This message was sent to ##Email## To advertise in this publication please click here August 17, 2021 ##\member## .PRINCIPAL LEADERSHIP How much influence do principals say they have? A lot K-12 DIVE As leaders of schools with responsibilities to staff, families and students, the principalship is always complex and full of many moments of joy and frustrations. The pandemic has made this job even more complicated as school leaders have had to manage fluctuating learning formats and safety protocols, as well as supports for the social-emotional wellbeing of their communities. READ MORE School mask tracker: Who is and isn't loosening the rules District Administration Magazine Leaders in several districts have in recent days have announced that all students and staff, regardless of age or vaccination status, will be required to wear masks when the 2021-2022 school year begins. Many were following new CDC guidance issued in late that July, recommending a return universal masking in schools as the delta variant and vaccine hesitancy fueled a summer COVID spike. READ MORE Acceleration is better than focusing on learning loss. This unique summer school shows why. Edutopia Everywhere you look, it seems, people are talking about "learning loss," or how much students haven't learned during the tumult of the past two years. But for all the conversations in the news and on social media, one place we're not seeing it as much is in schools themselves. READ MORE What kids lost when COVID-19 upended school Science News At the start of a school year, kids usually show up with oversized backpacks stocked with fresh pencils, crisp notebooks and snacks. This back-to-school season, many children will carry extra baggage. Eighteen months of an unprecedented pandemic turned routines — including going to school — topsy-turvy. This fall, many kids are heading to their new classrooms toting traumas, worries and gaps in their learning. READ MORE VIDEO SHOWCASE Principals say this is the go-to fundraiser for the upcoming school year. Promoted By Boosterthon Positive Environment for All Students Promoted By HONORABLE CHARACTER Too hot to learn: How sweltering classroom temps are impacting schools We Are Teachers Hot classrooms: it's a hot button issue for many of the country's schools returning to the classroom this month. Efforts to extend learning time in the name of equity and achievement have led to earlier start dates in August. And students and teachers are feeling the negative effects of stifling, steamy classrooms. READ MORE Analysis: Are 90% of teachers really vaccinated against COVID-19? The numbers say otherwise The 74 Mandatory teacher vaccinations against COVID-19 became the hot topic in education circles again last week, with Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, making the media rounds on the issue. READ MORE Are schools really safe? eSchool News When we think about school safety our first instinct is physical safety. Sadly, it's a real concern with the all-too-regular gun shootings and bullying that occurs. However, there's a far more common and pervasive issue occurring: emotional safety. READ MORE  SPONSORED CONTENT Promoted by Peaceful Playgrounds Enter the U.S. Map Contest. It’s free to enter Playground Stencils A Recess Program that Works Use Coupon Code naesp2021 for 10% off your order COVID Social Distancing Playground Vaccine mandates in schools aren't new. They've been used since 1850 Healthline As COVID-19 continues to spread across the globe, debates have emerged about whether or not the vaccines should be required to attend school for children who are old enough to get one. The United States has a long history of requiring vaccines to enter school. Experts say that while concerns around the use of COVID-19 vaccines in kids are understandable, they've been shown safe and effective in children ages 12 and up. READ MORE Schools reopen with masks optional in many US classrooms The Associated Press As Tussahaw Elementary opened this week for a new school year, teary-eyed mothers led in kindergartners dwarfed by backpacks and buses dropped off fifth graders looking forward to ruling their school. The biggest clue to the lingering COVID-19 crisis was the masks worn by students and teachers — but not all of them. READ MORE U.S. pandemic summer school meal program has served millions, but its future uncertain Reuters On a warm July morning, James Terry stepped out of his home garage, where he manages his Benton Harbor, Michigan-based auto detailing business, and paused work to pick up groceries, with his 7-year-old son in tow. Instead of a grocery store, they headed to a nearby park, where the school district offered free bags of individually wrapped milk, cereal, applesauce and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. READ MORE  PRODUCT SHOWCASE Back-To-School 2021 Toolkit In the coming year, student data can drive learning plans that help all students catch up and move new learning forward. We’ve put together resources, worksheets, and other