Blog - Rachel What If

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Student-Centered: Just Another Buzzword?

In education, there are certain words we all know, and somewhere, in the back of the room, a teacher is rolling their eyes about them. We’ve heard them so many times now that there are memes all over the internet about them. This one from Teacher Misery is my favorite by far:

Despite a common language around student-centered practices, we are still heavily focused on the teacher and teaching. Let’s not let this important way of teaching become just another buzz word in education. Friends don’t let friends become memes.

Learning vs. Teaching

Let’s start with a quick experiment. Can you name ten teaching strategies off the top of your head? Now, how about ten learning strategies? Or even five? Notice the difference?

Every school I visit, it’s the same story. The talk is always about teaching – what’s working, what’s not, what we teachers need to do differently. And when those test scores don’t budge or grades start slipping? You bet we’re quick to look at the teachers. It’s like we’ve got blinders on, focusing only on how we teach instead of how kids actually learn. We can’t expect different results, if we keep doing the same things. Or having the same conversations.

Buzzword Alert!

In a previous post, I describe a shift that occurred in my thinking about what it actually means to run a student-centered classroom. Teachers want to do better, often trying new things and taking risks within their comfort zones. When we talk about becoming more student-centered, we begin with the data, in an effort to be more objective and set goals. Where things get fuzzy is in the goals setting. By setting goals around instruction, we are still fundamentally teacher-centered – just with a new label.

Consider this: When we analyze student data, set goals based on that data, and select teaching strategies to target growth, where is the student in all of this? We’re still primarily focused on what the teacher does, not on how students learn.

Don’t get me wrong – data has its place. But when we reduce students to numbers and colors on a chart, we lose sight of the individual learners behind those figures. We must remember an undeniable truth: teaching does not cause learning to happen. Learners cause learning to happen. It’s a choice the learner makes.

“Just because you taught it…”

James Anderson’s book “Learnership” offers a paradigm shift in how we approach education. Anderson says, “We don’t have a teaching problem in our schools, we have a learning problem.” This subtle but crucial distinction changes everything.

We invest considerable time and resources ensuring teachers know how to teach and providing them with the best tools and curriculum. But what skills are our learners developing? We are living in a time where AI can perform basic computations and language tasks, so we must equip our students with skills that make them uniquely human.

A Touch of Madness

Remember when your parents freaked out if you said you wanted to be an artist or a musician? “There’s no money in that!” they’d say. Well, guess what? The game has totally changed. With AI taking on the repetitive and monotonous tasks, our individuality is our greatest asset. Coming up with wild new ideas and connecting unrelated things will be the the most valuable skill sets. Having “A touch of the Madness,” Legendary movie producer Lawrence Kasanoff says.

Anderson also asks us to consider what learning actually is. Essentially, it’s about creation. It’s about forging new neural pathways, generating novel ideas, and making unexpected connections. He also redefines what it means to have a growth mindset in these ways. In this new era of education, we must nurture these distinctly human capabilities.

Find a way or make a way

True learning is about finding a way when there isn’t an obvious path. It’s about problem-solving and critical thinking. When faced with a challenge, learners must either find a way or create a new path.

In a more practical sense, learning in action involves making choices. Remember Robert Frost’s famous lines, “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by”? Learning requires making choices. It’s an active process where the learner decides to engage, to change, to grow.

Focus on Learning Strategies

As educators, parents, and lifelong learners ourselves, we must shift our focus from teaching strategies to learning strategies. Here are some actionable steps we can take:

Encourage metacognition: Teach students how to think and talk about their own learning processes.
Foster creativity: Be open to creative ideas from others and try to connect them to content.
Develop agency: This isn’t simply voice and choice, to coin another overused and abused buzz phrase, its about supporting students through challenges and allowing them to make their own choices to overcome them.
Practice failure: Reframe mistakes as learning opportunities rather than setbacks.
Debrief Experiences: Pay attention to the learning as it is happening and facilitate discourse that names the learning strategies students were using.

The future of education isn’t about perfecting our teaching; it’s about empowering our learners. We have to shift the investment of time and effort into how students are learning, rather than what they are learning.

The amazing thing is that we are creating the future every day. Let’s start creating a future where students understand that getting better is more valuable than doing your best. Getting better is about process over product, growth over outcomes, taking risks, etc. You know, living your best buzzwords.

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How I’m Learning To Be More Student-Centered

If you are like me, we grew up in a time where if you wanted to listen to music you turned on the radio. To have to wait for the weekend and Casey Kasem’s Top 40 to feel that favorite song flow through your veins was absolute torture!

I’ll always be grateful to my daughter for introducing me to the world of Spotify. My car and I are center stage for Celine’s It’s All Coming Back to Me Now whenever the urge strikes.

Student-Centered Learning

Stick with me here, Student-Centered learning is to Spotify, as Teacher-Centered learning is to radio. In other words, creating a Student-Centered classroom is not only a new way to teach, it really is a better way. Student-Centered classrooms puts students in the driver’s seat. Ultimately, learners make decisions about what to study, and how and why the topic is interesting to them.

If you have ever taught in a classroom of at least 20 students, written lesson plans based on standards, or been held accountable for test scores, you might be asking some questions like:

“How would I manage 20+ students who have all decided to study different things?”

“What about units, standards, pacing guides, data, and curriculum maps?”

“How do students know what is important to learn, how to learn it, and why?”

These questions will most likely not be answered in this blog post. What I intend to do here is give you two stories: One failed attempt at student-centered instruction and one successful attempt at student-centered. Both took place with the same group of fourth grade students, the same teacher, similar content, and a growth mindset.

Questions about student-centered practices — Risk taking is part of the process!

A Failed Attempt

When my district first introduced us to a student-centered model for instruction, I was excited. Until I actually tried it. My somewhat orderly classroom visited a town a little south of Chaos (Friends anyone?).

Students were given a goal setting sheet, and a preplanned math menu. Our math block consisted of students setting goals, getting onto their computers and following the unit plan I had set up for them. They watched videos to learn concepts, practiced the concept with a partner or individually, and signed up for a conference with me when needed.

Here is where it all fell apart. I’ll let you imagine the rest.

The Misunderstanding

You already know what I am going to say about theory and practice. Let’s just say they almost always don’t have anything in common. They might seem like the perfect couple, but when you get real, practice always wins.

In that short description of my first attempt at creating self-directed, self-paced learners, you can clearly see my misunderstanding of what student-centered actually means. Just because I gave students a goal setting sheet and a menu in no way means that this process was at all student-centered.

Basically, students were still required to move through curriculum, with very little flexibility, and with absolutely no student input on the planning. I planned units based on the curriculum, found relevant teaching videos, gave them a couple of choices about how to practice those concepts, and expected them to wait for my attention and sign up for a conference. Yikes.

Let’s just say our math block became a thing to be dreaded. Like, maybe lets just skip math today.

When I look back on this attempt, I can see the good intentions underneath. What I wanted was to give students an opportunity to move at their own pace, to honor their ability to problem solve, and more time for me to meet with them individually.

All good things, all good things.

Needless to say, this idea fell by the wayside pretty quickly. Leave it to a classroom of twenty five fourth graders to deliver a useless practice to the chopping block, pronto.

Once you take a risk like this to change your practice and fail, you can go back to the way you did things, or…

Try something else!

A Successful Try

Focusing on those good things I knew I wanted more of in our classroom, and wanting to move toward a more student-centered learning experience, I decided to try again.

One of the good things that is part of a student-centered classroom is honoring the student’s ability to problem solve. Part of problem solving includes a bit of struggle. (Read more about how and why struggle is actually fun in this blog post.)

How could I give students an opportunity to problem solve, and move toward a more student-centered practice?

Give them a problem to solve and see what happens! That might seem like a no-brainer, but here is how it went.

student centered think time — Use math notebooks as a place to store thinking.

Silent Think Time

To begin our math workshop, students learned a new routine. They were to have their math notebooks ready, turned to a new page, and honor a silent think time. Student’s were given a “juicy” problem to read through individually.

The silent think time gave them each an opportunity to at least read through the problem one time. Students were also given a strategy, which we had already created an anchor chart for, which included problem solving annotations.

During think time, I would circulate to take notes about what students were doing. Are they trying something? Are they annotating? Did they choose a strategy? This is similar to a conference, although I am not actually conferring, just noticing. I might nudge a student or two to volunteer to share their thinking after think time.

Students Teaching Students

At the end of the silent think time, students were invited to share with their classmates any thinking they had done about the problem on the doc camera.

Students may or may not have a solution at this point, and hopefully, the problem is juicy enough that it will take a bit more effort than what is required by one student in such a short time.

Student’s are taking a risk in this moment. Not having an answer is actually encouraged. What we are honoring is the process. What did you try? How did you know where to start? What can I learn from you?

At this point, students are fully engaged, looking for ways to either replicate a strategy, or build upon someone’s ideas.

Now we can move toward the cooperative part.

Cooperative Learning: A Student-Centered Practice

Hopefully, the problem is juicy enough that its going to take some manipulatives to work toward a solution. Hopefully, the problem is hearty enough that its going to take students working together, discussing, debating, and iterating to come to a solution.

However students decide to work together, in pairs or small groups, naturally they understand the value of working with someone else to solve the problem. Student’s start to gather materials. Are they going to draw this problem out or build it? Are they going to act it out? Will they need a graphic organizer?

Once again, my opportunity to confer is everywhere. How are they planning together? What cooperative structures could support their learning together? What Math Practices will they need to employ? Are there additional tools I can suggest? How will they show their understanding? Is the struggle just right?

The Debrief

Before you know it, time is running out. The school day is ending, or we have to move on to a special, a lunch, or ug, even recess. A student-centered learning experience like this is exciting. Most of the time, student’s don’t want it to end, especially if we don’t have a solution yet.

Our first attempt at this took us an entire week! Perhaps you are thinking “Must be nice.” Yes, it was nice.

Remember the goal here is to build a student-centered classroom. We honor the student’s ability to solve problems, participate in struggle, make choices, and all those good things. But how will we know if we’ve accomplished anything? You’ve got to debrief.

~~Every chance you get.~~ Make it happen.

How did you grow as a mathematician today? — Anchor chart for an inclusive debrief experience. www.mathcoachcorner.com

During the debrief we notice, name, and celebrate our experience. When we name our experiences, our triumphs, and our challenges, we place value on them. We record these thoughts and feelings on an anchor chart and we honor how we have grown. Growth is the goal. How can we measure growth if we aren’t noticing it, naming it, and recording it?

Debrief allows for authentic discourse as well. All voices are valued, we listen and make decisions about how we will move forward. We may even find new ways of thinking or talk about how our thinking has changed as a result of our experience. Students might get the chance have to convince one another that their strategy is correct, explaining their thinking with writing and visuals.

And what do you know? We now have a student-centered learning experience. All because we dove into a juicy problem.

The Take Aways

All this to say, try something different.

My view on student-centered learning was forever changed for the better because I decided to try something new, in just one class, for just one subject. This small change centered on my ability to set up a new routine, and honor the student’s ability to solve problems.

Here is a pdf of the plan and procedure for this lesson you can easily use as a model for your own version of this story. I hope you will try it and see what happens. If you already do something like this, please share in the comments!

Don’t forget to have fun!

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Teaching Writing is a Problatunity.

