One of those days

Today in Chicago the temp reached 65 degrees which is clearly warm for January in Chicago. Of course that means unseasonable temps in the classroom. My room was a balmy 89 degrees when I came in. It made it a little more difficult to teach but overall we adapted because that's what we do.
Teachers adapt. Technology fails-lessons must go own. Students don't do reading homework or watch the flip class lesson-we roll with it. Not enough supplies for the brilliant project you came up with-switch it up.

I find the world is made up of two groups adapters and complainers. (Side note I tried to think of a word that was similar to adapt in a negative way but couldn't. Heat is turning my brain to mush)

Some teachers can role with these changes others must complain about them to anyone who will listen. I find that the longer I am in the building the more complaints I hear. My first year I was oblivious.
I guess this is why, once agin I am plugging twitter as professional development. There you can surround yourself with positive people trying to make a real difference. How refreshing, and on a spring day like today-oh wait it's winter- I need that.

What an opportunity

I'm writing this in the el home from school after another great week with my amazing students. Today, while I was subbing for our sociology teacher during my off period I had a chance for some reflection. The students were doing this great project where they look back at old yearbooks and look at culture changes. I grabbed the yearbook from my first year. I started looking at those students from 9 years ago wondering where they were now and what they have done. I started thinking of all the students that I have had an opportunity to help learn something, about school, themselves, their future or anything. I was overcome with the number. I don't claim to have touched all their lives, but it did make me want to try harder to do so now.

So when I was ready to leave today at 3:15 and three students asked me to stay and work out I couldn't help but say yes.

And then I realized, as 6 or 7 more came in to work out, how much these students have helped me learn and grow.

The power of twitter!

Today I tried three different ideas in my class that I had learned from my #pln on twitter. By participating in some chats regularly over the last school year my repertoire of lessons has grown more than in my previous 8 years of teaching. If you aren't on twitter and haven't been convinced by your colleagues let me add my plea to theirs join. Don't be overwhelmed. Start slow or fast. Pick your pace. Don't be scared.

Today on American history I did my first edcafe thanks to Michael and Katrina (@42ThinkDeep and @katrinakennett). It went good. I would almost give it a great but there were a few groups that may have needed more prep time. It's ok, I'll remember it for next time. I had them at the end record what they learned and what the still had questions about on a post it note that they stuck to the door on the way out.

In my economics class we are just barely into our supply and demand unit. I had them create memes thanks to an idea from Heather (@irishteach) who said she was doing this for WWI propaganda posters. I had them create those on the non price determinants of demand. They loved it. They turned out really well too.
Once again I'm so excited that I have had opportunities to get such great ideas from such a wonderful source and group of educators who are so willing to share their great ideas.

Teaching is so much more than in the classroom

Today was one of those days. It started out with a student coming in before school upset over a fight with their girlfriend. Then, a student upset over a family problem. Next came the ever classic trouble with people "saying stuff" that isn't true. Followed up by two scenarios I've never encountered, tutoring a student in absolute values and biology (I teach history) followed up with some conversations on how to be healthy.

Teaching is so much more than what happens in your classroom. It is not just planning engaging lessons about our subject area and then going home proud of ourselves for teaching the all important causes of WWI. It is being so much more to these students.

Don't get me wrong, I have no delusions of every teacher taking on these extra roles. But the good teachers, no the great teachers, who have the lasting, life changing effects on students do take on these additional parts of the job. In fact, they do because the students know they can come to them for this help so they are called on for this more. They know you respect them so you will respect their problems. They know you care about them so they trust you and ask for your help.

It always amazes me the things my students go through. I don't remember having it this hard. They are forced to grow up so much faster than I did. I don't know what is different but I know it is something.

I know there will be teachers who disagree with this idea that we need to be more for our students. However, I know that my job is important, my subject matter is important, but most importantly my students are important. I will be here for them to gently guide them, sometimes more pointedly guiding them, and to help them with whatever they need. If I can't personally help them, I will do my best to find them someone who can help.

I know there are so many other great teachers out there who take on these extra parts of the job, and I have "spoken" to many of you on twitter so I know you are out there, so I wanted to say I appreciate you. I appreciate the extra miles(s) you go. Even if we are bashed in the media, by our friends and maybe even our families, I appreciate you and more importantly your students appreciate you.

