This Action Guide is a tool to accompany Live Your Excellence: Bring Your Best Self to School Every Day by Jimmy Casas. A practical book to help all educators rediscover themselves in order to bring their best self to school every day, Live Your Excellence begins with the premise that by cultivating a mindset that centers on investing in students, colleagues, and-most of all-themselves, educators can shift schools away from a culture that runs on compliance, blame, and fear to a culture based on investment and caring. Jimmy shares inspiration, stories, and strategies to help overcome the negative undercurrents that exist in school cultures today and explains how educators of all stripes can embrace an investment-based approach to everything they do, from collaborative leadership, to working with challenging students, to feelings of inadequacy. His insights into navigating the complexities of working in schools is an invaluable resource for all educators who desire-more than anything-to rediscover their own excellence and make a difference. This Action Guide is just that: a road map to taking action steps based on the ideas found in Live Your Excellence.

Live Your Excellence: Action Guide

Education & Teaching

Casas, Jimmy

Schools & Teaching

ConnectEDD

In Eyes on Culture: Multiply Excellence in Your School, Emily Paschall supplies the recipe for success in today's schools. School culture is the hidden curriculum that drives a school forward or backward, and when strong relationships and relentless passion are at its root, this is when excellence multiplies. This book is filled with a wide range of authentic stories and lessons, as well as tangible takeaways that will "culturize" your classroom, school, and community. As you read, your belief system about what a dynamic school culture is, and what it is not will be firmly molded. Whether you are a teacher or administrator, this book will fill you with a renewed energy, passion, and belief that all kids, regardless of circumstances or socio-economic status, can succeed at high levels. Emily provides you with the necessary tools to not only live your own excellence, but to multiply excellence in others. In this book, you will learn:How to use your lived experiences to help someone elseHow to unlock the key to connecting with all kids, even those who seem unreachableHow to build partnerships with families so that they desire to work with youHow to make difficult conversations not so difficultHow to help every student, parent, and colleague achieve excellenceMay the words in this book fill you with the joyful reminder of why you went into education in the first place-for KIDS.

Eyes on Culture: Multiply Excellence in Your School

Paschall, Emily

Pause. Breathe. Flourish: Living Your Best Life as an Educator explores the habits, practices and mindset necessary for growth as both an educator and a person. Research shows that teachers and principals are leaving the profession of education at alarming rates. Some of the causes stem from the rising expectations and demands that educators find difficult to manage. Unfortunately, for many educators, taking care of others often means neglecting their own health and well-being. How can educators continue doing work they love while also making sure they are protecting themselves in the process? William D. Parker has served schools for more than twenty-five years as a teacher, administrator and education consultant. In Pause. Breathe. Flourish., he provides practical feedback and common-sense approaches for taking better care of yourself so that you can better serve and lead others. Each chapter begins with a mental image and unpacks specific tips for cultivating personal or professional growth. In the pages ahead, you will discover how your thoughts, relationships, commitments, values, and habits play an essential role in who you are as a person. Understanding 'who you are' plays heavily in your ability to weather storms, maintain perspective, work with purpose and effect meaningful change in the lives of others. Applying those insights can be challenging. By reading this book, you will be challenged to reconsider your mindset, reading habits, personal health, financial commitments, relationship priorities, and legacy building. To help you move forward, each chapter ends with reflection questions so that you can take immediate actions for thoughtful application and improved outcomes. Don't become another statistic in the rising number of educators who feel burned out. Instead, reimagine the possibilities that can happen for yourself and those whom you serve when you take time to pause, breathe, and flourish!

Pause. Breathe. Flourish.: Living Your Best Life as an Educator

Parker, William D.

This book is for hope givers who thrive when helping others develop their full potential. Marita Diffenbaugh identifies seven essential components to consider when providing education as a service to learners, along with a remix for measuring learning success. Throughout each chapter, look for the True, Good, and Beautiful, for when all three of these are present, we can be sure that students are learning how to learn, learning how to help others, and learning how to contribute in their communities and in our world. This book was written for difference makers like you who strive to create an education service that Listens, Empowers, Analyzes, provides Resources, understands students' Needs, designs Experiences, and offers caring Relationships.

