Just ASK Publications & Professional Development

05/15/2019

Access this month’s JFTA! READLIST at https://justaskpublications.com. There is nothing Bruce is more passionate about than formative assessment. You don't want to miss these!

05/14/2019

The May Mentoring Memo provides multiple tips and tools for celebrating the successes of our novice teachers as they complete their first year. Included are two five-minute clips from Just ASK’s YouTube channel. Access all these great tips and tools at https://justaskpublications.com/mentoring-memo/

05/13/2019

The May Just for the ASKing! (JFTA!) is titled “Meaningful Data We Might Be Missing.” In this issue Bruce poses and then explores three very provocative questions about the use and misuse of data. This short commentary is well worth your time so read it right now.
https://justaskpublications.com/jfta/meaningful-data-we-might-be-missing/

05/01/2019

04/26/2019

JUST RELEASED! The 2019 Just ASK Closing of School Checklist is now available! If you want to ensure a smooth closing, do not miss this invaluable tool with great suggestions for making that happen. No one is left out… administrators, student services personnel, teachers, and support staff!
https://justaskpublications.com/jfta/the-just-ask-2019-closing-of-school-checklist/

04/25/2019

As Protheroe writes, “When real time observational data are collected and analyzed, used to support reflection and collaborative conversation, and, ultimately when these data become the basis to drive professional learning, the results are clear.” Program initiatives are realized, instructional strategies improve, students become more engaged, and student success increases. This is at the core of true instructional leadership – adding value and vision to your evalu(e)ation and supervision model! Access this new issue at https://justaskpublications.com/professionalpractices/evaluation-and-supervision/

04/16/2019

Marcia Baldanza (@Baldanza_Marcia) shared Barbara Blackburn’s five myths about rigor. Blackburn wrote that these myths “are indicative of the common misconceptions: that difficult, dry, academic, sink-or-swim learning is inherently rigorous.”
Read this issue at https://justaskpublications.com/professionalpractices/making-rigor-a-reality/

04/15/2019

Access our Mentoring Resources Collection at https://justaskpublications.com/areas-of-focus/mentoring-and-induction/

04/11/2019

Heather Clayton’s Question and Stem Guide for Teachers and Students is a masterpiece! Access it at https://justaskpublications.com/mentoring-memo/.

Heather is an accomplished elementary teacher and learned through her roles as instructional specialist, assistant principal, and principal. She gets IT big time! You can access the library of Making the Standards Come Alive!, (written by Heather) at https://justaskpublications.com/msca/library/

04/11/2019

Bruce Oliver’s issue of Just for the ASKing! titled “It’s the Thought That Counts” is one of over 120 issues in the Just for the ASKing! library found on the Just ASK website. Access this tool at https://justaskpublications.com/mentoring-memo/

04/10/2019

Paula's Top Ten Tips For Ensuring Students Meet High Standards is available at https://justaskpublications.com/mentoring-memo/. A focus on any one of these tips would keep any of us busy for quite a while.

04/09/2019

Access the April Mentoring Calendar at https://justaskpublications.com/mentoring-memo/

04/08/2019

Order these books today at https://justaskpublications.com/product-category/books/

04/05/2019

Cherry blossoms, tulips, dogwoods, and azaleas abound! It is a great time of the year to live and work in the Washington, DC area!

03/27/2019

The March Mentoring Memo features the always popular monthly mentor’s checklist and a dynamite tool titled “Setting Students Up for Success.” The suggestions in this tool are spot on for novice and veteran teachers alike. Check these resources out at https://justaskpublications.com/mentoring-memo/

03/27/2019

In “If I Could Do It Over Again” Bruce reflects on his teaching past, and ponders what he would do differently if he could do it over again. Although he feels positive about his early teaching experiences, some decisions would have been different because he knows so much more now. Read this issue at https://justaskpublications.com/jfta/if-i-could-do-it-over-again/

Also don’t miss the new JFTA! READLIST at www.justaskpublications.com

03/27/2019

You gotta’ believe! Kildeer 96 coaches from Country Meadows Elementary School certainly do!