Students will surprise you

It was just another day at school. I taught supply and demand as well as WWI. As the last bell rang I was sitting at my desk reflecting on the day and my door flew open. In walked two junior boys from the basketball team.

"Are you going to the game tonight?"
Me: "yes, I was planning on it"
Them: "good. We are playing tonight"

Now it must be said these are great kids, but they don't often get time to play. The excitement in their faces was contagious. They were so proud of themselves and how hard they have worked and how the work paid off. They couldn't wait to share that accomplishment and they stopped by my room, and I am sure others, to share their joy. These two gentlemen and I have had many conversations about playing time, practicing hard and not giving up over the course of the last few years.

That's the thing with students. They want to be successful. They want to work hard. They want to accomplish their goals. We have to give them some tools to build their dreams. They will put in the effort when they can see the plan and take part in its construction.

The effort they put in to working toward their goals is refreshing. They need guidance and support from us. It may get tiring but we can't give up. There may be bureaucratic red tape and gossip among teachers. There may be staff that aren't there for the right reasons or they have forgotten the real reasons they got into it. But all that needs to be forgotten as we push and pull and prod and cheer our students on to their goals.

Open letter to our government and media

As I sit here watching the inauguration coverage this morning, on our day off for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's birthday, I can't help but have a mix of emotions. As a teacher of social science I often have discussions in class about politics and the future with our future voters. Over the past ten years of my career I have noticed a huge change in how cynical and disheartened these young voters are becoming. They don't believe that they can help make a change by voting. They don't believe in the government setting out to help their lives get better. They believe that the politicians are all corrupt and selfish. So here is where my plea to you comes in: help change their minds.

I am asking to tone down the rhetoric that has been ratcheted up to sell ad space and copies. Politics should not be a reality show. Just because that is what gets the ratings for entertainment shows does not mean that we should turn our government into the same. Government is not to entertain us but to keep us safe and our country moving in the right direction. The media's job should be to inform without bias, not stir up a fight. We should call out the lies not perpetrate them further. The journalists are our eyes and ears to what is happening in government. We depend on them for the truth, not emotionally charged tirades. With all the access to "news" both real and made up, we need a string media to discern what is real and provide the people with strong sources of truth, not truth as you want to see it.

Throughout history people have fought for the right to vote. We have a democracy set up that allows power to be transferred peacefully, which is a feat so great that many countries never achieve it. As a teacher I try to impress this on my young students, the great futureof our country, and yet I'm me with opposition at every turn. It is getting harder for me to stand up for the government when every time I read the papers or watch the news it is a nonstop blame game. How will we continue to strive for excellence when we vow to go against anything the other party says? How is it that on this Inauguration Day we are already starting to speculate about the election of 2016? Why do we need election cycles to be so dramatic? Why can't it be honest debates for about 6 weeks prior to the election where we can get a clear view of the candidates positions, beliefs and solutions?

I'm asking for your help media officials, news team members and of course the government. Please don't create drama when civil discourse is better for he country. I'm not watching a sitcom I'm watching our great nation. Please help restore the faith in the government by working together on solutions. We expect this of our students in elementary school, sure.y we can count on you to do the same. Government should not be like the Super Bowl, World Series or any other sporting event with a win at all costs mentality. There are dire consequences for this behavior that include people getting discouraged and not voting. That letter after your name (R) or (D) should not mean more than the ones before (Sen. or Rep.).

We need these young citizens to see all the good the government has one, is doing and can do more of in the future. There are some truly amazing historical decisions made that have made our lives better. There are so many more decisions to be made. I am not saying healthy debate is bad, but it has to lead to decisions and compromise not name calling and ultimatums.

In order to keep this country great we depend on our future generations to continue our great traditions of government. We cannot afford to lose them while they are young and so hungry to learn. We must restore their faith.

Beginning of a new semester

I think it's so important in the beginning of the semester to create activities for your class to do to work as not only a way to teach your subject but to also get to know the students. The faster you get to know them the less behavioral problems you will have in class. This shows the students you respect them as individuals and respect them. It's also fascinating to see how different each student is from one another. This is also a good chance to share with them a little about yourself.

