Hello, LYS Nation.  This is the 1,500th post to the column, so as has become a tradition, we will review our progress. 

First, the review

The 1st post was on Monday, February 16, 2009.

The 100th post was on April 14, 2009.

The 200th post was on June 10, 2009

The 300th post was on September 2, 2009

The 400th post was on December 16, 2009

The 500th post was on April 7, 2010

The 600th post was on August 2, 2010

The 700th post was on December 17, 2010

The 800th post was on May 17, 2011

The 900th post was on October 5, 2011

The 1,000th post was on March 7, 2012

The 1,100th post was on August 24, 2012

The 1,200th post was on February 1, 2013

The 1,300th  post was on June 5, 2013

The 1,400th post is today, October 30, 2013

The 1,500th post is today, April 7, 2014

The top 15 posts, in terms of distribution, have been:

1. Your Best STAAR Preparation Plan – Section 2 (3/6/2014) 2. Your Best STAAR Preparation Plan – Section 1 (3/5/2014) 3. Campus Security Checklist (12/18/2012) 4. Student Test Taking Anxiety is 99% on Us (3/12/2014) 5. A Reader Writes… Lesson Framing – Part 1 (10/11/2013) 6. A Reader Asks… HS Math Lesson Frames (2/19/2014) 7. Your 6-step STAAR Preparation Strategy (12/14/2012) 8. A Principal Asks… Should We Frame a Test (11/6/2013) 9. A Reader Asks… Lesson Framing (3/18/2014) 10. Sometimes It Pays to Play the Game (6/26/2013) 11. A Superintendent Writes… A Drop In Scores (7/17/2013) 12. A Reader Asks… We Need a POWER ZONE Explanation (10/29/2013) 13. Make the Last Month Count (5/9/2013) 14. A Reader Requests… The Fundamental 5 / PDAS Alignment (8/20/2013) 15. A Reader Responds… Transforming Schools – Part 1 (2/20/2014)

There are 1,747 e-mail subscribers. Thank you!

There are now international readers and e-mail subscribers, with the following 38 countries represented: Australia, Bangladesh, Belarus, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Cayman Islands, Chile, China, Egypt, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Japan, Macedonia, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Romania, Russian Federation, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Venezuela

All of this is incredibly exciting; especially when you consider that not too long ago, every number was 0.

A Little Blatant Self Promotion

First, if you like the blog and you haven’t signed up for the e-mail subscription, please do so.  I find that it’s easier to write to people than it is to write to web hits.

Second, if you like the blog and find it useful, tell three other people.  This blog is a much more powerful resource for school improvement when it is a dialogue.

Third, if you have not sent in a comment yet, please do so.  Education research points out that the act of critical writing actually makes the learner smarter.  Let the blog assist you in sharpening your saw.

Finally

Thank you so much for reading and responding.  This network, which started out as a way for just a handful of principals to stay connected has turned into a small nation of board members, central office administrators, campus leaders, and teachers who are focused on redefining what students are capable of.  Who knows what we will discuss in the next 100 posts.

Think. Work. Achieve. Your turn…

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: TASSP Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas ASCD Summer Conference; ESC 14 Sumer Conference (Keynote Presentation); ESC 11 Summer Conference (Keynote Presentation); NEASP National Conference; The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook