What Kind of Sailor are You?

“The sea was angry that day.”  This is a line from Ernest Hemingway’s classic, The Old Man and the Sea. It is also a quote of George Costanza from an episode of Seinfeld.  The severity of sea storms have two things that contribute to its severity – the force of the wind and the state of the water.  A smooth sea never made a skillful mariner.  There are ways that skillful sailors navigate through raging seas.  Interesting enough, one of those strategies is to move to deeper water.  This is because nearer to shore there are stronger currents, shoals, and other underwater water obstructions that make sailing treacherous.  Skillful sailors also chart their course of travel and know where the tough spots are.  A third strategy for mariners in difficult weather is toshorten their sails as this helps to balance the vessel.  A balanced boat will not have excessive windward (upwind) or leeward (downwind) in high winds.  Lastly, skillful mariners prepare the crew to combat whatever comes their way and do not ignore the need to practice safety precautions and tough seas.  If only Gilligan and the Skipper would have done some of these things, perhaps they wouldn’t have become shipwrecked with a “Professor” who could build a two-wave radio out of a coconut shell, but couldn’t fix a hole in the boat. Don’t get that reference?  Ask your parents…or grandparents.

Teaching can sometimes be akin to sailing through raging seas.  This comes in many forms from increased demands on what to teach, increased accountability, changing academic standards,  student absences, less than ideal classroom temperatures, school funding, school grades,  lack of parental involvement and so forth. Guess what?  You cannot control any of these!  It is important that you focus on what you can control.  As we sail through the school year, it is vital to focus on increasing critical thinking by taking your students to deeper waters of understanding – analysis, synthesis, and evaluation on the SS Bloom’s.  Move away from the shore!  We chart our course by intently surveying the ISTEP blueprints provided the state.  Ignoring those blueprints will not lessen the waves; it will only make them stronger.  Also, shorten your sails by decreasing the interval between formative and informal assessments so that your instruction will be informed.  Ignoring the data from these assessments will not cause the winds to cease; it will only make them stronger.  Thirdly, balance your sails by differentiating your instruction and by giving assessments in multiple forms.  Failure to do this will not result in a smooth sea,; it will cause a student shipwreck.  Finally, prepare for teaching by using what you are being taught during professional development opportunities.  Ignoring these strategies will not make you a more skillful classroom mariner; you may end up spending an eternity with Mr. and Mrs. Howell. 

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The Browns travel to Jacksonville, Florida on Sunday to take on the Jaguars.  Okay, this is a game that, on paper, we should win.  Then again, paper never actually won a game.

Armed Guards

Did you notice where armed guards are placed?  Armed guards are assigned to the President (ask the Secret Service has that has been working lately).  Armed guards are assigned to Brinks’ trucks. Armed guards are posted at many banks.  Armed guards cruise the mall.  Armed guards are posted in some schools.  Armed guards are posted at jewelry stores.  Armed guards are posted at hundreds of concert venues.  Ironically, armed guards are often posted at gun shops.  Armed guards are posted at wedding reception banquet halls.  Armed guards are posted at museums.  Armed guards are posted at The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (breath-taking, by the way). Armed guards are posted around Ft. Knox. Now, notice where they are not posted.  Armed guards are not posted at manure piles nor at garbage dumps.  Why is that?  Simple, because there is nothing valuable to protect…unless you like to hoard natural fertilizer and well, I’m not going there.

Although we do not have armed guards at our school there is a great deal to protect on the inside of our building.  When I was student teaching in 1979 at an inner-city school in Indianapolis, there was a squad of armed police officers in our building.  Oddly enough, that did not make me feel more safe, but it did increase the size of my pupils (not a synonym for students in this case). While the obvious message here is that we are the protectors of our students in a physical sense, we are also their protectors in another way. We are “armed” in different ways that protect the education of our kids. Generally speaking, parents want two things from their child’s school – safety for their children and a good education.  We have safeguards in place for the former from emergency lanyards to visitors badges to emergency protocols to locked doors to “Wet Floor” signs.  What about the latter of these two desires?  Are we guarding the provision of a good education?  Are we doing everything we can to provide for the unique needs of each student?  Are we going the extra mile?  Are we staying free of providing excuses?  Are we using the data that comes in to plan future remedial or enrichment lessons?  Arewe partnering with their parents to help in the common goal of their child being successful?  Are we doing what is right and avoiding what is wrong? Are we providing useful feedback to the kids?  Are we providing a safe place for them to land?  We have to be guardians of the valuable 930+ students in our care. We are not the landfill.  We have to be armed as if we are protecting Ft. Knox. Actually, we are protecting something far more valuable.

