WHY or HOW do you do your job?

WHY or HOW do you do your job? 

I see the first as a question we ask ourselves and the second is a question others ask us. Especially these days with fear of our safety, demands and frustration growing in the classroom HOW do we do it everyday? WHY do we do it everyday?

WHY is a question I have been focused on as I reflect on who I am as an educator. WHY did I choose this career and WHY do I continue to move forward in it.
                                   
When I think of my WHY I could answer with all the right things like I want to make a difference, I love seeing curiosity form into amazing discoveries and a million other reasons, but although these are all true my real WHY has more to do with what I have experienced.

                                       

I was raised with kids and lots of them! My parents took in foster children my whole childhood. There were times I would wake up in the morning and run into the next bedroom to see if "new friends" had arrived in the middle of the night (which happened often). These children came from unimaginable places and had been through more in their short lives than anyone should have to endure in a lifetime. I came to understand and empathize with them. I also worried about them long after they left us. When they left us they often went back into the same awful situation they were pulled from. I knew that for a lot of them school would be there only safe place. It would be the place they knew they would get a meal, be warm and should be a place where they are loved and feel safe.

My WHY is also my brother who struggled with ADHD in a time when it was not accepted and worked with like it is now in schools. My WHY is my son who told me he felt like noone at school believed in him. My WHY is the kids who stop in every morning on the way to class that come to get a high five or sit and take a breath before starting the day. My WHY is a senior (who I had in a reading program 7 years ago) that brings me a coffee mug that reads "TEACHER, because Badass Miracle Worker is Not a Title".  My WHY is because I don't ever want a child to leave my room feeling like they don't matter and that they know there is always a safe place to stop whenever they need.

If you have ever seen the movie Girls Just Want to Have Fun with Sarah Jessica Parker (from the 80'S) there is a scene where she is a high school student introducing herself and she pauses and says "I love to dance" (which is what the movie is all about).  When I was a kid this was much more dramatic in my own head than it really is when I see it now, but that is what I think of everytime someone asks HOW I do my job everyday. I think as I do a dramatic pause "because I love to teach".

I think my love of what I do is apparent to most who know me especially my family. My 15 year old daughter has her first job and she told me the other day how lucky she was to have a job she loved....she works at a child care in an elementary school. Everyday I pick her up she talks nonstop about the kids and what happened that day. Even at 15 I can see her passion for kids and know she will make a difference in so many lives.

The HOW question I feel is a more difficult one to answer, because it is tough to put into words the feeling of seeing kids be curious, daring, innovative, successful and amazing. I know right now with school safety at the front of everyone's mind people are worried and so am I, but we can't live in fear. We have a job to do and it is more important now than ever. Kids are changing and the way we connect with them is changing. We need to change with the times or become irrelevant. So my HOW I do this job is I have found a tribe of people who remind me almost everyday how amazing and important our job is.

I was watching the news the other day and was completely overwhelmed by the students standing up for what they believe in in Florida. What they are doing is EXACTLY what I see as the powerful outcome of empowering kids. George Couros, Katie Martin, Dave Burgess, Jimmy Casas, A.J. Juliani and John Spencer are just a few of the people who I see as huge influences on where our education is going. Because of this I don't see WHY or HOW I could not love what I do!

Sometimes You Just Need to Dance!

Sometimes you just need to dance! One of my least favorite subjects to teach is writing. I am not a great writer myself, it is not a passion of mine so I find it difficult to provide meaningful learning opportunities when it comes to this subject. I know I need to do better so I have tried new things. This was my favorite this year! We were working on sequencing so we made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, which I am sure is a common sequencing writing project. Because I am flexible and go with opportunities as they happen when one of my kids starting singing Peanut Butter Jelly Time I seized the moment! Quickly I typed in the song title and turned up the volume. When I did that this video happened....there are so many fun things happening I couldn't help but laugh. And YES that is the worm happening in the background!!

The best part is the energy every time I played the song to announce writing time. In all my years of teaching there has never been this much excitement to write! Not only were they excited but they were motivated and engaged to write well once the music stopped. If we stay open and flexible great things can happen. I would've missed this great opportunity if I had stuck to my lesson plan.

My takeaway was always be ready to go with the flow and seize opportunities that get students excited about learning. In other words....Sometime you just need to dance!

What conditions are critical to support learning and innovation?

For so long my classroom was taught around compliance and I never even thought about it that way. I have spent a lot of time refectly lately on who I am as a learner and who I want my students to be as learners. I learn best what I am self motivated, part of decision making, see my work as fulfilling and challenging and get to solve problems creatively all things Katie Martin points out in her book Learner Centered Innovation. If I learn best this way why would I not provide all these things for my students? A question I had not spent nearly enough time thinking about in the past. I am amazed at the difference in how my classroom culture has evolved when I plan keeping these things in mind.

