Jonathon Wennstrom's guest appearances

Jonathon Wennstrom

Transformative Principal

The Principal Entrepreneur

David Smith

Seth Godin

William Parker

Cory Doctorow

Jethro Jones

Liz Wiseman

Kat Howard

Derek Sivers

Michael Robinson

Geoff Woods

Aaron Walker

Shelly Morgan

Jessica Johnson

David Wood

John Hope Bryant

OwlTail

In this episode we’re talking with Elementary Principal Mr. Jonathon Wennstrom. Mr. Wennstrom has been in the educational arena as a principal for 15 years. He is an educational blogger and is a part of a committed group of educational leaders who believe that blogging is part of the reflection process.  We’ll chat with him about the genesis for the blog in a bit but before we do so let’s get into his origin storySummary of Educational JourneyLike many in the field Jonathon was inspired by many great teachers and coaches which made him want to inspire others.  In particular a 5th grade teacher, Mr. Reed, took a young Jonathon into his home while Jonathon’s family dealt with the severe illness of his father. Wennstrom also discusses the internal challenges of misaligning one’s passion for educating children and that of increased social status.   He also get’s into the struggles of transferring one skill set to another setting and taking them for granted.  He goes on to describe his introduction to blogging how he was inspired to begin it and how he joined a group of like minded principals.  He discusses the themes of the blogs and how it is used to improve his professional practice.  In addition Jonathon wants to break that misconception that educators don’t have anything important to say.   He sees fantastic things happening everyday.  People like hearing ideas.  Tweetable quotes“Relationships aren’t transferrable.” Jonathon Wennstrom“What we do is pretty special.”  Jonathon Wennstrom“We’re changing lives and that’s pretty important.”  Jonathon Wennstrom“If you’re working in education you have a pretty special calling.” Jonathon Wennstrom“People [educators] want to support and encourage each other.” Jonathon Wennstrom“Everybody has something we can learn from.” Jonathon Wennstrom“Don’t be afraid to say the words I don’t know.” Jonathon Wennstrom“I want to grow the leaders in my school.” Jonathon Wennstrom“Leadership is a skill, a set of skills that people can learn.” Jonathon WennstromWords of WisdomOnce relationships are in place then you can start working together as a team.It’s important that before you step through those doors on day one, before the teachers return, that we have an opportunity for people to get together socially to just talk and get to know one another. We need to build each other up and tell our stories of the great things that are happening.There’s a pressure to feel as if you have all the answers, and that you have to fix every problem.  It’s ok to say I don’t know, or I’m going to get back with you, or let me think on that.Good principals will grow the leadership.  If staff is feeling safe in that school environment and empowered, then that helps everyone.Advice for PrincipalsStep one Always build relationshipsFind out about your team find out Sequence to follow:Send out emailShare your philosophy on educationGive list of question includingWhat are your points of prideWhat traditions do you want to continueWhat are your proudest achievementsWhat are your fearsWhat are your hopesTake time to meet themMake sure to have some social time before school starts.Don’t be afraid to say the words I don’t know.Lean on the experience around you.Recommended BooksTeach Like a Pirate by Dave BurgessMindset:The New Psychology of Success By Carol DweckThe Innovator's Mindset by George CourosIf you found this entertaining, educational, or cause for reflection please share with your friends.For more short articles and tips that support educational leaders check out my blog at theprincipalentrepreneur.com and/or pre order my newest book How To Be A Great Principal: 36 Shared Leadership Success Strategies.  If you’re an auditory learner you can download my podcast The Principal Entrepreneur, new episodes weekly.  To join the podcast as a guest, email me at jonathanroyce@theprincipalentrepreneur.com. Finally, I’m part of a  community of supportive principals please join our private FB group.

