A Teacher's Ruminations

This afternoon there was an electrical storm. Apparently, we'll be experiencing these more often this month at the same time that the bad weather starts to diminish. Hopefully, May will be a better month, for the weather and for changes I am hoping for. Winter here has never been like this before. In fact, we've never had an actual weather report before. The weather here is generally constant in the winter. Sunny skies, rain in the afternoon, sunny skies after that. Temperatures hovering between 15 and 20 degrees with a strong sun in the middle of the day. But, this winter all we've had is rain, rain, and more rain. Cold temperatures that linger and linger and linger. Fortunately, today I worked late as I waited for my son who was practicing for the school play. So, I didn't experience the electrical storms though I heard the noise but didn't see the lightning, if that makes sense. My husband was at home and that was a different story. ...

Today I've been thinking of that saying, " when one door closes, another one opens ". Y ou know the one I'm talking about. Sometimes a door closes and it's not a surprise. Although you're hopeful, deep down inside you know what the outcome is going to be even before you go down that path. But, even though you hesitate at first, you open that door and go through it. Otherwise you'll always regret not trying.  So, now I am looking for another door. Or, as my daughter says, another window. A door or a window to slip through and find what I'm looking for.  Sitting outside in my porch, overlooking some pretty majestic mountains, I am humbled. I am healing.  Things happen for a reason, don't they? Although m y reason is yet to be revealed and my next steps are still tentative, I am grateful.  I am grateful for my family.  They've always got my back. I am grateful for these mountains.  They help to clear my mind. I am grateful for the ...

Source: http://www.planwallpaper.com/static/images/thank-you-clothesline-752x483.jpg I had a hard time writing this post. In fact, I kept putting it off all week and now, a week and a day later, I am forced to write something. I feel like I should have a big, inspiring story about a former student who contacted me years later to thank me for being his or her teacher.  But, sadly, I don't have a story like that though after 30 years of teaching, it seems like I should. At least, I don't have one big story. I have small moments.  It seems like those should count, too. They're important. Aren't they? I can excuse myself by saying that of the 30 years I've been in education, I spent seven out of the classroom, and so I lost contact with a lot of kids and their families. But, that sounds lame. What is true (read: less lame) is that I have never stayed more than six years in one school site and I've moved from North to South America and back again tw...

Writing has always been a cathartic activity for me. I write when I'm upset or confused and, after just a few minutes, I start to feel better. Writing about failures or challenging situations helps me clarify my thinking so that I can sort through the muck and figure out what my next steps might be. Writing allows me to uncover what was hidden and is no longer so. Writing can free me up so I can discover a better version of myself. To uncover something I didn't know. To sift through the parts in order to get to the whole. The whole that matters. Writing does that for me. And, just as quickly, a perceived barrier to making my writing public can shut me down. If I can't write publicly about a controversial topic without feeling vulnerable, then I feel lost. Untethered. Groundless. Without a backbone. Trapped. I want to write without worrying that I will offend someone. But the fact of the matter is that every piece of good, honest writing will alway...

I participated in back-to-back Twitter chats tonight. Two hours of fast-paced, free professional learning, coaching and collaboration. Ideas, encouragement and pure inspiration that I will take back to my classroom tomorrow. #EdCollab and #TWOTC Back-to-back learning opportunities. My choice. My needs. Nerdy teacher heaven. Here are nine takeaways from these two chats: When I am working with a student, I must always make sure to teach at the point of a child's strengths and zone of proximal development. As I grow and change my beliefs and practice, I will benefit from creating a "cheat sheet" with questions to ask students when I confer with them. Questions that remind me to talk less so that students do most of the work. I need to ask questions like -  What did you try?  What will you try?  What have you tried before? How did that go? What can you try now?  Tell me about what you did here. What makes you say that? If you knew the answer, wh...

I am sitting in my usual spot. At least it has been my usual spot for about a week now. It has become my work space. It's where I sit to participate in online summer PD activities. It's where I read. It's where I write. My usual spot is in a corner of the couch. The arm rest is unusually wide. I can pile my books, notebooks and even my laptop there. And, I do. I used to have a more conventional work space, but then my husband, who works from home, and was struggling to stick to his side of the desk, finally spread out, invading my work space. One day, after many attempts at getting organized, and not succeeding, he told me that he was going to add an extension to our house, so I could have my own work space. I told him it was cheaper to tidy up. That was months ago. Before claiming my usual spot, I set up a temporary, wobbly table against a wall in my bedroom for a work space. I used that for a few months. Not ideal, but better than nothing. I...