WE Are More Than A Score

My husband and I just started packing up our house a couple of days ago to prepare for our big move, and I have come across so many things that have brought back some huge memories! Things like photos of my mother, floppy disks from college, letters from my grandparents, and more. I also came across two pieces of paper that I haven't thought about since my 5th and 7th grade years of school....the results from our state test, TAAS (now called STAAR).

Do you see the sections that I outlined in yellow? That is where the state told me, my parents, my peers, my school, and my teachers that I didn't do enough, that I wasn't enough. It's crazy how two pieces of paper can transport me right back to that time in my life. I can vividly remember what it felt like and the shame that I had in those moments. In my head and my heart, I had let down everyone. The most prominent emotion that I can remember feeling was embarrassment. 

But I also remember my mother, sister, and teachers doing everything in their power to remind me of my potential and how this one score would never define the places that I would go and the things that I would do. 

This is a message that I shared last year, and it is just as important to share now:

I'm an educator, and I stand behind our kids as so many of my educator friends do. We support you and love you regardless of a bubble sheet. Regardless of a multiple choice question. You are more than this test. More than this score. You are our future, and we are so excited about that future! Take this test and leave it on your desk. Know you did your best and no matter what, you will still change the world. You will still make a difference. 

I am so proud of our students, and I am just as proud of our teachers. This test does not and will not define anyone...students, teachers, schools, parents, or districts. 

 

ChoppED PD-Easter Egg Edition

A couple of years ago, I attended a Future Ready Conference in New Orleans. It was one of the best conferences that I have ever attended, and I left with so many great ideas! One of the sessions that I attended included an experience called "Chopped Baskets". It was an idea inspired by the Food Network show, "Chopped". Each team was tasked to select a "basket" and to work together to create a lesson.  

Credit: Brianna Hodges and Sarah Thomas

This is where the idea for ChoppEd PD-Easter Egg Edition came from! I reached out to the wonderful Brianna Hodges, and she didn't hesitate to help me along the way! I also found some great resources online! You have to check them out!

The Four O'Clock Faculty

Mandy Ellis

When I first decided to do this around Easter, I stocked up on Easter baskets, eggs, grass, decorations, and treats at Walmart. I decided to have grade level baskets with 4 eggs in them (I used the same four eggs each time.). Each egg was labeled with a 1, 2, 3 or 4. The grade levels chose an egg, and then they were given a folder labeled with that same number. Inside that folder was a sheet like the one below:

Clipart Credit: Jen Hart Design
Font Credit: KG Fonts

They also had to choose at least 2 items from the "pantry" to include in their lesson design. I included library books, a camera, Seesaw, Flocabulary, Buncee, and a "Wild Card". If they chose the "Wild Card", they got to use another tool/resource of their choice.

To help with facilitating the PD, I created a Buncee. It is my go-to tool as an instructional coach! I use it for everything! I recently used it to even create my desktop background!

I love what the teachers came up with! I especially loved the teamwork and the creativity! Check out some of the lessons that were created below!

I also had some very special helpers that day that helped to lead the PD experience for the teachers. They both won "Instructional Coach for a Day" at our campus fundraiser! Loved having them there to join in and share their insight with the teachers.

Noble, Mrs. Storer, and Preston

You can transform this experience to fit all kinds of themes and holidays. Here are some ideas that I had:

Beginning of the School Year: You could use apples instead of eggs in a picnic basket.
Valentines: You could use a box of chocolates as the "basket" where each piece of chocolate is labeled.
Christmas: You could use stockings as the "basket" with different items that are labeled with the numbers.

What are some of your ideas? The possibilities are truly endless! I encourage you to take this idea (just like I did) and make it your own! We advocate, often, for transformational/"sticky" learning for our students. Our teachers deserve this too! As my buddy, Rich Czyz says, "Let's make PD what it was meant to be." I could not agree more!

Still

Music has always been something that centered me. It was a release that I never knew I needed or never knew I wanted. I grew up, thanks to my mother and father, to music like Fleetwood Mac, Lionel Richie, and Creedence Clearwater. As a child, they were songs that made me happy and moved me to dance, but I never truly felt the impact of the words until I heard them live. That was, until I attended my first concert. For those that know me very well, they will know that this was actually my second concert. But I will always consider it my first one real one! As soon as the lights went low, and the stage lights came on, and I heard James Hetfield's (of Metallica) voice, I just knew. I just knew that this was going to be something that my soul needed. The lyrics in the songs that I love are so much more than words. They translate messages to my heart, transport me, and also ground the emotions that I battle and embrace daily. And it isn't always just the lyrics, it's the music in the background, too. It's every single part of a song. (Orion by Metallica is one that you should definitely check out!)

Photo Credit: Flickr

I came across a song by Asking Alexandria recently that gave me all the words that I needed to hear. There have been many songs and many artists that have done this, but this song...this one song made me pause in life. I truly took pause and stood back. It was time for me to be still. It was time for me to put me first and reflect. I needed to be still. I needed it more than I knew.

All I needed was the last thing I wanted 
To sit alone in a room and say it all out loud

I used to blog all the time. I loved putting it all out there. It was a great release for me. I don't know exactly what happened to make it stop. I have a guess, but I'm not going to place blame on something I had complete control over. What I do have control over is what happens next. My growth as an educator and human being is very important to me. I know the direction that I am headed, and I want to continue on that path. My #OneWord for this year doesn't mean that I am going to stand still in my journey. In my opinion, standing still in education is dangerous to us and our students. What it does mean, is that there will be times that I need to pause, reflect, and say it all out loud. There will be times where I just need to be still for a moment.

Sometimes I'll fall down, sometimes I'll lose hope 
But those days will be few if I keep my feet on the ground
I might be lonely, but I ain't alone here 
So I keep pushing the limits of what makes me

I think it is perfectly natural for self doubt and fear to creep in to our lives. There have been times, in just this past year alone, where I have questioned the direction of my life because of these two emotions. I could have let them takeover and adjust my sails, but that just wasn't an option for me. I shook their hands and said see you later (because we all know they make return visits), and continued on my path. This wouldn't have happened without the help of others. I want to say thank you to my admin team at my school, the teachers that I work alongside, my instructional coaching team and our leader, my PLN/PLF (you know who you are), my sister and her family, and one of the best networks to be a part of, the #4OCFpln. You have all had a hand in keeping my feet on the ground. Thank you. I will continue to push the limits within myself and others because I know the importance of that effort. And I think you know the importance of that too. 

I can be better than I was 
I can be better than I am

I am looking forward to this year, and I know that I can and will be better. I will make decisions for me and because of this journey that I am on. I will spend more time reflecting on my path and leaning on those that build me up rather than tear me down. Sadly, there have been some people in my life these past couple of years that I truly thought were friends that showed their truly colors to me or even behind my back, but I will not let them or anyone else prevent me from moving forward. I will put me first and work on my mind and my body. I will fuel both with positivity, struggle, risk-taking, and anything that breathes fire into my soul. This message popped up on my Twitter feed this week, and I related to it so much. I need to remind myself of this when criticism slides into my life and work. I can be better than I was and I can be better than I am. 

Photo Credit: Pikbee

Thank you, music! Thank you for giving me such a great reason to blog and reflect again. Thank you, Asking Alexandria, for being the match that lit the fire. Thank you for reminding me of the importance of standing still and saying it all out loud.