In this episode we’re talking with Elementary Principal Mr. Jonathon Wennstrom. Mr. Wennstrom has been in the educational arena as a principal for 15 years. He is an educational blogger and is a part of a committed group of educational leaders who believe that blogging is part of the reflection process. We’ll chat with him about the genesis for the blog in a bit but before we do so let’s get into his origin story Summary of Educational Journey Like many in the field Jonathon was inspired by many great teachers and coaches which made him want to inspire others. In particular a 5th grade teacher, Mr. Reed, took a young Jonathon into his home while Jonathon’s family dealt with the severe illness of his father. Wennstrom also discusses the internal challenges of misaligning one’s passion for educating children and that of increased social status. He also get’s into the struggles of transferring one skill set to another setting and taking them for granted. He goes on to describe his introduction to blogging how he was inspired to begin it and how he joined a group of like minded principals. He discusses the themes of the blogs and how it is used to improve his professional practice. In addition Jonathon wants to break that misconception that educators don’t have anything important to say. He sees fantastic things happening everyday. People like hearing ideas. Tweetable quotes “Relationships aren’t transferrable.” Jonathon Wennstrom “What we do is pretty special.” Jonathon Wennstrom “We’re changing lives and that’s pretty important.” Jonathon Wennstrom “If you’re working in education you have a pretty special calling.” Jonathon Wennstrom “People [educators] want to support and encourage each other.” Jonathon Wennstrom “Everybody has something we can learn from.” Jonathon Wennstrom “Don’t be afraid to say the words I don’t know.” Jonathon Wennstrom “I want to grow the leaders in my school.” Jonathon Wennstrom “Leadership is a skill, a set of skills that people can learn.” Jonathon Wennstrom Words of Wisdom Once relationships are in place then you can start working together as a team. It’s important that before you step through those doors on day one, before the teachers return, that we have an opportunity for people to get together socially to just talk and get to know one another. We need to build each other up and tell our stories of the great things that are happening. There’s a pressure to feel as if you have all the answers, and that you have to fix every problem. It’s ok to say I don’t know, or I’m going to get back with you, or let me think on that. Good principals will grow the leadership. If staff is feeling safe in that school environment and empowered, then that helps everyone. Advice for Principals Step one Always build relationships Find out about your team find out Sequence to follow: Send out email Share your philosophy on education Give list of question including What are your points of pride What traditions do you want to continue What are your proudest achievements What are your fears What are your hopes Take time to meet them Make sure to have some social time before school starts. Don’t be afraid to say the words I don’t know. Lean on the experience around you. Recommended Books Teach Like a Pirate by Dave Burgess Mindset:The New Psychology of Success By Carol Dweck The Innovator's Mindset by George Couros If you found this entertaining, educational, or cause for reflection please share with your friends. For more short articles and tips that support educational leaders check out my blog at <a href="http://theprincipalentrepreneur.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">theprincipalentrepreneur.com</a> and/or pre order my newest book How To Be A Great Principal: 36 Shared Leadership Success Strategies. If you’re an auditory learner you can download my podcast The Principal Entrepreneur, new episodes weekly. To join the podcast as a guest, email me at jonathanroyce@theprincipalentrepreneur.com. Finally, I’m part of a community of supportive principals please join our private FB group.

