May the Force Be With You

Have you seen the new Star Wars movie yet?  AMAZING.  My introduction to Star Wars came pretty early in life and Princess Leia ruled our dollhouse.  I can remember that when I got the chicken pox in 1st grade Episode IV  was on HBO...which means I have seen it hundreds of times.  

Total geek moment for me this weekend in seeing movie...there is something about those blue words, "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away" showing on the screen in blue and then fading into the star field and the yellow scroll.  The icing on the cake:  John William's iconic score...I can't listen to the score with our hearing my former piano teacher Mrs. Anderson hitting the side of the piano saying "Triplet one, two...triplet three, four"as my sister Kristi would play the piece during her lessons.

But that score:  Gets me in the feels EVERY time...

If you have more time (like 9 minutes), this clip is ALL the opening credits, excluding Episode 7:

I also encourage you to type "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away" into Google...

We often feel like Jedi Masters, fighting the Dark Side in our classrooms (especially two days before Christmas break).  We must remember that like Obi-Wan Kenobi...we may be some of these kids' only hope.

Check out the following Star Wars gifs that perfectly describe teaching:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/weareteachers/23-star-wars-gifs-that-perfectly-describe-life-as-h0xt

If by chance you haven't seen Star Wars (WHAT???  Please don't tell me...I don't know if I can handle that...), you have time during break to watch them all.

May the Force be with you.

Being a Teacher in December

Student teaching prepares you for a lot of things.  

You know how to write objectives.  You know how to do lesson plans.  You can determine reading levels.  You know how to modify an assignment for a struggling student.

There is one thing that student teaching may not prepare you for:  teaching during the month of December.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/weareteachers/the-scary-reality-of-teaching-in-december-h0xt

The lights...the tinsel...the trees...the snow...it gets every student, no matter what the age, worked into a tizzy.  Attention spans are shorten, the idea of having to do homework during the month of December seems ridiculous, and the countdown is on until break starts.  Our jobs are a little harder during this time of year (and perhaps that could be due to the fact that we too get a little antsy this time of year!).  We must try our best to keep things normal during a time of year when everyone's senses are overwhelmed with yummy smells, delicious eats, jingling bells, and the sight of magic and joy.

Remember that part about the magic and joy...Christmas is a time of magic and joy.  It is great to see our students get excited and experience the wonder that makes this time of year specials.  While you may feel like these weeks are the longest of the year, take the time to enjoy this time with your students.  Listen to them talk about what they are going to do over break, ask them about what are some of their family's holiday traditions...you can use this as a time to get to know more about your students and their families.

Enjoy these last few days.  Keep going strong and know that you are making a difference in the lives of our students.  Smile and spread some joy!

A Time to Be Thankful

The official kick off to the holiday season is here...Thanksgiving.  It is time to feast, sleep and spend the day with family.  While it sounds relaxing, it can sometimes be stressful....the turkey isn't done...someone didn't show...someone makes a comment about your cousin's new boyfriend.  It can be a recipe for disaster.  Hopefully that stress doesn't cause your feast to end like this:

Do you pause on Thanksgiving (or any day) and REALLY think about all we have to be thankful for?  Kid President has a great list of things he is thankful for.

You may leave the school on more than one occasion this year wondering why you do this...what is the reason you keep coming back to the classroom...what are your thankful for about being in education?  There are days when it feels like a thankless job, but by being a teacher you have much to be thankful for.  Some days you are thankful for that kid who made you smile...other days you are thankful for a great lesson and "They all got it!"...some days you are thankful for just making it through the day!  You are blessed beyond belief by choosing to be a teacher.  Need more proof?  Check out these blogs:

http://www.teachhub.com/12-reasons-be-thankful-you-are-teacher

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/top-teaching/2013/11/top-5-reasons-im-thankful-teacher

Know that I am thankful for each of you and the great job you do here.  You care about kids and making an impact in their lives.  Thank you!

Just Keep Swimming...

So this was released today:

 And I thought...how can I write a blog post and share the awesomeness of this clip?  I mean...we have waited 10 years to get to see Dory again!  This is a BIG deal!

For those of you who have seen "Finding Nemo", you know that Dory has the best mantra..."Just keep swimming...just keep swimming..."

Are there not days when you feel like this is all you are doing...treading water...trying to keep your head above water and NOT fall below the surface?  It doesn't matter if it is your first year or your twenty-sixth year...there are days when you feel like all your energy is consumed in just treading water.

