Meditation, Formative Assessment and Balance...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

    I know this might sound "zen" like but here goes.  I got an app from my daughter on meditation. I like it because the guy explains what your brain is doing and what you are thinking during the process.  At one point he says to pretend in your mind you are sitting on a curb just watching your thoughts go by...and then it came to me.

     No matter what I do or plan in the classroom, I have to have some idea of where the kids are at.  This is the key to formative assessment.  The problem is that as a teacher I almost have to reinvent the wheel each year.  I once said I would rather teach 35 years once instead of one year 35 times.  But when I have to do it...it is hard.

     The meditation exercise talks about sitting back and just watching and accepting what is going on in your brain.  I guess I have to watch and accept reinventing the wheel until I retire.  It is O.K. if it is controlled chaos.  My life goal is to maintain a balance between work, family, God and my mental health.

     So here is the "chaos" this week.  Academic is doing electron configurations.  I found some work that is far more than what we will get done.  It will allow me to pick and chose questions based on the level of the class at the time.  Accelerated is doing radiation problems.  I already know that I am going to have some questions about the homework.  I plan on having an "exit" ticket that allows students to either ask a question or provide evidence of something they are clear about.  Hopefully I will be able to get a formative snapshot of where the kids are at and respond appropriately.

Staying positive and coming up with a plan in the midst of chaos...

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

     Sometimes chaos is nobodies fault.  Even if it is someone's fault, dwelling on that (or secretly wishing they fall down a flight of stairs) is completely pointless.  Kids are coming in every day.  I think deep down inside, they want to be engaged, challenged and to have fun.  I would like to think the best of them.  They hope that this place called school takes them to a better place.

     I hope that also.  It is hard when the anxiety monsters in my closet show their ugly face...map testing, snow day interruptions, sick kids, OGT, early release days, unexpected interruptions...etc.  However....I still have free will.  I can still make choices every day.  If I can make choices, I am going to try to make choices that most likely, statistics say, will have a positive impact on kids.  So, I still go back to Bob Marzano.  What are statistically the top 10 strategies that teachers can do when they walk in a room to help kids learn?  Here it is...(Link).

1. Vocabulary

2. Compare, contrast, classify, analogies, and metaphors:

3. Summarize and note taking

4. Reinforce effort and give praise

5. Homework and practice

6. Nonlinguistic representations

7. Cooperative learning

8. Setting objectives and providing feedback

9. Generating and testing a hypothesis

10. Cues, questions and advanced organizers.

So this is the goal each week from now until June, despite the craziness of the schedule.

     I cannot hit all of these all the time.  But I can hit some of them some of the time.  This week in Accelerated I put together a vocabulary list.  They should be able to easily look up the words but I have told them they must draw a picture for each word as well (#6).  In Academic we are getting into orbital and electron notation.  I am going to explicitly show some examples of orbital notation as goal setting (#8).  The POGIL activity will allow me to go around and check and provide feedback.

     It is kind of like throwing spaghetti on the wall.  I am hoping these strategies give me the highest probability that it will stick.

What do you do when a friend dies....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

    
     I know that it is all about the kids...but what happens when life intervenes in a way that is hard to imagine?

     A friend and teaching colleague, Mike Romer, lost his battle with cancer this week.  About 10 years ago doctors successfully removed a brain tumor.  Last year it came back.  At the end of May he started chemo and lost his battle with cancer.  He is survived by his beautiful wife, Mary, and their lovely daughter.  I was incredibly blessed and fortunate to know and work with Mike.
     I know people die.  I have had to deal with questions of life and death before.  Having a friend pass so close in age really hits you in the gut.  It makes me ask the big question....am I really living my life the way I should?  I have to admit, I did not have the best week.  It was one of those weeks where I wondered if I am being effective as a teacher.
     Somehow, through it all, I felt that maybe in my uncertainty, a small prayer was answered.  Every day as a teacher, I am blessed with a second chance.  If I make a mistake the day before, I can try to get better the next day.  Unless it is June, the kids always come back the next day.   I think the key for me is to view my work as a type of prayer and in the middle of "planning" to somehow do something everyday to put the kids first.  That should be obvious but unfortunately it can get lost in the details.  In some way, the beauty of Mike's life is trying to tell me to keep going...in every way imaginable...to persevere...to teach as if my hair is on fire.  I am not very good at trying to put into words something that is hard to describe.  I think if Mike were here, he would get it.

A sense of humor, resolutions and the power of "now".....

WHAT AM I DOING TO HELP KIDS ACHIEVE?

HOW DO I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE THERE?

WHAT IS THE EVIDENCE?

           My wife is an early childhood special ed preschool teacher.  She came home from work on her last day with kids.  She asked me if I could help her get a "few" things from the car.  I needed a forklift to get all the gifts she received.  I do not know where to start...ornaments, candy, gift cards, body lotion, food, more candy..it was a Christmas before Christmas.  I think she even got gifts from some of her students who are muslim, hindu and agnostic.  Why do I mention this?  Below is the one gift I got (not even from a student).  

   In this business, you have to keep a sense of humor.  Always look on the bright side...I know that absolutely NO ONE is going to steal my coffee mug.  I suppose if I take myself too seriously I could get upset.  I did however receive a couple of other gifts.  I was able to talk to a few former students who have come back from college.  We actually had a nice conversation....one sought me out and one I saw at a coffee shop ( he did not run the other way when I saw him).  In both cases, the students were both working on a major in a chemistry related field and are optimistic about their future.  There is a miniscule part of me that thinks from our conversation that maybe I had a really small part in their decisions.  I would like to think that maybe I had a positive influence in their lives....and for a teacher, this is one of the best gifts we can receive.

     Which brings me to my resolution for the school year.  My hope is to live more in the moment.  I am not going to "blow" off lesson plans or refuse to reflect back.  I am not going to get pessimistic about the current state of affairs in education.  I am going to try to sometimes set aside the "list" of stuff that needs to get done and just listen and try to be present to whoever is there.  By "present" I mean not wishing I was somewhere else or worrying about all of the stuff I have to do.  I really think this is the basis for any kind of healthy  relationship in which I hope to have a positive influence on a person.  So my resolution is to be present in the here and now ....and maybe cut back on my coffee consumption...