A Cup of Contentment - Teacher Style!

     

     I decided to try the one word challenge for 2017.  If you are not familiar with it, it’s a New Year’s ritual where you choose just one word to focus on every day for the next year. It’s a word that represents who you want to be or how you want to live. 

     The fact that I had a hard time choosing just ONE word is exactly why “contentment” was the right word for me.  Even as a young child my mother would tell me that I was “never satisfied.” I’ve always been a “have your cake and eat it too” kind of girl.  This has not always been a bad thing as I’m pretty committed to continually improve, learn, and better myself (think growth mindset) and not afraid to take a risk. On the other hand, it’s rarely a peaceful state of being and often leaves me chasing perfection rather than gratitude. 

     So this “one word” led me to wonder, “What does a “contented”  teacher look like (and can she meet me at Starbuck’s tomorrow afternoon)?  

Here's what she might tell me as I got to know her over a cup of chai tea (cue up: Girl Crush).

I am a teacher who: 

Sets Priorities: 

I'm real clear on what my kiddos need at any given time and plan accordingly. I know what I believe about children and teaching and am less likely to get lost in a Pinterest search. I know that what the children REALLY need from me isn’t found in any of my teacher guides. I'm not constantly tempted by the next big thing as I am confident in what I already know works well. I know my limits and say no without feeling the need to give an excuse. I've done the math and am pretty sure that my curricular expectations are greater than the number of hours I have in any given day. I choose to do less well and not give my children a drive-through education.

Avoids Comparisons: I'm confident in my abilities and don’t get sucked into the scarcity mentality (i.e. there can only  be ONE good teacher).  I know that another teacher's awesome bulletin board doesn't make mine any less wonderful!  I appreciate the differences between colleagues and know that there isn’t just one right way of teaching.  I view these differences as learning opportunities that allow me to affirm and challenge my own beliefs about education.

Changes the Message: I'm cautious about social media and aware that the promise of “good ideas” comes with the "buy in" that I am not good enough as I am. I realize that perfection is not attainable even if it seems to keep showing up in my Pinterest feed! I'm constantly reminding myself that I am “good enough” and already have everything I need to teach my students well. 

Counts My Blessings:  I'm grateful I have a job and work that I love. I appreciate my classroom space and abundance of materials knowing that some teachers and students have very little.

Lives Passionately: I have other interests besides teaching and make time for them.  I see life as an adventure and know that every experience adds to who I am as a teacher.  I seek joy and inspiration and know that children are less likely to remember what I did, but rather how I made them feel. 

Finds Positive Friends: I avoid the naysayers who live in a constant state of discontentment and instead surround myself with positive people who accept me exactly as I am (flaws and all!).

Trusts Myself: I recognize that the nature of teaching is trial and error and that mistakes are part of the process.  I know that what works for one class/student may not work for the next and trust myself and the children to show me the way. 

While it would be really nice to meet up with this fictional sage teacher (I'm sure she just carries one really small teacher bag too!), it would be even better to move a little closer to being her! I didn't plan on writing this in first person, but now that I have, "her" words read a little like affirmations (one for each day of the week) that just might be helpful in finding a little more contentment in this "big bag carrying" teacher's life.   What's your "one word" for the new year?

Thanks for stopping by!

Jackie

Happy Teacher List

    

     I had a perfect teaching day last week. Say what? Yup - you heard me - a perfect teaching day. I’m pretty sure I’ve NEVER said this before. More often than not, I feel defeated by the high demands and long to-do list that pull and tug at me throughout the day.  But on Wednesday of last week, I went home and actually said OUT LOUD that I’d had a perfect day. 

     Let me define what I mean by perfect, knowing full well there is no such thing.  It was a day where my vision of how I'd like things to go was in alignment with  the reality of what was.  You know that picture you see in your mind over the summer as you are getting ready for the school year and you imagine the possibility of what could be.  The one where you and the children dance through the day in seamless harmony.  The one that often fades by lunch on the first day of school.   
     So because this comes along, like never, I began thinking about what made it so “perfect.” I hadn’t tried anything new or groundbreaking, half my class was not out with the flu, nor was there any cosmic alignment of any sort (not that I knew of anyway). In fact, I could quickly rule out all extrinsic factors as the day ran pretty much like the others in terms of routines and lessons. And as for the children, they were the same adorable little beings I had left on Tuesday.  So that left only me.  What was different about me as I walked through that door on Wednesday morning?  

