Sitting on my couch catching up on some unread emails, I came across one from my principal: leadership opportunities. Now generally, this email is my jam. I LOVE opportunities to spread my wings, and maybe to beef up my resume.
However, this year? A whole new ball game. I was 8 month pregnant and exhausted. So, I scroll past. I don’t even open it up. Now, for a “YES man” like me, this was tough. But time with my baby this upcoming school year was going to be priceless and I refused to give it up for something I was just as passionate about. Then, a month later, the email comes again. Something along the lines of “Hey Staff, I think this may have gotten lost in the shuffle, we still need ... etc.” Mind you, this email came with ZERO expectation, ZERO pressure, and was simply intended as a friendly reminder. So not only did I have to scroll by once, but I had to scroll by again. This time, I even opened it. But I read through, X'ed out, and continued scrolling. For me? A huge victory. Because yes, I could coach the cheerleading team. I could find room for another committee. I could, I could, I could... But at some point, you need to stop spreading yourself so thin that you become resentful. Decide what you are truly passionate about, and follow through. So if for this year I am only truly passionate about my baby? Then so be it. Sometimes there is a refreshing power in picking your passions, and then just saying no.
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I consider myself a fairly strong teacher. I know my strengths, and I definitely know my weaknesses. Regardless, I think teaching is the best thing I am able to do. So I try hard not to look dumb when talking about teaching.
Well, I recently found myself at a dinner where every person at the table was more knowledgeable, more educated, and had WAY more experience than I did. I work hard at not being self conscious when surrounded by smart people, but what do you do when the people around you are significantly better at the ONE thing you are good at? I hear a lot of bad talk about millennials. We are entitled. We are rude. We don’t know how to socialize because we are always on our phones. The list could go on. (All of which I disagree with but thats a post for another day). However, the one thing I think our generation actually struggles with is trying to own the conversation in order to prove themselves. So I try hard to NOT be that millennial. I know I was sitting at this table because I earned my seat, but that doesn’t mean the other educators around me weren’t significantly better than I was. So what did I do? I stopped talking, listened, and asked questions. Perry Holley would call this “Dare to be Dumb”. (Read more here.) It is in listening that we learn, not talking. I had places where I could give honest feelings and real ideas to add to the conversation, but the rest of the time? I sat there and listened in an effort to absorb as much of them as I could. I asked questions when I wanted more. And what never happened? No one thought I was dumb. No one questioned if I should be sitting at the table. So the next time you find yourself surrounded by people that seem better than you are? Let them be better. Let them push YOU to be better. Only when we are surrounded by people that push you, will you grow. The next time you find yourself surrounded by people that seem better than you are? Dare to be dumb. Interested in Influencing through Effective Communication? Peter Ford (also smarter than I am) shared an article on twitter that might interest you; find it here. National Day on Writing. 2017Why do I write? Good question. It definitely isn’t because I am a strong writer, because I am not. It also isn’t necessarily because I enjoy it, because again, I do not. I do it because everyday I teach my students that their words and ideas have power, and they should use them with a good purpose.
Who am I if I am not leading by example? Who am I if I am not using my words and ideas for a good purpose? If we are always telling our students one thing, and doing another, how are we showing integrity? So we write. We write for those that cannot. We write to share our thoughts with the world. And we write because our words and ideas have power, and they deserve to be shared. This post has been sitting in my drafts, unfinished, for way too long. So I think it is time. Below you will find a collection of links. Links that have been shared to me by my boss (@hainesjamie), and all sent at the exact moment I needed them. When your principal knows you well enough, to find the article that explains your existence as a teacher better than you can: 4 Classroom Rules I Always Forget to Enforce Maybe a better teacher would enforce all these rules…but I just can’t. When your principal shares the right article that speaks to your heart, despite what we learn in teacher training. Relationships Over Rules: Separating Fact from Fiction "We simply believe wholeheartedly that the relational piece has to play a major role in the disciplinary process. If it doesn't, you’ll never reach the heart of any kid and the result is merely temporary behavior modification. We can do better." When your principal shares an article that isn't easy to always follow, especially when we're having one of "those" days. Should teachers use collective punishment? "Alright, that’s it. You guys can’t handle this activity, we’re shutting it down right now. Everybody, clean up. It’s over.” When your principal believes in the power of student centered learning and actively searches out for help. #CLStech17 Student Centered Tips and Questions Tips and Questions on Student Centered Classrooms When your principal hasn't forgotten how difficult it can be to reach combative parents. Uh oh! How do you work with a combative parent? #askanadmin "We’ve all got parents who are passionate for their students, who want to make sure that they are doing all that they can to ensure their students success. What happens when that passion comes across as combative? " When your principal sends you articles because she knows you as a person, and knows what you need to hear. The Danger of a Dominant Identity "But there has to be a rejection of single-identity thinking and a continual embrace of the reality that each of us is a mansion with many rooms." From a classroom teacher to all those admin who "get it". Thank you for sharing your beliefs link-by-link and tweet-by-tweet, we appreciate you! Sitting at my desk after school, I think back on the speed bumps in our day.
