Bartlett Blog

Well, the first full week of school is almost over.  Students are settling in to routines and as teachers are wont to say “The honeymoon is over”.  What this means is that we are starting to see where students are proficient, where they shine, and where they struggle.

As a special educator, I strive to help students increase their knowledge base.  The most important curricular area is reading.  Readers become more proficient when they read.  I once had an administrator of long ago tell me that just having students read more will not increase their skill.  She was wrong – reading needs practice, practice, practice.  The key is to find a book or magazine that is a “just right fit” for the student, and is about something the child is interested in.  My goal isn’t necessarily that the student will want to read books all the time (although that would be great!), the goal is to have the student become a proficient reader so that they will be a more productive member of society.  We want to create good citizens, and a big part of that is being able to decipher the enormous amounts of information that we are exposed to in a day.

Help me to create those good citizens.  Model reading every day for your children, and support me by having your child read for 20 to 30 minutes a day.  We will stretch that out to 40 minutes or more later in the year.  Call me or email me if your child doesn’t have a book that is a good fit for them.  Thanks!

The title of my post is also the title of an old Dick and Jane book.  A little known fact is that I am named for the character in the book, and I even have a brother named Dick!  Anyway, we are on our way in school because it is the beginning of the second week.  Routines have (mostly) been established and schedules are in place. And of course as I write this post at 5:00 am I unable to find the image I want.  Sometimes technology is frustrating!

I marvel at the great privilege I possess.  To teach is such an honor, and I am lucky indeed to do something I love.

I have come to a frightening conclusion.
I am the decisive element in the classroom.
It is my personal approach that creates the climate.
It is my daily mood that makes the weather.
As a teacher I possess tremendous power to make a child’s life miserable or joyous.
I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration.
I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal.
In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis
will be escalated or de-escalated, and a child humanized or de-humanized.

~ Haim Ginott

Quality teaching has three components: knowledge of subject matter; mastery of how individuals and groups of students best learn and the ability to apply that knowledge in a classroom; and exhibition of the intangible element of human relationship wherein a student senses the teacher really cares.  The first two components are matters of the mind and can be learned. The third element relates more to matters of the heart — interpersonal skills, generosity of spirit and enthusiasm for learning that enlists individual students to commit fully to the learning journey.  ~ Don Draayer, retired Minnetonka Superintendent.

As I read this quote, I thought about the third element.  Children know if a teacher really cares.  My mom was an outstanding teacher, and she would often say that parents don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.  I take her words to heart every day in my classroom.

Welcome back to school!  My name is Jane Bartlett and I have taught at Parkers Prairie Elementary since 1999.  I have high expectations for all students, and welcome your questions and comments.