03/26/2019

Order these books at https://justaskpublications.com/product-category/books/

03/22/2019

Brenda, Julie, and Paula were delighted to welcome Akramah, Amy, Claire, Debora, Esther, Glenna, Jill. Kim, Maria, Megan, Silvia, Tamara, Teresa (all pictured here) and many others to the Just ASK booth at ASCD in Chicago! A special shout out goes to the ASK Group guys (pictured here) at the “After Party” as they dismantle the booth. The fallen tree is a Kaylor yard result of the Denver area storm that kept Brenda and Julie home bound until Saturday night!

03/21/2019

Thanks to Gina Ditullio, Assistant Principal at Monroe BOCES #1 in Rochester, NY for posting this quote on LinkedIn.

03/20/2019

What a treat it was to have Tamara Lipke, former Just ASK CLT in West Irondequoit Central School District, NY, stop by the Just ASK booth at the ASCD conference in Chicago. Tamara is now an assistant professor-educational administration at SUNY Oswego. How lucky they are to have her on staff! We miss her!

03/15/2019

https://justaskpublications.com/just-ask-resource-center/

03/14/2019

Brenda(@BrendaKaylor), Julie, and I (@JustASKPaula) are headed to Chicago for ASCD (@ASCDConf #Empower19). On Friday, March 15th we meant to enjoy discussing our work in New York, California, Illinois, Michigan, Colorado, and Virginia, before heading to the exhibit hall to get our materials displayed in the Just ASK Booth #1825. But the weather in Denver did not cooperate! Brenda and Julie will be in the Just ASK booth on Sunday and Monday but are stuck in Denver right now! If you are attending the conference, be sure to stop by to say hello. The Just ASK booth is just outside the entrance to the General Sessions so we will be easy to find!

03/14/2019

Just ASK is delighted to be working with educators in Cortland Enlarged Central School District, New York, as they continue their efforts to make collaborative learning teams a strong component of their professional learning communities. Brenda(@BrendaKaylor) and Jeff Craig (@JeffCraig37), Cortland’s Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction are collaborating to ensure alignment of professional learning initiatives in Cortland.

03/12/2019

Just ASK March Birthdays!

03/07/2019

Paula's Favorite Educational Sound Bite from Just for the ASKing! available at https://justaskpublications.com/jfta/educational-sound-bites/

Bruce Asks: “Are there any foolproof strategies or concepts that I should always apply to my teaching?

Sound Bite Response: “People often want to know ‘what works’ in education, but the simple truth is that everything works somewhere, and nothing works everywhere. That’s why research can never tell teachers what to do – classrooms are far too complex for any prescription to be possible, and variations in context make what is an effective course of action in one situation disastrous in another.”

Dylan Wiliam, Emeritus Professor of Educational Assessment at University College London

03/05/2019

Mentoring Tools of the Month

This month we are sharing two of our favorite tools for working with new teachers. Not only are we providing you a PDF copy of our Top Ten Tips for Teaching and Learning in the 21st Century (cross referenced to Why Didn’t I Learn This in College?), we are also providing you a 30-slide PowerPoint Show to use in elaborating on those tips in either individual or group settings.

To use these tools in a group setting, have the new teachers bring their copies of Why Didn’t I Learn This in College? to the meeting, provide each one a with a copy of the Top Ten Tips, and use the companion PowerPoint Show to elaborate on each point. You have in your hands an instant winner!

https://justaskpublications.com/mentoring-memo/

03/01/2019

Just ASK is going to ASCD! We hope to see you in Chicago!
Brenda, Julie, and Paula will be there ready and willing to chat with you about our current work together or what the future might bring. Stop by Booth #1825; we are right on the main aisle so you can’t miss us! http://bit.ly/2iLqBiz

02/28/2019

The latest issue of Professional Practices titled “Making Rigor a Reality” is now available. In this issue Marcia makes a strong case for ensuring that all staff members share a common language and concept system around the who, what, when, where, and why of rigor as an essential component of achieving equity for all students. She includes lots of practical tips and suggestions you can implement tomorrow to support staff in their efforts to make rigor for all a reality!
https://justaskpublications.com/professionalpractices/making-rigor-a-reality/

02/27/2019

Thank you Ronda (@Ronda_M_Munoz)!