I’d like to use a word I just read in a book, used by an actual doctor, which makes it a real word. The word is problatunity. My Grammarly app just put a big red line under that word telling me I better fix it. I’ll use it in a sentence: Teaching writing is a problatunity.

Don’t you just love when people take two words and smoosh them together and make a new word? Why not? Its two things we know, problem and opportunity, and creating something new and more delicious. Like the first person who decided to put peanut butter and jelly into the same sandwich. Problatunity.

Yes, it’s a problem and an opportunity. In order to turn that frown upside down, let’s focus on the bright spots, build on the strengths, and look for what’s working.

Here’s some opportunities:

Writing is connection. A writer uses craft and structure to reach out into the world, searching for another heart and mind to create a spark. A spark, which if tended and encouraged can become a fire, giving warmth and comfort.

Writing is expression. It’s art. We have this desire to be seen and loved for who we really are. Writing is a mirror for ourselves and others. It shows us the way, or reminds us of what is important.

Writing is a conversation, happening regardless of time and space. If there were no one to read the writing, would it still be writing? If a tree falls in the woods…

Here’s some problems:

Writing is a privilege. There are many who might like the freedom to raise their voice without persecution. Most of the time the persecution comes from the very same pen that did the writing in the first place.

Writing is translation. It is essentially trying to express abstract thoughts into organized concrete symbols on a page in a way that conveys meaning. Think of all the processes those thoughts have to go through, all the decisions that have to be made. Ug, it’s exhausting. I’m exhausted right now.

Writing is hard. Words on a page are tangible, real. Words you write have the potential to stay. Anything you write can and will be used against you. Yes, we have freedom of speech in this country, but a verbal contract just isn’t what it used to be. I’m just sayin’, seems like writing matters a bit more.

Writing is rules. Every good writer knows the rules. All of them? And how do you use a semicolon again? Don’t get me started on spelling.

Here’s the problatunity:

According to something called the Standford Study of Writing, we are in a writing revolution folks. Hallelujah. More people are writing now than ever before: social media, emails, reports, books, posters, blog posts, etc. Writing is actually working. As in, it’s doing some work in the world. Writing is creating change. And as things change, rules change.

However, the rules may not be changing, we are. This writer calls rules lampposts in an ash-ridden apocalypse. Boy do I love me some lampposts on a dark and dreary night.

Maybe this means we actually like rules, just not when they hold us back. We want to get out there and create new rules, rules that keep us safe but also allow us to explore and discover and create our own rules.

Its kinda hilarious that the problem is almost always the solution. Life, this funny thing. Rules are the way, know them, break them. I’m sure some yoda-like character said that in some movie, somewhere.

Here’s the application:

How can we take what is working in the world and recognize it in our students? That’s really what we should be doing every day right? Seeing ability in our kids, naming it for and with them, and guiding them through how to use it in powerful ways.

Students are learning the rules. All the time. Rules for this classroom are different than the rules in that classroom. Rules for the cafeteria, rules for the playground. Rules for friendships, rules for safety, and on and on we go.

To be honest. I love rules. I almost dare say I can’t function without them. When I walk into a room, I immediately try to figure out the rules. Knowing the rules helps me understand how to behave, because I also like to have fun. Having fun usually includes breaking the little rules. The really tiny rules. The ones no one really cares about. Ya, I’m that crazy party animal breaking all the tiny invisible rules. Back it up everyone.

The point is, how can we teach our kids the rules, but also how to break them?

Let’s remember that the rules for writing are lampposts. They are guidelines. Practice. Write every single day. Play. We learn the rules and we decide if they apply today. Writing, people, I’m talking about writing.

Here’s the Practice:

When teaching writing in our classrooms, we want our students to see more of the opportunities and less of the problems. It is time to lower the stakes. Low-stakes writing is defined by where the value is placed. As teacher’s we often place all the value in writing on the rules, otherwise known as grammar and conventions.

What if we emphasized the value of the student thought, expression, and ideas? Students have learned to keep quiet. Specifically, “be quiet” is generally a rule in education. Let’s break it.

What if we develop a practice of writing where none of the rules matter? What matters is that they stop editing and revising their thinking before it ever even gets to the page. You can bet they have a lot to say. I dare you to sit down with an eleven year old and ask them about anything.

Here’s the Magic:

Set a timer. Set it for 2 minutes. Stop. Count your words. Set a goal for more words tomorrow. Share your writing if you want.

That’s it folks. The magic is in the time limit. Its the only rule.

Ah, and rules are meant to be broken.

Read my 6 Big Reasons to Love a Writer’s Notebook post for additional classroom structures that will have your students loving writing and you reading their minds!

What Do You Do With A Problem by Kobi Yamada speaks to everything I have mentioned above and is a powerful read for humans.

*“When the child finally musters up the courage to face it, the problem turns out to be something quite different than it appeared.”*

Ish by Peter H. Reynolds is one of my favorite mentor texts for supporting students as they learn to let go and write a first draft.

**A creative spirit learns that thinking “ish-ly” is far more wonderful than “getting it right.**
“

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The Name Game- A Powerful Cooperative Learning Strategy

Do a google search for “The Name Game” and you might never forgive me for getting that old tune stuck in your head all day: “Judy, Judy bo Budy, banana-fana fo Fudy…” How did that song become such a sensation?

Annoying soundtracks aside, The Name Game I am sharing here is a powerful, easy, and fun cooperative learning strategy that you will set on repeat every chance you get.

Three Good Things

Lots of good things come in threes: The Three Little Pigs, the original Star Wars, the Sanderson Sisters, etc. When facilitating The Name Game, just remember the number three. You will need three balls, or other objects to throw, at least three people, and the three rules below:

Say the person’s name that you are going to throw the ball to before you throw it.
Throw the ball in a way that the person can catch it.
Throw the ball to the same person.

The First Ball-Follow the Rules

These “footbags” or hacky sacks are the best for the first and second rounds

Don’t be fooled by the implied simplicity of The Name Game. Often, when something looks easy, it’s because we have spent countless hours perfecting it to look that way. Think brushing your teeth: years of reminders from your parents, cavities, cleanings, etc.

Be a stickler about following the rules for the first round, and use a ball that is easy to catch and throw, like a beanbag or hacky sack. You will probably even hear a comment or two about how this is too easy, cue the 5th grade boy who is trying to show off by using just one hand.

Rule #1- Say the name

Saying a person’s name shows respect. According to an article in the Washington Post, “A person’s name is the greatest connection to identity and individuality.” When we look at someone and say their name it sends the message that we see them. Such a small thing, but a moment of connection can be the anchor that keeps us steady in a day filled with choppy waters.

Also, saying a person’s name before you throw the ball shows kindness. Again, this is a small act that sends the message, “Don’t worry, I’m not going to throw anything until you are ready.” When you say their name, they will automatically look toward you, signaling they are ready for whatever it is you are going to “give” them.

Rule #2-The trust throw

The second rule to remember is to throw the ball in a way that the person can catch it. This builds trust. “I trust you that you are going to throw it in the right direction, with just the right amount of height and velocity. Not only that, but you trust me, that I will catch it. You believe I can catch it, and we are building a two way relationship-throwing and catching.”

rule #3-same same same

The third rule is to always throw it to the same person. This builds consistency. Consistency creates of feeling of safety in some ways because it sets us up to know what to expect. I know that you are going to throw the ball to me, and I am going to throw the ball to the next person. This becomes the most important part of this game and is a big part of why this is considered a cooperative learning game. We will know we are successful when we can complete at least one full round of ball tosses without dropping the ball. Having met the goal, we can now tackle more complex tasks.

The Second Ball- Create a Sense of Urgency

Just when you think you’ve got it all figured out, i.e., life in 2019, you’ve got another think coming my friend. (Check out this blog post on how we’ve been saying that saying wrong forever.) Adding a second ball to The Name Game adds a level of intrigue and a little thing I like to call urgency.

Knowing that another ball is coming soon, means I have got to get rid of this ball I am holding. Sometimes, when I feel a sense of urgency, I lose my ability to maintain the things I have already built, just little things like respect and trust. I might forget to say your name, I will probably throw the ball a little harder or faster and you will feel set up for failure. But, if we can trust ourselves and each other, we can still be successful and even have fun. Urgency can create a level of challenge that is fun!

Remember the goal is still success still here, so having a second bean bag or hacky sack is best. We are leveling up the challenge just a little at a time. Even leveling up to a tennis ball could be too much for many groups. Always wait until success is achieved, getting the ball all the way through to each person, before adding a level of complexity.

The Third Ball- Ready to Take Risks

People are interesting. When they experience the level of challenge a second ball brings to the group, and they also see the potential for success, they seem a little hungry. They want to live on the edge, or at least take a peek over it. They want to see what it is they are made of. (link to my own blog post)

Don’t get too hasty. We can’t just go jumping off cliffs without first checking to make sure we’ve got a parachute and we know how to use it. Your group has to earn it. I know its just a Name Game folks, but get excited with me.

When you feel they are ready, here are some ways to level up: With young players, adding a small but somewhat heavy stuffed animal will be plenty of excitement and challenge for these guys. Don’t forget high school kids are still kids, and are excited to throw around a little stuffed Bigfoot. You could also add a medium sized ball that bounces, like a basket ball to the mix. Now, participants have to change the way they throw the ball. So its a thinking activity. “I threw that last one, but now I am going to bounce this one.” Brain change.

The Secret Sauce-Debrief

When will be know we are successful? Add an element that seems just out of reach to the group. Say something like, “You will know you are good, really good, when you can add something with a lot of risk.” Anything with liquids adds a lot of risk: a small water bottle, a milk carton, a gallon jug. The stakes get higher when there is a possibility that someone could get covered in milk. Don’t get too carried away. There are risks, and then there are big mistakes. We aren’t going to start throwing knives or anything.

Name what the group has learned, how the experience felt, and what was done to overcome obstacles or correct mistakes. Why was this important? What were the challenges and triumphs? How did you feel and how does this transfer to other tasks in our day and life?

Check out this blog post, four easy ways to bring cooperative learning back to your classroom, for more cooperative learning ideas and to get an overview of the challenge and triumph debrief I use.

Enjoy The Name Game the next time you have a group and some time to build cooperation.

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4 easy ways to bring cooperative learning back to your classroom!

Kinder through grade twelve, these cooperative learning strategies are tried and true ways to get your students thinking out loud and listening in.

For many of us, cooperative learning became a best practice we had to let go of during the pandemic. All of a sudden, it wasn’t so easy to tell your students to “turn and talk” to their shoulder partner to process a concept or idea.

Just like SEL and Self Care became hot topics once we realized how badly they were needed, cooperative learning needs to make a comeback in a big way.

Who is wise? He who learns from everyone.
Ben Franklin

We need to hear different perspectives. We need to process things orally. We need to follow the trail of ideas to a bigger and more meaningful destination! Enter cooperative learning.

This year, I have had the unique opportunity to work in hundreds of classrooms from kinder all the way up to the big kids in their senior year. Unfortunately, many of these smart capable young people just sort of forgot how to have a conversation with someone else.

So, what makes a cooperative learning experience the ticket to a meaningful conversation? How do we uncover all the great ideas lurking beneath the surface in our students?

