Before School Starts

January 5, 2020 Deb Weston Classroom Layouts, Student Ownership, Students as Teachers

What is the purpose of a bulletin board?

When you walk into a classroom what is the first thing you see? Decorated bulletin boards?

Looking at bulletin boards often reflect what is happening in a classroom. Bulletin boards often show teachers’ focus on particular curriculum and what students are doing in the classroom. But what do bulletin boards say about teachers’ practices or schools’ efficacy?

Bulletin boards as a reflection of a school or classroom

A New York Times article by Abby Goodnough, Judging a School by Its Posters; Bulletin Boards Are Scrutinized, and Fretted Over, discusses how schools’ and/or teachers’ are judged through how hallways and classrooms are decorated instead of actually examining the pedagogy that is in place.
The article goes on to state bulletin boards “have a far weightier role … as the educational standards movement has required students to master ever-longer lists of skills — and required teachers to explain exactly how they are teaching them — bulletin boards have become an intensely monitored showplace for progress. They are especially important in low-performing schools, which are constantly scrutinized by city and state education officials and under heavy pressure to show improvement.”
Teachers … “complain that administrators dwell too much on how the boards look.” “Sometimes, teachers say, principals make them redo boards that are judged too quirky or dull. Some principals also demand new displays if ” they are damaged.

Bulletin Boards to Make Learning Visible

In a Making Learning Visible Project at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, it states that bulletin boards make learning visible by communicating and creating “values about teaching and learning” by making “individual thinking available to the group and support collective knowledge-building” and helping “learners to make connections across units and subject matter.” Further, bulletin boards “provide opportunities to connect learning experiences across classrooms or time.” Here, the role of bulletin boards is to make students’ learning visible.

Teacher Based vs Students’ Work

Another issue with bulletin boards is not just about the audience but about the content. Some teachers put up inspirational posters and/or curriculum content which is teacher based. Other teachers put up only student work. And some teachers have a combination of both.

Student Driven Bulletin Boards

When I first started teaching, my bulletin boards centered on what we were studying in the classroom with some space dedicated to students’ work. But I have developed an approach of only student centred bulletin boards where students create them with the teacher using students’ work. This means that the space becomes the students, not driven by the teacher. I even have my students decide on the bulletin board boarders.

The Learning Environment as The Third Teacher

An important issue to consider when putting anything up in a classroom is students’ over-stimulation. Given that students with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and/or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) can experience over stimulation due to “too much stuff on the classroom walls”, teachers should take this into account when they choose what should go on bulletin boards and how it impacts students’ concentration and focus. Sometimes the classroom environment can just be too stimulating!

The Ontario Capacity Building Series notes how the learning environment, The Third Teacher, “can either enhance the kind of learning that optimizes our students’ potential to respond creatively and meaningfully to future challenges or detract from it.”

Finally, when considering classroom decorating, please be mindful of Health and Safety regulations about too much paper on the walls (i.e. usually less than 20%).

Here are some ideas to promote student focused, learner centred bulletin boards:

The Fridge – a bulletin board where each student has their own space to display their work
To Do List s– where students list work that needs to be done for the day/week (my students love this as they create it themselves)
Student developed Word Walls for curriculum topics
Student developed Math Walls – listing vocabulary, formulas, graphics that students find important
Height Wall – showing how much students have grown in the year (it’s fun to track how fast students are growing and it’s also a great visual to understand linear metric measurement)
Data Wall – graphs displaying classroom surveys such as “What is your favourite pizza topping?”
Student made calendar – tracking upcoming events for the week and month
Class goals for the week or month

For me, in the end what matters is that the students feel like the classroom belongs to them as they have designed it – like an extension of their home space.

I dedicate this blog to my son’s (favourite ever) grade 5 teacher, Ms. G, who recently shared with me the following:

“I can vividly remember TS – he was such a nice boy, full of life, and so smart. It was also at the beginning of my teaching career, and taught me a lesson I’ll never forget. Being a new teacher, I wanted my boards to look beautiful for my students. I went and bought all the boarders and colourful art work to decorate them. One day, TS told me he couldn’t concentrate – that the bulletin boards were too distracting. I had never even thought about how the beautifully decorated boards could have been a distraction.

