To help encourage conversations and dialogue about making the days count, this week's topic/question for the dinner table is: What can you do this week to make each day count? Please see link to Google Form to share your responses: Making the Days Count (6/5/16) (This is an anonymous Google Form)
The four days of school after Memorial Day were busy ones and in many ways felt like a five-day week! We have enjoyed our kids' sports this weekend along with a get-together with friends Saturday evening. We had a busy Sunday as well and were thrilled to be able to have a relaxed family dinner tonight before the week began and renewed the crazy schedule!
The month of June is one full of both celebration (graduations, completion of the school year, marking milestones) and anticipation (the joys of summer approaching, looking ahead to the following school year, changing of seasons). With only two and a half weeks left in this school year, I find myself going back and forth - feeling excited yet overwhelmed by this short period of time that remains. What helps me is to take a step back and try to take it one step at a time - as many of you know, this is a real challenge for me for there is so much still left to do in the year and the 'to do' list continues to grow. When overwhelmed, if I'm being honest, I have to admit I am tempted to 'hole up', shut my door, and plug away at the work that lies ahead. But, when taking a step back and resist that 'urge' I recognize that 'it will get done' and I want to be present and really take in these remaining days. This past week at Blake was one that allowed me to do just that...
- Seeing students and teachers head off for hands-on learning experiences for the Civics field trip, Great East Music Festival, and MFA field trips
- 6th grade team planning for the upcoming Peabody Essex Museum field trips
- Seeing the yearlong efforts to support Swapna and the Heather Abbott Foundation come together with our community-wide Blake marathon
- Reconnecting with students and teachers and reflecting upon the 8th grade trip to D.C.
- Listening to students reflect upon their accomplishments and goals for the remaining weeks of the year
- Asking students about their upcoming summer plans
- Meeting with teachers from all grades and disciplines about how we can better support our LGBTQ students/families and establish a safe environment for all of our students
- Working with teachers and content specialists as we continue our efforts to curate the progression of student learning and growth
- Meeting with parents and teachers about our Standards Based Reporting efforts to provide a more cohesive and meaningful approach to give feedback to students and families
- Greeting the students as they start each day outside in the morning
- Simply walking the halls of Blake, listening, and reminding myself to be present
We Should Be Curious About Student Boredom
by James E. Ryan in Education Week
As we approach our last two and a half weeks of school, this 'boredom' phenomena/concern/expression can certainly seep into the conversation, and I appreciate Ryan's open acknowledgement of it. I could not agree more with his belief that we should approach it with curiosity - and, it is one that I would like to come back to throughout the year.
The potential causes of in-school boredom are legion and intertwined: adolescence, and the real and feigned ennui that attends this developmental stage; mobile phones and the infinite competing distractions they contain; some topics that are hard to make interesting; pressure to cover material quickly; and some teachers who are a bit on the dry side. There are also, importantly, exceptions as well as variations. As I remember well, some classes and teachers capture the attention and passion of students. And what some students find interesting, others find boring.
Something about the contrast among my kids, and the fatalism with which the older ones predicted the academic future of their younger sister, finally snapped me out of my complacency about boredom. I have come to be much more curious about boredom in school, for a number of reasons.
Given all of this, it seems to me that boredom ought to be considered much more seriously when thinking about ways to improve student outcomes...We all, it seems to me, play our part in the production and proliferation of boredom. I would think it is in all of our interests at least to confront this stubborn fact of school rather than simply to accept boredom as inextricably linked to learning.
Wicked-Problem Solvers
by Amy Edmondson in Harvard Business Review
This post highlights some practices that to encourage collaboration amongst individuals for industries, specifically cross-industry work. Although aimed at leaders of industry, I think we can find meaning for our students and in our work as educators - the practices are important: Foster an adaptable vision; Promote psychological safety;l Enable knowledge sharing; Foster execution-as-learning
The role of leaders is to enable diverse team members to grasp one another’s perspectives and productively share their insights.
To succeed in this world, they must strike a difficult balance: They need to advance their vision by looking beyond their own industry perspective and engaging a host of potentially antagonistic experts with distinct industry mindsets. They must be flexible, open-minded, and humble on the one hand and filled with fierce resolve on the other. Leading this way is challenging, but it’s a learnable skill, and as cross-industry teaming becomes the norm, it is one that no leader or firm can afford to ignore.
Finishing Strong
by Dan Kerr (@DanKerr1)
I shared this post last year at this time and believe it is one that should be on the 'annual June list of readings' for both students and adults.
When I look back over the past year much of it seems like a blur, and I’m left feeling a little dizzy and overwhelmed, and a lot grateful and proud. We took on so much this year as a faculty and we deserve to take a few moments to revel in the positive changes that are transforming our community. That being said, the last few weeks of a school year can be tough…arguably the toughest of them all because of the fatigue that has begun to set in…because of the onslaught of emotions that comes along with saying goodbye to students and colleagues and friends, and because of all the culminating events that get packed into the last several days.
I’d like to reiterate a challenge that I put out to my faculty at a previous school a couple of years ago, by asking you all to re-commit to our students, their learning, and to each other over the next three to four weeks, and to dig deep to finish what we started...It’s an exciting time of the year I know, and the kids are happy and smiling…we all have one eye focused on our summer adventures, and we can see the finish line on the horizon…I’m asking you however to not lose sight of the importance of what’s still left to do.
For those of you moving on to new adventures, remember that you’re only ever as good as your last exit…….and for those of us returning, know that students remember the educators that we are in June…..so let’s make sure they remember the best of what we have to offer. The last few weeks are going to speed by everyone so please commit to making them count. Let’s all feel great about what we’ve accomplished so far this year…it’s been amazing…but we’re not done yet! Finish strong and wrap up the year with a beautiful bow.
Take the Time
by Pernille Ripp (@pernilleripp)
I have asked all staff to read this post prior to our last faculty meeting, as it encourages all of us to find and 'take the time'.
There seems to be no greater rush in school then these last few precious days before we say goodbye, before our time is up. I look at my own to-do list and wonder just how much will actually get to done. The pressure of it all nips at my heels as I wonder whether my students could possibly speak a little bit faster as they deliver their end of year speeches. Will we get through them all? We have so much to do still.
May we never take for granted that our year, while tough at times, was still a success and that all of those students did actually grow, even if it was not as much as we had hoped. May we never forget that for a brief moment in time we were a part of the future by being a part of a child’s life.
The first two posts (by Ryan and Edmondson) leave us with more questions than answers and I recognize that can be frustrating and overwhelming. But, that is important and an essential part of the process towards progress. I hope these posts can serve as a catalyst for thinking and reflection for our 'final stretch' of the 15-16 year with our students and one another. And, with the news that Muhammad Ali passed away on Friday evening, I have come across many of his quotations and am sharing a few that I believe are pertinent to our mission and work with students, one another, and our community...
Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth. - Muhammad Ali
Don't count the days; make the days count. - Muhammad Ali
I look forward to the work that lies ahead for all of us.
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Take care.
Nat