1. Break the Ice

First, start with an ice breaker. We’ve got to warm up to the idea of sharing our thinking, even with people we know and love. One of the very best ways to melt the ice is with a smile or a laugh. Give them something unexpected to think over, something low stakes. One of the best and fastest ways to do this is with a “would you rather” question.

Would you rather?

Would you rather questions that are a bit quirky send the message that it’s ok to think outside the box. It is even better to take a risk and get a little creative. Best of all, be a little bit weird.

When I ask students if they would rather have an elephant-sized duck or one hundred duck-sized elephants, the responses are genuinely original. Fourth graders are devising a business plan to grow and sell duck-sized elephants, while their classmates are discussing how practical it would be to ride an elephant-sized duck over land, air, and sea.

By having your students move to one side of the room or the other based on their choice, you have now included movement, which is another critical piece to the warm-up for cooperative learning and deeper academic conversations.

Another great way to break the ice and prep those brilliant minds for cooperative learning is to start with a brain break.

Time for a brain break

Brain Breaks are quickly becoming the norm in many elementary classrooms throughout the day. Not only because of all the research showing its benefits to giving kids a learning boost but because they just know it works.

“Pink Toe” is one of my favorite brain breaks because it’s quick and silly and appropriate for any fun-loving group. The person leading this brain break calls out a body part and a color. (I dare you to say the words body part in a fifth-grade classroom.)

Participants will then move quickly to touch the color with the body part called out. For example, if you say “Pink Toe,” everyone must move quickly to something pink, and touch it with their toe. I recommend keeping your shoes on, but do what tickles your fancy (or your toes.)

Now that everyone has smiled and warmed up a bit, let us move on to the cooperative part.

2. Which one does not belong.

This activity is awesome because there is no right answer. In a world where we place so much emphasis on being right, we forget how to have real problem-solving and inclusive conversations.

To get things started, display a large image like the one below from an amazing free resource over at wodb.ca.

The image is divided into four sections, each is related in some way but also has characteristics that make it the odd one out. (If you have any siblings, no further explanation is needed.) Ask your students to take a little think time to look at all four images and choose one that does not belong with the others.

Once they have decided on one, they will need to explain their reasoning for why they chose it. For example, in the image above, the star does not belong because it does not have a red outline like the other shapes.

Now that we are sharing our perspectives and reasonings, students start to discover that there is no wrong answer. Hooray! We can all be right at the same time! World peace. Done.

But what about…?

Here is where that one math teacher always politely reminds us that we cannot have world peace in math. Math must have the right answer. Just take a look at these fun little number talks from wodb.ca and let the madness begin.

I threw the bacon and donuts in there just for fun.

Enter cooperative learning. Group your class into 3-4, give them a new image with four related concepts. They can now have a small group discussion about how the images are all related, and start pointing out the ones that do not belong.

Many students will choose different images for different reasons just naturally. This is what we want. We are hoping for a little disagreement. You may even need to encourage a little more disagreement. Respectful disagreement. Oh, how the world would be a more wonderful place if we could practice a little more respectful disagreement.

3. Classified

Scientifically speaking, not CIA speaking, to classify is to put things into groups. Like goes with like, birds go with bees because they both fly. You know. Determining which things should be placed together and why is fertile ground for a cooperative learning experience.

To begin, give groups of students a stack of cards with images or words on them. Apples to Apples Big Picture is a great resource for this.

Next, students will spread out all the cards to look for reasons to begin to classify the cards into groups. Discussions will naturally begin about why certain cards belong together.

Can you see why these cards were classified together?

To dial up the complexity, ask them to create no less than three groups and no more than six. This makes it more difficult for them to take the easy road with a “people” group and an “animal” group.

Finally, students will label each group that they have created with a word that describes the group as a whole. Students will then travel the room at your signal to see what other students have classified and why.

Depending on the grade level, ask them to either rearrange the cards at each table to form new classifications of cards or ask them to create a new label for the classifications that are created. Either way, enlightening and delightful discourse flows!

4. Match Mine

3rd graders comparing their models to the original

And now for the main event. My number one go-to strategy to get even the toughest of skeptics to believe in cooperative learning is Match Mine. I truly believe we could begin to solve the world’s problems with a few legos and a whole lot of active listening.

To get cooperative learning started, group your students. Three to four students in a group is ideal, and review ideas for handling frustration and noise levels.

To begin, create a model of 8-10 blocks and hide it from the students. Give students their own set of blocks, but be sure they don’t have all the right pieces or all the identical pieces.

For activities to be truly cooperative there must be a common goal the students are working toward. In this case, the goal is to work together to build a duplicate model of the one that is hidden.

One member of each team will be given about 10 seconds to view the hidden model before returning to their team to begin giving them directions on how to build it.

But what about…?

Here is the kicker: the student who saw the hidden model MUST keep their hands behind their backs while giving instructions. Game. Changer. Yes, this can get frustrating, be sure to review some strategies for that ahead of time.

Don’t Forget the Debrief

When you give students the opportunity to reflect and name the experiences they just had during a cooperative learning activity, you open the door for them to own it.

Not only that, you validate their experience. You give it value. A great way to debrief any experience is to draw a quick T-chart. One side will be the challenges and the other will be the triumphs.

Challenges

Having done this hundreds of times, every group names all the same things. The first challenge they always name is that they don’t have the right materials. Time, no hands, and remembering the model are always on the list as well.

Triumphs

The word triumph is fully intentional. Now you get to celebrate the good stuff. The stuff that happened because of the challenges. Fun makes the top of the list, followed by working together, time (again) and finally the opportunity to be creative.

If the teams had exactly the same blocks, they would have missed the chance to get creative.

Isn’t this what we want more of? They do.

I hope you will give these a try and if you do, let me know in the comments how it went!

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Use Time to Design Meaningful Learning Experiences

Educators design meaningful learning experiences to enrich, support, and engage learners by using their time and space intentionally.

Time and space are the foundation upon which we build systems, routines, and procedures that enable us to feel safe. Once we know the boundaries and stay within them, we are more willing to take risks, innovate, and create.

Here are a few ideas for how to design a meaningful morning for you and your students, no matter the circumstances or constantly changing directives. Getting the day started on the right foot sets the course for a smooth and predictable routine. Check back for an additional post on designing the rest of the day.

Part 1: Design the Morning Time

Use Time to Design Meaningful Learning Experiences

When students arrive, we greet them by name and they enter the room knowing they belong and have responsibilities. There are no surprises and they aren’t waiting for you to tell them what to do. A task list is visible to set students up for success.

Meaningful morning experiences include self-awareness and self-regulation tasks, community and citizenship tasks, and mindset and metacognition tasks.

Every moment of the day is precious and carries with it a sense of urgency. A sense of urgency reinforces the message that our time is spent on purpose. And don’t forget that laughter and play can and should be a part of every day.

Set a timer for all tasks, and display it for students to see as well. Ask the students how much time they think they will need for the tasks at hand, then negotiate based on reality. A student timekeeper will be one of the most important jobs you give out, especially at the beginning of the year.

Self Awareness and Self Regulation Tasks

Use Light-Hearted SEL Check-Ins to Design Meaningful Learning Experiences

This Feels Like: Students are welcomed with a sense of belonging and ownership in the space, knowing being a learner is more important than doing the learning. Students know where to put their belongings and when to use them. They know what to expect and they have a say in how some decisions will be made throughout the process.
This looks like: Music playing in the background when students arrive creates a sense of well-being. There is a Social Emotional Check In available to encourage students to reflect on how they feel and how they can regulate those feelings ( Moods of Batman Meme.) There is a familiar schedule which is reviewed each day, with any deviations being clearly defined. Student questions are answered and students have smiled at least once before the learning day begins.

Community and Citizenship Tasks

Use Checklists to Design Meaningful Learning Experiences

Feels like: Having a sense of responsibility means being trusted and relied upon for an important task.
Looks like: Students have a job that is an important part of the success of the community and knows how and when to perform it. Class discussion is a regular part of every day, and all students will be held accountable for the unique perspective they bring. This also includes digital citizenship and how we participate online.

Mindset and Metacognition Tasks

Feels Like: Having a sense of purpose in the time spent on tasks, feeling challenged but not anxious in the material, engaged in curiousity and exploration in possibility and relevance.
Looks Like: A timer is running for all tasks, student work is gradually increasing in complexity, the teacher is listening and conferring, students are set up for success with work that connects and reinforces previous learning. Students are given thinking strategies to use when tackling challenging materials. Students use the learning space as a resource.

Designing the Rest of the Day

Use Time to Create Meaningful Learning Experiences

When you take the time to set up the environment, the environment will pay you back with time.

All of these morning tasks take 30 minutes or less once the school year is well underway. At the beginning of the year, these tasks can take much longer. Remember to put in the initial investment with time, and the space will take over after.

Everyone becomes more efficient when they know what to expect and how to be successful.

Once your morning tasks are complete, move into the Workshop, which is where students begin to dig into the more creative and innovative part of the day. This is where the real learning experiences happen!

Read Use Space to Design Learning Experiences to discover ideas for the remainder of the school day, including more Workshop ideas, mindfulness, and accountability.

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Long Live the Snow Day!

Did you know there are people in the world who have never experienced a snow day? They live in Arizona and I can’t help but feel so sad for them.

It’s difficult to describe the feeling of waking up to fresh piles of snow, especially on a school day, and waiting for the call. The call that gives you permission to stay in your pajamas, make a big breakfast, and stare out the window at the gift of time – the snow day.

How to Get a Snow Day

Most people believe snow days come to us by luck, coincidence, or even prayer. But as the ancient Roman philosopher says…

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”
Seneca

To prepare properly and invite the several inches of snow needed to call off the school day, I advise the following steps to be performed in order.

On a Sunday night before bed, put your pajamas on inside out.
Next, take a bucket of ice and pour it into your toilet.
Tap the side of the toilet bowl with a spoon.

Remember, this is only going to work if there is an opportunity for precipitation in the forecast. Also, it really helps to be in an area cold enough to support the snow. We are looking for a little luck, maybe even a dash of magic, not a miracle.

What to do on a Snow Day

Now that you have your snow day, you’ve had your breakfast, and you’ve stared out the window in utter satisfaction, get outside. You really never know how long it will last and you can bet a snowplow is most likely on its way. is urgency in getting to the freshies with your rail sled, or just any old sled, or skis, or snowshoes before it melts or before that pesky snowplow.

A rail sled is my choice as it has the potential to take you as far as you want to go with just a little grade and the perfect conditions. The true power of a rails sled lies in testing just how far you can ride it. Every trip down the hill stretches just a little farther than the last.

Will Snow Days be a Thing of the Past?

It’s up to us to preserve the magic of a snow day. I hope it doesn’t become a story we tell our kids about the old days, before this thing we call remote learning stole our chances for more play and less work.

We cannot let snow accumulation overnight go unnoticed and uncelebrated!

Long live the snow day! I hope you will stand with me in preserving this celebration of a generous gift of moisture. We must honor the tradition and ignore the urge to continue with business as usual.

The next time there is a hint of snow in the forecast, I’ll be wearing my PJs inside out. Will you?

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Three Reasons You Should Be Reading Picture Books!

I’m a grown-up and I love picture books. Maybe I’m not a very good grown-up. Sometimes I still wake up on Saturday mornings wanting to eat cereal and watch cartoons. I’m thinking this would be a much better start than watching all that bad news.