tools to help your team identify student needs, guide student-centered instruction and intervention decisions, and accelerate each student’s growth. Open free toolkit. Social-emotional wellness: 'Put your own oxygen mask on first' Tech & Learning With the challenges and disruption of the last 18 months, there is new awareness and commitment to the importance of health and wellness of teachers, staff and students. READ MORE America's children head back to school amid growing uncertainty U.S. News & World Report New, more contagious variants of the coronavirus are causing transmission and hospitalization rates to spike across the country as more than 50 million children head back to school, scuttling well-laid plans by school districts to safely return students to classrooms — some for the first time in over a year — and ratcheting up the politics of reopening. READ MORE 5 ways to promote family engagement District Administration Magazine Parent and family engagement and consultation have always been a key component of the Every Student Succeeds Act, known since 2002 as No Child Left Behind. Only when those closest to students are engaged and involved in decision-making and planning can gaps in educational opportunity and achievement begin to close. READ MORE  SPONSORED CONTENT Promoted by SignUp.com Help save hundreds of hours scheduling parent conferences with SignUp! Time-saving tips and savvy solutions for your back-to-school planning Try SignUp's Campus Plan Fresh school spirit ideas to get everyone onboard Teacher and staff appreciation ideas - easy ways to say thank you! 3 effective ways to gain confidence at work Fast Company Everyone has at least a few activities they do that make them feel confident. And everyone also has those other things that lead to butterflies, anxiety, or all-out panic. If you look across your life, you have also probably seen yourself transition from fear to confidence on at least one thing that you do. Maybe you got more confident at making new friends, or learned that you're actually pretty good at a new hobby. READ MORE Build a community of purposeful, positive leaders Training Industry Magazine Businesses of all sizes and types face many challenges in the coming months. Some are obvious — like employees who are hesitant to come back to work, because of conflicting health recommendations in the face of the contagious Delta variant of COVID-19. Others are less obvious but offer an enormous opportunity for proactive organizations. READ MORE 10 sure signs there's trouble ahead Leadership Freak Optimism is a surprising disappointment when you imagine a hungry lion wants to play. Skillful leaders anticipate trouble. Short-sighted leaders press forward and suffer. Anticipating potential problems isn't pessimism until it's an excuse to give up. READ MORE  PRODUCT SHOWCASE Strengthen Professional Learning (Free Download) Give teachers meaningful insights that fuel professional learning teams using your existing classroom assessments. Forefront puts teachers at the center of efforts to systematically collect and analyze evidence of student learning. Aggregate these results for an unparalleled vision of student learning. Download our free data discussions checklist.­ Developing resilience: How to remain calm in the midst of workplace chaos The Lead Change Group Do you feel like you're running out of steam at work? Do you wonder how some people manage to get through their hectic days without experiencing burnout? Do you find it hard to bounce back from workplace negativity? Join us as Rich Brandt from RDR Group talks about the importance of developing resilience and explains how these skills can be used in the workplace to improve relationships with coworkers and enhance your general work experience. READ MORE .EDUCATION POLICY Schools and districts can use COVID relief funds to advance student and staff health. Here are 8 suggestions how The 74 For all the talk about the pandemic's impact on academic achievement, the coronavirus crisis remains at its core a public health emergency, one that schools will have to address before they can begin helping students recover from lost learning opportunities. A new brief shares how the influx of federal aid for public schools, totaling nearly $190 billion approved over the past 15 months, can help schools and districts navigate two key health priorities. READ MORE House Committee supports Seal of Biliteracy Language Magazine The House Committee on Appropriations has affirmed its support for implementing and providing funding for Seal of Biliteracy programs across the U.S. in its draft report for Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations for fiscal year 2022. READ MORE .SCHOOL TECHNOLOGY Boost SEL and collaboration in the classroom with 1:1 devices EdTech Magazine One-to-one devices help teachers integrate social-emotional learning technology into classrooms in ways that are meaningful and measurable, as well as help teachers monitor student well-being. READ MORE Upgrading K-12 ed tech