Leadership Notebooks

Creating leaders at Cooper is an exciting process! One tool that we are using to help our students take charge of their learning is called a Leadership Notebook. This is a three-ring binder that each fifth and sixth grader owns, which contains data that they track about themselves.

The pages in these binders are created by teachers and are tailored to fit the needs of each child, but each student sets their own specific academic and personal goals. They then track their own progress. The content of the Leadership Notebooks evolves and changes throughout the year as students reach their goals and set new ones. Overall, it is an excellent tool that helps them take charge of their life!

 

Second Annual Walk-a-Thon

Thankfully the rain held off and the walk-a-thon itself was truly a celebration as the students came to school dressed in the colors of their favorite team (U of M or MSU) and enjoyed walking with their friends. We were also honored to have members of the Franklin marching band, cheerleaders and ROTC with us to help us celebrate! Many of these students were former Cooper students and they did a fabulous job! At the conclusion of the walk, all of the classes gathered on the blacktop to be congratulated on all of their hard work. The winning team (U of M) was announced by having the Franklin band play their fight song. Lastly, raffle tickets were drawn to determine who won the fabulous prizes.

We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who helped make our second annual walk-a-thon a huge success! Thanks to you, we not only met our goal, we exceeded it! This will help tremendously as we plan to use it to support the leadership culture here at Cooper.

Bully Prevention

The Leader in Me process helps build a culture where everyone is respected and feels valued. Sean Covey from FranklinCovey has written an article called Bully Prevention that explains how building strong leaders helps prevent bullying in our schools.

Only by working together can we make this happen.

Living the 7 Habits

Living the 7 Habits is a journey, but it is a life changing journey! We are working hard each day to live the habits at Cooper, and it is our hope that leadership and the 7 Habits becomes a daily part of our students' lives at home as well. A quick glimpse of the 7 Habits is listed below. 

1. Be Proactive ~ Habit of Choice ~ I am the product of my choices.
2. Begin With the End in Mind ~ Habit of Vision ~ I live by design.
3. Put First Things First ~ Habit of Integrity & Execution ~ I put important things first.
4. Think Win-Win ~ Habit of Mutual Benefit/Respect ~ There is plenty out there for everyone and more to spare.
5. Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood ~ Habit of Mutual Understanding ~ I listen with the intent to understand.
6. Synergize ~ Habit of Creative Cooperation ~ Together we can create a better way, a higher way.
7. Sharpen the Saw ~ Habit of Renewal ~ I nurture the goose that lays the golden eggs.

If you'd like to read more about how your family can incorporate the 7 Habits into their daily lives, we recommend the book, 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families by Stephen Covey.

Welcome Back!

A new school year is filled with fresh beginnings, we look forward to leading and learning with you!

What is Leadership?

Cooper students were asked what leadership means to them, and this video was created to share their responses.

Leadership Day 2013

Cooper celebrated its second annual Leadership Day on Thursday, April 18. Over 90 guests participated in this special day where they not only learned about the 7 Habits and leadership, but also had the opportunity to witness our students serving as leaders throughout the entire morning. Students greeted the guests as they entered the building, got them registered, and escorted them to the library for the first presentation. Once they entered the library, the guests were once again greeted and then served breakfast by our student hosts. Our audience learned about the 7 Habits via student skits, enjoyed a musical performance by our vocal students, and were escorted by student tour guides to travel throughout the building to talk to students about how they are living the habits and how they are being integrated into the curriculum. After the tour, our guests enjoyed another musical performance by a group of our instrumental students and then had the opportunity to sit with students who shared their data notebooks. Lastly, everyone had the opportunity to ask questions of our student panel comprised of members from our Student Lighthouse Team. Cooper students shined as leaders! We are so proud of all of them and look forward to continuing along our journey of building a leadership culture at our school!