A great picture book reminds you of you. It reminds you of the simplicity of life. Words and illustrations work together to bring a smile, and if they are really doing their job, they give you goosebumps. Hopefully, everyone has had at least one picture book in their life to help them along, to make them less lonely, to laugh, cry, and feel a little empathy.

Here are three reasons everyone, including grown-ups, should be reading picture books.

Picture Books Have Less Text

Picture books are by definition, short on words and heavy on illustrations. Less writing means more space for the reader to make their own meaning. It is an opportunity for the reader to join in on the conversation, rather than passively listen in. Authors must choose each and every word wisely. I wonder if picture book authors learn to trust their readers or give them permission to make their own meaning while they read. It feels a bit like they are being generous with their ideas, allowing participation in the story.

With less writing, readers have the opportunity to continue the story, play with it a bit more. Perhaps there is more freedom to explore or wonder what could happen next, or what is happening somewhere else. I love it when authors create different versions of popular stories or tell the story from a different character’s perspective. Readers are allowed to dream and laugh and cry and learn in shorter more manageable chunks.

Picture Books are Full of Pictures

One of my favorite picture books is What Do You Do With a Problem, by Kobi Yamada and illustrated by Mae Besom. I have read it aloud to both children and adults and every time it is a meaningful experience. As the problem grows darker and bigger with each turn of the page, we also get to see hints of light and symbols of direction. This book would in no way be as powerful as it is without the pictures.

Sometimes, well meaning teachers will discourage readers from choosing picture books, or books with pictures in general. We worry that readers won’t be able to visualize the story for themselves. Good readers visualize when they comprehend, its part of the fun of reading, but who is to say illustrations do not ignite an even more imaginative experience?

Comprehension is a complex skill and picture books are just the tool to help readers build that skill. They help us notice and name our world or made-up worlds, and they help us identify ourselves in others, otherwise known as building empathy.

Picture Books Inspire More Authors

Obviously, I love books. We need all kinds of texts in our lives. Picture books inspire us for all of the reasons above and more, but perhaps the most exciting reason we need them lies in our ability to see ourselves as authors. Although I haven’t published any books, I know the process isn’t easy. Still, we all have stories to tell. Maybe we will tell them in words, pictures, music, or poetry, but we must tell them. What if we weren’t so intimidated by writing or the process of publishing and we all just told our stories?

Let’s not forget the most important reason of all: Picture books are just a lot of fun. In this world where we are all trying to find a variety of ways to spend our time, reading sometimes gets the short end of the stick. I raise my voice along with this grown-up author who reads picture books regularly and not to a child, just for herself.

Will you join us? If you are interested in filling your life with a little more laughter, a lot more joy, and a whole world of empathy, I’ll be sharing my favorite picks over the next few months.

Happy Picture Booking!

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4 Big Reasons to Love Breakout EDU

Three years ago, I used the majority of my teaching budget (very small) to buy a Breakout Edu Kit. It was, and still is, one of the best teaching tools I have ever invested in.

If you still haven’t heard of this awesome teaching tool, the concept is a little bit like the popular escape rooms popping up all over the world.

Escape room victory photo! L-R my older sister, younger sister, mom, and me

My first Escape Room experience was ~~mind-blowing~~, ~~like going to Disneyland~~, super crazy fun.

After paying for our tickets, our little group was invited into a small room together, where we were asked to give up our cell phones. We listened for a few minutes as the game master explained the rules of the game, and also how he would be available for support if needed. We then followed him into another small room where we were left with one hour to figure things out and get our picture taken to admit defeat or claim ourselves geniuses.

Ok, now can you just read that paragraph again with your teaching lenses on?

I am resisting the urge to italicize the entire paragraph for emphasis. Is this not everything we want in education, maybe minus the small rooms?

My escape room experience left me with no choice but to find a way to recreate as much of it as possible in my classroom. Thankfully, I discovered BreakoutEDU!

So… here are my three BIGGEST reasons for loving Breakout EDU.

Stickers to decorate my box are on the way!

1. Reason #1- Competent and Connected

The way to motivate people to work hard is to give them challenging tasks that they can figure out for themselves while making them feel competent and connected.
USA Today

Struggle doesn’t feel good. That’s why it works. Sometimes we just want people to give us the answers. Actually, I wish someone would please tell me what to do everyday to be blissfully happy, content, successful, and to finally have the carefully sculpted arms of an athlete.

We do have to work for things, especially the things I mentioned above. Work can be a struggle, but it can also be fun. There is nothing more powerful than knowing you can do something. Independence is not about never asking for help, its about being a good learner.

How much could you accomplish if you felt competent and connected? Feeling competent means you are willing to recognize that you do have skills and apply them to the current situation. It may take a loving nudge or an encouraging word, but you can do it! You got this.

Feeling connected means you can also appreciate and recognize that other people have skills and perspectives that can also be applied to the current situation. Collaboration is not just a nice thing to try, it is absolutely essential, especially when solving problems.

Reason #2- Curiosity and Urgency

The concept for Breakout Edu’s kit is a bit different from an escape room in that you aren’t actually trying to break out of a room. Instead, you are working to break into a box.

Why would you want to break into a locked box? What could be so great about whatever is in that box that you need to spend all this time trying to get locks open to get into it? Aha! Your wondering right now aren’t you?

Curiosity. This is what led Alice down the rabbit hole. This is what killed the cat. This is what… ok, ok. You get the point.

This quote is one of my all-time favorites. I might have a thing for Godmothers lately, which you can read about in my previous post, How to Teach Like Cinderella.

Speaking of Cinderella, another important element that is a big part of the breakout experience is the sense of urgency.

Urgency makes things important. Cinderella had to get away from the castle before the clock struck twelve, or…her horses would turn into mice, and all that.

I currently have a Breakout Edu game going at a friend’s house. It’s been over a month now and they still haven’t solved the puzzles. This is not for lack of curiosity. The last game I set up for them had them working on it relentlessly and solved within a couple of hours.

This time, there isn’t a sense of urgency. There really wasn’t before, but it was new and novelty trumps most things. I guess I need to go get my box.

Reason #3- Backward Design and Failure

Every Breakout Edu game starts with backward design. Backward design is the first element of effective instruction and a best practice for planning. It provides the structure, and when you have structure you allow for creativity.

Solving all the puzzles leads to opening all the locks, which leads to getting the box open. When you plan your first breakout, you will start with the final box. You’ve got to think through the game from end to beginning. Now, don’t let your control freak come out here. You are simply setting up a pathway, the absolute magic happens when your players collaborate, problem-solve, create strategies, and fail. They fail and they fail and they fail until they get it right.

The funny thing is failing doesn’t feel so bad when you don’t have time for it. Sulking is a complete and utter waste of time and everyone understands that pretty quickly in a timed breakout.

However, your first breakout should be set up in a way that is building the stamina of your players. Even better if you have players that have done something similar in the past. Do you not love that we are calling our students players now?

Backward Design gives us the gift of a destination, while allowing us to creatively chart our own course.

#4 When Time Runs Out

Time. The thing we all want more of, and the thing we fear the most. You know that feeling when you have a room full of energetic kids and nothing planned to fill that time? Yikes.

When the time runs out on your Breakout Edu game, it runs out. Your players may not have gotten into that box, and this is actually a good thing. Kids, and adults, are so used to getting what they want, when they want it. That feeling you get when you realize its not happening is a healthy thing.

Its called following through with what you said, and also reality. We are not always going to solve everything. What we can do is play a new game and apply what we learned from the last one. This is one of the best parts of the game. Do not let your game end without a discussion about what went well, and what wasn’t working. This is called learning.

I can’t wait to hear about your experiences using a breakout style lesson in your classroom, or with your friends at your local escape room! What if we changed the way education is done by calling ourselves players instead of students.

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How To Teach Like Cinderella

A little magic gives us the proper lenses with which to see the world and ourselves. The pixie dust, sparkles, and twinkle of a wand make things visible we would have never seen with our every day, unmagical eyes.

Teaching during this time, we can learn a lot from a young girl, living in tough times. Teaching like Cinderella helps us to have a little hope, want a little more, and be brave enough to enjoy the experience.

Having a Little Hope

“To wear dreams on one’s feet, is to begin to give reality to one’s dreams.”
Roger Vivier

I used to have a beautiful pair of silver sequined heels. Living on a dirt road in Colorado doesn’t make for the best care of silver sequin shoes, but having them just proved I was prepared. Imagine how happy my godmother would be to find that she had just a little less work to do. Yep, I’m that girl.

You know the kind of girl I’m talking about. She’s the kind of girl who has little mice for friends, she sings as she does her endless, meaningless chores, and when the birds wake her in the morning, she gazes out at the beautiful castle in the sky with a hint of hope.

Cinderella had hope, and that, my friends, is why so many of us love this classic and why it’s been reimagined so many times and in so many ways.

Wanting a Little More

In Disney’s Godmothered, we get to see a twist of this same story in the modern world, where everyone has given up on happily ever after, or maybe even wanting more for themselves.

We also learn a valuable lesson about change. When I saw the godmother’s classroom, where all the godmothers in training go to learn, I immediately recognized it as the typical school setting. Teacher at the front, students in desks, ready to learn. What you just can’t miss in this version is that all the students are gray-haired and probably nearing a hundred.

They are also a bit bored out of their minds.

I get it. We want the comfort of our kids learning the way we learned. We believe it works and we are the proof.

Thank goodness a bumbling young fairy is brave enough to try something new.

And what we learn from her story is that we should listen more and talk less. While we are in the midst of change, and we are trying lots of new things, don’t forget to listen to your kids.

I hope we will find through all of this that what we really need in education has been there all along. It’s inside our students. Listen to them. Help them develop what is already there and our jobs become a lot more focused and a lot less overwhelming.

Having a Little Experience

We have to remember that Cinderella never wanted to go to the ball to marry the prince, it just happened. What she really wanted was to go to the ball to have the experience. She wanted to know what it felt like to be in the castle, to wear a nice dress, to even feel a little beautiful.

When her fairy godmother arrived, she ended up with a whole lot more, but the best gift she was given was the shoes.

The other gift her godmother gave her was a little confidence. It must have taken a lot of bravery for her to climb all those stairs to see inside the lives of the people who lived so differently.

The best part is that all of the tools the godmother gave were just an illusion. The true magic was inside the girl. She was already enough and more, and thank goodness the storytellers at Disney knew how to help us see her before she became a princess.

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6 Big Reasons to Love a Writer’s Notebook

Using a writer’s notebook is a simple way to recognize yourself first as a writer, then as an author. Teaching kids to recognize themselves as writers and authors is one of the best things you can do for them. Here are my six biggest reasons to love a writer’s notebook.

P.S. The following ideas have evolved from some of my favorite resources, but mostly from this book, which was a critical guide for helping me get my students started, and this article which is sooo worth your read.

1. A Writer’s Notebook as a Classroom Structure

A writer’s notebook can be whatever you want it to be. If you are like me, you have a spiral-bound, lined notebook you can get pretty much anywhere for around a dollar. I also keep a digital writer’s notebook in my drive. This is to encourage the use of my daily writing for publishing. The format doesn’t matter, the purpose does. Whatever you choose, it should be something so accessible you practically trip over it daily, reminding you to write something.

The writer’s notebook is not only something you should have and be writing in on a very regular basis, but your students need it as well. For students, I suggest a non-digital format for their notebooks.