may start with willingness to embrace buybacks District Administration Magazine District Administration recently posted an article on the benefits of a specific Apple device buyback program from Second Life Mac. Effectively, K-12 districts can trade in or trade up their aging laptops, tablets and accessories for funds that be used to get new ones. It is not a novel concept but it is one that has eluded two-thirds of administrators who were polled by national education nonprofit Project Tomorrow. They said they’ve been reluctant to cash in on programs that easily could provide upgrades. READ MORE Educators say 'meh' to school LMS choice THE Journal According to a recent survey, while nearly nine in 10 schools have adopted a learning management system that every teacher is supposed to use, fondness for functionality is hit-and-miss. While 85% of respondents said their schools have adopted an LMS, only two-thirds (64%) reported being satisfied with the current choice. The survey collected responses from 173 K-12 education professionals, including administrators, technology directors, principals and teachers. The project, done in May 2021, was a joint effort of Edsby, which produces an LMS, and marketing and PR firm C. Blohm & Associates. READ MORE  SPONSORED CONTENT Promoted by Xello Does Gender Bias Still Influence Career Choices for Young Learners? How to Implement SEL Activities in Your Elementary Classrooms This School District Introduced Career Exploration to Elementary Students Using a Full K-12 Solution How Early Should Students Start Planning Their Futures? Spark Career Curiosity in Your Youngest Learners with Xello for Elementary 5 ed tech tools that can make it more engaging Tech & Learning As the Grateful Dead says, "The first days are the hardest days." Students can be apprehensive about returning to school or arriving for the first time while educators have the difficult task of establishing classroom rules and expectations without boring students. READ MORE Research: Intercom announcements and other interruptions cost up to 20 days of school Tech & Learning A new study found that common and seemingly small classroom interruptions can have a big negative impact. READ MORE Navigate government funding to optimize network health EdTech Magazine Federal money for tech purchases sounds great — and it is. But many education leaders are struggling to untangle acronyms and application deadlines as they seek their share of new federal funding. READ MORE  PRODUCT SHOWCASE 8 FREE Social and Emotional Learning Posters During a time of in-class learning after the pandemic, students may have feelings and emotions that they are struggling to cope with. These free digital images encourage positivity, goal setting and interpersonal relationships in order to build confidence and tackle challenges in the classroom. Download now. How next gen TV can help close the digital divide Tech & Learning Efforts to close the digital divide have ramped up during the pandemic, yet despite creative solutions from district, town, and state officials across the country, between 9 and 12 million students still lack adequate internet access. However, a new application developed by The National Association of Broadcasters could help close this gap by utilizing cutting-edge broadcast TV technology to allow students to receive and respond to work assigned by their teachers. READ MORE .PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT What's the best teaching advice in five words or less? We Are Teachers When it comes to teaching advice, there's no better source than the educators on the front line — classroom teachers. So we recently asked our WeAreTeachers Facebook community, "What is the best teaching advice you can give in five words?" Here are 25 of our favorite responses. READ MORE Tools that help English language learners online and in person MindShift Heather Bradley is an ESOL (English for speakers of other languages) teacher in Silver Spring, Maryland, where she teaches adult ESOL students. When the English proficiency assessment her program uses moved online several years ago, many of its corresponding course materials also went virtual, making her program's transition to distance learning less difficult materials-wise. Yet towards the end of their first semester of virtual learning, Bradley began encouraging her students to write their notes on paper. READ MORE PRODUCT SHOWCASE Promoting Sanitary Schools With Quad-Sinks Personal Protected Quad-Sink is a mobile hand washing station that can service 120 students in just 10 minutes. "Hand-washing never goes out of style. Pandemic or not, we have to keep hand washing, so we’ll be using these long after the pandemic leaves us." Tom Yazvac, Superintendent Springfield Local Schools.   LEARN MORE   Connect From Anywhere Extraordinary virtual learning opportunities are still available for the summer! Explore space, travel to prehistoric times or enjoy our many other STEAM-focused virtual workshops.   