Brain Exercise

Every now and then to introduce a section/chapter in a survey way I try to come up with a game to play. I "stole" this from a teacher in my building.

First, the students get into groups. Then, I hand out some questions about the chapter, this time I did WWI. The students answer a question, then comes the fun. I give each group a Reebus puzzle they have to solve. They have to solve the puzzle before moving on. After they solve it, they get a point. The team with the most points gets a badge on Edmodo.

I have done this a few times, and it is always exciting. I will admit it is exhausting running around the room handing out puzzles, but it is so great to see their brains working in a different way. They work together to solve the puzzles. They also get so excited when they get it right. This gives students who don't get a lot of "wins" in the classroom, a chance to do something else to succeed. Overall, students end up leaving with some historical knowledge, brain teasers, and most importantly they work on self esteem and collaboration.

What more could we want?

World War I

Today I started introducing my students to World War I. We talked about the "Great War" first by going through this prezi, that shows all things that are "Great". We had an amazing discussion about the use of this word, and how easily we throw it out there. There truly is nothing better than have an intelligent discussion with my students. I am so impressed with how far they have come since the beginning of the year, and I love seeing the wheels turning in their minds.
After, we discussed the MAIN causes of the war, (you know, Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, and Nationalism). Then the real fun began. I had them create nursery rhymes about these causes. They wrote them in pairs, the created big posters to put up around the room with their rhymes, and presented them to the class.
We wrapped it up with a picture of trench foot  and a picture of the men in trenches and had them write creative stories, which I am trying to do more of in class.

Such a successful day. Now, back to work on my creative writing prompts, I love the excitement of a new idea and how time can fly by when you are immersed in something, and how the ideas can keep flowing.

Great teaching

I read an article today about 9 characteristics of a great teacher. This got me thinking about my own journey to be a great teacher for my students.
I was actually thinking about this today while I was standing in the hall between periods. I found myself thinking about how much more comfortable I am with myself now 9 years in compared to my first year. This ability to know who I am and what I want from myself helps me to do the same for my students.
This has not been an overnight change, nor has it always been easy. I now know more about where are you to get help when I need it, twitter pln I'm talking to you, and I know that it is ok to ask for help. Those first few years I was young and scared that if I had to ask for help I would be seen as weak. I now know how silly that is. A great teacher knows when to seek advice and knows who to go for it. If you don't your students are the ones who are losing out.
Also, through these nine years I've learned what my classroom personality is. This helps me with classroom management, problems are almost nonexistent. I've realized students, other teachers are going to have different opinions than myself, and that is great.

Keep pushing yourself to be a great teacher. I know I am.

Writing prompts and inspiration

I tweeted this week at how amazed I was by @lukeneff writing prompt page. I was so in see I became inspired to create some of my own. I worked on them for a while yesterday and came up with some I like. I'm going to keep working lady and then I will post a link to them.
But it really got me thinking how inspiration can strike anywhere. Seeing another teacher's great work made me want to do better.

This what twitter does for me too. I am having conversations daily with teachers all over he world. I am able to share my ideas, and get new ideas to try. I am having discussions about pedagogy, sharing news articles, giving and getting advice.  Every day of the week there seems to be a great chat to  get  involved in. After an inspiring #sschat or #21stedchat I am excited to try out new ideas. I can't help but feel like my teaching has improved on a daily basis because of  sharing ideas.  I know it may seem overwhelming at first when you start tweeting, but that is the beauty of twitter. It is a buffet of knowledge. You can take what you like, and create your own meals to share. Jump in! don't be scared. The same can be said for our students too. They need to collaborate and see what their classmates are doing to be able to push themselves to be better; to self motivate.

And after all, isn't that what we want our students to learn?

Writing

I am still trying to figure out how to incorporate more creative writing in my history classes. I think I have been trying to force it so today I decided to let it flow more naturally. I want to give them the options to do on their own. I want them to blog and find it enjoying like I have. I hope that by starting them off it'll be something they can use in their lives forever.

