Thursday, December 31, 2015

It's All About Who You Know



     As the year comes to a close I can't help but think about the interpersonal relationships that have gotten me to where I am today. We have all heard people say, "It's all about who you know." Usually this has a negative connotation and is used to justify someone's accomplishments. I prefer a more positive perspective. This post explores who I know and why knowing them has been so beneficial to me as an educator.

Family
     There is probably very little explanation necessary for this one. I needed my mom to tell me to try an education class in college just in case I decided not to be a clinical psychologist (there's always time for that as a second career, right?). Her guidance is vital. I need my dad to continue to encourage me to follow my dreams and to keep me safe. My younger sister is my daily motivation to be a good role model. Many of my cousins are teachers and college professors. I need them to inspire me with their passion and dedication to the craft.

Significant Other and/or Best Friend
     I am fortunate enough to get to marry my best friend next year. He is a teacher too and I cannot tell you how much I value that! We are so lucky to get to bounce ideas off of one another and celebrate classroom victories together! (This most often happens during our nightly grading sessions.) My best friend became a school counselor and she just gets me and the whole teacher thing which is also invaluable. Even if these two confidants of mine weren't teachers, I would need them just the same to cry and scream and laugh with.

Students
     Well this is a given, I would not be the teacher I am today without the students that I have had the honor of teaching thus far. They are kind and compassionate and brilliant and confident and clever and SO FUNNY. Fourth grade is a special year when they start to feel more like the big kids in school and really learn to be role models. I am not sure if I could ever leave teaching in the classroom because I believe that children are the best co-workers.
     One day during my first year of teaching I was wiping away some tears just as a the students entered the classroom. I was trying my best to look chipper and excited for the day. A student came up to me and gave me a smile and said, "Miss L. I am so sorry that your allergies are still bothering you! Can I get you a tissue?" This was a beautiful reminder of how innocent and empathetic children are. There are very few jobs out there where you encounter situations like this daily!

Colleagues
     I learned to love teaching from some of the best teachers around. My 4th grade team has the most creative ideas when I am struggling. They are there to celebrate successes and solve problems too. I have amazing reading specialists and instructional support staff at my school. This is the second year that I have been blessed with a brilliant special education certified co-teacher. My list of new instructional strategies is a mile long because of these educators and I love them for it!

Administrators
     I am so lucky to have amazing administrators at my school who support my endeavors. They are full of wisdom and valuable techniques that have helped in countless situations. I know that I thrived during my first years of teaching because of their leadership and support.

My Former Teachers
     I had so many wonderful teachers growing up. My fond memories of school helped shape me into the educator that I am today. Make sure to take the time to reach out to your teachers and thank them. We all know how much it means when a former student thanks us.

My PLN
     I started my online PLN this year via my Twitter account and what a fun journey that has been! I have learned so much from participating in chats and following educators from around the world. I look forward to continuing to share ideas and resources with my PLN in 2016 and beyond!

     Next time someone tells you "it's all about who you know," agree with them. Take a minute and tell them that success is about who you know because you cannot do it alone. I could not have done 2015 without all of the people above and many others who I didn't include. Thanks to everyone for being my network of support. Happy New Year!

   


Saturday, November 28, 2015

Motivating a Reluctant Writer

     'Please elaborate' is a phrase that I often say to my 4th grade students or write down on their classwork. Tell me more! Explain this idea! Add more detail! These are some of my other favorite phrases that can also be found dancing across the margins of my students' papers. (Yes, I do use a lot of exclamation points because I am truly excited to know more about their thinking.) So, when I finally got up the nerve to start a blog, it only seemed natural that I would give myself this same advice. 
     My journey to blogging began when I first started to delve further into the world of educational technology thanks to the encouragement of my friend and former colleague Cathy ( @iwearthecrowns ). I am fortunate enough to have a 1:1 Chromebook classroom and I wanted to explore more resources for my students. She encouraged me to develop my PLN and connect with other educators. I started my Twitter account earlier this year @mermaid2teach . I also attended #NJPAecet2 this year. This is where I really learned about the power of my PLN in person. I made many valuable connections and gained more confidence in my ability to contribute to the educational community. 
     I left NJPAecet2 with a renewed sense of purpose and excitement. I began to participate in various Twitter chats thanks to my friends Steve ( @mr_isaacs ) and Barry ( @barrykid1 ). I found that I was getting responses to my tweets from people that I really admired. Not only were they responding, they were validating my opinion and sometimes even re-tweeting it! After a few months of these chats a few friends started to suggest that I turn some of my ideas into blog posts. This thought had crossed my mind a few times but I always dismissed it because I wasn't sure that anyone would be able to connect with my reflections in a meaningful way.
     Recently, I was again encouraged to blog by another PLN connection Sean ( @smgaillard ). This was a huge compliment because I always enjoy his blog posts and writing style. I shared my concern with him that others wouldn't be able to relate to my posts. He responded that he would read and shared that his colleague Natalie ( @NKrayenvenger ) would too. This was the final push that I needed to start blogging. 
     Next, I wondered where to start. This is when the idea for "Please Elaborate" was born. I realized that I had been exhibiting all of the classic signs of a reluctant writer! I had been putting off my writing because I wasn't sure that others would appreciate it. I couldn't come up with post ideas because I didn't know where to start. I told others that I planned to start blogging but never followed through. It was time to apply the advice that I give to my reluctant writers to myself.
     First, I needed time to sort all of this out. Thanksgiving weekend has been a great time for me to reflect and plan for what comes next. Like many teachers, I made myself a checklist. I decided that my blog would follow my "Please Elaborate" theme by elaborating on ideas and tweets that I feel strongly about and want to reflect on. I also decided that my blog posts will be relatively brief (except for this one!). I read blog posts by Sean, Natalie, and others in my PLN as blog research. Lastly, I set a goal for myself of at least one blog post per month. I don't want to put too much pressure on myself but if I am going to get better at this, I need to practice! 
     These are the tips that I share with my writers too. Give yourself enough time to plan, write, and revise. Make a checklist and plan your writing out (even if it is only for a minute). Pick a topic and stick to it. Know your audience and choose an appropriate amount of writing for the assignment. Hold yourself accountable, just because you budgeted the time to write doesn't mean you will do it. Finally, just write something! Writing something is always better than leaving the page blank because YOUR IDEAS MATTER. 
     My ideas matter and they are relevant whether thousands of people read this post or just me and my mom. This is my biggest take away from my journey to blogging. As teachers we find it easy to share our wisdom with students but sometimes we need to take our own advice! If you made it this far, thank you. Thank you for taking some of your valuable time to read my thoughts. I appreciate you and hope that you find the courage to try something new too!