Interview with Jonathon Wennstrom: Elementary Principal and Educational Blogger

We are excited to have SchoolAI as a sponsor for the Summer of AI Series on Transformative Principal. Please visit schoolai.com to save your teachers 10 hours per week. Livonia Michigan Suburban district with 300 students, 16,000 in district Pre-K–4th. 5 years, 21 years in 14 years as a principal @jon_wennstrom sparkoflearning.blogspot.com teacher blog http://wennstromweekly.blogspot.com parent blog  PBIS rules are umbrella for 7 habits of highly effective kids. Home grown project for 7 habits. District is very invested in character education. 8 character traits for entire district. Fundamental belief that character education is vital. Empowering students rather than engaging them - George Couros Not another thing on the plate, it is the plate. Building fundamental skills: collaboration, perseverance, grit, skills that will serve them in any location, any job, or any group of people they are with. Parent says “my child came home and my family needs to be more proactive.” Move beyond the vocabulary, but our words do count. What about parents being more responsible of teaching values and school teaching content? Public Service Announcements. Hearing is great, but seeing is even more powerful. PSAs are emailed out and other teachers create videos and share internally. Student-led announcements. Scripted for students. Quote of the week. What book they are currently reading. How to be a transformative principal? Read and connect! Most of my best ideas were not my ideas!     Loading… Please take a moment to rate this podcast in  iTunes or on  Stitcher.  Please follow me on Twitter: @jethrojones for the host and @TrnFrmPrincipal for the show.  Buy Communication Cards Show notes on TransformativePrincipal.com Download  Paperless Principal.    Sponsor: Sanebox Web Site Transformative Principal on Stitcher  Refer A Principal  Best Tools for Busy Administrators Survey   SponsorsSave your teachers hours per week with SchoolAI. It's not just a tool, it's a partner in the classroom. With school AI teachers can plan courses in minutes. Get realtime learning data and provide one-on-one tutor tutoring. Plus it's free for teachers. Go to SchoolAI.com/tpWe're so grateful to our sponsor AI Coach by Edthena. AI Coach enables your teachers to go through coaching cycles based on their own needs. The virtual coach guides teachers to reflect on their teaching, set a goal, and create an action plan… all based on gathering classroom evidence. It gives support between PD days  and other coaching cycles.Get a free trial for your teachers here.

We are excited to have SchoolAI as a sponsor for the Summer of AI Series on Transformative Principal. Please visit <a href="https://schoolai.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">schoolai.com</a> to save your teachers 10 hours per week. Livonia Michigan Suburban district with 300 students, 16,000 in district Pre-K–4th. 5 years, 21 years in 14 years as a principal @jon_wennstrom <a href="http://sparkoflearning.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">sparkoflearning.blogspot.com</a> teacher blog <a href="http://wennstromweekly.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://wennstromweekly.blogspot.com</a> parent blog <ul> <li>PBIS rules are umbrella for 7 habits of highly effective kids.</li> <li>Home grown project for 7 habits.</li> <li>District is very invested in character education.</li> <li>8 character traits for entire district.</li> <li>Fundamental belief that character education is vital.</li> <li>Empowering students rather than engaging them - George Couros</li> <li>Not another thing on the plate, it is the plate.</li> <li>Building fundamental skills: collaboration, perseverance, grit, skills that will serve them in any location, any job, or any group of people they are with.</li> <li>Parent says “my child came home and my family needs to be more proactive.”</li> <li>Move beyond the vocabulary, but our words do count.</li> <li>What about parents being more responsible of teaching values and school teaching content?</li> <li>Public Service Announcements. Hearing is great, but seeing is even more powerful.</li> <li>PSAs are emailed out and other teachers create videos and share internally.</li> <li>Student-led announcements. Scripted for students.</li> <li>Quote of the week.</li> <li>What book they are currently reading.</li> <li>How to be a transformative principal? Read and connect!</li> <li>Most of my best ideas were not my ideas!</li> </ul> <a href="http://patreon.com/jethrojones" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/transformative-principal/id770942472?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> </a> Loading… Please take a moment to rate this podcast in <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/transformative-principal/id770942472?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> iTunes</a> or on <a href="http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/jethro-jones/transformative-principals?refid=stpr" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Stitcher</a>.  Please follow me on Twitter: <a href="http://twitter.com/jethrojones" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">@jethrojones</a> for the host and <a href="http://twitter.com/trnfrmprincipal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">@TrnFrmPrincipal</a> for the show. <a href="http://www.jethrojones.com/new-products/communication-cards" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Buy Communication Cards</a> Show notes on <a href="http://transformativeprincipal.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">TransformativePrincipal.com</a> Download <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/paperless-principal/id558201943?ls=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Paperless Principal</a>.   <a href="http://mbsy.co/3jbnc" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a> <a href="http://bit.ly/1mLVUtj" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sponsor: Sanebox</a> <a href="http://transformativeprincipal.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Web Site</a> <a href="http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=44392&amp;refid=stpr" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Transformative Principal on Stitcher</a> <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1pI7a1e-rszZkDurFR2Jw9aXYjOX0XfCcJ-uTsgNiAmo/viewform" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Refer A Principal</a> <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/12nqS30m-7PQ5BhlGSGrXoQrYwZ33bgulQRaXfUagC08/viewform" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Best Tools for Busy Administrators Survey</a> SponsorsSave your teachers hours per week with <a href="https://schoolai.com/tp" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">SchoolAI</a>. It's not just a tool, it's a partner in the classroom. With school AI teachers can plan courses in minutes. Get realtime learning data and provide one-on-one tutor tutoring. Plus it's free for teachers. Go to <a href="https://schoolai.com/tp" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">SchoolAI.com/tp</a>We're so grateful to our sponsor <a href="https://edthena.com/bepodcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">AI Coach by Edthena</a>. AI Coach enables your teachers to go through coaching cycles based on their own needs. The virtual coach guides teachers to reflect on their teaching, set a goal, and create an action plan… all based on gathering classroom evidence. It gives support between PD days  and other coaching cycles.Get a free trial for your teachers <a href="https://edthena.com/bepodcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">here</a>.