From then on, I thought about my classroom set up, and how I could make it a calming place. I stripped the boards, made them one colour and became much more thoughtful on trying to create a calming place for my students. I also created different spaces to cater to my students’ needs. Thank you to TS who opened my eyes. The student teaches the teacher.”

Even after 20 years, I too get “taught” by my students every day. My son, TS, turns 26 years old this month!

Collaboratively Yours,

Deb Weston

November 5, 2019 Michelle Fenn 21st Century Learning, Behaviour Management, Building Inclusion, Classroom Layouts, Classroom Management, Combined Grade Classes, Constant Learning, Design, Diverse Learning Needs, Flexible Classroom, Inclusion, Inspiring Students, Learning About Your Students, Professional Learning and Growth, self reflection, Wellness

Triggers and Habits in Teaching Part One

Dreaded Seating Arrangements

Almost every teacher I talk to says, “I have a really difficult class this year.” The difficulties identified are most often tied to “behaviour” issues. In my experience effective classroom “management” can be connected to dynamic programming and developing solid relationships with students. Many of us go to things like Class Dojo or incentive programs to “manage” behaviour and some have their merits. However, they might “manage” behaviour, but does it help student to learn to self-regulate? I understand that there are students who have behaviour safety plans that can provide challenges and I do not mean to downplay the effect that even one student’s behaviour can have on an entire class. However, there are ways in which we can have small tweaks in our triggers and habits in teaching that will have a positive outcome on developing a community of learners.

So what is a trigger? A trigger in psychological terms can used to describe sensations, images or experiences that re-visit a traumatic memory. It can also mean to make something happen very quickly; a reaction. It is also referred to as an event that kicks off the automatic urge to complete a habit.* Habits are seen as something that people do often or regularly. Habits can even be unconscious behaviours and sometimes difficult to stop. What do triggers and habits have to do with teaching?

Over the years I think I have become more self aware in the classroom about my own triggers and habits. It is easy to continue to do a routine in a classroom simply because it is something that we have always done. Even when we have sound pedagological reasoning, it can be difficult to change or cease a habit. For example, for many years I put names on the desks of students before they entered the classroom on the first day of school. I don’t really know why I began this habit. Besides a wedding, some kind of gala or a reservation at a restaurant, I get to choose where I sit every day. It is a fairly important life skill. I’m not going to find my name on a seat on the city bus. Once I recognized that this routine was purely out of habit and was “triggered” by the first day of school, I decided to change it up. On the first day of school with a grade 4-5 class, the students came into the room and sat wherever they wanted. I admit that this made the perfectionist in me who loves order, routine and habit rather uncomfortable. I had some students sit in groups, some in pairs and some on their own. Then we had a class meeting about how they had felt when they entered the room and had to make their seating choice. There was talk of anxiousness, sweaty palms, heart rate increase, fear of missing out and for some it was no big deal. I decided to create a google form to survey the students about where to sit in the classroom, how often we would change it up and who would decide. The results of the survey were fascinating. Some students wanted me to choose where they sat and wanted to have that same spot every day for 194 days. Some never wanted to “sit” in a group but wanted to be a part of it during group work time. We came up with a plan that each Monday the students would choose where to sit for the week and the students who wanted a regular spot would be able to keep it and the other students would respect their choices without question. We also had some extra choices for seating that students could go to if their choices for that week weren’t working out. The students gained incredible insight into self-regulation. I heard things like, “I sat with Gracie all week and we’re such good friends, I didn’t get my work done so I’m not going to sit with her next week.” or “I don’t hang out with Olivia but I know she is a serious student so I’d like to sit with her in a group.”

It isn’t easy to be self aware while we are trying to keep our head above water, collect permission forms, listen to announcements, adjust our day plan for the assembly that was announced, deal with a parent that wants to chat in the hallway AND teach curriculum. I GET that…however, being aware of triggers and habits and making small tweaks to our teaching behaviour can make a big difference in our classroom community.