Day 1: I accepted a challenge from @JustASKPaula to post covers of 7 books I love: no reviews, just the cover. Each time I post a cover, I'll ask someone to take the challenge. 1 cover a day for week. My Day 1 challenge goes to @KristiB74 @JustASKPubs

02/27/2019

02/25/2019

The most recent issue of Just for the ASKing! (JFTA!) titled “Educational Sound Bites,” is now available.
Access this issue and this month's JFTA Readlist at www.justaskpublications.com

02/19/2019

ICYMI

SalesForce just published a article by Mike in which he wrote about using Salesforce in his middle school classroom. Read it at
www.salesforce.org/salesforce-in-the-middle-school-classroom/

02/18/2019

Paula's Day 5

Day 5: I accepted a challenge from @BrendaKaylor to post covers of 7 books I love: no reviews, just the cover. Each time I post a cover, I'll ask someone to take the challenge. 1 cover a day for a week. My Day 5 challenge goes to @dmrmlindsay @JustASKPubs

02/18/2019

Paula's Day 4.

Day 4: I accepted a challenge from @BrendaKaylor to post covers of 7 books I love: no reviews, just the cover. Each time I post a cover, I'll ask someone to take the challenge. 1 cover a day for a week. My Day 4 challenge goes to @daisy_pcc @JustASKPubs

02/18/2019

ICYMI

Rhonda Munoz, Induction Program Specialist for Ceres USD, California,

Joins Julie McVicker and Paula for a quick picture at the California Induction Conference

Fan girling with @JustASKPaula and spending time with @julie_mcvicker #CAIndConf

02/17/2019

Paula's Day 3

Day 3: I accepted a challenge from @BrendaKaylor to post covers of 7 books I love: no reviews, just the cover. Each time I post a cover, I'll ask someone to take the challenge. 1 cover a day for a week. My Day 3 challenge goes to @principalbecky @JustASKPubs

02/17/2019

Paula's Day 2

Day 2: I accepted a challenge from @BrendaKaylor to post covers of 7 books I love: no reviews, just the cover. Each time I post a cover, I'll ask someone to take the challenge. 1 cover a day for a week. My Day 2 challenge goes to @Ronda_M_Munoz @JustASKPubs

02/17/2019

So, Brenda challenged Paula(@JustASKPaula)and she joined the book cover fun!

Day 1: I accepted a challenge from @BrendaKaylor to post covers of 7 books I love: no reviews, just the cover. Each time I post a cover, I'll ask someone to take the challenge. 1 cover a day for a week. My Day1 challenge goes to @LizzyRossini @JustASKPubs

02/16/2019

Way to go Brenda!

Day 5: I accepted a challenge from @baldanzamarcia & @driskillelita to post covers of 7 books I love: no reviews, just the cover. Each time I post a cover, I'll ask someone to take the challenge. 1 cover a day for a week. My Day 5 challenge goes to @jeffcraig37 @JustASKPubs

02/16/2019

Marcia(@baldanzamarcia) and Elita Driskill (@driskillelita) both challenged Brenda and she jumped right in the pool.

Day 1: I accepted a challenge from @baldanzamarcia & @driskillelita to post covers of 7 books I love: no reviews, just the cover. Each time I post a cover, I'll ask someone to take the challenge. 1 cover a day for a week. My Day 1 challenge goes to @KristyOrtwein @JustASKPubs

02/15/2019

Thank you Elita!

I’ve accepted a challenge from @kelhastings to post 7 covers of books I love: no explanations, no reviews - just the covers. Each time I post a cover, I’ll ask someone to take up the challenge. One cover a day for a week. Day 4 of 7 day challenge to @BrendaKaylor1 @JustASKPubs
-https://twitter.com/DriskillElita

02/07/2019

ICYMI
See the slides and listen in on Mike’s Dreamforce session on YouTube at https://bit.ly/2RJzvO2

02/06/2019

Enjoy Points to Ponder IV: Wisdom and Humor!

Forward it to a friend; they are sure to smile!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=var03aDS1DI

01/22/2019

“Optimizing Classroom Observations,” the January 2019 issue of Just for the ASKing! is now available. A new feature for 2019 is the monthly JFTA! READLIST. Access the latest issue and the JANUARY JFTA! READLIST at https://www.justaskpublications.com