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Here we go…round II…Browns vs The Pukesburgh Squealers…I mean, Pittsburgh Steelers…this time on the shores of Lake Erie.  Losing would cause Mary to hide all of the sharp knives…not a good mix with Plavix…

D-Day

D-Day happened over 70 years ago on June 6, 1944. D-Day is a military term that essentially means the day in which an operation or attack is set to be initiated. As you may recall from your history lessons, D-Day was one of the bloodiest battles of World War II. If you have ever watched, Saving Private Ryan, then you caught a Hollywood version of this battle.  Our troops landed on Normandy Beach, the western shore of Germany’s hold on Europe.  The plan was to liberate France and eventually the Jews that were imprisoned by Satan incarnate. There was a plan and that plan had a purpose. The leader of the 3^rd Battalion, 506^th Infantry Regiment, 101^st Airborne Division was Lt. Col. Robert Wolverton.  Before they stormed the beach, Wolverton led his men in prayer.  This was a mission that needed to be completed. They understood that without this surge, it would only be a matter of time before the battle was on our land. Each step of the battle was planned toward the purpose.  However, those plans often needed to be changed based on what was happening.  He told his men that they would talk about this mission when they returned to the states. He never had that conversation. Wolverton died shortly after landing.  In Wolverton’s prayer to his troops, he said this, “We have done our best for what we believed was right.”  I hope to be remembered that way.

“D-Day” essentially happens for us every single day in the field of education. Why?  Because each day is an opportunity. Each day is the day where teachers should be initiating an operation.  Operation?  That’s what I wrote. While we may consider our summative assessments and, of course, the ISTEP to be our “D-Day, the reality is that each day should the day when an attack is initiated.  Every lesson should be purposeful and educational. Every lesson plan should be well constructed and educational. Every activity should have a purpose tied to a goal.  If not, throw that activity out!  Each assessmentmust be aligned with desired outcomes.  Each day of instruction must be aligned to assessments.  Each day is an opportunity. That’s all it is – an opportunity. What you do with it can reap huge benefits or can bring disaster.  Properly planned operations and execution thereof from a teacher will produce student achievement and student growth. However, know that even the best laid plans often need to be changed based on what is happening  Lack of proper planning and execution will bring things “low and to the left.” Each day is another opportunity to do your best for what you believe is right.  Make the most of every opportunity.

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The Browns play on Sunday against the Titans from the great state of Tennessee.  Here’s hoping that they are in a “Volunteering” mood with their goal line.

Still the One

This weekend, Mary and I have a belated anniversary celebration of our first date. Yep, we celebrate that event as well as our engagement anniversary and our wedding anniversary. I believe that it is important to celebrate those special moments; especially when I get to do that with this pretty girl that turned my head and stole my heart 38 years ago. We will celebrate these dates as long as I can read a calendar. We are going to see a reunion of three bands- Orleans, Ambrosia, and Firefall. Never heard of them?  Ask your parents.  Firefall was the first concert that I took Mary to as they were the opening act for The Doobie Brothers at the old Chicago stadium (currently the United Center). Never heard of them either?  You kids.  Orleans had a huge hit in the 1970’s with Still the One.  This is a great song to remind your wife that even after several decades that she is still the one who makes your heart thump.  She does.  Always has and always will.  Still the one who makes me laugh…still the one who’s my better half…we’re still having fun…you’re still the one.  What a blessing I have.

Why did you decide to become a teacher?  I am confident that it wasn’t the lure of a high salary. Hopefully, it wasn’t for three reasons – June, July and August!  If you had to list the ONE reason why you decided to invest so much of your time and money into getting that teaching license, what would you say?  If you had to break it down to a single reason , what would it be?  Perhaps you loved your subject matter and wanted to pass this love along to kids.  Maybe it was because one of your own teachers inspired you and you aspired to be that person.  It could have been a sincere desire to make a difference.  All good things. My point is this – continue to celebrate that ONE reason why you do what you do.  Remind yourself daily that that reason is still the one.  When we all romanticized about being a teacher – admit it, you did; what were you thinking about?  Hopefully, it is still the one.

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I guarantee that the Browns will not lose this weekend…book it…accepting all wagers.

Check Engine Lights

As vehicles gain more and more technology, there is a corresponding increase in the number of “check engine lights”.  These indicators are a way for our vehicles to communicate with us. These are also called “idiot lights”. Surprisingly, they are only called that by men who know their way around the engine. Thus, I have never used that term.  You see, I am the guy on the side of the road with the hood up simply for the dramatic effect. But I digress.  There are ABS brake warning lights,  low tire pressure lights, service engine soon lights, battery charge warning lights, check coolant lights, oil pressure lights, air bag lights, and other indicators.  Don’t you just hate it when they glow?  Especially the one that is simply an exclamation point…guess that is the punctuation light.  I read about one man who was tired of seeing the warning lights so he simply put black electrical tape over them (see idiot lights). Ignoring the warning signals does not make the problem go away.  Sooner or later, you have to respond.

