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Priorities List

 Most of us create a To-Do list, and it consists of too many things to get done in a day, and it is generated in the order in which it pops into our head. And then, we go through that list item by item. It feels good to get things done, but are those the things that need to be done now to make the biggest impact?

In a school, we may want to:

  1. improve math, reading, writing, thinking, listening, processing emotions, understanding differences, physical wellbeing, emotional wellbeing, social wellbeing;
  2. build concepts of Civics, science, engineering, art, technology, languages, history;
  3. Provide extracurricular opportunities in sports, clubs, and service organizations,
  4. Collect data on students through AimsWeb, MAP, STAR, CoGAT, ACCESS, PSAT, SAT, EXPLORE, PLAN, ACT, AP, IB, Surveys
As a teacher, we need to:

  1. Lesson plan,
  2. Grade,
  3. Communicate with parents,
  4. Communicate with administration,
  5. Collaborate with our peers,
  6. Teach lessons,
  7. Undergo professional development,
  8. Counsel students,
  9. Build havens of safety for students,
  10. Run active shooter, fire, and weather drills
How do we know which direction to turn, when our curriculum is going in many varied directions, the school, school board, community, county, state, and federal government all want something different from you, and your kids need something different than all of what those other people want?

Prioritize! What is your purpose? Now make your list, order them in order of importance, and knock out the most impactful items first. While you and your students are at their most ready.

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