*106:Triggers-The Key to Building and Breaking Habits, Chris Sparks, 2018

November 5, 2019 Michelle Fenn 21st Century Learning, Behaviour Management, Building Inclusion, Challenging Topics, Classroom Management, Communication Tools, Constant Learning, Diverse Learning Needs, General, Inclusion, Inspiring Students, Inspiring Teachers, Making a Difference Through Education, Mental Health, Mindfulness, Professional Learning and Growth, Resources, self reflection, Teacher Appreciation, Teacher Wellness, Wellness, wellness

Daring Classrooms

I state the obvious when I say that teaching is a demanding job. If you are reading this, you are most likely a teacher and this is not news to you. I’d like to highlight a resource that feeds the soul of a teacher (and quite frankly a human being) while also providing some strategies for integrating that soul feeding into your classroom practice for your students. Wait, what…that exists? It is a website from Brene Brown called Daring Classrooms. If you haven’t heard of her yet, you can find “The Call to Courage” on Netflix and/or her Ted Talk on Vulnerability. She is inspirational in leadership, in life and in work. Here is a snippet from her #DaringClassrooms website:

“Teachers are some of our most important leaders. We know that we can’t always ask our students to take off the armor at home, or even on their way to school, because their emotional and physical safety may require self-protection.

But what we can do, and what we are ethically called to do as teachers, is create a space in our schools and classrooms where all students can walk in and, for that day or hour, take off the crushing weight of their armor, hang it on a rack, and open their heart to truly being seen.

Teachers are the guardians of spaces that allow students to breathe and be curious and explore the world and be who they are without suffocation. Students deserve one place where they can rumble with vulnerability and their hearts can exhale.

And what I know from the research is that we should never underestimate the benefit to a child of having a place to belong—even one—where they can take off their armor. It can and often does change the trajectory of their life.

Teachers: Everyday should be Teacher Appreciation Day. I am so grateful for you and your willingness to show up and create brave, safe spaces where our children can learn, grow, and be seen.”

Some of the short (8-12 minute) video resources from Daring Classrooms include:

How do we avoid the pressure to please?

How do teachers manage oversharing?

How do we help parents understand failing as part of the learning process?

Does the word “disappointed” shame students?

In addition to the video resources there are free downloads for resources, parenting the classroom and daily life. There are pdfs that you can print out for working with students. My favourite one is the list of core emotions. Sometimes when students have triggers they can’t always name or explain the emotion that caused the trigger in behaviour. Being able to learn about the names and the definitions of core emotions is helpful for students to self-regulate.

Every year in a classroom brings new challenges. In fact, every day in a classroom will bring on a new challenge. I hope that as you lead your own #DaringClassroom you will find this resource helpful and that it may feed your teacher soul.

October 21, 2019 Kim Cousin 21st Century Learning, Building Inclusion, Challenging Topics, Combined Grade Classes, General, Social Justice, wellness

New Ideas and Connections

This year has certainly been full of unknowns. We are working with an expired contract. Reorganization happens with my board late in September. Just as I successfully created a smooth flow and eager learning with my students, my assignment was jostled around. As a teacher, I’m flexible with changes. As a human I struggle with change.

As my grade 7/8 class finished handing in their Cell and Ecosystem models, I was moved to a different teaching assignment. The Cell and Ecosystem unit was completed after students learned how to complete timelines, flow charts and word webs. These graphic organizers were used as the research component for building their models.

Barrie Bennett has conducted some thorough research about different types of graphic organizers and written the resource, “Graphic Organizers”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVasHWQo28c This is a useful tool to help students develop their research skills and present their understanding in an organized in depth way. Many of my science ideas were gathered from teachers at ETFO’s Summer Academy and NSTA annual presentations. Some of the resources I gathered and continue to draw my instructional ideas from, are designed and written by ETFO teachers. “Take a Closer Look, A Media Literacy Resource” and “The Power of Story” are both excellent resources with lessons which can be easily adapted for todays quickly changing world.