Habits of Highly Effective Kids with Jonathon Wennstrom Transformative Principal 125

We are excited to have SchoolAI as a sponsor for the Summer of AI Series on Transformative Principal. Please visit schoolai.com to save your teachers 10 hours per week. Livonia Michigan Suburban district with 300 students, 16,000 in district Pre-K–4th. 5 years, 21 years in 14 years as a principal @jon_wennstrom sparkoflearning.blogspot.com teacher blog http://wennstromweekly.blogspot.com parent blog PBIS school, 7 Habits of highly effective students, Positive phone calls, student led announcements, PSAs. Class Dojo, 23% ELLs Wall feature.  School-wide meetings. PBIS school. Monthly, student of the month meetings. Stephen Covey’s 7 habits 3 to be pledge, respectful, responsible, safe Poster contests for that 90–95% parent attendance rate for kids who are students of the month. Weekly meeting. Sunrise and sunset meetings. Goal: build community  Sean Gallard #celebrateMonday meetings Doesn’t a weekly meeting take away a lot of instructional time? Increase time-on-task Support staff who help K students get ready. Videos for students, less than 3 minutes. Perseverance, Stephen Covey’s 7 habits for highly effective kids  Art teacher creates a canvas to help students showcase their work. Importance of including parents. Positive phone calls on a daily basis. Class dojo process - classroom wall (like a Facebook wall). Parent program for Love and Logic. Process for parent phone calls.  66 day challenge Youth making a difference     Loading… Please take a moment to rate this podcast in  iTunes or on  Stitcher.  Please follow me on Twitter: @jethrojones for the host and @TrnFrmPrincipal for the show.  Buy Communication Cards Show notes on TransformativePrincipal.com Download  Paperless Principal.    Sponsor: Sanebox Web Site Transformative Principal on Stitcher  Refer A Principal  Best Tools for Busy Administrators Survey     SponsorsSave your teachers hours per week with SchoolAI. It's not just a tool, it's a partner in the classroom. With school AI teachers can plan courses in minutes. Get realtime learning data and provide one-on-one tutor tutoring. Plus it's free for teachers. Go to SchoolAI.com/tpWe're so grateful to our sponsor AI Coach by Edthena. AI Coach enables your teachers to go through coaching cycles based on their own needs. The virtual coach guides teachers to reflect on their teaching, set a goal, and create an action plan… all based on gathering classroom evidence. It gives support between PD days  and other coaching cycles.Get a free trial for your teachers here.

