Challenges in the Classroom

It's Thursday night - and, admittedly, this is both easy and difficult to realize at the same time. Each day has seemed to drag on (as I had curriculum Wednesday night and aftercare tonight at school), but, taken as a whole, the week has almost flown by.

In respect to school, the classroom has been presenting quite a range of challenges and rewards. At times, it is hard to believe that we're dealing with the same group of students. They can be so focused and on task at one moment but then completely chatty and off-task the next, especially during work that is supposed to be independent. And, I hate to say it, but I've been at a loss of how to deal with it.

I have been pointed in the direction of "Whole Brain Teaching" by a friend and fellow teacher, but I haven't tried the techniques yet - waiting for my co-teacher to watch the videos so we're on the same page. I think we definitely need more high energy activities that make the students think so they don't have time to think about misbehaving.

This class is actually starting to remind me of my third year of teaching out in Arizona. They were a chatty group too. Somehow, we managed to get through the year (and that was with some additional help/suggestions from my principal), so I have faith we can do likewise here. They are just a puzzle I haven't been able to solve yet.

So many personalities...talkers...caller-outers...

But so many laughs...shares...smiles...thoughts...moments...

Good (and sometimes great) things are happening in our classroom every day. Sadly, it's easier, oftentimes, to see your downfalls and those of others.

But I try to remember the words from an old film favorite, "Pollyanna": "We looked for the good in them, and we found it, didn't we?"

And I challenge myself to do just that.

What the Weekend Taught Me

I sat down (well, in all honesty, I had already been sitting most of the evening) to compose a post for this blog last night, and I came up empty.

It's not because I haven't been doing anything - it's quite the opposite - I've been super busy: ACE Advocates gathering/party, my school's family run event, Ministry of Care at the hospital, local art fair, ND "game watch," trip to the grocery store, long run, my sister's school's Reventon ("explosion!") celebration, lesson planning...

You get the idea.

But, again, there should be some inspiration there somewhere...

In looking back over the weekend, a few things stand out to me -

1) Volunteering and ministering to others makes my heart happy. (The fall weather helps too.) I wasn't sure that I wanted to get up so early on a Saturday morning if I wasn't running for my own benefit, but I'm so glad I decided to go to my school's running event. It was a mere 1K (for the little kids) and 3K (for the older kids and parents), but, more importantly, it was an opportunity to see the students outside of school and to see everyone coming together to share in a good time to support the school. The fact that I followed this volunteer opportunity with my MOC duties really cemented this realization (#1) in my head (and heart). For some reason, everyone I visited at the hospital this weekend was so full of joy - maybe it's because they all had visitors - but I can honestly say that I've never had a more pleasant experience doing MOC. Wow.

2) Running along the lakefront path is a wonderful sort of therapy, where staying in shape, socializing, and relieving stress meet. I can't say that I always enjoy waking up before 7 a.m. on a weekend day, but for running along the path with my sister, it is worth it. The weather was just perfect, and it's always motivating (and more fun) to run with someone else. And maybe I can convince this someone else (ahem, ahem) to do another marathon in the (somewhat) near future...

3) My brain was not built to function in the early morning hours before I've had my cup of coffee, nor was it built to function in the later hours of a Sunday night. So, on Saturday morning, while volunteering at my school (see #1), one of the parents yelled out as she passed me that my co-teacher had come too. I had not yet seen her that morning, so I wanted to make sure I saw her before I left. After the race, I was talking to my roommate (who also teaches at the school) and another woman (who was actually my co-teacher - but I didn't recognize her due to her sunglasses, hat, etc.), and I remarked that I had to find my co-teacher. Both women turned and looked at me in disbelief - she was standing right there and we had been talking for 5 minutes. (Ah! I was so embarrassed.) So that's proof in the pudding, as they say, that coffee is a must in the mornings before doing anything that requires brain functioning. On a related note, there should be a cut-off time for my brain at night, especially on Sundays, because I'm pretty sure it shuts down and I make comments in emails and such that don't really make sense or are not as coherent as they would have been, say, 2 hours earlier.

I am pretty sure I learned a few other things this weekend too. However, it's just about that time to head out for school, so those thoughts will have to wait.

Happy Monday!

A Teacher's Job...

"…a teacher’s job is always to bridge from the known to the new. Because there really is no other choice. Kids are who they are. They know what they know. They bring what they bring. Our job is not to wish that students knew more or knew differently. Our job is to turn each student’s knowledge, along with the diversity of knowledge we will encounter in a classroom of learners, into a curricular strength rather than an instructional inconvenience."

- P. David Pearson, 1997

Breaking In the New

As I was about to walk out the door this morning, I had the sudden urge to change my shoes - instead of wearing one of my new pairs, I opted for the old, broken in pair.

My reasoning? It was likely to rain (so I didn't want my new pair to be ruined), and I didn't think my feet would be happy with me at the end of the day if I chose the newer, stiffer ones.

It's hard to break in new shoes. Even though they're beat up and worn, the old ones are comfortable and familiar.