History mad libs

Today I tried something new, love these days. As a way to start diving into imperialism I took a primary source and removed all the names, countries, and dates. I then had the students in partners work to try to figure out what the reading was about and to try to fill in the blanks. It went well. There were a few who didn't want to guess and be wrong and needed some encouragement to try, but overall they were really interested and engaged. I was impressed to hear the thinking as they worked through the reading together. They were asking questions of each other trying to put some historical context on the reading.
If you're interested in the actual assignment let me know.

Imperialism lesson

Today we started imperialism in American history. I did some new ideas with some old ones as well and it really worked out. I introduced it by doing a picture opener. I cropped a picture of the USS Maine explosion a few different ways, showed bits of it to the class a little at a time then they guessed. I had some great guesses. I then wrote imperialism on the board and had the, guess the meaning a by showing them a wordle. After I had them write phrases using just the letters in imperialism describing what it meant. Overall, they were very into the lesson and brought up many ties to today (talking about you Guantanamo Bay).

Edmodo

Today we are finally back with students! I am so energized by their enthusiasm to be back, and I really want to capitalize on it. We are starting our adventure with using Edmodo, instead of our school website we used first semester. Already, the students are loving it. They love the simplicity of it, and how many functions it has to offer. I was really impressed with how easy it was for students to sign up, having never used it before in a class. I also like how easy it is to create badges, assignments polls and more. I really like all the choices that it gives the students to communicate with their classmates and me. It is exciting to see the possibilities that this great site has to offer.

First day jitters

We had our institute today which was very productive. And now it is time to think about the new semester starting tomorrow. I have been teaching 9 years and the night before the new classes start I am always filled with that nervous energy. It is like Christmas morning for me every year. What will the new classes bring? Will they respond to the course changes? Will I be able to challenge them enough? Will they enjoy my amazingly hilarious jokes? (Do I have amazingly hilarious jokes ready?)

No matter how much we prepare and question and reflect we will always run into something unexpected. In my opinion, that's what makes this job great.

Anticipation:worth the wait

After a brief discussion this morning on twitter with @ShawnMcCusker, I realized what I wanted to blog about today. The power of anticipation. He had tweeted a blog post of mine about an assignment I use in Economics, with fake money. We were tweeting about how one of the best parts of the assignment is that students know about it before they are in my class and look forward to it. The power of anticipation.
As I was thinking of this topic, while preparing some meals for this week, I began thinking how anticipation is in all parts of our lives, both positively and negatively. I am anticipating a busy first week back, so I am preparing some lasagna, and other meals that can be cooked quickly after my husband's basketball practice and games. I know that if I don't I will be anxious and even a little stressed. So I thought about that in regards to students. If they are not prepared and are anticipating this, it can make them anxious about coming to the class. If they anticipate being bored in a class, they may skip it to fill their time with something more interesting. I want to make sure my classes are filled with the positive form of anticipation, where the students are exited to come to class. The kind of anticipation that makes them want to explore the material more and share their findings.
This reminds me of what I read in Teach like a Pirate by Dave Burgess (@burgessdave). He writes of starting off the year with anticipation. He wants the students to be anticipating what's to come all year, so he ends lessons with teasers for the next class. The build up can hook the students so they are excited for more.
This is the same idea that tv shows use. At the end of the show they tease us with next week's show, because waiting 7 days without knowing what is coming is not good marketing. If I anticipate what the show is going to be about, I'll make sure to tune in next time. And isn't that what we want from our students, to be excited to tune in next class? So I will make sure to tease the next lesson. I can give them the juicy gossip of history in a small dose, so they want to come back for the full story the next class.

Alumni joy

Today we had our alumni game for the boys and girls volleyball teams I coach. I had about 30 former players there and it was great catching up with them. It's crazy how you spend so much time with these students and then they leave and you don't hear from them as much. It was great to hear all the wonderful things they have accomplished and to go back in time remembering the seasons past. They do start running together after 9 years! Reminded me once again why I live what I do.

So e of the group at the end.

