Effective Teacher Day 1

Blog abandonment

This week was so draining. I don't want to drone on and on about how this week was a BEAST. You don't want to hear that. 

What I will say is this, no question this week built my faith. I have been working on building margin in my life. Even with this week beating me up I didn't get to my limits.  I know this week coming, I'm going to be pushed more than last week. Thankfully, I've already planned for it and I feel grace to do it. I can see that consistent on going improvement will yield huge results. 

To give balance I've found it really tough to plan/think LONG term about my lessons and class learning. I talked about in in my Avengers post aout making the lessons catchy to get the kids excited about the next lesson. I've had some success in my re-growing veggies lessons in science, but not so much in my other lessons. Just need to work on this for sure. 

I have an evaluation this week and I feel good about it. I picked up some great skills at a workshop a couple of weeks ago. Thankfully, I've been kicking it hard so Monday will be the best teaching anyone has seen cause I've been doling out the best daily. 

Crossfit this week was strong. I didn't make it to Crossfit South Cobb everyday, but I was able to sneak into Basement Crossfit and keep my goals in line. I've been juicing well. It's not hard now at all. I'm down nearly 13 pounds. I hope to be able to plant our garden next week or the following week. 

Let's get at it. 

If you need wisdom

This week was tough. It was very draining. To call it what it was, I was at my Whit's End by this afternoon. Thankfully that's where I'm supposed to be. 

Honestly, I think I rely on my own insight/wisdom to much. James 1:5 gives very clear directions on what to do when you need wisdom. Sadly, we "try" to long and never actually ask God for wisdom on a matter. We think we are supposed to have the solution and that asking is somehow not good. 

All this week I've been coming to grips with the fact that I don't know what to do to help these students get excited about learning. Yes, I have a lot of ideas and I have access to some great thinkers, but if James 1:5 is to be trusted I need to ask God a lot more than I have been doing.  

Yesterday I started asking God and expecting to receive some insight on Room 157's residents. I certainly made some inroads and next week I'll see more. I know that I made some major changes to make this last 9-10 weeks of school better and more powerful than those before.

Like I said in another post, the House must work in order for other things to work. I do believe that. However, I'm charged with the task of helping these kids. If God's word is true then I have the access to the Resource to make a difference even with no support at home. Ok, off to enjoy my weekend. You do the same. 

The Crossfit challenge ends next week and I certainly think I'm on track. I have 6 more days of my green juice fast. Overall I'm down quite a bit of weight and I'm certainly doing well in my workouts. Can't wait to report back on my win in the challenge. 

Looking forward

   Tomorrow starts another semester working with a great bunch of kids. Our next phase of our journey begins soon. I know that I have the skills needed to help them progress on and become the citizens that they were intended to be. Tomorrow we go at our goals with a new drive and passion. Tomorrow we move from 2nd graders to Rising 3rd graders. There are great things in store for us, tomorrow. 

    Today, however, I'm going to get my last mid day nap. 

Don't play the game...play the man.

Everyday we play a game. Sometimes we're up. Sometimes we're down. No matter what we're in a game and we need to win. You have to know the defense and the offense, that's a given. But do you know the players better than they know themselves? 

 

A person once said "Don't play the game, play the man." In my case it's "play the children". I need to really, really dig down into the fine details of each of my students to raise them up to where they need to be. If I play the "class", I'm only going to reach 60% of them at best. Some way I'm going to do a better job of dealing with each student and each of their abilities so I can help raise up 100% of them. Like I've said this is an All Star class. They have a lot of talent and they're sharp. It's going to be tough, but so is getting beat down everyday. I just choose what hard job I'm going to do, cause I'M playing the children not the class. 

As a recap, my time frame analogy was spot on! For literacy, it worked like a charm. Now I need to improve my content. Thankfully, I do have the times down. Looking for a timer that I can set multiple times for, if anyone wants to suggest one. Next I'm going all in on my math times. Haven't had any feedback on it, but I'll get myself on a better schedule and time this week. By end of 1st 9 weeks I have the SuperLearner Central running like a well-oiled machine. 

I already have my lessons done and sent off for next week. I have my emergency sub plans done. I have my new BBoard ready. Just need the kiddos to work on their work to put up.  Not sure what I need to do to get the "authentic" student work quality up. I do models and I have them follow me, but they're just not that creative and imaginative. Wonder how to teach that. 

Crossfit South cobb will see my carcass tomorrow. Can't wait. Today's WOD was fun looking. I didn't get in there. No excuse will be given. I will be there tomorrow and I will have down that gallon of water to keep me hydrated. 

Some new class decorations

I scored some new superhero toys from a consignment sale. As I find them I'll add more to my city scape. Even got a black suit Spidy to swing from a building. 

Got to have our friendly neighborhood spiderman guarding the city. 

Ready for a restful weekend, NOT! I have so much to do I'll be coming to work Monday to rest. Dear Lord!