I am now using my mental health and wellness skills and knowledge to provide support in other areas of the school population. One of the wonderful resources I am using is the fiction story, “Blue Gold” by Elizabeth Stewart. This story brings many areas of social justice to the forefront. While introducing curriculum content of Language Arts and Health, research and discussions are easier when students can connect to life stories of youth from around the world.

To compliment this with local stories, I have introduced, “Speaking the Truth. A Journey of Reconciliation”. http://orcabook.com/speakingourtruth/ While I am becoming educated around indigenous issues I have found myself reflecting and relating to many important issues. Monique Gray Smith presents a fantastic tool for these learning purposes. The joy of teaching for me is also learning and adapting my lessons in an engaging way.

September 29, 2019 Arianna Lambert Building Inclusion, Inclusion, Learning About Your Students, Start of the year, The Arts

I Am From Poems – Building A Positive Classroom Community

I’m hoping that it’s been a great start back for everyone! The month has certainly gone by quickly. Having been out of the classroom for a year and being at a new school community, it was definitely all nerves on the first day. I always try to keep in mind that students might be feeling the same way walking into the new school year. While many of my students have been in the same school together since kindergarten, I have a few students who are new to our school this year and have been thinking of ways to make sure that they feel right at home in our classroom.

Building a positive classroom community is important starting from day one. As a part of building our classroom community, I often ask students to consider who they are as individuals and what they bring to our classroom space. One activity that I have enjoyed over the years is creating I Am From poems. In the past I’ve jumped right into creating We Are From poems where students work with a partner to find commonalities and differences and share them to the larger group. Once they have created a joint poem, we combine different parts of each poem to create one large classroom poem where everyone is reflected. This year, instead of creating We Are From poems, we started off instead by creating our own individual poems to share with each other.

You might be wondering what I Am From Poems are. For years, educators have used George Ella Lyon’s Where I’m From poem to inspire students to consider their own narratives. While there are different templates that can be used, I use this template to help guide my students in creating their own.

On the second day of school, the students in my class were tasked with thinking about who they are and where they are from, learning that our experiences shape who we are as individuals, along with other factors in our lives. By the end of the week, rough copies of amazing poems were complete and students were thinking about the symbols they would use to represent their identities. Just in time for our Curriculum Night, good copies of our poems went up and we had the chance to create continuous line portraits to accompany them.

Identity work is so important for building a safe and caring classroom community. What ideas do you have for this year? How are students showing who they are and bringing their experiences to the classroom and their learning? If you have great ideas, please share them here!

September 21, 2019 Kelly.McLaughlin Behaviour Management, Celebrating Success, Classroom Management, First Week Reflections, Flexible Classroom, Inspiring Students, Learning About Your Students, self reflection, Start of the year, Student Ownership, Wellness

School year start up

A new school year has begun again and I am once again teaching grade eight, in my opinion, the most exciting and enriching grade I have taught so far.

The first few weeks have been incredible because of the honest conversations we had week one about how great their year can be if they make it that way. We talked about fun trips, ideas and awards that go on during their grade eight year. We talked about what the ideal classroom looks like, sounds like and smells like (ha!) so we made some ideas on how we can achieve those goals. The students have done an amazing job so far on adhering to all of the goals they set out for our own classroom.

A few things have been making this start up so incredible:

