Article Extensions

but there were fewer places to go, less noise to fill the empty spaces, and more empty spaces to exist within. At times we can avoid being alone with ourselves, being busy enough to avoid reflection and ponder views of where we are going. Covid crafted time that we could squander, struggle through, or seize, but we had no choice but to gain a new prism from which to view our lives.

“I did not err, there does a sable cloud,/Turn forth her silver lining on the night, And cast a gleam over the rufted grove.” When John Milton talked about sable clouds, they did not dissipate but turned to reveal their silver lining that lit the night. As we embrace vaccines and the possibility of emerging into a world with a light quite different than before the pandemic, Covid’s song will play in our brains like a catchy, overplayed Top 40 hit. We can savor the lessons of its dark lyrics to emerge with gratitude, imagination, connection, humility, and hope.

Kathleen B. King is an associate professor at North Central College in Naperville, IL, mother, wife, foster parent, daughter, sister, aunt and proponent of Covid-19 vaccines.

Extension of Silver Lining Articles

ILASCD is extremely proud of all our authors!

We reached out asking for real experiences that were occurring in the classroom and school buildings. The result of our request was overwhelming. The following are additional articles that we simply did not have room to fully publish, yet wanted to include to honor our authors. Please click on each link and enjoy the additional “SILVER LININGS” submissions.

UNEXPECTED BREAKS IN THE CLOUDS

The summer of 2020 is etched in my memory as a baffling mosaic of grief, grit, and growth....

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Valerie Butrón and Isaac Butrón Valerie is the Behavior Intervention Specialist and a Dean of Students at Wheaton-Warrenville South High School. She is also the Senior Consultant for Reading, Biliteracy & Professional Development at Bee Readers. Valerie is currently pursuing an Ed.D. in curriculum and instruction at the American College of Education. Her primary research interests are English-Spanish biliteracy, restorative practice, and social-emotional learning. Valerie frequently provides teacher training for the Professional Development Alliance. Her career includes experience as a school district administrator, instructional coach, bilingual classroom teacher, and school improvement specialist at American Institutes for Research. She previously earned a Master of Arts in school leadership from Concordia University and a Master of Science in education from Northern Illinois University.

Isaac is the Art Teacher sparking creativity in students at both Sieden Prairie Elementary and Neil Armstrong Elementary in Elementary District 159. A proud Chicago native whose parents immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico, Isaac enjoys planning culturally and linguistically responsive units of instruction that celebrate and affirm his students’ heritage and identities. Isaac has previously held multiple teaching positions in special education, bilingual, ESL, and general education. He earned a Master of Science in education from Northern Illinois University and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in media arts and animation.

THIS YEAR’S SILVER LINING

I have watched this team of teachers support students, and each other, in waysI have never seen before...

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Stephanie Fike serves as the Languages Division Chair at

Wauconda High School in Wauconda, IL, and is currently working toward her EdD in Instructional Leadership: Coaching and Mentoring from Aurora University. She coaches gymnastics, is learning to love YA fiction, and finds teenagers to be entertaining and inspiring. The beach is her happy place.

RESILIENCY, MINDSET, AND A POSITIVE CULTURE: THE IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS FOR OUR CLASSROOMS AND DISTRICTS IN 2021

Reflecting on the leadership during 2008, and now in 2021 and beyond, we look at all of the shifts that have occurred and how we can provide continued high-quality education for all of our students...

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Lisa M. Harrod has served as the Superintendent of Schools in Manteno Community Unit School District No 5. Since 2013, She is the CEO of Leveraging Excellence, a High-Quality Professional Development Company. Her career has been built on creating positive relationships based on trust and mutual respect.

She has been a National Education Consultant for the past 22 years. Her areas of specialty are achieving a positive climate and culture, curriculum differentiation and intervention, special education auditing and programming, negotiations, leadership, programmatic reform, and creating sustainable programs that increase the academic achievement of students.

Lisa’s presentations have received the highest of accolades on evaluations and focus on material that is relevant and practical. She has been recognized for her ability to motivate educators and her contagious energy! She can be reached at lmtconsulting@ aol.com or 815-474-5188.

SPECIAL FUN-SHAPED CRAYONS FOR SCARCE

Over the past year, I made thousands of special fun-shaped crayons for SCARCE.org, an environmental education non-profit located in Addison, Illinois...

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My name is Joyce Hemphill, and I am a retired educator. Up until last year I would volunteer once a week at a place called SCARCE—an environmental education nonprofit in Addison IL.

Please know these crayons are only available to teachers and non-profits through SCARCE. I mention this because I want educators to know about the wonderful resources SCARCE has for them and these crayons are just one part of it. Teachers can fill a box with books, scissors, glue sticks—and these crayons—and only pay $5. Yes, $5 per box.

And if you have any questions, you can reach out to me or Kay McKeen, who is the founder and director of SCARCE at kay@scarce.org or www.scarce.org.

