Conference Time

OK, so I just got back from a conference last week, and I feel SO lucky the district sent me.  Have you ever gone to a learning environment like that, either spiritual, educational, or whatever, and have come away knowing you've just listened to some real leaders and innovative thinkers?  THAT's what this conference was like.  My head is still swimming.  The first day I spent with the keynote speaker, Dr. Robyn Jackson.  At the end, I remember thinking, "OK, I should probably just go home now, because I'm not going to hear anything better than that." 

I was wrong.

The next day we heard the keynote address, which was totally inspiring, and then visited workshops from everyday teachers all over the state, all doing extraordinary things.  If that doesn't inspire the educator within, nothing will.  Again, that day was better than the day before.

The last day, my colleagues and I were fried.  Our brains were on maximum overload.  But no.  We thought we'd attend one last workshop before going home.  Again....there it was.  We were nodding our heads, taking copious amounts of notes.  And we ended on a high note.  Which was good.

Because now we need to come back and teach it to teachers.  It's a little nerve wrecking, but in the end, the topics were so good and so exciting, I do believe they will teach themselves, and educators will be doing the same things we did:  nodding.....yeah.  You know. :)

Gotta go.  Gotta wrap my head around some more stuff.

Did I Mention My Amazing Colleagues?

There are times, at least once a week lately, that I have to stay late at school.  Tonight I got out at 6 pm.  But I would stay that late as many times as necessary if it meant doing what we did today.  Our venture today was the Intervention Leadership Team, which works to find ways to help struggling students.  The thing I love about being on this team is the problem solving part of it.  It's a no holds barred, get your hands dirty problem solving team that works to make kids successful, even if it means personal sacrifice.  I love that.  I love how each and every person on the team is willing to do whatever it takes to help children, no matter what their issue is.

We also get to see classroom teachers at their best.  The things they do to help children is nothing short of miraculous.  I know there's a backlash against public education right now, and against bad teachers.  But those in doubt just need to come visit my school.  I wish what they do could be shown on tv.  It would be a much different conversation about teachers.  Sometimes you just have to give credit where credit is due.

Girlfriends

I cannot tell you how literally starved I've been for good friends.  I didn't realize how much, though, until I've once again developed a good, strong circle of girlfriends.  I had some friends like that in Taiwan, and I miss those friends terribly, but since coming back to the States, I've been so busy that it's been hard to really develop friendships beyond working relationships.  Stacy was the first friend, and we have so much in common it's actually scary.  She's an uplifter and such a good and kind person.  I love her dearly. 

There's something about being around strong, intelligent and passionate women that makes you just want to be and do better.  My colleagues are like that.  They all love what they do, they share their passion with others and make it a joy to work with them.  And there's competition, but it's a healthy competition.  The kind that keeps us improving.  We're truly happy, however, when the other is successful.  We've developed a strong circle, this group.  We challenge each other, we laugh, we're accepting, and we instinctively know when each other needs prayer, support or encouragement.  I am truly blessed to work with such a wonderfully caring group of women. 

Janene, I'm so proud!  You truly killed it today!

The Curse of Knowledge

The curse of knowledge is not remembering what things were like before we learned.

Just a little tidbit I heard today.  Still thinking it through.

The Peach

I was just talking to another teacher of gifted and talented (GT) last week about how important it is for us, as teachers, to have a good relationship with our students.  The GT teacher/student relationship is a bit different than that of the average student because of the nature of the GT kid.  While they have close to an adult intellect, they are still kids with kid feelings and vulnerabilities, and they need someone who can reach both of those levels within the classroom.  They need the challenging subject matter, they need to have fun, and they also need to be able to act their age.

Then today, I get an email from a former student who is now an adult, working in the field of sports medicine.  Seems she was going through her mom's garage, cleaning out her things, and found a box of assignments from our class.   What I hear consistently from those kids from that class is how fun our Greek unit was.  They learned so much about Greek city-states, the Peloponnesian war, mythology, etc.  But they had fun doing it. More than a few told me their World History courses in college were a breeze because of that class. But I can't take credit.  I just presented the material.  It was them and what they did with the material that made the difference.  However, I will take credit for allowing them to be smart, but be 7th graders.  It's what mattered more.

See, there was more to that class than just that Greek unit.  We built a safe environment in that class, one that allowed them to be who they were.  I'll give an example:  let's call it the "Peach."  We were doing a study of poetry, and one of my students hated the subject.  After much prodding, and showing her how simple poetry was by reading Carl Sanburg's "the Fog", this reluctant poet got up in front of the class and quoted her own poem, "The Peach."  I don't remember the poem really, but I do remember it was a major catchphrase in our class from that point forward.  She reminded me today that I wrote on her report card that she was "a peach" in class.

That's the stuff they remember, and that's the stuff that helps them remember what they learned.  It's also the stuff that keeps me going back, year after year.  These are people in whom we're investing, with dreams and hopes, with fears and anxieties, and sometimes problems we'll never know.  But for those moments in our class, they are with someone who cares about them and accepts them for who they are and where they are at the moment, and that makes a difference.

All of this from a report card "peach" comment.  It's that simple.  I think I'm going to buy a poster of a peach and keep it in my class.  Just to remind me to keep it challenging.  And fun.

It's a Perfectly Imperfect Day

Took some time to breathe today.  Planted some flowers, enjoyed the absolutely perfect weather, and listened.  Sometimes we just need to be still, breathe, and listen. And I did. 

Drudgery

5 am.  Did you know that the stars are really bright at 5 am?  I do.   I know this because that's what time I get up to take Christopher to swim practice.  Every morning.  Ev-er-y morn-ing.

He's great about it.  He comes in and wakes me up and says, "Mom, it's time to go."  I drag myself out of bed, walk downstairs, look for keys, glasses, purse, shoes, jacket.  Oh, and I mumble something about "Do you have everything you need?"  At least I think that's what I say.  I think it. 

I walk outside, and I'm hit with the silence.  It's kind of nice though.  And then, inevitably, my eyes are drawn upward because the stars are that bright.  I never realized how much I missed that until I came back to the states and walked outside.  Taiwan had a lot of light polution, and you couldn't see much.  But there aren't a lot of street lights here.  I really like that.

Yesterday morning the Milky Way stood out quite a bit.  It looked like a misty band of stars draped across the sky.  Christopher and I just stopped and took it all in.  We do that every morning.  We both like looking at the night sky. Or morning sky, depending on  which side of midnight we're on.

We don't say much on the way to swim practice.  But I get to just be with my third born, and that's nice.  I drop him off, and he says "I love you mom."  Every time.  And then he flashes the I love you sign.

Getting up that early is drudgery, but drudgery isn't all that bad.  It's actually kind of nice.