Readers Are Leaders

There was an electrifying energy in the air on March 12, as over three hundred Cooper students met in the gym at Franklin High School to participate in this year's Battle of the Books. This year's event was the largest yet with 311 students who were split up into 47 different teams. These student leaders made a commitment back in December to read preselected books and to work in a team of 6 or 7 students for two and a half months to prepare for the battle. Thanks to the help of countless volunteers who served as coaches, each team met on a weekly basis during their lunch/recess to talk about the books, to share notes and to quiz one another on what they had read. Synergy was definitely pervasive throughout the battle as students worked together to support, encourage and help each other. There were countless cheers, screams of joy, and high-fives throughout the night of the battle as questions were asked and answers were revealed. It truly was a celebration of reading!

Habit 2, Begin with the End in Mind

Habit 2, Begin With the End in Mind, means planning ahead and setting goals. What do you want to be when you grow up? A great way to incorporate Habit 2 into your life is to create a personal mission statement. Your mission statement is your plan for success because it keeps you focused on who you want to be and what you plan to do. It helps you be the leader of your own life!
 
Use the activity below with members of your family to begin thinking with the end in mind! Please feel free to provide us with feedback on how the leaders in your family are planning ahead, setting goals, and leading their own lives!
 
Begin With the End in Mind Home Activity

Cooper Career Day 2013

On March 1, Cooper hosted its second successful Career Day! The Student Lighthouse Leaders greeted our special guests before escorting them to the library media center where they were treated to a rendition of The Bare Necessities by our amazing vocal students. Students then attended three presentations to learn about different careers.  They enthusiastically listened to our guest speakers share information about their careers and demonstrate how they exemplify leadership in their professions. Our Career Day ended with the presenters having lunch in the library while watching student presentations about the 7 Habits. It was a great experience for all involved!

Student leaders registered our guests.

The Bare Necessities was performed by some of our vocal students.

Students followed the schedule on their cards.

Students selected the careers they were interested in learning about.

Habit 2, Begin With the End in Mind

Habit 2 teaches that Beginning with the End in Mind, having a mental picture of achieving a goal, can lead to a better way of doing it. For example, imagine how difficult it would be to put together a 500 piece puzzle without a finished picture of it, cooking a new dish without a recipe, or driving to a new place without a map. 

Begin With the End in Mind Activity

Be Proactive Activity

To be Proactive means to be the leader of your choices and behaviors. Habit 1, Be Proactive, is the key to all of the other habits; that’s why it comes first.
 
Picture two circles. The inner circle is your Circle of Control. It includes things you are the leader of; your attitude, your choices and your responses. Surrounding the circle of control is the Circle of No Control. It includes things you have no control over; the weather, past mistakes, a comment someone makes.
 
Be Proactive - Parent Activity

Cooper's Second Work-a-thon

Synergyzing was in the air at Cooper on Friday, February 1, 2013, as another large group of students, parents and staff came together to continue the transformation of our school. The focus of this work-a-thon was to paint five student bathrooms and begin work on the cafe'. Thank you to all of the volunteers who helped!

Work begins on painting "chefs" who "serve" up the habits!

The girls chose the color scheme for this chef!

SYNERGIZE!

Brightening up the boys bathroom with a fresh coat of paint!

The cafe was buzzing with ideas and creativity! 

One of the girls bathrooms is now pretty in pink!

The a la carte window gets a facelift!

Thanks to all of our volunteers!

Habit 1, Be Proactive

Habit 1 is the key to all of the other habits; that's why it comes first. Be proactive means to take responsibility for your choices and behaviors.

Are you a Leader?

Our presidential leader was sworn into office on January 21, 2013. Here is a video that represents what a leader means to the students in Mrs. Bubar's class.

 

Martin Luther King, a True Leader

Martin Luther King Day is Monday, January 21. Past or present, Martin Luther King represents freedom, peace, a dream, and love. His big words are alive for us today. As a true leader he embedded the seven habits in his journey through life. Please take some time to enjoy reading Martin's Big Words: the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by Dorreen Rappaport and viewing the video below.

Parent Tip of the Week

To be proactive means to take responsibility for your choices and behaviors.

Habit 1 - Be Proactive

Discuss with your family, a reactive word or phrase that seems to come up frequently in your household. Make a family pledge to ban the reactive word and replace it with a proactive word or phrase. For example, instead of saying "I'll try," say "I'll do it."