Keep swimming.  You will swim out of it.  You will rise above the water and be stronger for those times.  There are times you will need those words more than others.  If you give up, you have given up on your students and yourself.  Keep swimming.

While this is written for first year teachers, it is applicalbe to any teacher:

http://blog.kipp.org/teamandfamily/first-year-teachers-pause-and-just-keep-swimming/

JUST KEEP SWIMMING!

Back to the Future...

Wednesday was the official "Back to the Future" day.  In 1989, Robert Zemeckis brought Marty McFly and Doc Brown back to the screen.  Marty visits 2015 on Wednesday, October 21st with Doc Brown and unleashes a series of events that causes him to also return to 1955 to prevent changes in 1985.  Make sense? (If you haven't seen the movies...please see me...we need to block out about 8 hours to sit down and watch all three together.)  We got to take a glimpse on what Hollywood writers thought the future would hold:

There were some things the writers got right about 2015 and some things we are still wishing for.  Like flying cars...when will that happen?  

Unfortunately for Mr. Harming, the prediction of the Cubs winning the World Series in 2015 was not fulfilled.

Think about the things that have changed in education from 1985...what have we done to adapt and change to what has come our way.  Remember...we are educating students for jobs that haven't been created yet.  How many kids saw this movie in 1989 and thought, "I want to create a Hover Board!"  What are you doing to help this generation realize dreams like that?  Again...teach for twenty years...don't teach the same year twenty times...

See the blog post below to get you thinking about what have you changed as the world and the kids around you have changed.

http://kylepace.com/

Bonus video #1 :  Super cool video of Michael J. Fox receiving a pair of self lacing Nikes just like in the movie.

Bonus Video #2:  Marty and Doc on Jimmy Kimmel...with a special appearance by Huey Lewis.  

GREAT SCOTT!  You have been entrusted with the job in preparing students for the future.  What are you doing to ensure they will find success?

Kids These Days...

When I was a freshman in high school, we did the musical "Bye Bye Birdie".  It tells the tale of a rock and roll star going off to the army and the small town girl who wins a kiss with him before he ships out.  The 1960s saw parents coming to grips with the changes in music their children were listening to, as well as vernacular (What a gas!) and clothing.  Here is Paul Lynde singing a sample of the song, "Kids These Days" at the Tonys.  (You can also check out him singing it with Dick Van Dyke in the movie version)

Each generation has a defining moment and defining name:  the Greatest Generation, the Baby Boomers, the Gen Xers, and now the Millennials.  With each generation has come a different outlook on situations, a different style of clothes, a different taste in music, and a different way they learn best.  You hear often of how one generation can't seen to work alongside or under the generation that follows them.  But we can learn so much from each other.  A new movie, "The Intern" pairs Baby Boomer Robert DeNiro with Millennial Anne Hathaway.  It appears what they learn from each other is valuable (and magical).

"CBS Sunday Morning" did a piece last week about how work places are dealing with the latest generation, the Millennials.  We are educating Millennials and even some Millennials' children.  Are we trying to reach them the same way we have reached other generations?  It goes back to that great quote:  "You can teach for 20 years.  Just don't teach the same year 20 times."  You have to adapt and change to meet the needs of the kiddos in your seats.

Here is the link to the story:

Here is the link to the workplace video describe in the piece:

What are you doing to reach the next generation?

Just Dance...Again

I need a pick me up...we have had a sick kiddo at our house for five days and I am exhausted.  I think that have affected my attitude a little bit today.

Remember when Kid President said to dance (and this is the THIRD time I have posted this):

Dance...out loud...it will help...

And if that doesn't work, maybe this will...

Fellow Muggle Teachers

Harry Potter became a cultural phenomenon once the first book was published in 1997.  The movies add to the craze and when the last book was released in 2007, I was one of those people who stood in line...at midnight...FOR A BOOK.  I have been to the theme park and I also stood in line at midnight, 6 months pregnant to see the final movie.  You might say that I feel for it all...hook, line and sinker...

For those of you who just know Harry by name only and you base your knowledge of Harry Potter on what you have seen on TV or heard students talking about, your information about the series may be a little like this:

I think it is my duty to help enlighten those non-fans to one of the great characters of the series:  Albus Brian Wulfric Percival Dumbledore.  Professor Dumbledore is the Headmaster of Hogwarts (a school for wizards) and is noted as one of the greatest wizards of his time.  As you watch the series or read the books, you see a man who is a great teacher and leader.  While there are times that he does some crazy things( like putting a three headed dog in a school full of children), it is apparent he has a big heart and an understanding that his job is to guide and help in the formation of not only great wizards, but great people.