Notebooks will become a personal item for students to collect their own thoughts and ideas, and a place to notice the world around them. A writer’s notebook can be a classroom structure that is used as a consistent tool to organize student and classroom thinking all in one place, over an entire year!

2. Making Thinking Visible: Reading Their Minds!

What I love most about writer’s notebooks is that I can look into them and it’s a peek into my student’s brains. I tell my students that their thinking matters so much, that they need to write it down. The writer’s notebook is where we keep and hold onto thinking. It’s also how I know how I can do my best work as their teacher, for them.

By reading their thoughts, I can better understand their thinking. Maybe I will find places to push their thinking, fill in some gaps, or discover something to share with others. What teacher doesn’t want to be able to read their students’ minds? We are literally becoming mind readers here! This website has some great tips and visuals for getting kids started.

3. A Place for Building Relationships

In the back of their notebooks, students have a section called Lit Logs. This is where we practice the skill of writing letters back and forth to each other and connect on a more individual level.

Essentially, it is a conferring tool! Students know they can write to me anytime in the Lit Log and submit it to me, like sending a text message. I will also use this section to ask them to respond to a prompt, or a problem we may be having in our community. Check out my previous post for ideas about how I’ve used the writer’s notebook to give students some mindfulness time.

I collect these and respond with a short, personal message. This really helps them feel heard and seen and is so important for building relationships throughout the year. When you have a strong relationship with your students, they are more likely to engage in the content you are delivering.

4. A Place for Building Learning Communities

The writer’s notebook is also where we store our class thinking, such as copies of anchor charts, mini-lesson notes, and discussion protocols and norms. Students know that they will be held accountable for their engagement in our collaborative learning community. They will also be asked to share some of their thinking with other class members, and it is easier for them to do that if they already have it written down and are prepared in advance.

5. A Place to Experiment

A notebook is by nature a processing tool. Its a place to capture thinking, jot down notes, sketch ideas, experiment and play with language. Students understand that it is their notebook, but that I will be using it to formatively assess where they are in the processing of content.

When they have a place to try things out, they will discover their own thoughts and even be able to see the learning taking place over time. The process is critical to their ability to create a product that can be used for summative assessments later.

6. A Place to Live the Writing Life

Finally, the reason I love writer’s notebooks is because I use them in my own life. People are thinkers, if you can think, you can write. If students can get into the habit of writing down their thoughts, they will pay attention to them more, they can become more metacognitive.

Writer’s notice the world around them, and pay attention to their place within it. Authors know they must practice writing on a regular basis, and that what they have to say is important. They intend to publish their writing for other people to read. By keeping a writer’s notebook over the last several years, I have been able to have articles published in magazines and online.

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How to Build a Self Directed Learner

Teaching students to be more self-aware through Metacognition, Mindset and Mindfulness will build them into more self-directed learners. Self-directed learners are more likely to engage and find motivation because they recognize themselves as learners, rather than participants.

Motivation

Motivation, or reasons for taking action, is a little hard to come by these days. Heck, motivation was a little expensive before the pandemic. Nowadays, you better have a whole lot of intrinsic drive saved up and a heaping tablespoon of purpose to push through to the other side. And what about your students? Purpose? Intrinsic motivation?

In my classroom, motivation was a sometimes thing. As in, sometimes my students were intrinsically motivated, and sometimes they were extrinsically motivated. As a professional, I knew it was a big part of my job to move them from extrinsic to intrinsic. Teaching is an art form in this way because this is where your creativity and enthusiasm can be powerful, and contagious.

Compliance

At the end of each day, my students were given 30 minutes of “Your Time.” Everyone understood that most of the day was considered “My Time.” Really, it was communicated this way: “If you will do the things I and other teachers are asking you to do for most of the day, you will be given a fraction of time at the end of the day to do whatever you wish!” The lines between motivation and compliance get a little fuzzy here.

Is that a bargain or what? It worked so well because I could use this last bit of our day to catch the kids who needed some reteaching, or who were just not able to complete something for whatever reasons they had that day. It also saved me from having to threaten to take away their recess time, which ends up working against you in the long run.

Incentives

Aside from the daily time compromise, there were other mostly successful tactics for getting kids to be compliant. Celebrations are an important part of life, and I wholeheartedly believe we should be celebrating our achievements big or small as often as possible. Incentives are pretty effective in the workplace, at home, and yes, at school. If I’m going to be at school every day, you can bet I’m looking for ways to make it more fun, and not everything is inherently fun. The possibility of earning an ice cream and movie party after learning all my math facts is just good stuff.

Of course, we are all finding ways to recreate what we were doing in the classroom before. We are digitizing as much content as possible, and striving for as much collaboration as we can get synchronously and asynchronously. However, engagement continues to be the missing piece. Even for those students who want to please, who will do everything they can to complete the tasks they are asked to complete, and even for the families who value everything their student’s teachers are sending out, the engagement gap threatens to grow at an alarming rate.

The Engagement Gap

As educators, we talk a whole heap about achievement gaps. Have you ever heard of an engagement gap? In the spring of 2016, pre-pandemic, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development published a report with the following profound statement about the purpose of said report.

Because achievement is unlikely to improve if students are not engaged in their education, finding ways to close the engagement gap is
an essential goal to ensure that high school seniors graduate well prepared for the rigors of college and careers—and become well rounded, successful, contributing members of society.
Introduction, The Engagement Gap -Spring 2016

This report followed a previous report published in 2014 titled The State of America’s Schools: The Path to Winning Again in Education, where we come to the meat of my argument and the motivation 😉 behind this blog post.

The current focus on standardized testing assumes that all students should have a similar educational experience. We leave little time for students to figure out what they love to do and where their greatest talents lie. We waste time and talent.
Connie Rath, Gallup Education

The Self-Directed Learner

Students need to figure out what they LOVE to do, and WHERE their greatest talents lie. Let’s not waste any more time. Students can become more engaged, more motivated, and more successful, but they need to start with self-awareness.

It’s like the old parable of teaching a man to fish. Shall we continue to hope our students will be motivated to do the things we are asking them, or can we give them the skills to discover who they are, to value their uniqueness, and then to recognize their contribution?

This awesome student friendly rubric from Awordonthird.com identifies ways students can evaluate themselves as they move toward becoming more self-aware and more self-directed.

The 3 Ms: Metacognition, Mindset, and Mindfulness are just three of the many tools that are available for creating more self-awareness. These Ms were the foundation upon which I built my curriculum for each and every school year, and are also what I find to be most valuable as I continue to develop my own sense of self and purpose.

Metacognition

Metacognition is the awareness and understanding of one’s own thought processes. I first learned about this concept in a PEBC conference a few years ago. This awesome article from Edutopia explains it as a way to “drive your brain.” When I first teach it to my students, I tell them it is just thinking about your thinking.

Teaching students about their brains, and how to have some control over its processes, is one of the most magical things we can do as educators. When we name and notice what we are doing or thinking, we are gaining self-awareness. I love the PEBC framework for teaching metacognition using thinking strategies. Visualizing, Inferring, and Determining Importance are a reimagining of the same reading and comprehension strategies teachers have been using for years. The captivating part comes when you notice yourself or someone else doing it and name it.

The naming and noticing that comes with teaching these strategies is where we start to uncover the real value in these strategies. When students understand that their brains are already doing these things, they start to see themselves as learners. They might even start to believe that they are capable of learning anything. Well, a teacher can dream, can’t she?

Mindset

Ever since Carol Dweck gave the world her research on Growth vs. Fixed Mindsets, our brains have never been the same. Again, it reminds us that we have the ability to control our thoughts, and maybe even to some extent, the course of our lives.

If this were the case, we would all be living the high life. (Is that still a saying? I live in Colorado, so I’m thinking the meaning of this phrase has changed.) The concept of control is so closely related to the concept of self-directed. When we understand ourselves, we can better organize ourselves. I’m not saying you must be organized to be successful, but I do believe it to be a skill we should all strive to develop in order to better care for ourselves and others.

Big Life Journal has a wonderful resource for teaching your students about growth mindset. Probably one of my favorite parts of teaching growth mindset is the fact that mistakes are critical to learning.

This unit from Angela Watson has several weeks of step by step instructions for teachers and a student journal. I love the videos that were selected for this unit because they include some very well known people who have made tons of mistakes before creating success in their own lives.

Mindfulness

Every day after lunch, my students would come in from recess with loads of complaints and problems. It could take up to 20 minutes of instructional time to resolve these issues. We decided to try something new.

As they entered the classroom, the lights would be low, and soft music would be playing. They could lay on the floor or sit anywhere in the room, but they had to be away from other students. They could doodle or write in their writer’s notebook, but they absolutely could not talk for ten whole minutes.

Here is one of my favorite videos to play on the Smartboard during this time.

We created an anchor chart showing the only reasons anyone could break the silence of that time. Some examples included aliens landing outside our classroom, someone was either bleeding a lot or throwing up, or if bigfoot walked into the room.

My students grew to love and look forward to this tiny bit of silence in the day. This became such a sacred time that they began to ask for it from their other teachers. What an awesome example of a student advocating for themselves and recognizing a need. All for the price of just ten minutes a day.

What are your students looking forward to each day? How are they motivated, and how do they engage in your lessons? I’d love to read your thoughts in the comments.

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Why Teaching Digital Literacy is Critical Right Now

Teachers, the best and most effective tool for teaching and learning is still you. Please don’t forget that your personality, your strengths and weaknesses, your passions and interests, and your ability to reach your students are what we need most right now, and always, in education.

As I recenlty planned and participated in professional development for teachers, I learned a few ~~handfuls~~ bucketloads of ~~important~~ critical things about the importance of digital literacy. The PD was focused on using technology to create equitable access to instruction for various populations of students: in person, students in blended models, and distance learning.

While we introduced some great tools for learning, and taught teachers how to use them, we overlooked the fact that several of them did not really understand some basic elements of digital literacy. Meaning they did not know what it meant to open a new tab, what a refresh button is, or that files can be stored in a cloud. With all of this pivoting to online and digital instruction, now is a good reflect on what we think we know about digital literacy.

What Digital Literacy is Not

Having the capability to toggle between screens on your cell phone, play a video game, and conduct a google search, does not award you the title of being digitally literate. In fact, I would argue that a lot of us aren’t as literate as we think we are when it comes to the digital world. Most of us were just becoming literate in the basics of reading and writing when the world wide web started to be a thing.

People, this was only a little over twenty years ago. My junior year in high school I was taking a typing course on a typewriter. You guys, I am still super young!

In my experience as a teacher, some kids have had the luxury of having had some digital literacy education, but this is mostly in the form of typing and coding classes. Our little school has an amazing technology and media teacher who introduced Virtual Reality sets as a crazy fun tool for learning and instruction.

My point is, everyone is having to use technology almost everyday now to teach and to learn. Are we doing due diligence in providing the basic, foundational understandings of digital literacy that every teacher and student must have in order to fully access the awesome capabilities and potential that technology gives us?

An Honest Assessment

As with any content, we should have a good idea of what our students already know or don’t know. The following is just a handful of discoveries I’ve made over the past few weeks as I’ve integrated more technology in my work, and at home.

