Containers

Happy Break, or Almost Break, to those who are just getting one.
Whether you stay home or travel, may the week be one of rest and relaxation. Taking time for you is the most important thing you can do. This week We were listening to some mindfulness exercises and considered the metaphor of a container. I shared the following with our faculty.

A few thoughts…  on Containers… we have to take care of what’s inside.

You are an important member of this department. You bring courage, creativity, insights, and experiences that will help our candidates (aka students) become great teachers. There are three things I hope for.

First, within your own container, I hope that you will take care of yourself. Take care of your yourself physically – take walks, exercise, eat right; mentally – write, explore something within your field, read; emotionally – play, do something that makes you happy, garden, hike; socially – intentionally activate your support group, have a cookout, work with an organization; spiritually – meditate, pray, what ever “centers” you, embrace it.

Second, consider how in the container of your workplace: your office, your classroom, with your advisees, your program, your outreach, your colleagues, your responsibilities here, the committees you get to work with, how can you make it better? How can we find ways to help one another take care of our students? As we seek ways to reach out to our candidates, current and prospective, perhaps we can look deeper into their needs and have more conversations with one another, with and about them. 

Third, consider the container of this department. We are in a small container. May we find ways to take better care of one another, to celebrate and encourage one another, to listen and inspire one another. May we ensure that our outreach efforts reflect passion for making a difference in the lives of children and educators in this region, this state. May we create a container that is welcoming, collaborative, creative, and supportive

In some schools, teachers are receiving the, 'Are you planning on returning?' letter. I know for some that can be challenging. Do I stay or look for another position? We have and are having job fairs in our region. Wherever you end up, may you look to embrace yourself, the students you will serve, and the colleagues you will live in community with.

5 Minute Yoga Break!

Happy Today.
I hope you are well.  I was at a meeting yesterday where someone was proposing a program that when implemented 20 minutes a day increased students' math scores compared to control groups that didn't receive the additional 20 minutes a day.
I love the reality that 20 minutes a day can impact change. I wondered, what if it had only been ten minutes a day, would that make a difference?

Suppose students had 20 minutes of art, or music, or yoga each day? Or what about time to dream, to create, to have deep conversations of self or community?
One of the things all teachers try to do is set the tone in their classroom. But setting the tone goes well beyond a list of rules.

So in middle schools, there is this thing called Advisory. It is time set during the day to build community, solve problems, set goals. The focus of advisory is to develop the social-emotional resiliency of young adolescents. When I was first learning about advisory I worked at doing activities, but I didn't realize the importance of naming 'community.' I now think, as team members, we need to teach our students how to take care of themselves and one another using words like 'our team, our community.'

But, it is only going to work if we, the teachers, are grounded in our own understanding of the needs of young adolescents and how those needs play out in our own lives... so that we lead by example. So I encourage you to find ways to take care of yourself socially and emotionally, physically and intellectually. Time to set goals!!

One thing that helps us be more centered is yoga. The following video clip was created by a Tammy Clark, a faculty member at UNCW. And if you don't have 20 minutes to see a difference, the following five minutes can be done by you and if you want, show it to your students. Oh yes, and don't forget to breathe! (:
Here is to a peaceful week. Take a 5 Minute Yoga Break .

Nancy

Mindfulness in the classroom

How are you?
I hope this finds you well and heading toward the 'home stretch' of this school year! It may be time to teach your students to take a few deep breaths at the beginning of each class. (:

I have been taking online courses related to Mindfulness, what I refer to as 'the art and science of being present and aware' of how we react and respond to events and experiences. The overall premise is that sometimes we need to take a breath, or two, or three. When we take time to notice our surroundings, to notice our own breath, and our own openness to hear others, we can increase communication, increase our own patience and openness to hear our colleagues.

Want to try it?  Okay, sit comfortably, feet on the floor, back straight... try to relax, take a deep breath in, hold it for a few seconds, then blow it out your lips as if you were blowing through a straw. No conversation, just breath. As you breathe without looking around, consider what you hear, or are aware of?

It is a simple exercise. Very often when our lives are busy, when we have deadlines and papers due, reports and conversations, it is nice to take a mental break. May the next few weeks be warm and caring.

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!

I hope this finds you all well. It is warming up in the south, which can be a bit dangerous in middle school classrooms. Breathe! And help them learn to breathe.  I have two things to share.

Yesterday, a committee of beginning teacher leaders in our region met to talk about what we are doing for beginning teachers. There is much research on the importance of mentoring and supporting beginning teachers. This blog, celebrates each of you where you are, where you have been, and where you are going on your journey. We want you all to know how valuable you are, how much we respect you, and we want you to know we care and believe that the children in this country are lucky to have you as their mentors. So, yes to mentoring one another whether you are in Year one or six, or thirty-eight!

The second thing is that at our meeting, the WRESA representative (WRESA - western region educational services alliance) contacted principals in our region to ask what beginning teachers need. Most years principals ask for more technology integration, diversity training, classroom management. And while those were mentioned she shared that principals overwhelmingly are asking for help enlightening teachers on mental health issues and how to create safe environments in the classroom. The social-emotional well-being of our young adolescents has been at the center of middle level advocacy since the beginning of this movement and my hope is that there is a revitalization of the sources and conversations that relate to making our classrooms safe. We have much to learn, and much to share. May we all take a breath and tune into the needs of our students, ourselves, and one another.

Finally, Happy Teacher Appreciation Day! You are loved! You are valued! And you are making a difference. We hope to see you at the middle school conference in November (amle.org. 10% discount with NR10). It is in Philadelphia! Wouldn't that be fun? As a gift, I have made and will share two short videos that relates to the ocean and young adolescents. The second one was completed by one of my students and relates the topic to rafting. The videos include references to student learning outcomes related to our diversity intensive, and it references characteristics of exemplary middle schools outlined in This We Believe. Enjoy your day!
Mine:      https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B7Nv170QJF-jSE9iSDRkSkczTVE
Juliett's:  https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BypcbToN7db7d3MxVmFpY0x1Y2NOcWdNR05wM3dDOEs1Zi1R