How can you be more like Dumbledore?   Check out this blog, written by a teacher, on the seven lesson you can learn from Albus Dumbledore:

http://www.edutopia.org/discussion/7-lessons-teachers-dumbledore

Here a little bonus for you:  a link to some the best Dumbledore quotes:

http://www.popsugar.com/smart-living/Best-Dumbledore-Quotes-36242499#photo-36242499

**Mischief Managed**

What Will You Uncover?

One of the great, yet scary, things about a new school year is the unknown.  What will my students learn?  How will they grow?  What challenges will I face this year?  What will I do to further develop as an educator?

We can always see a tip of what future may hold.  There is that look of what "can be".  Think of an iceberg...

What you can see on the surface may be only a fraction of what lies beneath.  We see that with students...new curriculum...new standards.  There is that piece showing us what can be.  How hard we work, and often times how deep we dig, can show us a whole future.  As educators, it is our job to dig and expose what lies beneath.  What we uncover, often can surprise us.  But what a amazing feeling to know that what looked like just a "tip" of something turned out to be so much more.

Steve Hartman...he finds the best stories.  This one is about the tenacity of three young kids...they didn't just look at the "tip" and leave it.  They kept digging...and digging...and digging and uncovered something amazing.  Do the same with yourself and your students.  Keep digging!

Hope these first days have been great for you!

New Year...New Opportunities

Call me crazy...but there is something about the beginning of the school year that makes me a little giddy.  Seeing boxes of new supplies coming in, teachers pulling their rooms together, and seeing my reflection in the hallway floors make me excited about the possibilities the new year holds.  There is so much potential for great things!

Like everything in life, the newness of the school year fades fast.  The halls become scuffed, pages are torn out of notebooks, and our classrooms begin to be "lived in".  It is often hard to find the motivation to keep that "high" you had before the year started.  Guess what?  If you loose that "high" after the first months, your students do too.  I try to provide you motivational pieces here weekly (sometimes every other week), but to get students motivated within your room...that is on you.  How will you do it?  How will you encourage them to have that zest all year long?  Let me tell you this...when they are enthused for learning, it makes your job exciting.

Take a look at this blog post...it is written by a teacher.  He has really fabulous insight on what causes students to lose that enthusiasm...he actually talked to them to find out.  Take a good look at what they said and what you as a teacher can do to  help keep that level of excitement all year long.

https://affectiveliving.wordpress.com/2015/07/10/what-kills-student-motivation-we-asked-them/

Last year was last year.  It is done.  But there is a new year ahead and the outcomes for the year are endless.  What will you do to ensure success?

Your Mom Made You a Better Teacher

It is Mother's Day this weekend.  It is time to honor the woman with was your first and loudest cheerleader.  There is so much we can learn about being a teacher from our mothers.  They never give up...they keep pushing...they care for you...they believe in you...what if we all did those exact same things for our students?

 Since I am tears, I better include one of my favorite Mom videos...

Now...go call your Mom and tell her thank you...and that you love her.  If your Mom is your angel...do the same thing...tell her thank you and that you love her...

Top of Your Game

Let's hear from the best about what it takes to be the best:

http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/shanna-peeples-honored-as-2015-national-teacher-of-the-year/

You have to go the extra mile in order to get many of our students to go even a few feet.  Are you going the extra mile?

Remember what we talked about at the beginning of the year?  What would you like your four words to describe your year?  What are doing to make those four words positive?

The Moral Bucket List

Do you have a bucket list?  Have you crossed things off of that bucket list?  The items on our list are often big things:  to see the Eiffel Tower...to skydive...to run a marathon.  They are things that YOU will remember, but are those the only things you want others to remember about you?

Davis Brooks poses the idea of a much more important bucket list...a moral bucket list.  These are the virtues and character traits that people remember about you.  What does it take to build character?  What are we doing in schools to not only make students career and college ready, but also character ready?

Check out his essay here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/12/opinion/sunday/david-brooks-the-moral-bucket-list.html

The following is a video of Brook's interview with CBS This Morning on Monday.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-york-times-op-ed-columnist-david-brooks-the-road-to-character/

Good stuff...

Remember what Kid President said?