     My guess is that I can sum it up in three words - Happy Teacher List! You see, many years ago I read a parenting book (see below) that suggested mothers create a “Happy Mommy List” to help them get clear about what they needed so they could then in turn care for others. 

You can find this book here:

     While I have never actually made a “Happy Teacher List,” the whole “put on your life mask first” concept has always stayed with me and I’d venture to guess that on that “perfect day” my Happy Teacher List was in check.  It was November. Halloween and parent conferences had just ended. Life had settled down a bit. The day felt lighter, I felt centered, and I was able to be completely present with the children.  There was an energy between us that just felt right and if I was looking for data to support this, I could measure it by the increase in knee hugs that I received on that day. 
     Oftentimes, teachers want to blame student behavior on a full moon or all the Halloween candy they ate the day before.  But I really think it has a lot more to do with us than we want to admit (like maybe all the Halloween candy that I ate the day before!).  It’s about stepping back and asking ourselves, “What’s really going on here?” It’s about taking our own temperatures to see if our needs are being met. 

    So in my attempt to capture, bottle, and reenact this “perfect day,” I got curious about what would actually be on that Happy Teacher list if it were written down. Here's what I came up with.

When I look at it, it seems so simple. Yet, there's that OTHER list, you know the one, with the big "TO DO" at the top that competes with it for the 10:00 bedtime.  But now that it's written down I'm going to find a prominent place for it and give it a voice.  
     What's on your list? What are your teacher life must-do's? 

Thanks for stopping by!

Jackie

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Playful Encounters with the Reggio Emilia Approach

     

     I recently went to Rochester, NY to attend a conference at the Strong National Museum of Play entitled, Playful Encounters with the Reggio Emilia Approach.  

Keynote speakers included Lella Gandini (United States Liaison for the Dissemination of the Reggio Emilia Approach to Early Childhood Education and coauthor of Hundred Languages of Children) and Ben Mardell (Project Director of the Pedagogy of Play, Project Zero, Harvard Graduate School of Education).  Both speakers provided insightful and inspiring stories, challenges, and food for thought.  

     The museum itself offered a wonderful backdrop for this professional development and is home to the Woodbury School, a Reggio-inspired preschool and early kindergarten program. As part of a break-out session, I was able to visit the classrooms and snap a few photos.

indoor garden space

They also have an outdoor discovery garden to extend their indoor garden space

beautiful provocation

love the bleeding hearts!

a sculptural way to display children's art

possible inspiration - Very Hungry Caterpillar??

floating fish hung from the ceiling

natural treasures to explore

caterpillar provocation

words showing what they value

artwork as inspiration displayed between the easels

feltboards attached to the wall

an invitation to write

 "Habitat Boards" created by children

Documentation Panel: How Can We Care For Mother Earth?

Documentation Panel: What is life in a castle like?

Documentation Panel: What was it like to live long ago in a castle?

light exploration table

resources to connect children to the larger world

 dramatic play

more dramatic play

blocks

storage

wall boxes

castle exploration

Transcribed Documentation: How can we care for Mother Earth?

ceiling sculpture

loose parts storage

more loose parts storage

art offerings

clay sculptures and painted habitats

animal paintings on a vinyl shower curtain

more opportunities for writing

documentation of their shared story

story stones

process art

sun prints

portfolio storage

bird treasures

mailboxes made from milk cartons

  

     Debbie McCoy, assistant vice president for education at Strong, shared, on a previous visit, Lella had suggested to the staff that they might consider scaling back a bit on the materials offered in the classroom by placing some in storage and rotating them out.  They took her up on her suggestion and the classrooms felt orderly, inviting, and despite their small size, not at all overcrowded.  I realize that I too have some work to do in this area and that some serious weeding out is in order!

     On another breakout session, entitled Playful Inquiry, I visited the museum's Butterfly Garden and Lab.  

In the garden:

In the Lab:

     The big take-away from this session was the modeling of a process called Science Talk inspired by the book, Talking Their Way Into Science by Karen Gallas.

     I was able to connect my own experiences with children's questions to this process and am hoping the book will take me further in the coming school year. 

     While most (if not all) of us aren't lucky enough to have our classrooms located within a children's museum, there are elements of their classrooms that could certainly be replicated within our own spaces.  What inspires you most as you end one school year and look ahead to another?  

Thanks for stopping by!

Jackie

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