LEARN MORE   Using evidence to overcome adversity Language Magazine We are currently in the midst of an education crisis. Given the magnitude of the issues we've faced over the last year, it would be near impossible for students not to experience some level of disruption. But one issue we cannot blame on COVID is the woeful gaps among our youngest students in literacy. READ MORE How we can assure rigor in our lessons MiddleWeb One of the challenges when incorporating rigor in the classroom is determining what that rigor looks like. For example, many teachers share with me that they know their students should "create" something, which is high level on Bloom's Taxonomy. READ MORE Can we stop calling them careless mistakes? Edutopia There are a variety of sources of student errors in math, and labeling them "careless" might mean missing a chance to help students learn. READ MORE 6 ways the challenges of COVID show the way forward District Administration Magazine Some of COVID's biggest challenges — such as connecting students to the internet and finding online learning's full potential — provided key leadership lessons that will outlast the pandemic. Attendees of the Future of Education Technology® Conference 2022 will get more insight into navigating a more digital future from featured Administrator Track speaker Ann McMullan, the former executive director of educational technology for Klein ISD and Project Director for CoSN's Empowered Superintendents Initiative. READ MORE Best digital icebreakers Tech & Learning Even as we enter another school year under the uncertain arc of the COVID-19 pandemic, one thing remains clear: It's important to start building a comfortable and secure atmosphere in your classroom (whether in person or online) from the first day. READ MORE 9 clever teaching strategies for common learning hurdles ADDitude Magazine Learn how executive dysfunctions impact reading comprehension, writing and math academic skills — and solutions for each subject that benefit children with ADHD. READ MORE A 'Brilliant' way to learn STEM eSchool News Every now and then, a new resource comes along that's worth a second–or third, or fourth–look. You might feel that way about Brilliant–a site that helps users learn not through lecture videos, but through hands-on, interactive learning. Brilliant works by helping learners of all ages master content instead of simply memorizing. It also provides instant feedback so that learners can improve their knowledge through problem solving. Struggle is part of Brilliant's instructional strategy, because the path to learning STEM isn't necessarily 100% easy. READ MORE Tips for easing children into kindergarten Edutopia COVID-19 forced the closure of many schools around the country. In addition to lost time playing, being with friends, and learning, children in pre-K also lost the instruction they usually receive that prepares them for kindergarten. Expectations may vary from one kindergarten class to another, but in general, kindergarten is very different from preschool, even in this pandemic age. READ MORE Whether students are zooming or in classrooms, they need to learn American history USA Today As America's students head back to school, there are a lot of questions on people's minds. Will school be online again? Will students return in person? Or will we see some sort of hybrid? People want to know how their students will learn. But we also need to be concerned about what they will learn, especially in American history and civics. READ MORE Focusing on science with elementary students this year Edutopia Looking to help students grow academically, engage deeply in their learning, and cultivate critical social and emotional learning competencies after more than a year of virtual and hybrid instruction? Science — and evidence-based methods for teaching it — can help. READ MORE Why STEM curriculum is an essential part of child development BWEducation The current phase is evidence of technical revolution and innovation becoming a significant part of everyday human life. Advancement across sectors has become a norm over the past few years. The education sector too is catching up with the fast pace of technical developments by introducing the STEM curriculum to keep curiosity and creativity intact among kids in the growing years. READ MORE .EDUCATION RESEARCH Children at lower risk for 'long COVID,' study finds UPI Long-lasting symptoms from COVID-19 are rare in children, a study published by the Lancet Child and Adolescent Health found. Of the more than 1,700 children included in the study, just over 98% of those who experienced symptoms of the virus recovered within eight weeks, the data showed. READ MORE Report: Kindergarten entry assessments key to knowing instructional needs K-12 DIVE As more schools open for in-person learning during the 2021-22 school year, some are predicting a "kindergarten bubble" — an influx of 4-to-6-year-olds who may be entering formal education for the first time and whose range of skills will vary widely depending on their educational