HAPPY HUMANS: FOCUSING ON STUDENT WELL-BEING

Professor John Hattie’s research around effective teaching and learning practices ranks belonging as one of the most influencing factors in student achievement. This means schools that promote inherent worth can influence a child’s lifelong trajectory...

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Emily Lech. I’m an elementary principal in Yorkville District 115 (a far west suburb of Chicago). Our district has a lot to celebrate this year! We’ve come together in wondrous ways and students have remained at the heart of it all!

THIS SCHOOL YEAR LOOKED VASTLY DIFFERENT FROM ANY OTHER SCHOOL YEAR

...I had the opportunity to speak to reporters from the Washington Post and Good Morning America to share the difficulties teachers all over the nation were having while teaching amidst a pandemic...

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Diane Moon is a seventh-grade math teacher in Prospect Heights, IL, at MacArthur Middle School. Before teaching in Prospect Heights, she taught in Berwyn, IL. She has been teaching middle school math for the past six years and has experience teaching in the sixth, seventh, and eighth-grade math. She is a proud alum of the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign and is currently getting her master’s degree at National Louis University. Follow her @ MrsDianeMoon.

A PANDEMIC WAS NOTHING WE TEACHERS COULD HAVE ANTICIPATED, BUT...

Never embracing the negative, each and every individual in the district was on site helping to gather computers, charging cords, and assisting with whatever was needed in order to provide for our learners...

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Dr. Kathy O’Brien is a middle school teacher and instructional coach at a Title 1 school in Aurora, Illinois. She teaches language arts and works with her district in providing resources to English Language Learners. Kathy has worked with Aurora University in an after-school Stem program and on curriculum for the district she works in. Dr. O’Brien strives to show each and every student the value they bring to the world. She is the mother of four adult children which is her greatest accomplishment.

POSITIVE SILVER LININGS

It all started for me during a routine doctor’s appointment in early February of last year...

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John Otto Kuhlmann. I am an enthusiastic person. I love photography, tennis, cycling, running and swimming. I am a certified personal trainer and participated in six Olympic triathlons. I am also an artist and have a studio in the Cornelia Arts Building in Chicago where I create colorful, abstract paintings. I am also very proud to be a level II volunteer for a CPS high school where I do art consulting with students and help them translate their stories into works of art. I have attended many ASCD Conferences and have met with legislative officials on Capitol Hill by advocating education policies. Finally, a motorcycle and car enthusiast.

TWO GREAT POSITIVE IMPACTS FROM THE PANDEMIC

My school has consistently been a 50/50 split regarding students being remote or hybrid. This split is what has led to the positive impacts...

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Dr. James Robinette has served as principal of Congress Park Elementary School since 2018. Before that, he was principal at Barbour Two-Way Language Immersion K-8 for 3 years. Robinette has presented at several Illinois conferences including Kane County ROE Institute Day (2020), ESSA Conference (2019), IPA Conference (2018), as well as the Statewide Conference on Bilingual Education in 2017, 2018, and 2019. He has also worked with CORWIN on Deep Equity within District 102. Dr. Robinette resides in Lombard where he currently sits as a D44 School Board member.

OUR TEACHERS HAVE BEEN WARRIORS

Living in a world of online platforms has opened up opportunities that teachers have taken advantage of, connecting easily with colleagues of the same content area that they rarely had a chance to meet prepandemic....

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Dr. Michelle Thompson is the Director of Literacy for Elmhurst District 205. She supports Literacy and Social Studies instruction and curriculum for grades EC-12 in the unit district.

RUMORS SPREAD QUICKLY THROUGHOUT THE SCHOOL...

...government officials were to announce that schools would be closed for the following two weeks because of a virus that had yet to be fully understood or realized...

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Jordan Thorse. I have a wide range of educational experience as both an instructional leader and an administrator. Currently, under my leadership as an Assistant Principal in Plainfield School District 202, I cultivate a safe, productive, and positive environment where all students are given the resources, guidance, and opportunity to learn and be successful. My career experiences also include teaching at the middle school level, serving as a grade-level team leader, and as a learning behavior specialist at the elementary level. I am in the process of obtaining my endorsement as a Chief School Business Official (CSBO) at Northern Illinois University.

COVID: AN ODD MUSE

My immigrant father often stated: don’t be a dreamer. This philosophy probably stemmed from his militant work ethic and his lack of opportunity to be a dreamer when he was a child....

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Carol Van Gorp has been an Instructional Coach for K-8 educators but has recently decided to return to the classroom. With over thirty years of working with children, she missed the daily interactions with kids. An experienced public speaker, she has been the keynote for church retreats, MOPS, and ongoing professional training. The mom of three healthy and independent adult children, she is excited to focus on writing to bring quality stories in rhyme to children. Her stories in the Gabby Series address some of the serious topics our children experience. She has contributed to Inkspirations, Joyful Living, Christian Communicator, and Christian Living in the Mature Years. An avid organic gardener and beekeeper, you can find her outside or at www.carolvangorp.us.