With teaching it's kind of the same way. (Bear with me - Yes, I am comparing my classes to shoes.) There are so many days at the beginning of the year in which I have longed for my class from last year. It's not that I don't enjoy this year's class - it's just hard to break them in. Everything just takes longer...and I don't know if they always get my jokes...and it's always the hardest to get started with something new. (And when last year's class was SO good, it's hard not to compare.)

But, if you think about it, last year's class was once in the same position - they were the "new shoes" that needed time and wear. 

Now, it is time to break in this new class. I think they're ready to go. (Again, they'll be a little slow at first, and they'll need a lot more guidance and scaffolding, but they just need some time and practice.)

And it's also time to break in those nice new black shoes...

(Just not tomorrow - I have aftercare duty.)

Simplify, Simplify

In looking back over Gift from the Sea, one of the main focuses early on is about simplification of life.

(This actually reminds me of a line from one of my dad's favorite movies, in which they quote Thoreau: "Our lives are frittered away by detail; simplify, simplify" - but I digress.)

Based on experience, simplifying by getting rid of old things no longer needed, donating clothes no longer worn, shedding the excess, etc. is one of the greatest cathartic actions a person can do. But, for some reason, it is (usually) anything but simple to accomplish.

For example, when I moved from Arizona, I made a lot of trips to Goodwill and also some trips across town to give some stuff away - there was absolutely no possible way all my belongings were going to pack neatly (or not so neatly) into my little Honda Civic. And I wouldn't have wanted it all to. Because, you know what, it felt good to get rid of stuff. In fact, it felt so good that I vowed I'd never buy new things again.

(That worked out well. Um, or not...)

Somehow the collection of clothes, school-related materials, and other odds-and-ends keeps growing.

And it comes to the point where I wonder why I have so much junk.

And it makes me ask, Could I get by with less?

Anne Morrow Lindbergh begs that very question - Is it necessary?

It's times like this when I look around and realize just how much stuff I have, that I really consider doing what this following quote suggests:

No, really, I'm not even kidding.

Because it would be completely worth it.

However, I don't think that's likely to happen any time soon, so until then, I'll be looking to simplify my life in other ways - one Goodwill donation bag at a time...

Some quotes for this week's journey

Not feeling very original tonight, so here are some quotes & thoughts I'm using to gear up for the week - it's going to be a full one. I hope you may find some inspiration/joy/etc. in these as well:

Need to remember this in the classroom - and inspire those kiddos to do the same!

But I do have to remember to stick to that bedtime...at least on school nights...

Sometimes this is, indeed, the hardest thing.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Why is this one quite often hard to remember?

This one reiterates "Gift from the Sea" that I just finished reading. Alone time is much needed and should not be overlooked or looked down upon!

And the last one...

For only in looking at tomorrows will this ever be true. But mistakes are important and worth taking risks for. Gotta keep trying, that's for sure.

Have a most wonderful first full week of September!

How am I different?

The idea of leaving Mass different than when we came was an idea on which our priest preached tonight. And it's not a new idea to me, by any means; in fact, I believe I've blogged about that very thought before (as it was mentioned by another priest at one time or another).

But I needed reminding of that tonight.

It was actually an idea that I had already given some thought to this week, as I am reading Gift from the Sea (by Anne Morrow Lindbergh). It is a book in which she focuses on the demands and stages of life for women, and she also makes a case for balance, solitude, and peace. So, again, the idea of preparing myself for Church to allow myself to be renewed by the experience was already mulling around in my head.

In the book, she says,

"The church is still a great centering force for men and women, more needed than ever before...Our daily life does not prepare us for contemplation. How can a single weekly hour of church, helpful as it may be, counteract the many daily hours of distraction that surround it? If we had our contemplative hour at home we might be readier to give ourselves at church and find ourselves more completely renewed..."

Therefore, as both the priest and the author (of Gift from the Sea) noted, we should expect to be changed by our weekly visits to Church, but only if we prepare ourselves throughout the week in our thoughts, words, and actions. As it said in the Readings this weekend, " Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves." (Jas 1: 22)

So, the ultimate question becomes, How am I different - What am I doing now to put what I heard and experienced at Mass into my life and actions?

And the answer...?

I guess I need to be more aware of finding that each day too.

(On a different, but Mass-related note, I thoroughly enjoyed the preparation hymn this evening, so I decided to include the lyrics below. I particularly like the part in verse 2 that says "Let my actions, Lord, express what my tongue and lips profess." Enjoy!)

As a Chalice Cast of Gold

1. As a chalice cast of gold, 
Burnished, bright, and brimmed with wine, 
Make me, Lord, as fit to hold 
Grace and truth and love divine. 
Let my praise and worship start 
With the cleansing of my heart.

2. Save me from the soothing sin 
Of the empty cultic deed 
And the pious, babbling din 
Of the claimed but unlived creed. 
Let my actions, Lord, express 
What my tongue and lips profess. 

3. When I bend upon my knees, 
Clasp my hands, or bow my head, 
Let my spoken, public pleas 
Be directly, simply said, 
Free of tangled words that mask 
What my soul would plainly ask. 

4. When I dance or chant Your praise, 
When I sing a psalm or hymn, 
When I preach Your loving ways, 
Let my heart add its Amen. 
Let each cherished outward rite 
Thus reflect Your inward light.