Fewer people understand technology as a tool for solving problems.
Not many people understand what is meant by digital literacy.
Many people need basic digital literacy instruction, including myself.
Students and teachers need instruction on the purposes and tools of email.
Families and teachers need instruction on video conferencing tools, and their purpose
Everyone needs instruction on the purpose of technology in our lives and in education.

What Digital Literacy Is

When we understand that technology is more than our computers, we can begin to grasp the fact that we are in control of it, not the other way around. We use technology. We create tools to help us solve problems. Yay humans!

New literacies, like digital, are changing what it means to be literate, and at a pretty quick pace. Reading and writing skills are just not enough to participate in today’s conversations.

Edweek.org has a great article on what digital literacy is, and it’s not simple:

“Digital literacy is the ability to use information and communication technologies to find, evaluate, create, and communicate information, requiring both cognitive and technical skills.”
American Library Association’s digital-literacy task force

As a good reader, I know to look for keywords in that definition. In order to be digitally literate, we must be able to FIND information, EVALUATE information, CREATE information, and COMMUNICATE information. Let’s just say digital literacy is complicated. Which is why we need to be teaching it.

Digital Literacy instruction is the foundation for equitable access.

Equitable access means more than simply providing devices and connectivity. It also means giving every student the opportunity to learn from teachers who understand how to use technology to both enhance learning and create quality learning experiences for students with special needs.
International Society for Technology in Education

The key here is that students, all students, need the opportunity to learn from teachers who understand how to effectively use technology as a problem-solving tool. Not only that, but the tool should enhance your instruction. Meaning your instruction could still be taught without it, but the technology is making it better. It should not be the reason to teach the lesson. I love Kahoot and Flipgrid, but I know better than to plan a lesson around the tool.

Becoming a Digitally Literate Teacher

So where do we start? How about where we always do. Introduce the vocabulary. We all use the academic language associated with the digital world on the daily, but do we know it? Could you explain what an app is? Can you put into layman’s terms what a window is, or how email works?

Digital Literacy Vocab Cards — Free Digital Literacy Vocab Printable

If you are not a computer science nerd, or whatever that title is now, you might struggle a bit to explain all these terms. So, because I can’t really do it either, I have created this free digital literacy vocab printable for you to use to get things started. Use it to create your own word wall for reference, so we can all begin to create a more equitably accessible world full of digitally literate people!

Teaching the vocabulary is just the beginning. Below you will find three of my essential resources and systems for learning digital literacy as a teacher. This knowledge helps me be better equipped to teach families and students to be digitally literate.

Excellent article on why we must teach Digital Literacy and 21st Century Skills

The Center for Human Technology is working to realign technology with humanity’s best interest.

A Digital Citizenship Scope and Sequence, with lots of free resources

Teaching Your Students Digital Literacy Through Citizenship

What better way to teach something so complicated than to recruit help. Let your students help you help them. Teach them what it means to be a digital citizen! Thankfully, do a quick search for digital citizenship lessons and you will be off and running. Commonsense.org is my favorite resource right now for teaching digital citizenship because it offers complete lesson plans for every grade level!

Students need to know that they have a voice, their thinking matters, and they are welcome to participate in a global world. As a citizen, we have certain responsibilities, the most important being literacy. We have a responsibility to understand one another and to communicate with empathy, clarity, and purpose.

Through citizenship, students will begin to understand their roles as members of our new and changing world. A very big part of that world is digital.

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Envision the BEST Education for Our Kids

Since we don’t have any way of knowing what the future will look like, let’s pretend. What is the best possible version of the future we can imagine for our kids? What skills do our kids need in order to be successful not only now, but in the best future we can envision for them?

More Than the 4 Cs

As a teacher, we were constantly talking about 21st Century Skills, and preparing kids for the real world. Our lessons were focused on state standards, and what kids need to be able to know and do in order to be successful.

Education places a heavy emphasis on the four C’s, the skills needed for learning: Critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, and communication. BUT did you know there are EIGHT other 21st Century Skills?

These eight other skills fall under two different categories: Literacy Skills and Life Skills.

While most of my blog topics surround literacy skills, most of my thinking lately has been around life skills.

Life Skills MUST Be Taught

Imagining the BEST possible future for our kids, and ourselves, makes me think about what I know as an adult to be most helpful. The Applied Educational System’s site does a wonderful job of breaking down the following list of Life Skills in greater detail, but here is a summary:

Flexibility: Deviating from plans as needed
Leadership: Motivating a team to accomplish a goal
Initiative: Starting projects, strategies, and plans on one’s own
Productivity: Maintaining efficiency in an age of distractions
Social skills: Meeting and networking with others for mutual benefit

You probably already know how critical these skills are, being an adult yourself. How did you learn to have initiative or be productive? What about those social skills? While I know many teachers are incorporating these skills into their lesson planning, I wonder if they are explicitly naming them for students.

Not only naming them as life and learning skills, but also describing why they are important, and how they use them in their own lives.

Envisioning the BEST Future

The cool thing about envisioning is that you get to use your imagination. When I imagine my future, I wish for a feelings of whole health, relationships that are fulfilling, a sense of participation in, and contribution to, society, and opportunities to explore and be curious. And lots of other things.

Notice those are pretty realistic. I must be all grown up.

If I were to make a list of skills I would need in order to ensure that my vision become a reality, what would they be?

In order to have whole health, I need to establish and maintain good self care habits.
In order to have fulfilling relationships, I need to have compassion, self awareness, and empathy. I also need to be vulnerable, maintain healthy boundaries, and practice being in relationships.
In order to develop a sense of participation in, and contribution to, society, I need to become self aware, reflect on my ideas and abilities, and seek out opportunities where I can make a difference.
In order to explore and be curious, I need to develop a sense of adventure. I need to pay attention to what makes me laugh, what brings me joy, and how to use my imagination.

What can you imagine?

We have a unique opportunity to use our imaginations pretty much whenever we want. This is why I love the words What if…

What if I could do something more to better prepare my own kids for their future? Maybe I don’t need to rely on the public school system so much, and complain that there is so much to be fixed.
What if I read aloud to my teenager, even if she hates it at first? Could it bring us closer together, and give us more to talk about? Could it give her the gift of learning to love to read?
What if online school really is better than public school for my child? Will he learn how to be more self reliant, trust himself to take initiative, and begin to build his own sense of self?
What if this is an opportunity to develop self care habits more deliberately into our own lives, thus communicating this absolute critical message to our families and students?

What can you imagine? What is the BEST possible future for our kids, and how can we start making it a reality today?

Thanks for reading!

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How to Plan When You Don’t Know What to Plan For

As I think about how to plan, when you don’t know what to plan for, I consider the things that are important, no matter the circumstances. These are the things I know must happen in order for any kind of learning to take place. What are the things you know to be absolutely necessary, and how will those things be accomplished?

We are getting used to this idea that we don’t know anything. Everything has been turned upside down, and we just don’t know what to expect. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring, let alone next week, next month, or next year.

Why We Plan

Planning feels good. It gives you a sense of control. There is so much great advice out there about failing to plan or planning to fail. But what about planning when we don’t have any idea of what to expect?

“If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else.”
Yogi Berra

Planning is a significant part of the school year. Teachers must have some sort plan in place before the year even begins. Lesson plans not only provide a structure for learning, but also ensure that teachers and students are working toward purposeful, meaningful outcomes.

What is most important?

Relationships are the absolute bedrock in any setting where people are asked to take risks, discuss meaningful topics, make connections, open their minds, etc. Without a doubt, there must be a foundation of trust, and a sense of healthy community in any learning environment before we can expect any meaning to be made. Wholesome relationships make space for each participant to be seen, heard, and valued. They are not perfect, nor do they require only positive interactions.

Defining what is most important is the easy part.

The big question teachers ask themselves all year is: “How will I create an environment in my classrooms that ensures students know they are valued for who they are, and that they are expected to grow and learn?”

How will it be done?

The how of ‘getting things done’ must be embedded in the ‘what needs to be done’. We have determined that relationships and community are the most important whats. These two things are the foundation in which we build our structures for lessons, and living, in our classrooms. By thinking in this way, we also emphasize the importance of process over product.

Despite what your “classroom” will look like in the coming year, your lesson structures should be predictable. What we want is for students to focus on the content, not the structure. We must be so consistent in our structures in such a way that they become almost invisible.

Predictable Structures

From the very first day, students must be introduced to your lesson structures. We all know that our first couple of weeks of school are reserved for building relationships and communities. Why wouldn’t you do this with the very same structure you would to teach any content?

If every lesson is to be built upon strong relationships and community, then your lesson structure should begin this way. The philosophy behind your lesson structure sends a message to your students about what you expect from them, and what you believe about them.

If you never give your students time to work independently, you are telling them you don’t trust them with the material. If the majority of your students cannot work independently without getting distracted, there is something to be considered about how you have set them up to be able to do so.

The Workshop Model

“If a teacher truly believes that student thinking matters most, then student voices dominate the bulk of time in any class period.” That Workshop Book

The workshop model has been my favorite structure for lesson planning for all of the reasons I’ve already mentioned above and more. The very nature of this structure centers around students doing the work of learning, as active participants, not passive listeners only. The model itself is in the shape of a circle, reminding the facilitator to come back around to the objective, to reflect on how the time was spent. A large amount of instructional time is allotted to the students, while teachers engage, support, and listen to the student thinking, then building off of that.

I have created a free printable that includes a sample workshop lesson planning tool as a guide, and a blank template that you can download here.

Practical Ideas for Introducing the Workshop Model to your students

No matter what the school year brings, the size of your classroom, or if you are teaching online, the following ideas can be great ways to introduce a predictable structure to your students. Whatever structure you choose, remeber to keep it consistent. We want our students focused on building relationships, participating in healthy communities, and engaged in the content. We don’t want them confused about what they are supposed to be doing, or how to access the content.

Games– Have your students bring their favorite family games to share. Use the lesson planning structure to allow students to teach how to play, give them some “work” time to play. Listen to how students interact with the game and eachother. Take notes to be shared during a closing/reflection meeting. Don’t forget to kick off the unit by modeling your own favorite game. Show your students how to use the lesson structure by modeling.
Read Aloud– Have your students bring their favorite text from home or the library. Don’t limit them to books. Some people love magazines, comic books, cookbooks, etc. Everyone will learn a lot about each other based on what is brought to class. Model for your students again by showing them how to use the lesson structure. Bring your own favorites and explain why you love them. Allow different students to share each day and follow up with a reflection/ closing discussion about communities. When everyone shares what they love and why they love it, it begins to build community.
STEAM Challenges– Use the lesson planning structure to play. There are hundreds of STEAM/STEM challenges online. This is one of the best ways to get students to understand and get used to your lesson structure. Start with the objective, the goal. Engage them with ideas/possibilities and give them a set amount of time to innovate and work together. Listen for how students work together, and how they don’t. Use this as a discussion generator for the debrief.

Debrief

Although the future is uncertain, especially when it comes to knowing what to expect for ourselves and our classrooms, we can still plan.

Students will still need a predictable structure, access to resources, and a healthy community of learners around them. Some of the things we were doing in our classrooms in the past are worth keeping. We just have to figure out how to do them in a different way. Lets remember what is most important, and keep our structures for delivering those things predictable and consistent.

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Random What If Story Lines From the 19s.

