news show this morning and I saw something that was very interesting. The panel was made up of both political parties. There were 2 of one party and there was 1 of the other party.

The discussion on this news panel centered around the current national news of the day. Each side made their point and then the fur started to fly. The member of the panel that was flying solo was feeling ganged up on...hmmmm....maybe so. This member immediately became a fast talker. This is a tactic used by those who aren't operating with the truth. This person then made the statement that she was feeling ganged up on by the other two panel members.

The reason I find this interesting is because I see this on a regular basis in my office. The panel in my office is not mature adults, my panels are usually Kindergarten students or First Graders. I make it a practice to talk with kids when there are behavior problems one on one first. I talk with all parties involved and then I bring them together. Usually the stories do not match...Really??

At this point in the panel discussion I kinda have an idea who is telling the truth and who is not...Guess what happens to the one who is lying...did I say lying...I meant fibbing, white lie, they didn't have all the information, they didn't remember, it was an accident...Are you laughing yet? It happens all the time.

What happens is the child begins to fast talk..so much so that I have to step in and stop them. They want to rule the conversation so that the TRUTH cannot be heard. When you stand on the TRUTH whatever it might be keep standing. When you tell the truth the excuses are fewer and you don't have to fast talk or make up other stories.

Funny how this is the same for adults and children who are liars. Did I say liars..yes...adults and children lie...Really?

Teach Me Please

As many of you know I am on facebook and I have the pleasure of having a bunch of friends. One of those friends is a student in BA schools. Here is what she wrote, " some teachers need to learn to teach. including my MATH teacher. it doesn't help that I already suck at math".

It made my heart sink. How many kids do we have that enter our classrooms every day that really suck, excuse my French at what we are trying to teach them? LOTS!!!!!

If school was easy we wouldn't need it!! But school is hard for many students. I hope I challenge my teachers every day to look at their class and see which kids really struggle. And take those kiddos and bust there tails working at getting them to suck less....I don't want them to view kids who struggle as failures..I want them to view them as challenges that can be overcome.

We need the help of everyone..Parents, Teachers, Students, School Board, Volunteers, and Family members.

So my message to kids out there who struggle and don't get whatever it is that the teacher is teaching, to reach out and ask for help til they get it. We owe it to the kids in our district!!