There are many student leaders in the classroom who have helped to set the tone for all of the other students in the room. They model positive behaviours and shut down negative ones. There is little to no times where I have interjected to tell them what I expect because another student has already done that for me.
I have already received the help during breaks and afterschool of about 9 or 10 students with teams that go on at our school. These leadership activities have made them stand out in the classroom as well as the extra responsibility has made them thoroughly enjoy each day. That feeling that they are making a difference in their school shows everyday in their mood and behaviours. I am hoping even more students will be interested in these opportunities as only ten of the 26 have stepped up so far. I have awarded these students with small circular stickers that they put on their desk organizers. At the end of the year, we will see who has volunteered the most and those students will be eligible for a token of appreciation (not sure what that will look like yet). It will also help the staff with selecting grade eight awards because they will see who has given up so much of their time for our school community.
I have offered students homework to complete every night which will help them prepare for grade nine. 19 out of the 26 students have taken this homework and completed it each night. I have three ESL students who I am working on preparing appropriate homework for them so then it will be 22 out of 26. We take up this homework each morning and new homework is given out every night before they go home. The fact that it is optional makes students actively take the initiative to better themselves and their after school time. I am so proud of these students as I mentioned it will help them get ready for grade nine and the few students who took that opportunity last year had the highest marks in the school (they won the principal’s award). It is great hearing groups of students want to hang out after school to work on homework. It is definitely a good after school option for them.
I also have offered students level four or above and beyond opportunities that go with each task we have completed as a class. Seeing those 10-12 students select that option is awesome as they are actively selecting to do better and to challenge themselves each day. I remember being in school not knowing the difference between all of the levels and not knowing how my teacher came up with my mark. I make sure all of my students know how they can excel to the highest level possible.

I think all of these things working together have made it impossible for the students in my room to have a negative experience or to make the day negative for someone else. It is incredible to see such focus and leadership day to day and it makes me so proud of my class. I was away last week at a junior baseball tournament (coached by two of my students) and my supply left only this note, “Your class rocks!” This would not have been possible last year as I must have missed many of these steps in the school year start up. I am really hoping the year will continue in this positive manner.

Having faith in your students and challenging them daily is the best way to go 🙂

May 31, 2019 Tammy Axt General, Mentorship

Picking Each Other Up

Just like most people in all of Canada these past few weeks, I have been watching a crazy amount of basketball. Go Raptors!! One thing I love about basketball is that every time one of the players is on the floor, his teammate is there to put his hand out and pick him up. I think teachers need to take the same approach with each other.

I have a brand-new role this year and there have been some days that I have left school and thought well “that sucked”. I didn’t say the exact right thing to a parent, I didn’t handle a behaviour situation correctly and today my one student flat out told me I was not her friend. Not exactly sunshine and rainbows. We are generally very hard on ourselves because we want the best for our students every day. Since we are so hard on ourselves, it is important that we pick each other up every time we are lying down on the court.

There are so many days in my current role where I lack confidence. I am new to the role and I second guess myself a lot. I guess that comes with being an experienced teacher. I was very confident and experienced in my previous role and it was hard to go some place new and feel like I was back at the beginning of my learning.

Some of my colleagues have been amazing at picking me up off the floor on those tough days. My favourite was a friend putting her plans aside and saying let’s have a coffee and talk through this issue that is worrying you. She asked me some amazing guiding questions and then looked at me and said this is hard and there is no easy answer. She then asked “Do you have the supports to help you learn how to help this student?” “Is there anything I can do to support?” And finally she looked at me with all the confidence in the world and said “You will get this, it will just take time”. She picked me up about 7 times during the conversation and I left the coffee shop feeling so much better!

Over my career, I have heard some colleagues be less supportive with each other. There are two common things that are sometimes said amongst teachers that definitely leave teachers on the court stranded.

“That doesn’t happen in my room.” This sentence always drives me absolutely crazy!!!!!!! There are always so many factors that could contribute to difficulty in a different setting that has nothing to do with the teacher or teaching. Depending on the subject it may include noise levels, physical structure to the space, interest in the subject etc. Even if it is the teaching style saying “this doesn’t happen in my room” is not really helpful. Instead, if a colleague approaches with a concern about a student it would be so much better to ask them if there is anything you can do to help make the situation better.

My number 2 pet peeve is “If that student was in my class, I’d straighten them out/they wouldn’t be having these problems.”I have yet to meet a teacher who didn’t have a challenging student at some point in their career. We have all been there. It is important that we offer help to each other when we are taking time to figure out our students.

Our job is hard, we need to be kind to each other. Make sure that you put out your hand to pick someone else when they are on the court.

Go Raptors!!