This year I have tried to really change my mindset on how the student's in my class are learning. I loved the idea of teaching my students to be free thinkers and owners of their own learning, but in all honesty I had no idea what that would look like or how to provide that. Slowly by the use of Twitter, reading blogs and asking amazing eductors for help I have begun to understand more clearly what that means. A great example was just recently our students needed to learn about matter and to make things a little more difficult I had to teach it. In the past my grade partner would tackle science and I would take on social studies. The more we collaborated the more we felt the value in working together on both subjects. As a team we've talked alot about having a more student led classroom and this was a perfect opportunity to provide that! Each student was given a state of matter and would spend time learning about it and then give a 60 second elevator pitch on what they learned. After that they were grouped in a way in which one solid, one liquid and one gas were members of the team and instructed to find a way to demonstrate all three to the class. I was a little nervous about the direction they would take, but was completely blown away by what they came up with. Each group chose a demonstration along with an explanation of the states of matter. The best part was one of my reluctant learners, who seems uninterested in putting forth much effort in anything, was so excited about the project. He even said "Mrs. Erickson, this is the first time I have been excited about an assignment. I love this and want to keep doing it" followed by a "Science! Science! Science!" chant by the whole class. I think I found what my ideal classroom looks like!

Put Yourself Out There!

Put yourself out there! That is easier said than done as I have found out. The thought of blogging actually made me a little nauseous...and that is not an exaggeration. I have started 3 different blogs on 3 different blog sites, the first couple I never posted or told anyone about so they sit with literally zero views. That worked for me, because I felt like I had tried and that was good enough. I have spent the last year reading every book I can to help me be a better educator and once again I felt like at least I am trying. Only now, that I have committed to really blogging and focusing on myself as a learner can I say I get it! I didn't get here on my own though. The process was pretty eye opening. I reached out for help and became the student. When one asks George Couros for help and he says blog...there is no other choice but to blog. Since I felt like I asked for the help I had to follow through no matter how much I wanted to say forget it! The stages I went through surprised me a little. I was nervous and anxious just like what I see in my students when they are asked to do something uncomfortable. When I would ask questions I did not get direct answers just more things to think about, which is what I have come to understand is how we can spark curiosity and ownership in learning in our students. As I lost sleep and needed constant reassurance I decided it was time to make the leap and really put myself out there. I finished my first blog and shared it not knowing what to expect. When I saw that it was retweeted and the amount of views it made me sick at first...no exaggeration. Once that feeling past I began to feel like I can do this and started to wonder what else I was capable of. I realized that my unpublished blogs and huge amount of reading wasn't enough. I have thought more about my relationship with my students, colleagues and myself, which has forced me to really look at how I can do better. What I have learned through this process is I want to give my students what my teacher (George) gave to me. Spark curiosity, stand beside them and watch amazing things happen.

As I watched George, Katie and A.J. during IMMOOC I am even more inspired to commit to the process of reflecting and getting out there. As I post on my blog and on twitter I put myself in a position for criticism. Our grade level has made changes and we have definitely put ourselves in a position for criticism. I am fortunate enough to have a group of supporters who remind me the risk is worth it, because I am doing what is best for my learners.

I loved the question during IMMOOC about what we can do tomorrow. Talk to kids! Give them choice! This year my team has taken the leap to give kids choices, which was pretty scary at first. That would be tough if we didn't talk to kids and get to really know them. Empowering them with choice and in their learning has been amazing to be a part of. I finally understand what was meant when I heard the phrase "student led". We have so much more to do, but that shift has been so incredible for us as teachers as well as for the students.

I am looking forward to the next 6 weeks as I push myself to even more uncomfortableness with the goal of being so much better for my kids! I am so grateful to have the opportunity to learn from some people I admire so much for what they do for education. There is a lot to learn from George, Katie, A.J. and John and I cannot wait to see where this journey takes me.

Curiosity...Passion...Change IMMOOC4

I think it is critical to spark curiosity and ignite passions in learners so we can not only teach them skills, but provide authentic learning opportunities to practice those skills and take them even further. This will happen when they are truly engaged in what they are learning. Tapping into students passions will result in them putting in more effort, retaining more information and work harder. I know for me I started college without a purpose or passion and my grades were definitely a result...a very embarrassing result. When I started my elementary education classes (my passion) my effort increased significantly and as a result I received grades I was proud of and curiosity in what I loved motivated me to go farther than I was required. By providing learning experiences that allow my students to learn through their passions it will encourage their curiosity to lead them farther. 

I can honestly say I have only recently truly embraced the evolving role of an educator. Each year I am excited to bring new ideas into my classroom, but recently my evolution has taken off. I think I have evolved more in the last couple of years than I have in all of my 19 years of teaching put together. As times and my students needs change I knew I needed to change as well or get left behind. At first I thought technology was the key to keeping up and I learned everything I could, but have come to realized a 21st century educator is so much more that being tech savvy. It has taken time, frustrations, failures along with successes and great change. I not only have embraced my role, but look forward to where it will take me. 