experiences last year. READ MORE Remember more by taking breaks Max-Planck-Gesellschaft via Science Daily We remember things longer if we take breaks during learning, referred to as the spacing effect. Scientists gained deeper insight into the neuronal basis for this phenomenon in mice. With longer intervals between learning repetitions, mice reuse more of the same neurons as before — instead of activating different ones. Possibly, this allows the neuronal connections to strengthen with each learning event, such that knowledge is stored for a longer time. READ MORE COVID's effects on minority groups Language Magazine Although several pundits tried to push the idea that the COVID-19 pandemic was the "great equalizer" early on in the pandemic, it's become quite clear that these assertions were premature and perhaps overly collectivist judgments. Sixteen months into the pandemic, it's no secret that there’s been a significant disparity in how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected different demographics in the U.S. — whether it's those with limited English proficiency, deaf and hard-of-hearing residents, or racial minorities the COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected. READ MORE 3 reports on student achievement during the pandemic The Hechinger Report Three new reports on student achievement during the pandemic all point to larger declines in math than in reading and widening gaps between the haves and have-nots. But describing exactly how students are doing academically is proving to be a challenge when school closures and pandemic experiences varied so wildly from state to state and family to family. READ MORE .IN THE STATES California now requires that all teachers get vaccinated or face weekly testing District Administration Magazine California became the first state to require all teachers and school staff to get vaccinated or submit to weekly COVID testing. Schools must comply with this latest public health order from Gov. Gavin Newsom by Oct. 15. "To give parents confidence that their children are safe as schools return to full in-person learning, we are urging all school staff to get vaccinated," said Newsom said. "Vaccinations are how we will end this pandemic." READ MORE Schools find ways to keep gardening lessons blooming The Associated Press Like gardening in general, school gardening has become hugely popular during the pandemic, with families and teachers saying its hands-on lessons can be applied to many subjects. Finding the expertise, labor and funding to keep a school garden going can be tough. But some experts and teachers are finding creative ways to make it work. READ MORE Mask confusion reigns as Tennessee goes back to school amid COVID surge Chalkbeat Tennessee mom Amanda Sharitt sent her three children back to school this week wearing masks, but she figures only one will actually use a face covering all day under their district's optional masking policy. READ MORE .ASSOCIATION NEWS Calling all aspiring principals NAESP Are you a teacher leader, an assistant principal, or an early career principal searching for quality professional learning to take your leadership to the next level? Are you a district leader committed to building a strong, diverse principal pipeline? The National Aspiring Principals Academy is accepting applications for its next cohort. READ MORE Center for Women in Leadership book study NAESP Connect and grow with other women in leadership by participating in NAESP's Center for Women in Leadership Book Study Group. Starting in September, we will be reading The Confidence Code: The Science and Art of Self-Assurance — What Women Should Know, by Katty Kay & Claire Shipman. If you are interested in participating — or even being a book study group facilitator — attend the orientation kick-off meeting on August 24, 7:30 p.m. ET READ MORE SUGGESTED COMPANIES Landscape Structures @Landscape Structures © Introduce a revolutionary swing forward in inclusive play experience with We-Go-Swing™. Read more   First No–Transfer Inclusive Swing   Promoted by Landscape Structures Stepping Stones Museum For Children © Explore space, travel to prehistoric times or enjoy our other STEAM-focused virtual workshops and camps. Read more   EXTRAORDINARY Virtual Learning Opportunities   Promoted by Stepping Stones Museum For Children GE Healthcare @GEHealthcare © We provide medical technologies and services that are shaping a new age of patient care. Read more   Healthcare Collaboration   Promoted by GE Healthcare   Principal Insights Connect with NAESP Jason Zimmerman, Director of Publishing, Multiview, 469-420-2686 | Download media kit Hailey Golden, Assistant Executive Editor, MultiView, 469-420-2630 | Contribute News National Association of Elementary School Principals 1615 Duke Street  |  Alexandria, VA 22314  800-386-2377  |  Contact Us  |  www.naesp.org Click here to unsubscribe.  Learn how to add us to your safe sender list so our emails get to your inbox. 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