Shame on parents

    I've been talking to a few of my teacher buds who've shared with me some sad news. Many of them are meeting parents of students in their class for the first time DURING AWARDS DAY or End of the Year parties. That's just sad. Many express that they've reached out to them, called them, left messages, but they've never met the parents. That is until the end of the year.

    I have another friend who told me that she has a child in her room that really requires a lot of Love and Grace. He's a handful. Come to find out that he has a sister in a lower grade and she's a jewel. Here's the kicker, the mom has volunteered in the sister's room as recently as this week! Never has she done so for the brother. SHE'S BEEN IN THE BUILDING WHEN MY FRIEND HAS CALLED HER ABOUT HER SON'S BEHAVIOR. Amazing. 

    Now, I'm not calling for the OverDue parents that over due everything. They fuss and cuss about everything under the sun about their child. Such that you start to think this is a personal issue for the parent rather than the student. I mean the kid did miss 8 questions o the spelling test. A grade of "B" is the right call. Moving on. 

    I'm sure any parent would be all over if their kid got into Harvard or some IVY league school on a full scholarship. There'd be a bus carry all the family members who'd show up when that same student became a doctor. You know like I know that if a student signed on with a professional sports team they'd have to have a security guard to protect them from all the family that would come out of the woodwork. However, a 7 year old can get on the bus, ride 10 miles to school, interact with 19 or so other 7 yr olds and multiple adults, eat 2 meals, and get back on the bus a all without a parent. Then the kicker is parents not show up until they do so with flowers and balloons for awards day? SERIOUSLY?!

    I can't believe that. Thankfully, I met most of my students parents at least once. I'd much rather more interaction with them, but that's another point. Being a parent isn't spectator sport. I'm not sure exactly what analogy I'd use, but I can certainly tell you that it's not drop in one time a school year. Being and Being Present are two different things all together.     

    Rant concluded. Jason steps down off his soap box to enjoy Day 99 of the Burpee challenge. Working my crossfit plan. I need to improve my eating, but that's certainly another post. 

One more post about Crossfit and education

I believe 100% that CF and CFKids would be a fantastic addition to public education. The personal development skills that kids learn alone are worth it. When it add in what kids will learn as it relates to new skills and disciplines and the value shoot off the charts. Add some good healthy competition to some of those budding knuckle heads. I'd like to see the on some bully's face when he/she gets smashed by some kid in some cfk wod. I'd LOVE to see the confidence on the face of the bullied kid when they see that they can do a lot more than they thought. 

My intention is not to slap phys ed programs in school. I know they're exactly what the school board ordered. I just think. No I believe in my heart that there is a much better way to get kids moving and active. 

 Day 81 of Royal Burpee challenge and I'm really having a time at it. The half way point is tomorrow and we still have 33 days to go. Do the math! 

Crossfit and my classroom do mix

You all know that I seriously heart Crossfit. Not interested in debating the merits of your dance class or your video series. If you like it and are seeing results, keep at it.  I've seen so many fantastic results when people are passionate and intense about their task. Whatever kind of pretzel you're contorting your body into, please enjoy. 

There are a few reasons I've tied my wagon to Crossfit as the means to drag my carcass off the couch. I've found that my reasons can be lined up with my teaching experience as well. 

 Nothing is ever the same.  Yeah, there are crossfit benchmarks that roll by every couple of weeks or so, but the scheduled WOD are always different. If your gym is doing good programing you'll se your favorites mixed in with your not so fav and that unknown keeps your growing.

This couldn't reflect the classroom any better. There are children who come to you daily and you expect them to return everyday. But they don't! Their evil doppelganger comes in and takes up shop in your room and all you can do it adapt and respond. Got to deal with the Child of the Day that showed up in your room just like the WOD. 

No matter how tough it is...you're getting better. There are the tough skills that you just don't seem to get, but over all you're getting better. Currently I'm expecting the Crossfit genie to bring me a muscle up. I've been waiting for his cousin Teaching genie to make this job easier everyday as well. But what I've noticed is I'm getting closer to my muscle up and I'm getting better at teaching. The more I use resources like Beyond the Whiteboard and ClassDojo the more I see that I'm getting strong and eventually I'll get that muscle up and I'll probably be a good teacher, too. 

Teamies are the best! I work with some of the best people. I'm very happy with my school. I feel the school has my back just as much as they want th best for the kids. That translated into my gym. There are some great people there. Most of our interaction is spent between near death experiences with barbells and burpees, we've really grown. 

Everything looks crazy until you give it a shot.

One thing about CF I've learned over the years is that it's not for most people. Once you start rattling off the latest WOD description and how excited you are, your co workers/friends/family immediately start calling Dial a Shrink. The same applies to teaching. May people don't see WHY we do it. Most of the time we talk about just how tough it is to get through to Johnny or Sally.  Many times we don't KNOW why we do it, either. We do know that we find fulfillment in this career. We just know that we're supposed to and somewhere in this hay stack is big, shiny needle. And we're going to find it. Kind of like 50 #135 power clean for time. "Why?!"