Sometimes we just need ideas that are so far out of the box, so unexpected, that our eyes widen enough to see a bigger picture. One of my favorite things about teaching was the random and wonderful thoughts kids share at any given time.

Back in the 19s

I recently overheard a ten year old talking about something that happened back in the 19s. The 19s? After a moment I realized he was talking about a time that was very long ago. Almost the 1900s. When I say the 70s, 80s, etc, he thinks, “oh, back in the 19s.” Its so mind boggling to me, but this is what I mean. We need more of this kind of thinking.

Pixar storytellers use “what if” as the seed for growing awesome stories. A previous post explains how teaching creative writing in this way made writing stories less stressful, and way more fun for the kids. Most fictional stories can be simplified into a single what if sentence. Think of your favorite movie and try to explain it in one sentence beginning with What if.

The following is a list of wacky ‘what if’ story lines that were made into movies.Not only are the story lines attention grabbing, the characters and special effects in these movies are truly “special,” and they are all from the 19s.

The Dirt Bike Kid 1985

What if there was a motorcycle who wanted to help a boy save a hot dog stand from a mean old tycoon who is going to tear it down? The Dirt Bike Kid is a little known action adventure flick that is nothing short of fantastic. This motorcycle has an attitude problem, but a big heart. Just as you would expect, the motorcycle gets into trouble and gets arrested. As in, the officer actually places handcuffs on the handlebars. You’ll just have to see it to believe it.

Lots of great movies, great music, and well, great everything came out of the 80’s. I thank my lucky stars to have grown up with no internet, no cell phone, and endless hours to watch MacGyver and The Goonies. Angus MacGyver and Mikey Walsh have inspired me to be resourceful, optimistic, and above all, to believe anything is possible.

While The Dirt Bike Kid has nothing on an epic, life changing, timeless story like The Goonies, it resembles it in some ways. The kids are the underdogs, and the heroes.

The Cat From Outer Space 1978

Amazon.com: The Cat From Outer Space: Ken Berry, Sandy Duncan ... — The Cat From Outer Space

Imagine a movie about a talking magical alien cat. What if there was a planet filled with cats that were so highly intelligent that they moved things with their minds? No need for opposable thumbs!

Disney’s The Cat From Outer Space is “Supurr-natural.” Yes, I am quoting that line from the trailer. The humans in this movie are your typical scientists, not skeptical at all that a cat can talk and move things with its mind. That’s what I love about scientists: they’ll believe anything!

Best of all are the special effects. Sometimes you can’t even see the wires carrying that physicist through the air! And when Jake (the alien cat) uses his powers to freeze bad guys, the pixels get a bit fuzzy, but it takes a ton of talent to stand that still.

Blackbeard’s Ghost 1968

Amazon.com: Blackbeard's Ghost: Dean Jones, Peter Ustinov, Suzanne ... — Blackbeard’s Ghost

What if the ghost of a pirate could free himself of a curse by helping others? The mostly drunk, but lovable, Blackbeard the Pirate is my favorite ghost of all time. He fights in his sleep, sings all day and night, and behaves a bit like a toddler who doesn’t get what he wants.

Just try not to laugh when you see how confused the mobsters are when the track coach is able to take them out using his hands in the form of a gun while saying “pow pow.” I would have loved to be in the room when the writers and actors were thinking up this scene.

I need a break from realistic. These quirky and of off-the-wall ideas remind me to be more playful, laugh at silliness, and take myself, and others, a lot less seriously. Some would say life is so confusing as it is, and I agree. Lets stop trying to figure everything out and think of some fun stories to tell instead.

What are some of your favorite story lines? Leave a comment and we could try to guess the movie!

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Five Minutes to Start a New Story

Change is hard, but with a little hope, optimism, and 5 minutes, we can stop waiting for something to happen, and start a new story.

waiting to change

The authors of Switch, How to Change Things When Change is Hard, remind me that “Change brings new choices that create uncertainty.” We get overwhelmed because most of us are on auto pilot most of the time. Auto pilot is not bad. It helps us to maintain energy levels, so we can use that energy to make decisions. I hate having to decide every day now what is important and what isn’t. It used to be easier: get up early, morning routines, get to work, evening routines, go to bed.

Now, I find myself staring out the window a lot. Waiting for something. Waiting for life to go back to normal, but not wanting it to. Waiting to love the life I have right now. Waiting to buy new clothes, to wear to my new job, that I am waiting for. Waiting for an opportunity to travel, to feel safe at the grocery store. Waiting to feel safe around other people at all. Ug, so much waiting.

Change is hard, but it’s also an opportunity. Vince Lombardi is famous for his determination to win, and all that. I’m not sure I love his quotes, and I know things get all misconstrued. He said something about how quitters never win, but it depends on how you look at it. He also said that hope is not a strategy, but again, there are extenuating circumstances.

hope is a little messy

My daughter reminded me that messed up hope is still something to be grateful for.

In this moment, hope is kinda my only strategy.

The Harvard Business review published an article appropriately titled Hope is a Strategy (Well Sort Of). They talk about realistic optimism, and refer to a quote by Carmin Mendina “Optimism is the greatest act of rebellion.”

So, I hereby rebel. I am going to be optimistic, and pretend that things are going to work out for the best.

But, I am pretty tired of waiting. It’s ridiculous to try to plan for next month, or next week, or even tomorrow at this point. I think you can still have optimistic and hopeful viewpoint, without being certain about anything. However, waiting isn’t a good strategy, for me anyway.

Start something for 5 minutes

I recently started looking for ways to be a bit more creative with my writing. In my classroom, before beginning any kind of writing assignment, we would go to the scholastic website and choose a story starter. The challenge was to write as many words as you could, on the chosen topic, for 5 minutes.

Most fourth graders don’t really love to write. I guess they have learned by this point in their career, that there are too many rules, and its a task that is never finished. We all know that feeling of staring at a blank page, and no words are coming out. Writer’s block is a real thing.

It was different with the 5 minute story starters. The topic would always be a bit silly, and they knew there weren’t really any rules, except they had to write for the full 5 minutes. Even my most reluctant writers would participate. Many were getting close to a hundred words written in just 5 minutes!

The best part came at the end of the 5 minutes, when I would ask for volunteers to share their writing. Almost everyone wanted to read aloud what they had written. The writing was good! They were creative, descriptive, and taking risks.

Five minute challenge

Anyone can stick it out for five minutes. Even a five year old can commit to a task for that long. This is especially true for those of us who are feeling overwhelmed by all the changes we have had to make over the past few weeks.

I even decided to start my own little five minute creative writing challenge in my daily writing. The Story Starter.com has an idea generator for grown ups, and it has been fun for me to try my hand at something that is pretty difficult for me.

Five minutes to start a story, or clean the bathroom, reconcile accounts. It just doesn’t seem so bad anymore.

I might still stare out the window and wait for things to change on their own. Maybe I will set a timer, and let myself do that for a short time. Then I will get back to reality and be intentional and outrageously optimistic for 5 minutes.

For more five minute inspiration, check out the fly lady? She is still around after 20 years of blogging about change. Her philosophy is simple. Just do something for five minutes.

UPDATE:

I love it when I find something that just goes with something I already have, or do. This is an awesome video about using 5 minutes at the end of your day to reflect and write down the most important thing from the day. Over time, you will develop a sense for your life as moments. Important, beautiful moments, that are your story, and part of a bigger story.

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3 Reasons Table Top Games are a Powerful Instructional Tool

As the reality of staying home every single day is starting to set in, It’s important for us to look at what we are already doing as possible learning moments. Many of us are playing board games, cards, and other favorite games. Table top games are a powerful tool for learning, and here are my top three reasons why.

Reason 1: learning should include Student choice

Kids love to play games and they usually have a favorite. The first few weeks of school in my classroom consisted of getting to know one another, learning routines, and lots of games.

Students were asked to bring in their favorite physical game (no video games) from home, and teach us how to play it. The purpose of this assignment was to give them an opportunity to take the lead in a less intimidating way. The message I was hoping to send was “We value what you have to share, who you are, and what you already know.”

John Spencer at Medium.com says “[Choice] is about empowering students through the entire learning process.” There is not a lot of ways to get kids to take some ownership in something if they had no choice in the matter. Kids need to take the lead more often, and we need to let them.

reason 2: learning is social

The Japanese game GO has been played for thousands of years!

My 18 year old son loves Japanese culture, and found an Oriental board game called GO at a garage sale. The game has been played for thousands of years, and is part of Japanese culture. It’s a challenge to learn the game, but together we are figuring it out. Learning something new along side someone, especially someone you love, is unifying.

In our desire to learn how to play, we have had some great conversation! He has done some research, and I have asked lots of questions. As we play, we develop strategies, and ask more questions. This is the essence of great lesson design. As teachers, we want students to interact with the material (in this case, the game) and ask questions. They they try it out, get feedback, and start again.

Games like Guess Who are perfect for creating great conversational moments. My son and I used this elementary level game to practice asking and answering questions in Japanese. Although learning Japanese is not at the top of my list of interests, it is on the top of his. As a parent of a child getting ready to leave the house, I’ll take all the time I can get with him.

Reason 3: Technology is not the only tool

As schools have quickly transitioned to online learning, there have been some very positive outcomes, and there have been the inevitable downsides as well. I think we assume that all kids understand what it means to be a digital citizen, which is probably not the truth. We see proof all the time that adults don’t even know what this means. Technology can be a great tool for getting kids engaged in learning, and it is just one tool.

Worksheets are another default tool that is overused. It’s a little like using a screwdriver to beat in a nail. It will probably get the job done, but there is a better way. What we see is the product of some learning that has already taken place somewhere along the line. Table top games allow us to get involved in the process: the two steps forward and one step back approach to discovering something new. When a worksheet is done, its done. A game can be played and played again. Players can get creative to can change the rules, change strategies, lose and win.

What I am not saying is that we shouldn’t use technology or worksheets for at home learning. Learning is happening all around us all the time. With table top games we can be more intentional about learning with our kids, and recognize that it is actually already happening.

want more?

Check out these awesome learning games from Empower.com. These are easy to understand and content based.

Look for my upcoming blog posts about Pixar shorts, story starters, and digital citizenship for ideas for learning at home. Also, check out this great podcast about the power of table top games.

What other things are you already doing at home with your family, that could be a great tool for learning?Thanks for reading!

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Rough Drafts and Bad Gardening Advice

In January, with the support of a local padawan, I proclaimed 2020 to be an epic year, the year of the cinnamon roll. It’s shaping up to pretty epic alright. Quarantine is ok, so far. (I’m only a couple of weeks in, so check back on me later.) I have more time to write, go for long walks, ride bikes, read books, not garden, etc.

Still, after a year of posting somewhat regularly on my blog, and hoping to be a real life published author someday, a local magazine accepted a rough draft of mine about writing stories. Durango Neighbor magazine only publishes in the real world, as in, not digitally. So, I can’t link to an article. Just look really close at the picture! It’s a real thing folks. Thank goodness you can try something and it kind of works sometimes!

My first published article! Durango Neighbor Magazine

Clearing the Land

The great thing about having my article published was that it actually wasn’t that hard, at least the writing part. Publishers really do just want content. In simpler words, we just have to try.