If we change the way we learn and how we see our learning we ultimately change the way our students learn. When we change that, they change the world.-Katie Martin Learner Centered Innovation

YES! I can not wait to see the amazing ways my students change the world!

Authentic Learning Doesn't Have to Wait!

In Learner Centered Innovation by Katie Martin I was struck by a section in her book in which she talks about students having to wait until they master basic skills before engaging in authentic learning. So often I feel like students are held back because they have not mastered a skill that they could authentically practice if we as teachers sometimes got out of their way.

       We shouldn't make lerners wait until they master the basics to engage in authentic learning-I couldn't agree more!

She goes on to say what often is seen in schools:

   *Kids are held back from reading books they are interested in because the book isn't at "their level".

Our school uses the Accelerated Reading program to level and assess our students reading. I often heard kids say they were not allowed to read books they wanted, because it was too difficult for them based on the AR level and what I saw was disengaged reading that the students dreaded. One of my favorite times of the day is silent reading. My goal is to teach kids how to find appropriate books that they love and are able to determine on their own if it is a "good fit". I look around the room and see students engaged in reading and able to discuss a book they are interested in. It is so quiet and most are genuinely disappointed when we need to move on to something else.

    *Students are forced to practice their letters over and over before they can create their own stories. 

I have some pretty creative students who love to write! They may not be the best at grammar and sometimes there stories are a little scattered, but because they are writing and writing a lot those skills will come with authentic work that they are excited about doing. I feel like I would be extinguishing their flame of writing if I got in their way. I can guide them along the way instead of waiting until they have mastered specific skills.


    *In math, learners work on basic facts and rote computation before they can try and love complex problems.

My grade partner and I just had a conversation about this the other day. He came to me and asked what I thought about kids using their multiplication tables when they struggled with solving multi digit multiplication problems. My response was it depends... are you wanting them to demonstrate their math facts or multi step problem solving? We talked about it and agreed that although the math facts are important and need to be practiced that they would be able to use the table to help them so they could practice the process without getting lost in the math facts they were struggling with. As they were working through the multi step problem they were also practicing the facts they needed as well.

Getting out of the way of my students was a huge shift and not always easy. I at one time was so focused on basic skills that some of my students were not having the opportunity to participate in authentic learning. Yes, the basic skills are important, but I love that I can provide opportunities for my students to practice those skills along the way instead of stopping until they have them to move on. It is more meaningful and retainable if they actually use the skills rather than just regurgitate them.

School Culture Matters

Creating a safe place for students to learn, grow and be a part of is crucial. At the beginning of every school year we talk about family in my classroom. We talk about how our class is like a family and how we actually spend more time together in a regular week that we do with our families at home. Also we talk about how we each play a role in that family. I want students to know they always have a place in my classroom no matter how many years go by. School culture matters!

There are so many opportunities to make our family stronger throughout the school year, but for me those relationships do not stop on the last day of the school year. We are in a brand new building this year that has 1st through 6th grade in order down one long hall. It is awesome because every morning our 4th grade team stands outside our door giving high fives and knuckle bumps to not only our classes but the class we had last year as they walk past and the class we had the year before that. Those students know that just because they may not spend the day in my class they will forever be welcome and they take advantage of that. Kids stop in throughout the day...every day...my only rule is they need to read the room before walking in, which they respect. That means if I am in a meeting with either a student or adult they need to come back later otherwise they are always welcome. These relationships are built on trust and respect.

I love days when my own family can come spend time with my classroom family and one of my favorite is our Thanksgiving feast in November. My husband and 3 kids stop at a restaurant and pick up a full Thanksgiving meal then serve it in my classroom to the whole 4th grade. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, but that is not the case for everyone. This is an amazing opportunity to connect with my students and they spend the rest of the year asking about my own kids as if they have known them forever.

Lunches are another great way to build culture. Student love to eat lunch somewhere other than the lunch room so we have days set up in which they can come eat in my room (5th graders get taco days and 6th graders get mash potato days) and on those days there is a classroom FULL of kids. I may  not have perfect state test scores, but I am reminded especially on these days how impactful I can be.

Connecting with students on the playground are some of my favorite times at school. We have a Wellness Wednesday every week that is amazing. It is an extended time outside at the end of each Wednesday in which the whole 4th grade including teachers play a large group game. The opportunities to teach students about good sportsmanship and bonding as a team are priceless. Yes, there is usually a winner, but it always ends with a handshake line and kids saying "good game". Us teachers wear workout clothes that day and any student who has been in our class recognizes the day and often stop to ask us what game we are playing that day for Wellness Wednesday. Many times I have kids say it was one of their favorite things in 4th grade.

It seems more important than ever that we are connecting with our students and creating a culture that is healthy, supportive and empowers kids. My goal is that each and every student that I have knows that they were valued and cared about not just the year they were in my class but forever.