One size does not fit all

I had the chance to have lunch today with a friend and her two teenage daughters. These two amazing sisters couldn't be more different. The younger one outgoing the older more reserved. They each have different interests in sports and music both however deserve to have the very best education and more importantly a teacher that understands one size lessons do not fit all. We have to,as teachers, do our best to reach the students, all students, in any way we can. Yes we have to deal with the standardized tests that politicians have put out. But we have to remember we aren't teaching for the politicians, we are teaching for the future of politics, and any other field for that matter. Our everyday interactions with students must be worthwhile for them and that means we have to reach them where it matters most to them.

Airports and education

I was going through security at the Melbourne airport in Florida, leaving the beautiful weather to head back to frosty Chicago, when I couldn't help thinking of the similarities in air travel and teaching. There are things we have to do that don't make sense anymore, turn off phones on take off, take off shoes through lines, just like in education. We do things for a false sense of security. Or because it would take some, gasp, work to change. (Standardized testing I'm talking about you!)

Find your inspiration

Today I was inspired. Not that is anything new or even blog worthy, but it was the way I was inspired and the de thoughts that came after that was so meaningful. It was a reflective type of inspiration that was so great I couldn't wait to write this blog.

Every year at this time my husband and I leave the cold, gray, windy Chicago to visit my dad I the beautiful, warm Vero Beach, FL on the Atlantic. As we were out running today in the beach the inspiration struck me. Running for me has always been inspiring. It is the way my head gets cleared and how in tune to my body that I get that opens my mind for inspiration. Today was a little different as it wasn't just a new lesson idea that hit me but a series of ideas that made it so I almost sat right down on the beach and wrote is blog on the beach in the middle of my run. That is inspiration.

I was so struck by the sand and the ocean and the symbolism of it all. How every time the waves came in it left a clean slate. How that could be the start of each new class that I teach. That there is always a chance to improve. I continued my thought train to think about the unknown treasures that lie in the ocean and on the beach. I saw a few people scouring the sand to unearth these treasures. I thought of my students and how we as teachers are like these beach combers. We are looking to unearth treasures of knowledge with our students. I also got to thinking about theses treasures wondering where they have been and where they will end up. Again, I couldn't help but draw the parallel to our students and how I could keep this in mind when creating lessons.

I then came upon some footprints. There were two sets, a child and adult. I began thinking about who they were and what they were thinking as they were on the same path as I was. I began thinking about how different we are as children as compared to ourselves as adults. The child's mind is so open for learning, discovering and creating and somehow we lose that as an adult. I want to keep this in mind as I teach. I want to remember these footsteps.

But perhaps the most inspiring to me was my husband, iRyan. As we were running together, as we always do, I couldn't help but be inspired. In college Ryan had a new kind of surgery on his hip called a free fibular graft, which replaced his dying hip bone with his own fibula. And yet, he has run two marathons and runs miles every day. I know that he has pain every so often from this, but he doesn't let it stop him. It's hard for me to understand this pain as I have only rolled an ankle, but I am inspired. He reminds me that even if it gets hard, or painful, we can carry on.

What's your inspiration? How do you keep it close?

Why I'm not setting a resolution

I don't believe that setting a resolution on the first is the best way to go for me. Don't get me wrong, i gave done it. And like 92% of America, or whatever the latest numbers are, I too, have failed at it. It is easy to get discouraged when you set something up to fail. The pressure of the "one chance to succeed" is too much.

Here's the big secret: You can change your behavior at any point in time. It doesn't have to be the first of the calendar year to get better. You can decide to be better and then achieve it. By waiting till the first of January you have said to yourself you need a gimmick to achieve something. To me, as a teacher that seems to go against what we are telling our students on a daily basis. We expect them to get better every day, to try something new and challenge themselves frequently. As a teacher it is my job and duty to continue to model that for my students by my own behavior. You don't have to keep failing because it isn't the "right" time to change but you do have to keep trying so you can change.
Since I have had a week off of school I have been reflecting about the past semester and what my goals are for the next semester. I will revisit these goals frequently throughout the year. They will be amended and evaluated to make sure they are serving their intended purpose. They are there to help not to set me up for defeat. That is the difference between goals and resolutions. Goals are positive by nature and help you be the best you when they are set up right. When evaluated and reflected on, when set personally and deliberately goals are what can help you be better. Isn't that all we can ask, to be the best version of yourself?