"Well because that's what was on the board today." 

 Planning leads to success. The more I plan and prepare for class the better lessons get. I feel that "break through" happening with my students. The worse prepared I am the more it shows in my students.  The more I plan and schedule crossfit into my life the more it fits into my life. Especially eating. When I plan my meals to compliment my workout I see great results. When I eat when and whatever I tend to derail my results. When I plan to hit the gym right after work, but before I pick up my girls I just works. That keeps me on track and on pace. 

Every second counts. Imagine a workout that goes on for 12 minutes. You're beat down. You won't want to pick up that weight one more time. You look over to your neighbor and they're feeling the same way, you can tell. You notice him looking over at the clock and he makes a mad dash to the weight and hoists it up. You do the same. You two are in an all out sprint. That weight it flying. TIME! You collapse to the floor in a total exhaustion. Afterwards you find out that you and your neighbor were within a few reps of each out, but you pulled it out. You didn't let the last few seconds fade away. You ended strong.  

Everyday in school is like that. When the 2 pm time comes around I can either lean off the the throttle or keep plugging away. Do I let off cause I've been working with these students for 6 hours already or do I keep pushing on? Whenever I push on and make the kids practice fact familes or spell something hard until the bell rings I have a much better day the next day. The kids will come back having thought about the book we read or have some new insight. Every second counts. 

Crossfit and Teaching need each other. The stress teaching causes me can only releaved through hard vigorus exercise. Throwing the weight equal to my entire class over my head makes it very easy to sit that class down and breath a sigh of relief. The exertion that CF causes on me really helps me to mellow out through the day. I'd be bouncing off the walls by 11:13 am if I didn't blow off a lot of extra steam during my 430 forrays to CFSC. 

PS. CF convinced me to leave Team Adidas! 

Wouldn't trade my INOV8s for the world! 

 Alright got to get hustling. Group warm up starts in 20 minutes. Here's a little video of a a 47.5 inch box jump. 

I don't like preaching

I don't think my students listen to preaching at and droning on and on. Matter of fact I know they don't listen. They might hear, but it's 1/2 hearted at best. 

All that said I had to go there today and make this statement. 

"Do you realize that right now today you're better off than great grand parents or even grand parents? (Took a quick break to talk about ancestors since that was talked about earlier in the year) What do you thin I mean when I say that you're better off?"

"We have more stuff."

"We have more money."

"We have things."

"Ok, that is all true, but let's talk about something else. Since we talked about technology in reading. Do you think your grand parents when they were in 2nd grade could reach out and talk to someone in China and video chat with them?"

"No cause that stuff just started. It's new."

"Exactly! What about cell phones, email, books on CD, audio and stuff like that? Do you think they had that?"

"No."

"What do you think your greats or grands would do right now if they could be 7-8 years old and be in your seats? Write it down."

Here are two responses that show that I'm not living in vain. 

 

"If my grandmom was in your class she'd listen a lot and do her work. She would pay attention and not be bad."

 

"My mom's mom would like this class. She would want to work on the computers and go to the media center. She would want to go to the reading center, too." 

Teaching is a BEAST sometimes. The effort/energy to motivate the unmotivated is exhausting. The more we as parents do to help our kids see the blessedness in being able to learn the better off they'll be. If possible allowing them to meet/talk to those who don't have the same opportunities as they could be enlightening. 

Felt like I didn't hit a home run today, but I did DESTROY my workout today at Crossfit South Cobb. The better I eat the better I feel. I think this grass fed thing will work out in the long run.

Driving this week with the brakes on

Not sure why, but this week feels like it's going in slow motion. It could be due to the fact that I'm running sans coffee/sugar, but I don't think that's it. What it could be is that it's 80 lovely degrees out and I can't get outside because of the Yellow Scourge aka pollen running amok. *I'd to be the reason some kid swells up like a balloon because they have some crazy allergic reaction to this stuff. At 9000 parts per million that's pretty intense. It wouldn't be a good idea to make them go out and do 10 burpees this week.  

Thankfully, I had a great meeting with my admin about my performance this year. Even though I don't feel as successful as I'd like it felt good to know others who know what they're looking for see that I'm doing a good job. I got a list to work on and the most important it keep assessing my kids. I need to find a better way to assess and retest, reteach on a regular basis.

One thing I did get is that my efforts to keep my students on task are not going un noticed. The kids may/may not always response like they should but it doesn't always look bad on me. *I'm really conscious of the kids making me look bad. Needless to say I don't look as crazy as I thought I did. 

We're in crunch mode getting ready for the end of the year. I'm just taking each day as it comes and thankful for everyone of them. Can't wait to get in the gym today. I have a lot of stress to burn off.