Thursday, August 14, 2014

I Can Say I'm Sorry

Most times when you're on the outside looking in, you have visions of how things should be on the "inside". As a coach, I always had this vision of how things should be within the classroom. I secretly frowned upon those who were not implementing county initiatives or best practices properly. I hadn't been long out of the classroom so I used that as my stripes to say, "I know what I'm talking about, I know how this is supposed to work. 

Now I find myself on the inside. I'm on the inside trying to make my out of box thoughts about teaching and learning fit. Well I'll be darn! Those ideals in which on the outside looked like it would fit within the round hole carved out for the round peg have now become square. 

So yes, while I struggle to make what's best fit best for my students, I say sorry to myself. Sorry to each teacher I secretly judged even if for a second. Sorry for each teacher who was in the midst of their productive struggle and I didn't stop to ask how they were managing it all. 

I can say sorry...

Monday, August 11, 2014

The Power of Leading By Example

A good friend of mine passed on "Daring Greatly" by Brene Brown.  It's a book about vulnerability and whole-hearted living.  I'm currently on the chapter in which she is discussing how to dare greatly in parenting.  The statement that is resonating with me is "Be the adult you want your child to be when they grow up".  This is huge because it calls you out as a parent to lead by example.

Now as I look to relate this to being a teacher leader, I still hear the same call to lead by example.  Be the teacher you want your colleagues to be, be the leader you want your colleagues to be.  It's not about enforcing non-negotiables or hoarding your ideas and resources.  It's first doing what is best for kids, then telling others about what the students were able to do as a result.  This isn't done in a "I'm the bomb.com and this is what I'm doing with my student" fashion.  It's a "the kids were really engaged today when we did this..." fashion.  This is when you share student work, student experiences and provide the opportunity for others to use your resources.  You approach this humbly, so not to bring glory to yourself, but to shed a light on the goodness that is happening with student engagement and performance.

When you do things like that, you have the opportunity to get excited when a teammate decides the textbook isn't engaging enough for their students.  So they come to you asking for the very thing you wanted them to use from the beginning, rich and engaging math tasks :-).

It is my belief that when a teacher switches from the textbook to GA state math frameworks, a math angel gets its wings!


Saturday, August 9, 2014

SMPs According to 7th Graders

These 7th graders were asked to analyze and interpret the Standards for Mathematical Practice. Here are a few:





#Meaningful


Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Being a Teacher Leader

Just a quick thought on being a teacher leader. 

A teacher leader is anyone who can lead by example. Someone who shares their thinking without making others feel inferior. It's being innovative and not being afraid to fail because you know you are carving out a trail for others to follow. 

Our schools are filled with teacher leaders, many of whom don't think they are. They're the ones who are being secretly watched by their peers to see what great things are happening. 

I salute those teacher leaders who aren't in it for the recognition or praise but are simply doing what's best for the greater good!