L.E.A.R.N.E.R.: Finding the True, Good, and Beautiful in Education

Diffenbaugh, Marita

The Educator Reflection Tips book series is designed to deepen the knowledge and increase the skill set of professional educators. Each book in this series includes a multitude of resources, along with probing reflection questions designed to provoke readers to think deeply about their classroom experiences, past and present and to take specific actions aimed at refining and improving their craft which will enhance teaching and learning in our schools. After reading this book, you will begin to take charge of your own professional growth. No longer will you depend on the traditional method of waiting on feedback from administrators and colleagues. You will be equipped with instruments to routinely consider where you are on the self-reflection continuum and use the tools provided to create action steps for improvement. Volume II in the series takes readers on a deep dive to determine habits of effectiveness in these critical areas: Classroom CompetenceCritical LiteracyCyber ConnectionClassroom CultureThe ten reflection tips highlighted in Volume II invite readers to embark upon a journey of contemplation, heightened awareness, and action-oriented transformation. Each Reflection Tip is uniquely crafted to empower educators to think critically about key factors which influence student outcomes. Additionally, the accompanying infographics offer ready-made tools which can be used individually, in Professional Learning Communities, and school-based Professional Development sessions. As we continue to reconsider instruction during this ever changing point in time, it is vital for each of us to take an open and honest look at our methods for planning, teaching, assessing, and enriching academic systems to determine their overall effectiveness. Education is a life-long process. In the pursuit to help students achieve academic excellence, teachers must continuously seek out strategies to add to their instructional toolbox. Let's redefine how you approach instruction together.

Educator Reflection Tips Volume II: Refining Our Practice

Fowler-White, Jami

Product Description 
Future-proof learning for ALL kids! \nEmpower learners to think disruptively in your classroom or school.\nThe world has and continues to change in ways that are difficult to predict. Regardless of the forces at hand educators play a pivotal role in preparing students for success now and in the future. Eric Sheninger makes the compelling case that the best way to do this is to create a disruptive thinking culture in the classroom and beyond.\nBroken into four parts, this book combines stories, insight from thousands of school visits, practical strategies, research, and examples from classrooms to assist educators transform their practice. Each chapter ends with a “Disruptive Challenge” that encourages readers to actively apply concepts in their practice. Readers will develop and understanding that:\nDisruptive change is the new normal. As such, our mindset and practice must evolve to future-proof learning in ways that help students develop meaningful competencies critical for success in an unpredictable world. 
Comfort is the enemy of growth. We must critically evaluate if the way things have always been done in the classroom set learners up for success now and in the future. Improvement in all we do is a never-ended journey. 
Learning is a process, not an event. It requires educators to develop and utilize instructional practices and pedagogical techniques that meet the unique needs of all students. 
Outlier practices play a key role in the development of disruptive thinking. Some have increasing value while others do not. It is up to educators to find the right blend of these strategies to empower learners. 
Packed with ready to use ideas and embedded resources including the latest digital tools, templates, and artifacts from real classrooms, readers will learn: Why a mindset shift is essential in order to prepare learners for an unpredictable world. 
How to implement strategies that focus on developing critical competencies. 
How to ensure equity through personalization. 
What to reflect on to improve and build powerful relationships. 
#DisruptiveThink\nReview 
This book will disrupt your day-it will challenge your thinking, and it will demand reading every page. The nuggets are there: it asks you to adopt business as unusual, the aim is growth, not perfection, and there are no rabbit holes of fluff. Eric Sheninger captures a method for dealing with the unknown, for making the future the present, and invites consideration of the competencies to make learning lovable for teachers and their students.\nJohn Hattie, 
Emeritus Laureate Professor, Melbourne Graduate School of Education\nThis book is an informed reflection from an educator whose experience as a teacher, principal, instructional coach, and persistent learner enables him to affirm the life-shaping potential of teaching even as he chafes in the face of its time-weary practices. Sheninger invites readers to join him in seeking answers to the question, "What makes a classroom become an incubator for student capacity, engagement, and empowerment?" The book reads like a conversation with a worthy colleague as it invites us to reconsider virtually every aspect of teaching. If you have an inkling that getting better at what we do is a non-negotiable for dedicated professionals, join the author as he probes the status quo and provides practical guidance for changing to address the changing needs of the young people in our care.\nCarol Ann Tomlinson, Ed.D., William Clay Parrish, Jr. Professor, University of Virginia\nEric Sheninger will help you shift your own mindset and the mindset of your students with this powerful, practical work.\nDaniel H. Pink, New York Times bestselling author of WHEN, DRIVE, and TO SELL IS HUMAN\nA distinctive shift in mindset will be the tipping point in determining whether your school community moves forward into a promising future or slips back into staid and dated approaches to learning. Shening

