BOOSTER

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Evil to Triumph, Is for Good Men to do Nothing…

Yes, there is a time when good men and women must stand up for what’s right, even

Letters To The

EDITOR POLICY

It is the policy of Tyler County Booster to encourage reader participation on its Opinion page. Diverse and varied opinions are welcomed. Because of space limitations, we must limit all contributors to one letter per person per month. Letters of 400 words or less will be published unless they contain language or content that the editors feel is inappropriate. Letters must either be about Tyler County, from a resident of Tyler County, or in response to a story that appears in print or online in Tyler County Booster.

Examples of content that will cause letters to be rejected include the following:

Fighting evil may be an essential thing, but it isn’t the first problem—it matters only after thousands or millions of mistakes have already been made. And if those first mistakes had not been made, great fights against evil wouldn’t be necessary.

• Confusing or unclear points.

• Crude language.•Poortaste.•Disrespectfulcommentsregardingagroup’s or individual’s ethnicity, gender, religion, culture, sexual orientation or race. • Other incendiary language or remarks. • Endorsements for or complaints about individually named commercial products or services. • Poetry. • Personal attacks. • “Thank You” letters that go beyond general thanks to the community; attempt to serve as an advertisement for a company, individual or political party; or is submitted in lieu of a paid “Thank You” advertisement. Only letters written exclusively to the newspaper will be pub-

Evil does not produce. It must take advantage of healthy and effective life (AKA good men and women) if it’s to succeed. Evil, by its very nature, is wasteful and destructive: It breaks and kills and disrupts, but it does not produce and invent. Evil requires the production of the good in order to do its deeds.

Robert Poynter Mayor City of Chester

lished. Letters to a third party or those written to more than one newspaper are not accepted. “Wallpaper” - submissions that are in large part copied-andpasted from another author or organization - will not be published.

Letters written in response to other letter writers should address the issue at hand. Discourseshouldbecivilandpeople should be referred to in a respectful manner. Letters referring to news stories should also mention the headline and date of publication.

All letters must be signed and include the writer’s street addressorrouteaddresstelephone number, which will be used for verification purposes only.

Best Practices

In my effort to learn more about social media, I have been exploring different sites, reading educational blogs, and following various instructional leaders on Twitter. It is amazing to me that despite the differences in size, location and demographics, public schools across the nation are facing the same concerns and challenges - finances, legislative mandates, assessment, accountability, curriculum, staffing, discipline, etc. Despite all the various issues though, the first and foremost concern remains the same – How do we effectively educate and prepare our students to be successful in an ever-changing world?

Of course the answers to this are as diverse as the schools themselves. There is no “right” answer as what works in one school may not work for another. However, there are identified “best practices” that have been proven to workovertimeforallschoolsandallstudents.

It is critical that educational leaders facilitate the use of these practices in schools in order to ensure student growth and achievement.

So what are “best practices?” Best practices are those instructional concepts and strategies that are applicable to all students at all grade levels and all subject areas. They provide the building blocks for instruction and add rigor to the curriculum by developing thinking and problem-solving skills. Teachers who utilize best practices provide opportunities for students to learn and apply their knowledge and skills in real-life applications that help them to transfer and connect ideas and concepts across disciplines.

Four best practices for teachers include teaching an aligned, balanced curriculum, teaching an integrated curriculum, differentiating instruction to meet individual student needs, and providing active learning opportunities for students.

In Texas, our state curriculum is the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). An aligned balanced curriculum is more than just teaching the required content though. In addition, it addresses the “whole child” - academically, intellectually, socially, emotionally, and behaviorally.

B.A. Steinhagen

FAIR. Water stained; 83 degrees; 0.14 feet below. Summertime fishing patterns continue. Bass are fair on topwaters over grass at sunrise, and with dropshot and crankbaits along grass ledges later in the day. Crappie are fair using minnows and jigs on deeper main lake structures and brush piles. Catfish are good moving shallow biting cut and cheese bait.

Conroe

GOOD. Slightly stained; 87 degrees; 1.71 feet below. Catfish continue to be plentiful biting in the same patterns on ledges, points, and under the 1097 bridge on catfish bubblegum, liver, worms, or stink bait. Bream have been everywhere, robbing the bait almost too fast for the catfish to find it. Trophy catfish can be caught drifting or suspending natural bait on ledges and flats. Report by Brad Doyle, Bradley’s Guide Service. Crappie are slow to fair on minnows and jigs in 14-22 feet of water on structure. Smaller baits paired with a 1/16-1/32 ounce jig are working well. Report by Justin Burns, Slab Donkey Guide Service. Hybrids are fair to good in 16-24 feet of water using live bait or jigging vertically. Many juvenile 17 inch, with some keepers and white bass mixed in. Please check the tooth patch in Texas Parks and Wildlife.

Black bass are good near structure in 12-22 feet of water near structure using creature baits, and crankbaits.

Stay hydrated in this heat and always wear your life jacket! Report by Mike Cason, Fishical Therapy Lake Conroe Fishing Guide.

Livingston

GOOD. Stained; 85 degrees; 2.11 feet low. Fishing patterns continue to be similar. Striped bass are slow with most catches undersized using slabs or live shad. White bass are fair to good, jigging mainlake humps and points in open water with ¾-1 ounce slabs. Crappie are slow in the normal hot spots of Kickapoo Creek and Penwaugh. Alligator gar are excellent on flats in 3-6 feet of water with cut bait. Report by Jeff Friederick, Fishin’ Addiction Guide Service.

Martin Creek

GOOD. 95 degrees. Water lightly stained; 2.59 feet low.

Based on solid pedagogy or the knowledge of how children learn and develop, it prepares students for success in school and in life through rigorous instruction in an enriched environment. It allows for active engagement that promotes brain growth and development, rather than passive learning.

Often referred to as “student-centered learning”, the practice of integrating curriculum involves students completely in the learning process.

It affords them the opportunity to identify topics, develop questions, plan inquiry, divide tasks, research information, and share the learning process and content. Technology is also embedded into daily practices of the classroom. It focuses on both ideas and content while empowering students to take ownership of their learning.

A differentiated curriculum is one where teachers adapt the curriculum in different ways to meet the needs of all their students. The content taught, the process used, the product expected, or the physical factors in the classroom may be modified to help students achieve success. While providing opportunities for individual acceleration and remediation, it also nurtures self-esteem and respect, increases motivation through exploration, and helps teachers build positive relationships with students.

Active learning is a process in which the students are engaged in hands-on activities rather than passively receiving knowledge. It is fast paced, fun and motivating because students have the opportunity to try things out, use their senses, ask questions, and discuss things with others. It engages students in higher-order thinking tasks such as analysis, synthesis and evaluation by allowing them to study ideas, solve problems and apply what they have learned while working collaboratively with others.

At Woodville ISD, we are committed to using these and other best practices to effectively meet the needs of our students, providing them opportunities to develop to their full potential and ultimately set them up for success in the future.