In Wow! Adding Pizzazz to Teaching and Learning, I illustrate the power of teachers creating Wow experiences for their students….things that hook students …sparking their interest and attention to “what is coming next.”The opening of school is a time that Wows can be especially important to create the enthusiasm and emotions for setting the learning stage….communicating that students are important and a great year is ahead of them.

I recently received the following note from a faculty that has planned a Wow to open school.

Steve,
I just thought I would let you know how your book has inspired Howard Elementary. I have attached the brochure with the details. We are having WOW West Wednesday.

The teachers are all dressing in western clothes and riding stick horses into Rise and Shine. We have planned a skit to introduce the program of the 5 A’s:

Attendance
Attitude
Achievement
Accelerated Reading
Arithmetic

We have a Power Point and music from the “Lone Ranger”, “Bonanza”, “The Good, Bad and Ugly” and “The Wild, Wild West”. This will help set the tone.

The lessons in the classroom will follow with each class cooperatively making their own rope. They will do math lessons to determine how much twine is needed to make their rope so that each student can be responsible for one foot of the rope. The idea is to “Rope in your future”. A rope can not hold its shape without “everyone” taking care of their part, and working together.

The school is decorated in a western theme and we will end the year with students going to Frontier City in Oklahoma City. We will have fundraisers and quarterly rewards all year long.

Everyone is really inspired and it is spreading all over the school. We just finished our practice for Rise and Shine so we are all pumped. I plan to make a video of the first day of school. Thanks for the idea about a “WOW”!

Rebecca Macy
Math Facilitator
Howard Elementary School
rmacy@fortsmithschools.org
“Have a blessed day!”

Have you got a Wow to share with others? If you’ll share with me, keep spreading them around. Hope you are having a WOW filled opening of school.