Disruptive Thinking in Our Classrooms: Preparing Learners for Their Future

Sheninger, Eric

Product Description 
In 
Handle with Care, authors Jimmy Casas and Joy Kelly examine a variety of difficult school-related situations, both in and out of the classroom. In schools across the country, educators at every level are faced with delicate, challenging situations that require leadership skills and insights in order to produce favorable outcomes for students and staff. This book provides educators with insights into a variety of difficult-to-handle situations and scenarios that educators can relate to and may have experienced themselves. Well-intentioned, but inadequate, human responses are identified and practical ideas for handling delicate situations with dignity and respect are provided. This book will help educators develop tools and techniques to help students and staff emerge from missteps more self-aware, feeling valued, and able to move forward.\nIn this book, you will learn:\nWhat it takes to cultivate a school culture in which every student and staff member feels seen and heard. 
How to treat student and staff missteps as opportunities for teaching and learning based on dignity and respect. 
How to build leadership capacity and Culturize school pride. 
The value of student-centered classrooms and school-related programs.\nReview 
Best-selling author Jimmy Casas and Joy Kelly share powerful and relevant stories in Handle with Care - Managing Difficult Situations in Schools with Dignity and Respect. They remind us that the heart and soul of a healthy culture begins and ends with the way we handle all members of a school community with care, grace, and dignity. This book is filled with heartfelt, practical advice and will serve as a reflection guide for educators for years to come.\nJon Gordon, Best-Selling Author of The Energy Bus 
and The Power of Positive Leadership \nIf we want all students to reach beyond their own expectations, then we need to make sure that our interactions with them need to be more human, especially those students who do not always make it easy. In Handle with Care Casas and Kelly offer important insight into turning those difficult situations into more impactful learning experiences.\nPeter DeWitt, Ed.D.School Leadership Coach/Facilitator of 
Learning 
 Finding Common Ground Blog (Education Week)\nHandle with Care 
 gives real solutions to real challenges that educators face daily. Through the authentic vignettes that are shared, along with the reflective questions and tone of the book, Jimmy and Joy are able to connect with readers. This connection makes Handle with Care read like a conversation instead of a book. This resource is a go to for educators as they navigate challenges and remove barriers to ensure that students and staff feel emotionally safe and supported at school. Handle with Care focuses on the most important aspect of the school experience - Relationships.\nSanée Bell, Ed.D, Author of Be Excellent on Purpose: 
Intentional Strategies for Impactful Leadership 
 From the Inside Flap 
Jimmy + Joy + a Culturizing Mindset + Supportive & Demanding Leaders + Empathy + Grit + Grace + Gratitude = a catalytic read & resource for schools & districts to...THRIVE! #Read #Heed. #Cutlurize #KeepGoing\nKevin Carroll, author/speaker/instigator of inspiration\nHandle with Care 
 by Jimmy Casas and Joy Kelly is a masterclass of teachable moments and usable strategies for educational leaders and classroom teachers alike to implement within their schools while working through disruptive situations with students. Looking further than the moment to use disruptions as opportunities to teach and learn. Leading educators on a path to go beyond the call and teach beyond the walls of the classroom providing strategies for building relationships that empower our students.\nJonathan Alsheimer, Teacher, Speaker, 
Author of Next Level Teaching\nInspiring and empowering! I feel like I was just gifted decades of experience from culture of excellen

Handle with Care: Managing Difficult Situations in Schools with Dignity and Respect