Ann Lamott has a book called Bird by Bird, where she explains so clearly how writing and life have almost everything in common. If you are not a writer, maybe your are here for the bad gardening advice. Why would you want that? I heard Erin Loechner say in an interview with Hope Writers that doing a brain dump is like clearing the land, so something useful can be made in its place. Like planting a garden, or building a house, you’ve got to clear out the old roots, and rocks and shrubs to prepare for something more useful in it’s place.

Almost all of my writing could be called clearing the land. I have to clear land every morning. For whatever reason, night time is when all these weedy thoughts build up in my mind, and if I don’t get rid of them, they become like this awful jungle vine that takes over all my rational, smart, productive thoughts. So, not all my gardening advice is bad, you’ve got to do the weeding.

Daffodils and Mint, Let Things Grow

The steps for writing and gardening are similar: clear the land, let things grow, pay attention. Wait, those aren’t the steps are they? Did I forget the planting part? After years of trying to garden, I have learned how little control I have over the success of it. No matter how high the fence, the deer always get in. I either over water, or let things dry out. Just when I think I have things figured out, and early frost comes in. Writing rough drafts, and gardening, have taught me how important it is to let some things go.

Still, there is the daffodils and the mint. They are wonderful proof of trying something and paying attention. The daffodils and the mint are rough drafts that worked. I planted them years ago, and they dutifully pop out every year, even though I don’t really take care of them. Sometimes you can’t really see them under all the leaves that should have been raked, and old weeds, but they are there! When I write anything, I always hope the words will become daffodils and mint. That they will be useful or beautiful. I just don’t always know. It’s OK that I don’t have control over how my words will turn out. At least I am trying to say something, to grow something, and it doesn’t have to be perfect. This is life, to try something, and then pay attention.

Pay Attention

After you have cleared the land (dumped your thoughts), let some things grow (written a rough draft), pay attention. Read it without making any changes, just see what pops up. I always do this at least a day later. You’ve got to get away from it for a while. It takes a whole year for daffodils and mint to show up again. Go back with fresh eyes, and newly cleared land the next day. Almost every time, I end up rewriting the whole thing, but not until I have given it a chance to show me what’s there. This is the tenth revision and I’m almost ready to hit publish.

The first draft of this post was intended to be about myself, as a walking breathing rough draft, but the second or third time through, I remembered the daffodils and the mint. Why would daffodils and mint remind me of writing? I resonated with the clearing the land metaphor, which led to my failed attempts at gardening, which reminded me about rough drafts, and my love for them.

I’m sure this post doesn’t make much sense. It’s still a rough draft after all!

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Becoming Hospitable to Ideas for Writing

I am focusing most of my efforts this year on being hospitable,” the friendly and generous reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers, ” as defined by google. As the anxiety of what that statement will mean for me rises, I plan to practice this skill on ideas first, and people later.

May the Force be with you

Perhaps the reason I feel the need to be hospitable this year, is because I feel like something is coming. Something awesome. This is to be the year of the cinnamon roll, as I explained in my previous post.

On New Year’s Eve, I met a 7 year old boy, with a light saber, and a fresh padawan haircut. He told me to have a very happy new year. What happened next confirmed my suspicion that 2020 is going to be epic. I swear the he looked right into my soul and said, “May the Force be with you.” Oh yeah, and…. it was his birthday.

Now, there are too many incredible things about this to deny this was a specific message and blessing coming to me from a true Jedi in training. I mean, how is this different than if I had met a genuine medicine man, in Bali, reading my palm and proclaiming my future? It isn’t. Technically, only one of these things could actually happen in real life, as Elizabeth Gilbert described in Eat, Pray, Love.

According to Wookieepedia, a site I have recently discovered for all things Star Wars, when someone says “May the Force be with you,” they are wishing you well in the face of an impending challenge. I am wise enough to know that the year ahead is paved with boulders and sheer drop offs, so how to honor the blessing I received ?By getting organized and making a plan.

Creating a space

The writing nook formerly known as office closet

Goal setting reminds me a little too much about being SMART, and lets just say, I’m taking a little break from that for now. Instead, I’m choosing to focus on building habits. Creating a habit becomes so much easier when you set up a supportive environment.

Throughout life, I have always shared space with others. It seems like a luxury to have a whole room to myself. I mean a place to close the door and decorate the walls with whatever I want. So, I decided to give myself our office closet. It’s just big enough to be hospitable. Marion Roach Smith teaches that “being hospitable begins with preparing a clean, well-lighted desk, and reporting to it each day,” in her book The Memoir Project. The closet is all cleaned out, and ready to host lots of ideas.

My little closet will now and forever be lovingly referred to as the writing nook, which is just so much more inviting. For now, its an affordable space for ideas to stay on a budget. Hopefully, it will be renovated someday to a quaint cottage with a garden, or a mountain resort where ideas are making reservations in advance to make their way into my writing.

Value your work

Little ways of being hospitable to ideas

In spite of not having a “writing nook” over the past year, I have still established a writing habit. Spiral bound notebooks are the easiest for me to fill. They are cheap, and therefore less pressure, and they provide the space. I was being hospitable without even knowing it. It’s not like I was providing a bed and breakfast for ideas, but they could crash on my couch. I mean, I’m not a monster.

Most importantly, my new writing nook is not only a gift, but its physical proof of a promise I am making to myself. I can do this, my work is important. Heck, I’m using it right now to write this post. It’s quiet, and all my resources are handy. I know I don’t need the space to create. That in itself is proof that I can do this. I truly do have everything I need already inside me to become an author. Maybe it will even help me be more welcoming to people?

I am not a Jedi in training, nor is it my birthday. Maybe you are already hospitable to ideas and people. Still, I hope that whatever comes this year the Force will be with you.

Thanks for reading!

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Like Butter on Pancakes, or What I’ve learned after a Year of Writing

There is a wonderful children’s book called Like Butter on Pancakes by Johnathan London that describes the perfect day in the country where the sun streams in and melts on your pillow. Butter on pancakes is an appropriate metaphor to describe the blessings and hardships of the year, and developing a habit of writing.

The pancakes, or the stuff the butter sits on

I really like butter, pancakes not so much. Even science is coming around to the fact that butter is probably good for you. Turns out, pancakes are just the thing that holds all the good stuff. You can’t just eat a plate of butter and syrup. I guess you could, but you might not feel very good about it.

This year has been a plate full of pancakes. Like, all you can eat pancakes for me, emotionally. Remember, I said I don’t really like pancakes. They aren’t even sweet enough to be called cakes. They are just a flat piece of heavy kinda cooked dough. 2019 was a giant stack of dry, thick pancakes that I could’ve choked on if not for the butter.

In order to tackle the stacks, I set a goal at the beginning of 2019 that I would write 500 words every day. In order to stop complaining, I started a blog and named it Rachel What If.. and even published something almost every month. A brain dump in a spiral notebook each morning is an invaluable way to put things in their proper place, instead of vomiting them in random conversations where they don’t belong.

Butter, or the good stuff I’ve learned

Aside from the constant love and support of my family as I struggled through this year, developing a writing habit has been the butter. Butter makes everything richer, easier to swallow. Here are the big takeaways from this year:

You have to understand yourself before you can understand others.
Stop being so disappointed in yourself so you can stop being disappointed in others.
When you love yourself fully, you listen to your tears, are compassionate about your shortcomings, and understand your anxiety as a gift from your better, wiser self.
Love and fear can be in the same room at the same time, but fear cannot be the one making any decisions.

Writing is how I introduce myself to myself. It is how I find out things I thought I had forgotten. It is how I discover what I really think, and how I get rid of all the stuff that doesn’t matter.

Some of the most relevant books I read this year by Elizabeth Gilbert, Ann Lamott, and Stephen King allow me to put things in perspective.

The Cinnamon Roll, or A Year of Rachel What If

If I could eat anything for breakfast, without guilt, or gaining lots of weight, it would be warm gooey cinnamon rolls. There is butter all through those babies. In fact, maybe 2020 will be the year of the cinnamon rolls.

As I think about this last year, I wouldn’t take back a single pancake. While considering what to call the blog a year ago, I settled on Rachel What If because what if is the very beginning. It’s the place where all good stories start.

I’ve been reading Stephen King’s book On Writing, and this morning, he reminded me again why the name of my blog is so appropriate. He says on page 169, “The most interesting situations can usually be expressed as a What If question.” Reading this at this time, I know it’s more than a coincedence. The year of writing that began with a What If question: What if I am a writer? It’s pretty cool to have lived a year of it.

Look what I just found laying around the house. Coincidence? I think not.

8 Reasons You Prefer to Work Alone and How to Fix It.

Working alone is in my comfort zone and I am a cooperative learning enthusiast!

Every time I walk into a classroom, I look for opportunities to get students to do the work of learning together.

Light bulb moments, new ideas, inspiration, realization, revelation… So many ways to describe what happens when two or more minds are in sync. It’s learning magic!

And yet, I set up boundaries for my work. Looking for alone time to get things done. Working with colleagues requires a higher skill set, and more energy, and is almost always less efficient.

It’s also just plain uncomfortable. Here are just eight reasons I’d rather work alone despite everything I know about the value of cooperative learning:

I’d rather work alone because…

I’d rather work alone because I’m not willing to take on your failures.
I’d rather work alone because I care more about a job well done than building a partnership.
I’d rather work alone because I’m not sure you have anything of value to offer.
I’d rather work alone because the only person I can trust is myself.
I’d rather work alone because I know I will always do a better job than you will.
I’d rather work alone because I don’t have time to help you figure it out.
I’d rather work alone because I don’t need any help.
I’d rather work alone because this job is too important to make mistakes.

Yikes.

Sometimes it’s not such a fun thing to do some honest self-reflection. And yet, even as those words came flowing out onto the page, I felt of sense of relief. Maybe we all feel this way, or maybe I am a control freak and a perfectionist. Probably both of those things are true.

We teach best what we most need to learn.
Richard Bach

A New Definition of Safety

circle and discover — What can you control?

Classrooms are places where control and perfectionism have lived quite comfortably since around the time of, I don’t know, one-room schoolhouses.

But we forget that joy is not found in control or perfection.

Sure, we need safe places where people can learn. Heck, we need safe places period. Shouldn’t everywhere be a safe place? Maybe we need to redefine our idea of safety, and maybe it doesn’t have a whole lot to do with control.

Self-awareness is such a great way to start our discussions about safety and control.

Using an empowerment tool like the My Circle of Control worksheet either in classrooms or for ourselves is a practical and visual way to ask yourself some questions about your own sense of control and even reveal your ideas about perfection. Using it along with This big list of things I can control shifts our perspective because it allows us to see that we actually do have control over the things that are most important.

Not only does it empower you to let go of lots of heavy baggage that serves little purpose in your life, but also it gives you permission to set up your own definition of safety.

For me, it feels safe to know that I am curious and will make mistakes. That I can ask for help, try new things, and be honest. It feels safe to know that I am a work in progress, will never be perfect, and even that I can rely on imperfect other people.

Two Reasons to Work Together

I am a star — Gold stars for perfect ideas.

Let’s reframe those 8 reasons we would rather work alone and change our perspective. Learning should be fun, and it’s okay if it’s a little uncomfortable sometimes too. Also, two is easier to remember than eight, and it can really be summed up with the following:

Finished is better than perfect
Nothing is ever finished, so nothing will ever be perfect.

Now that you are armed with these two reasons to work with others and get things done, try to have a little fun at the same time!