The child that talks off task. For one, Jenny needs to stop talking off task. Do I email mom and let her know? Absolutely not. We all know teachers don't have time or energy to email parents every time a student like Jenny talks off task. Do I take away her ability to talk with her classmates? Of course not. That is part of the assignment. So what do I do? I walk over to her and remind her that her conversation needs to be focused on writing a narrative lead, and not on her soccer game tonight. We talk about expectations and rules, and why we have them. The kid who wont study in math. Next kid up, Johnnie. Johnnie is a sweet boy, but cannot figure out his math times tables regardless of how many times I ask him to study. Basically, career ending for a 5th grader. Do I email mom and let her know? No. Telling mom to make him memorize math isn't going to make him work any faster. Do I take away his math practice work because he refuses to study? Of course not. How will he learn math if he doesn't practice? So what do I do? I set up a plan for Johnnie to learn his multiplication facts on a weekly basis, something manageable for a 5th grade kid. We talk about expectations and rules, and why we have them. The constant note passer. Dear sweet Johanna. Jenna passes notes. Everyday. And I catch her. Everyday. Do I call mom? No. It won't make her appreciate learning any more. Do I take away her pencil? Heavens no. And why not? Because how is she supposed to get her work done without it? We spend time talking about our goals for the class period; we discuss the purpose of learning. We talk about expectations and rules, and why we have them. The inappropriate google searcher, meme creator, airdrop note passer And my last kid. Jeremiah. Mistake after mistake on his iPad. Google searching Selena Gomez, creating his own meme with me, his lovely teacher, as his muse, and airdropping notes to his buddies in the classroom next door, only to have it airplay on the students iPad on the front screen. Do I call him mom? No. Do I take away his iPad? NO. Why, in the name of all things good and holy, do we take away a child's device the second they are not showing good digital citizenship? Where is their opportunity to learn how to handle their mistakes? Where is their instant opportunity to make better choices? Why would I take away a device? That's where the learning happens. We teach students that mistakes are the pathway to learning. That you can't succeed if you don't fail. Every year, we show the video about famous failures and the new TED talk about grit. Then, when students need opportunities to learn from their mistakes on technology the most, we take away their opportunity to make good choices, to learn from their mistakes. If student's cant learn digital citizenship from YOU with understanding and grace, then who CAN they learn it from? The backstory on my Twitter history:
I remember coming into Crane three years ago, as a first-year teacher, energized. I was ready to bring my new ideas here and change the teaching world, one transformative lesson at a time. Then the real world hit, and I realized, I had maybe 2 good, unique ideas. And the rest? Everyone else was already doing that. Not that it necessarily means those ideas that everyone else was doing were bad. But I had first-year teacher syndrome, and I wanted to be different. So I was always eager to attend district PD with the dreams of learning something new and walking away with some life-changing ideas that I could transform into life changing lessons. Then, the real world hit again. And come to find out, Fred Jones Training and Mastery Teaching, while beneficial, didn’t quite offer me what I was looking for. So off I went to the most trusted place I knew of at the time, google search, and I hunted down conference after conference. I was getting tired but still energized for new ideas. So I traveled to different places, learned from new people, and I still felt like I was grasping at straws. I could never find that one thing that I was looking for. It had to be out there somewhere, and I wasn’t going to fund teachers pay teachers for it either. I believe that ideas should be shared and not sold. So in comes the second year of teaching and My principal, Jamie, asks me a question that I could never repay her for: “Holly, are you on twitter?” So I, of course, laughed. Because what could twitter possibly teach me about education? Well, it turns out, that some of the brightest minds in education love twitter, use twitter, and share on twitter. Teachers use twitter to share, collaborate, and inspire others and it was EXACTLY what I was looking for. Since joining Twitter, I've become an educator that I never imagined I could be and it isn’t because I’ve come up with brilliant ideas. It is because I have a network of educators in my corner, every step of the way. When I have a crazy idea (and I do have crazy ideas), my PLN is there to help justify my fears, push my ideas to better places, and validate my efforts and failures. I’ve met some of the most amazing educators, people, and friends through twitter. They are my educational advisors, and I wouldn’t be the educator I am today without them. So why aren’t we all doing the same? Personalized PD is there for teachers every day, every hour, and every minute. Why waste more time? 2017 Crane PD Each year I am a bit hesitant to provide PD for my district. I am a young teacher, and I feel that young teachers have to earn their place at the table. But with the constant mental reminder that "Yes, I do belong here", I continue to push for my district to be more connected with the world outside of Yuma, AZ. See my resources below. Feel free to use, modify, share. After all, #teachershelpteachers. Resources Twitter Away Keynote Twitter Resources Staff Twitter Bingo A few days back I began my preliminary research on my summer PD that I will be presenting. Now, everyone who has planned and taught their own PD knows it can take a lot longer to plan than the originally thought. (Not that I am the PD master; last summer I presented my first PD, to a group of 10 teachers. Max.) However, it does take significant work to prepare for these things.
Last summer, my focus was on Coding in the Classroom. However, this summer, the focus is on Twitter as personalized PD: "Twitter Away!" Now, don't get me wrong, I think twitter is the single best resource out there for teachers. But to fill 2 hours with information trying to convince (please read as: beg, plead, urge, implore) people to use twitter on a weekly (if not daily) basis to grow their PLC and learn more about education and best practice, isn't an easy task. I'm trying to be prepared for the pushback: I've heard about twitter on CNN from the President. It just isn't going to work for me. I can only write 140 characters? I can't. Do I have to share everything I had for dinner? That's what twitter is for. But I'm prepared (well, more like hopefully, by July 24th, I will be prepared) to rebuttal concerns with full force enthusiasm. Do you have anything that you think I should share that is crucial?! Please share with me as I prepare. :) I appreciate you! Holly When you spend your days encouraging (please read as: pleading and begging) students to share their knowledge with the world, you begin to wonder when you will simply take your own advice. So it's time. Time to share my fears and ideas, struggles and failures, triumphs and hopefully a bit of success with the world.
I hope you can enjoy laughing and learning with me on this journey. Until then, check out some of my work. Holly |
AuthorHolly Mecher. ADE. Runner. Life-long lover of books. Google Certified Educator. Archives
February 2019
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