Kelly, Joy

Educator burnout is threatening the well-being of our society. In addition to negatively impacting the social, emotional, and academic growth of the students we serve and the quality of our educational system overall, it also comes with financial consequences for our nation. Many 21st century educators are becoming increasingly stressed trying to meet the countless demands upon them, demands that promote burnout and jeopardize workforce retention. Emotional exhaustion, negativity, and teacher attrition have reached alarming levels, threatening quality instruction and, ultimately, student achievement. Many factors contribute to job burnout. The primary causes are mismatches between people and their work environment. These mismatches include: Work overload; Lack of autonomy; Insufficient encouragement, recognition, or appreciation; Lack of positive relationships; Issue of fairness; and Value conflicts between the individual and the organization.The greater the mismatch between each area of the school setting and the educator, the greater the risk of educator burnout. Although the negative consequences of burnout are overwhelming and very real, the good news is, it does not have to be this way. With intentional approaches and relatively simple tactics, educators can extinguish burnout and increase engagement in their school settings. In Permission to be Great, Dan Butler articulates success stories, proven leadership practices, engagement enhancers, and reflective questions to lead your school or district toward positive change. This book provides practical and specific ideas for combating burnout behaviors and, instead, initiating higher levels of energy, involvement, and efficacy among educators in our schools. Now that we know the truth about burnout, it is time to embark on the path toward authentic engagement; our educators--and our students--deserve it!

Permission to be Great: Increasing Engagement in Your School

Butler, Dan

Educators know that relationships and rapport are the most important foundational pieces to a successful classroom. The hard part is knowing how to build those impactful relationships. How do you build rapport? What activities can encourage teamwork? How do you continue to build community throughout the school year? In Be the Flame, teacher leader Shane Saeed details ideas and activities that spark positive classroom communities and create learning environments where students can thrive. Be the Flame focuses on building communities in different areas of an educator's professional realm: <ul><li>Kindling rapport with students one-on-one, </li><li>Igniting a community among your students, </li><li>Catching onto relationships with the families of your students, </li><li>Fueling relationships with teammates and coworkers, and</li><li>Establishing an online community to spread ideas, learn, and grow with.</li></ul>In this book, you'll learn how to become a "teacher flame" through relationship building practices that can be implemented the very next day. From step-by-step directions for community building activities to easy-to-implement routines to encourage community and strengthen relationships, this book is an elementary teacher's guide to starting their classroom community from the first day of school. Teachers will learn not only how to build relationships with their students, but also with families and coworkers in order to cultivate a cohesive community of support. It takes a village to support students and create a safe space for them to learn and grow. It is our job, as educators, to build strong foundational relationships with students to encourage them to achieve academically and be the best people they can be. Be the Flame in your classroom and spread your light to impact your students in a positive way!

Be the Flame: Sparking Positive Classroom Communities

Saeed, Shane

After writing and speaking about all aspects of education for several years, one day Jimmy Casas decided to begin sharing what he called a "Thought for the Day" through various social media outlets. Most often, these "thoughts" were simply things he had been saying in presentations around the country or snippets from books he had written such as Culturize and Live Your Excellence. He certainly never considered them very profound or even original, yet was gratified by the response these daily thoughts received from those who followed them and he realized that many people were just like him in that they were always on the lookout for a short saying that might make them think or might help carry them through their busy day. As a result of the positive feedback he was receiving from many educators, he continued to send out a daily thought about teaching, learning, leadership, or life in general for over two years. In 2021, he published Volume I of "Daily Inspiration for Educators." Based on its success, he collected another volume of inspirational daily thoughts for busy educators.This book compiles many of these daily thoughts into a collection of 365 daily inspirational messages, most by Casas. Others are sayings found elsewhere, some of which are hundreds of years old and others found only recently. These daily thoughts will provide hope, validation, and inspiration to some of the most inspiring people in the world: hard working education professionals. Thank you for continuing to do what you do each day. For educators reading this collection of daily thoughts, your career in education is likely more of a "calling" than a mere job. Serving as a professional educator is so important that we must commit to doing whatever it takes to ensure that every child achieves success each and every day we serve. Daily Inspiration for Educators can serve as a resource that motivates and inspires educators during times of joy as well as when things get tough, as we know they will periodically in a profession as important and challenging as ours.

Daily Inspiration for Educators: Positive Thoughts for Every Day of the Year, Volume II

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