Do you remember what Kid President said?  

Take the advice...

PS-Bonus points to the person who can name the most movies in that video! :)

This kid sure did...
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/the-filter/virals/11498662/This-young-dancing-boy-has-better-moves-than-youll-ever-have.html

Have a super week and a great Easter Break!

How are you making a difference?

Sometimes we leave our rooms and wonder, "Did I make a difference today?"  My answer, no matter how tough the day, is always, "YES".  While a parent and I may not have seen eye to eye or a student was upset about a discipline that was handed down, I made a difference.  It may not show today or even tomorrow, but down the road it will.  

You may be the one person who smiled at a student today.  Or perhaps you are the one adult who took the time to ask a student about their weekend.  Maybe it is a simple hello.  All seem so little...but all make a difference.

Are we teaching our students about making a difference?  Do they understand the importance they are going to play in the lives of others?  Do they understand about giving...and sometimes giving more than you get?  Do they see us being gracious?  Do they see us stretching ourselves to help them find success?  What are we doing to ensure our students know they make a difference and there is an important spot for them in the world?

Check out the link below about a student who is making a difference...his parents taught him about using his gifts to help others...and he definitely has.  It is that simple:  using your gifts to help make someone's day better.

http://blogs.microsoft.com/firehose/2015/02/18/the-collective-project-changing-the-world-with-bionic-arms-for-kids/

(Overall...there are some really cool stories of making a difference on The Collective Project's webpage.)

And to add to that...how cool is it when someone who has way more name recognition and way more money than us, does something that makes a difference?

https://youtu.be/oEx5lmbCKtY

Happy Valentine's Day!

As a primary teacher, today is a day that would bring pure exhaustion...a party day.  The hype begins about four days before and is in full effect the morning of the party.  (I invite anyone who hasn't experienced an elementary party day to visit the lunchroom today.)  Party days are crazy...they are wild...they are fun.  Students are ready to show off a box that has been glued, glittered and ready to hold candy hearts and cards.  With Pinterest, the art of Valentine box making has gone to a whole new level.  It appears that Mom helped A LOT with these:

        

There is something about watching holidays through the eyes of a child...no matter how small the child or the holiday.  It is fun to see our students excited about the cards they picked out (and making sure that they didn't give the member of the opposite sex a card that would make them think that they MAYBE like them) and the treats they have brought.  It is important to remember that for some of our students, today is a big day.  Valentine's Day may not even be a blip on their radar at home...so all the goodies and cards they receive today mean the world to them.

So while you may be thinking that all you would like is to avoid the party...remember that for some of our students, that little bit of love we show today is more than a "little bit" in their world.

Kid President

Two years after the release of his famous pep talk video, Kid President released a new video today.

Check it out!

Be bold.
Be kind.
Be awesome.

My insight comes from experience...but more so from the Internet...

I wish I could say all the thoughts I place on this blog came to me in some glorious fashion (or even that I thought of it myself).  You know...the lights dim and then this big, bright light bulb appears above my head, while a look of clarity and peacefulness comes over my face.  Truth is it NEVER happens that way.  Here is what really happens:

Someone or something has cause me to doubt/fear/question/disbelieve/mistrust myself.  There is no bright bulb above my head, but rather a dark, ominous cloud...and maybe a few lightning bolts.  There is no look of peace and clarity on my face.  In fact, that valley that lies between my eyebrows becomes so deep that no amount of Botox will straighten it.   So  I begin to look to the areas I can find comfort:  my giggling three year old (who's biggest problem right now is what dress should Belle be in...the blue every day dress or the gold dancing dress.  I vote for the gold dress...it is the easiest to get on!).   My faith...which often allows me to jump over these problems and continue forward.  My Twitter feed...which is dotted with inspirational and motivational quotes, etc. that I follow. And the Internet...because a good video of a  little kid telling his sister she should of had a nap will make anyone smile.

Many times the Internet leads me past videos like this and to great sites that turn me around and make me think.  They are based on the brilliant ideas and thoughts of someone else and are calling out to me.  I think that sometimes, they are calling out to you too...and it is part of my job to try to place them into your hands for you to use when you are feeling less than positive.  And then you can share it with someone else...and they share it...LIGHT BULB!  What a great way to spread happiness and love across our profession!

Today my turn around was found in the following blog.  Enjoy...and answer the questions at the end...it helps...

https://affectiveliving.wordpress.com/2014/11/18/three-questions-worth-asking/