We are excited to have SchoolAI as a sponsor for the Summer of AI Series on Transformative Principal. Please visit <a href="https://schoolai.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">schoolai.com</a> to save your teachers 10 hours per week. Livonia Michigan Suburban district with 300 students, 16,000 in district Pre-K–4th. 5 years, 21 years in 14 years as a principal @jon_wennstrom <a href="http://sparkoflearning.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">sparkoflearning.blogspot.com</a> teacher blog <a href="http://wennstromweekly.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://wennstromweekly.blogspot.com</a> parent blog PBIS school, 7 Habits of highly effective students, Positive phone calls, student led announcements, PSAs. Class Dojo, 23% ELLs Wall feature. <ul> <li>School-wide meetings.</li> <li>PBIS school.</li> <li>Monthly, student of the month meetings.</li> <li>Stephen Covey’s 7 habits</li> <li>3 to be pledge, respectful, responsible, safe</li> <li>Poster contests for that</li> <li>90–95% parent attendance rate for kids who are students of the month.</li> <li>Weekly meeting.</li> <li>Sunrise and sunset meetings.</li> <li>Goal: build community</li> <li> <a href="http://twitter.com/smgaillard" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sean Gallard #celebrateMonday</a> meetings</li> <li>Doesn’t a weekly meeting take away a lot of instructional time?</li> <li>Increase time-on-task</li> <li>Support staff who help K students get ready.</li> <li>Videos for students, less than 3 minutes.</li> <li>Perseverance,</li> <li>Stephen Covey’s <a href="http://www.theleaderinme.org/educators/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">7 habits for highly effective kids</a> </li> <li>Art teacher creates a canvas to help students showcase their work.</li> <li>Importance of including parents.</li> <li>Positive phone calls on a daily basis.</li> <li>Class dojo process - classroom wall (like a Facebook wall).</li> <li>Parent program for Love and Logic.</li> <li>Process for parent phone calls.</li> <li><a href="http://www.the1thing.com/blog/66-day-challenge/will-you-accept-the-66-day-challenge/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> 66 day challenge</a></li> <li>Youth making a difference</li> </ul> <a href="http://patreon.com/jethrojones" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/transformative-principal/id770942472?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> </a> Loading… Please take a moment to rate this podcast in <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/transformative-principal/id770942472?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> iTunes</a> or on <a href="http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/jethro-jones/transformative-principals?refid=stpr" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Stitcher</a>.  Please follow me on Twitter: <a href="http://twitter.com/jethrojones" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">@jethrojones</a> for the host and <a href="http://twitter.com/trnfrmprincipal" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">@TrnFrmPrincipal</a> for the show. <a href="http://www.jethrojones.com/new-products/communication-cards" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Buy Communication Cards</a> Show notes on <a href="http://transformativeprincipal.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">TransformativePrincipal.com</a> Download <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/paperless-principal/id558201943?ls=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Paperless Principal</a>.   <a href="http://mbsy.co/3jbnc" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a> <a href="http://bit.ly/1mLVUtj" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Sponsor: Sanebox</a> <a href="http://transformativeprincipal.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Web Site</a> <a href="http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=44392&amp;refid=stpr" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Transformative Principal on Stitcher</a> <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1pI7a1e-rszZkDurFR2Jw9aXYjOX0XfCcJ-uTsgNiAmo/viewform" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Refer A Principal</a> <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/12nqS30m-7PQ5BhlGSGrXoQrYwZ33bgulQRaXfUagC08/viewform" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Best Tools for Busy Administrators Survey</a> SponsorsSave your teachers hours per week with <a href="https://schoolai.com/tp" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">SchoolAI</a>. It's not just a tool, it's a partner in the classroom. With school AI teachers can plan courses in minutes. Get realtime learning data and provide one-on-one tutor tutoring. Plus it's free for teachers. Go to <a href="https://schoolai.com/tp" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">SchoolAI.com/tp</a>We're so grateful to our sponsor <a href="https://edthena.com/bepodcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">AI Coach by Edthena</a>. AI Coach enables your teachers to go through coaching cycles based on their own needs. The virtual coach guides teachers to reflect on their teaching, set a goal, and create an action plan… all based on gathering classroom evidence. It gives support between PD days  and other coaching cycles.Get a free trial for your teachers <a href="https://edthena.com/bepodcast" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">here</a>.