May 3, 2019 Michelle Fenn 21st Century Learning, Advocacy for change, Building Inclusion, Coding, Constant Learning, Equity, Gender Equity, Gender stereotypes, General, Genius Hour, Inquiry, Inspiring Students, Inspiring Teachers, Integration, Learning in a Real Life Context, Making a Difference Through Education, Math, Mentorship, Modern Learning, Planning, Professional Learning and Growth, Resilience, Resources, Robotics, Technology, Technology in school, The Global Competencies, Use of Technology, Using technology well, Women at Work

The Gender Gap in Technology

According to a recent report* by ICTC (the Information and Technology Information Council) Canadian women represent about 50% of the overall workforce but represent only 25% of the technology industry workforce. Of the 100 major tech companies in Canada only 5 have female CEOs and 1 Co-CEO. 26% of the tech companies have no women in senior leadership at all. There is a gender wage gap in the industry of $7,000-$20,00 per year. When I read these statistics I wondered as educators, what can we do about the gender gap in technology? This is not an exhaustive list, but it is a place to begin:

1. Build her confidence in her abilities.

2. Cultivate a community of supportive peers.

3. Provide a STEM/STEAM club for girls.

4. Ensure that access to technology and computer experiences is encouraged and inclusive.

5. Foster interest in computing careers.

6. Be a role model as a LEARNER.

May 11th is National Girls Learning Code Day. If you are looking to encourage coders in your school, why not begin on May 11th? Below you will find links to resources for beginning coding. Many students code on their own at home and may appreciate the opportunity to mentor fellow students. The resources attached will get you started. There is no special equipment or robotics required. Teachers do not have to be expert coders to encourage their students. Teachers can be role models of resilience, risk taking and problem solving by learning alongside their students. Teachers only need to open the door and expose their students to the opportunities.

Girls Who Code Canada

National Girls Learn Code Day

*Cutean, A., Ivus, M. (2017). The Digital Talent Dividend: Shifting Gears in a Changing Economy. Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC). Ottawa, Canada.

Elaborated and written by Alexandra Cutean (Director, Digital Innovation Research and Policy). and Maryna Ivus (Senior Analyst, Research and Policy) with generous support from the ICTC Research and Policy Team.

April 22, 2019April 25, 2019 Deb Weston Advocacy for public education, Learning About Your Students, Making a Difference Through Education, Professional Learning and Growth

The Courage to Teach

In this very challenging time of education cutbacks, teachers are on the edge. They wonder how long they will keep their jobs and what will classrooms be like in the next school year.

Losing your job as a teacher is not just about losing a job, it is about losing the work that you do to challenge your spirit to make a difference – it is about losing your heart. When teachers teach, they teach through resources no other person possesses, their identity as a teacher and as a learner and as an adult who cares about students. As a teacher of over 19 years, I know that students can tell the difference between teachers who care and teachers who do not care – and this impacts how students learn.

Parker Palmer (2007, p. 11) puts it simply “Good teaching cannot be reduced to technique; good teaching comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher.”

When teachers teach, they are connected to the students, dialed into who the students are and what interests them. Good teachers are always looking for the teachable moment to grab students’ interest and get them excited about learning. “Good teachers possess a capacity for connectiveness. They are able to weave a complex web of connections among themselves, their subjects, and their students so that students can learn to weave a world for themselves” (Palmer, 2007, p. 11). Methods vary depending on the grade level, subject, and opportunity – lectures, Socratic dialogues of questions and answers, experiments, collaborative problem solving, or one on one discussions. It’s all good teaching when connections are made through “the place where intellect and emotion and spirit and will converge in the human self” (Palmer, 2007, p. 11), the heart of a person, a student.

As a teacher I do my best to keep my heart of teaching strong and pliable. I have learned to roll with the challenges of teaching through dealing with challenging students, challenging parents, and sometimes challenging administrators. It is not an easy job to keep heart.

Why do teachers lose heart?

In the daily “work out” of teaching, we are highly vulnerable as we are the centre of attention in the classroom. This is a highly personal job. Students are watching us for who we are and what we represent. Our public and private lives are on the line in classrooms. We must be ourselves but we also must have a suit of self-protection against high levels of criticism that are meant to break us. Teachers will ultimately make mistakes in their teaching, in their assessment, and sometimes in their judgement but I find that students are usually very forgiving, especially if the teacher owns the mistake.

