Getting Started On The Right Foot

As I get ready to start my school year, I found myself reflecting on some of the skills and strategies that lead to a strong start.  Now, as you read them I know you'll think that since I'm writing it, I must be great at these skills. Hardly. These are the ones that I know are important for both short and long term success in a year, but many of them are ones I struggle with enacting.

Now this list is in no way fully comprehensive. There are many thoughts I had that would be important, but for me these are the ones I need to remember to put into practice.  These are presented in no particular order.... except this one:

LEARN YOUR STUDENT'S NAMES. 

Nothing on this list can help you have a more successful start and finish to a year than this.  You will be asking your students to get out of their comfort zone on a very regular basis. They need to trust they will be safe. Nothing breaks that trust more than saying "hey... um... you." There are many layers to emotional safety, but none are higher than you knowing that child's name. "Hey you, the volleyball player that likes MCR" is really not as effective as "Hey, Sasha! What was the name of the band you were talking about last week?"

Practice their names. Say them correctly; ask if you are unsure. Don't give them a nickname because "the name is too hard to say" or "too tricky to remember."  Challenge them to quiz you in the halls and at lunch. Give them a high five when you get it right. Give them a high five when they have to correct you.

Learn. Their. Names.

Establish procedures and protocols in your classroom.

If you have particular ways to hand in work, check in assignments, enter the room, or ask to use the restroom, make sure they know them. Practice these in detail the first few days. Explain them as expectations, not as discussion points.  If the procedure is important to you, stop class when it isn't followed.

Contact your families

As early as you can in the year, contact the families of all of your students. Call, e-mail, send a letter home. Whatever works best for your situation. Let them know how happy you are that their child is in your room. Let them know how well they are adjusting to their new grade/classroom/school. Invite them to contact you should they have questions or concerns. That one call or e-mail makes trickier conversations later in the year go much easier.

Schedule you time

The school year is a marathon, not a sprint. You need aid stations to get through it. Whether time is spent reading (for pleasure, not professional development), hanging out with friends (and not talking about lessons or students), blogging (about things other than work), Netflix... whatever. Find time for non-work-anything activities. No e-mail, updating grade books, looking at student work, or focusing on lessons. Schedule 'you time' on your google calendar. Make it sacrosanct.

Be kind to yourself 

Give yourself some grace. We preach to students that mistakes are expected. We tell them it's ok to misunderstand directions. We encourage them to push their limit knowing they'll fall along the way. We tell them "you're just doing this for the first time, of course you'll make a mistake!" Well, this is the first time you're teaching this curriculum to these specific students. If it is ok for them to make mistakes, it's ok for you to make mistakes as well.

Reflect

But focus on the positives. Ask yourself, "What went well about my day?" before you get into, "what would I have changed?" SO often as educators we focus on the one group that didn't get the concept, the one student that caused a disruption, or the one part of the lesson that bombed. Start with positives. Then, anytime you reflect on a negative say, "yup, but (this) and (this) went well."


There are many many more thoughts on my mind that could be on this list.  I'm curious what would you add? Leave a comment below about something that I missed that is on your essentials list!

Reflection, Pooh Style

I recently started my 20th year of teaching.  I've been reflecting on so many things over the past month - how education has changed...how it hasn't...how I have...and how I still haven't.

One thing that has been consistent in my twenty years is the importance of building culture both in the classroom and also with the staff within a school.  I'm sure most of you have really focused on classroom culture over your first couple of weeks of school - but what have you done to build your relationships with your co-workers?

I recently read some quotes from Winnie The Pooh (or more specifically A.A. Milne.)  As I read them, I reflected on how they relate to building relationships within a staff...

A staff has to be thoughtful of others. It is a long school year.  There are bumps and obstacles.     How do you show thoughtfulness to others?  There are so many ways in a school: Take someone's lunch duty. Buy donuts for the staff lounge for no reason.  Give out balloons. Be unexpected.

This quote had two meanings for me.  First, so many teachers are in need of help.  You can't wait for them to come forward and announce they need help. Many beginning educators don't even know WHAT to ask for.

Second, we tend to flock around the same people all the time.  We see them at our division meetings, at our parent meetings, and at duties.   At the next staff meeting instead of sitting with your usual crew, go sit with someone from a different division.  Say hi. Share what you did over the weekend. Make a new connection.

It is so easy at a school to let everything get to you.  Students yell at you or tell you that you lost their work.  Parents hear their child's side of a story and come to you with fire in their eyes.  It is so important to step back and realize why you are doing it all. That student needs you.  That family needs you. You are helping to change their future.  

I am so grateful that I work in an industry where my impact can be felt both short and long-term. I am making a difference in the lives of so many - my students, my families, and my co-workers.  I can't say it is the most rewarding profession since I have no reference point for that, but I can't imagine getting so much love and satisfaction out of doing something else. 

So here is your challenge this week:  Go make a new friend. Buy them a balloon.  Tell them you are grateful that they work in your building.  Go be Pooh.