To help encourage conversations and dialogue about listening to one another, our topic/question for the dinner table is: How does listening help you learn? Please see link to Google Form to share your responses: Listening to Understand (Week of 11/14/16) (This is an anonymous Google Form)
I hope that everyone is reading this, feeling a bit more rested than usual after the three day weekend. We took some time to enjoy the beautiful November weather on Veterans Day with the boys (as Maggie was spending time with Katie's mom in Boston for a treat) and then had a 'crazy sports day' on Saturday - soccer for the boys, swimming for Maggie, and then basketball has already started for Owen with a kickoff jamboree! As much as I try and 'preach' balance and to avoid the 'over-scheduling' pressure, we see ourselves as part of it as well. I am drafting this blog update as we wait for our early flight from Logan to California with my family (brother, sister, parents, and me) for my cousin's funeral (a 4:30 a.m. departure from Sherborn for a 7:00 a.m. flight - my punctuality is certainly genetic!). I want to thank everyone once again for the kind words and thoughts expressed for me and my family - they are much appreciated.
Each week at Blake, and outside of Blake as well, presents opportunities, challenges, adventures, excitement, and many other emotions and descriptors. With the presidential election, news and media, and discussions that took place, I know I am not alone in sharing that this past week had a more profound intensity felt by students, staff, and the greater community. As educators we often wrestle with how to navigate the lines of politics and beliefs as we know how important it is to keep our personal beliefs 'in check' and to model an even and balanced approach to education - we want our students to grow and discover their own beliefs. I have received questions from staff, parents, and colleagues (both within the Medfield schools and outside as well) as to how we can best navigate these tricky waters. And, if I'm being honest, this path is not clear at all (and I wish it was). I have truly enjoyed reading different letters, memos, and missives written by educators, university presidents, heads of school, and other leaders in education to their 'constituents', if you will. Many of the messages are similar and the intent is to remember that we are a community of learners that cares about one another. In a similar spirit of many of these memos, I want to reiterate the importance of 'being present' and the most important thing we can do for our students and one another is to truly take the time to listen and simply be present. When we are at a loss about next steps, listening and being present are always important steps to take. As a reflective step for myself and hopefully our community, I have copied below the e-mail I sent last Wednesday morning to the Blake staff and also noted some 'mindsets/thoughts/ideas' from the past week as reminders to listen and simply be present...
Sent Wednesday, 11/9 to our staff...
Good morning -
A number of staff and parents have checked in this morning, asking questions and looking to talk about the election, the late night, and talking to students and one another. As with any election, some of us are feeling happy and content about the results while some of us are feeling sad and frustrated about the results (of course, there is a wide range of emotions and these are only a couple along the proverbial spectrum). With an effort and intent to make sure we stay focused on our mission and students, I want to express my hope and reminder that we stay present for our students and one another - and, most important, let's listen. As we often share and discuss, language is incredibly important and it is our job in a non-biased fashion to help students navigate their growth and to facilitate their learning. Thank you for your continued care and commitment to our students, one another, and our community.
Take care.
Nat
A few brief reflections/thoughts from this week...
- Parent outreach and communication - we can never do 'too much' of this as they are opportunities to simply listen
- Admin leadership meetings - reflecting upon the importance of 'telling our story' and sharing what is important
- SOS Program for students - listening to Lauren Gablinske, Community Education and Outreach Manager for Samaritans
- Listening to Understand vs Listening to Respond - a good reminder for all
- ACT - Acknowledge, Care, and Tell - a component of SOS and an approach that is certainly transferable
- Ideas of open-ended questions - opening up the conversation
- The true importance of giving yourself permission for support and a break
- Come back to our living mission statement and continue to 'lean towards yes' with a 'willingness to adapt'
- The impact that outreach and expressed care can have - the kind words and notes for my me and family over the past week have been felt - thank you
Why Empathy Holds the Key to Transforming 21St Century Learning
by Thom Markham in PBL Global Blog
Markham recognizes the challenges we face as educators when trying to find the 'magic key' to effectively support our students. This is an encouraging read as we continue to embrace our school-wide theme of empathy in all of our endeavors.
Like other aspects of modern life, education can make the head hurt. So many outcomes, so much important work to do, so many solutions and strategies, so many variations on teaching, so many different kinds of students with so many different needs, so many unknowns in preparing for 21st Century life and the endless list of jobs that haven’t been invented.
What if we discovered one unifying factor that brought all of this confusion under one roof and gave us a coherent sense of how to stimulate the intellect, teach children to engage in collaborative problem solving and creative challenge, and foster social-emotional balance and stability—one factor that, if we got right, would change the equation for learning in the same way that confirming the existence of a fundamental particle informs a grand theory of the universe? That factor exists: It’s called empathy.
Ready or not, education is entering an age in which social learning is the new norm. Pure academics are giving way to increased opportunities for students to work together; teachers increasingly take on the role of co-learner and facilitator; listening, learning, and teaming are the new core skills. At the heart of this new skillfulness for everyone is the ability to forge deep connections lead to creative problem solving and positive pursuits. Taken all together, this makes empathy critical to schools. In fact, very soon we will need to invent a new taxonomy of learning that makes empathy the base of the learning pyramid.
As we look ahead to the coming days and weeks, I hope we can do our best to help our students and one another be present, listen, and care for one another with our mission in mind: Blake Middle School believes in a living mission statement, based on the concept that our community seeks and respects knowledge, integrity, character, wisdom, and the willingness to adapt to a continually evolving world. It is important.
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Take care.
Nat