Another reason why teachers lose heart is that teaching can be very challenging. What makes teaching really hard is in seeing the potential of students and identifying the great barriers students face in fulfilling their best self. The challenge is to face with the barriers that limit students’ potential. Human potential gets sidetracked by disability, culture, identity, family, school culture, community, and economics. In having high expectations for all students, teachers make a grand difference in the students’ future. Teaching students how to get around these barriers is key to their social, emotional, and academic growth. When using intuition and identity, teachers discover ways to reach students’ hearts.

To become a really good teacher, it took me over 8 years of practice. That’s about 10,000 hours – Malcolm Gladwell’s 10,000 hour benchmark for achieving success (Gladwell, 2008). In the VITAE (Variations in Teachers’ Work, Lives, and their Effects on Pupils) study, with 300 teachers in 100 schools, that examined influences in teachers’ identities, Day, Sammons, Stobart, Kingston, and Gu (2007) found that teachers reach their highest level of efficacy between year 7 and 8 in teaching.

In the first couple of years of teaching I went from being totally overwhelmed in the joy of teaching to totally overwhelmed with the disappointment of teaching. Some days I was afraid. I was afraid of not being competent enough, not working hard enough, not meeting students’ needs enough, not connecting with students enough, and sometimes not being quick enough when a student threw a chair in my direction (this happened the second week of my first contract).

Even after 19 years of teaching, I still have fears, but I am not these fears. Instead, I teach with courage and resilience and discovery. I teach from curiosity, honesty, hope, empathy, and conviction. I teach from who I am. I teach with heart.

I implore teachers to have the courage to teach in these challenging times. To never surrender to a person who is trying to trivialize your work as something easy and simple and something that can be done by technology … because computers don’t have heart.

Be brave. Teach from your heart.

Collaboratively Yours,

Deb Weston, PhD

References

Day, C., Sammons, P., Stobart, G., Kingston, A., & Gu, Q. (2007). Teachers matter: Connecting lives, work and effectiveness. Maidenhead, UK: Open University.

Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The story of success. Hachette UK.

Palmer, P. J. (2017). The courage to teach: Exploring the inner landscape of a teacher’s life. John Wiley & Sons.

February 27, 2019 Tammy Axt Learning About Your Students, Special Education

Why are your eyebrows grumpy?

One of my students asked me the funniest question during our morning meeting this week. She stopped, looked at me and asked, “Why are your eyebrows grumpy?” It struck me as really funny and I burst out laughing and she did as well. I went home that evening and began to think more about her question. At the time that she asked me the question, I was talking about an exciting trip that was coming up for our class. My voice was animated and I thought I was conveying my excitement through the words that I was choosing but upon deeper reflection I am not sure my facial expression was matching my words.

One of the real gifts that my students bring to the school and the class is their ability to read emotion. Many of the students are very sensitive to the expression on my face, in my voice and in my body. They laugh with me often and can easily tell when I am upset with them by a simple look or a body position. The great thing about this is that I rarely have to use my voice to intervene on unwanted behaviour and I can show someone what a great job they are doing by a simple look. The tricky part of this is that my facial expressions are being analyzed all day long. As a person doing this job for the first time, I am often perplexed or thinking about next steps. When I was talking about the upcoming trip with the class, I was also thinking about all the logistics of how to make this trip successful. I am sure that is why my student thought my eyebrows were grumpy.

Working with this group of students has been a fantastic reminder to slow down, stay in the moment and enjoy the experience. Things will get done. I will make mistakes and learn from them. I will get better at this job every day.

My talented students will forever teach me the skill that the author Toni Morrison spoke about. Toni Morrison explained that children don’t care about weather you help them zip up their jacket or have everything prepared. They care about one thing ….“Does your face light up when a child enters the room?” She also encouraged all of us to “let your face speak what is in your heart.” My students are reminding me of Ms. Morrison’s important lessons everyday. Slow down. Stay present in the moment. Let them see everyday how much you care for them.