There are many “Warning Lights” used in education.  We use progress monitoring assessments such as Acuity and Star to measure student growth.  We use daily informal assessments by using exit slips and confidence scales.  We use formative assessment data gained from homework assignments and quizzes. These are ways that our students communicate with us on how they are doing academically. Ignoring the data is exactly like putting electrical tape over the warning lights in your vehicle.  You cannot ignore them…well, you can, but that wouldn’t be prudent. We are assessing all the time when we teach.  Notice the operative term in each case that I listed = USE.  You have to use the data gained to make informed decisions about your instruction.You have to plan your instruction based on where the kids are compared to where you want them to be in the end.  Simply giving these assessments and then doing nothing with the results is akin to the guy putting black electrical tape over his dashboard lights.  You cannot ignore the data you have – you have to use it to be an even more effective teacher. Sooner or later, you have to respond as in “Response to Instruction”.  With due diligence, you cansee that light that reads “Great Teaching”.

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The Browns play against the Baltimore Ratbirds, I mean, Ravens this Sunday on the shores of Lake Erie.  Rice is unavailable at the concession stands…

Ice Cream Flavors

We are past Labor Day, the unofficial end of summer and the meteorological start of Fall.  The time to close up the swimming pool for the year, put the white pants back in the closet, and get that last taste of “Summer” ice cream. The most popular flavor of ice cream is…wait for it…vanilla.  Vanilla?  Is that an indictment on society that we choose a rather bland, non-descript, boring flavor to be our most popular?  When I was a kid, you had three choices of ice cream – “Yummy” brand ice cream which Mom bought at the grocery store for 55 cents per half gallon.  The name did not match the taste.  Then there was “King Kastle” in Hammond that sold  novel square- shaped ice cream. That wasn’t in the family budget. (see “Yummy” brand)  The old standby was Dairy Queen (yes these were around in the 1960’s) that served one flavor – vanilla…unless you wanted it dipped in chocolate or with “Crunch Coat”.  A Baskin Robbins opened in our town when I was in high school.  Lord, there were 31 flavors to choose from!  These were revolutionary choices from this era and included Banana Nut Fudge, Cherry Macaroon, and Peppermint Fudge Ribbon.  Yes, they had vanilla, but who is the heck is choosing that with many other exciting flavors to indulge in. Vanilla sold as well as Dodge vehicles in Japan.  Choices, choices, choices…

If kids were ice cream flavors, I bet that few of them would just be plain vanilla….just a few. Most kids this age are multi-flavored in their personalities, behaviors, level of maturity, and of course, academically.  Unlike Baskin Robins, we don’t get to choose what “flavors” make up the students we receive. It would be great to have all of them by of one dimension, of one personality, of one rule abiding citizenship, etc…or would it?  So what do you do about that? Thanks for asking.  This is where the relationship building comes in.  You, as a teacher, have to find out what makes your kids tick.  What are their interests in school? What are their interests outside of school?  How can I tie this topic into their areas of interests? Guess what, kids don’t always want “vanilla” in their education either.   Get creative – get outside of the box?  You know, inside of the box isn’t always pretty – just ask a cat.  Students today want a whole lot more than daily offering of “Vanilla” education. They want exciting stuff!  They want to see the relevance.  They want to see the tie-in.  They want to see that their teacher offers more choices such as tiered projects or alternative assessments. They want to learn, but they also want to have some fun doing it. They want those vanilla worksheets to be put back in the freezer.  Make it a point in your classroom to serve up some interesting flavors.  This is what differentiating instruction is – more than one flavor.  If you do it right, they will keep coming back for additional scoops.

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The Browns host  the New Orleans Saints this Sunday on the shores of Lake Erie.  I hope that the Saints don’t coming marching in!  Could be ugly…

Walls

I am certainly no construction expert, but I do know that there are basically two kinds of walls. One is a weight bearing wall; designed to bear the weight of your home, businesses, and yes, this school building. You simply cannot do without bearing walls.  How can you spot a bearing wall?  Look for the windows – those walls hold up your roof.  Bottom line of bearing walls = to be a bearing wall, it must be connected somehow to the foundation.  Interior walls can be moved and the structure will still stand. However, it that wall is a little “boxy”, then it is a load-bearing wall as well and probably supports some main beam above it.. Be careful.  These walls are created dependent upon which design is chosen.  Side note = who designated that big wall in China as the “Great” wall. Really, what is being compared against?  Back to reality. Interior walls can also have doors, such as the ones that lead to bedrooms, closets, and Jim Morrison.  Key words = connection, creating, and doors.

Your “bearing” walls in teaching would be the connection that you make to the foundational concepts.  These can be referred to as your long-term goals.  Each lesson that you teach needs to be purposeful.  If that purpose is not connected to the foundation of goals, then it will not hold up the higher levels of understanding that you should be desiring to teach.  Your “interior” walls are the ways that you uniquely create in your classroom.  Take a good look at your Acuity data – it may be time to move some interior walls!  This is akin to something I had said many times = here are the long-term goals; how you get there is what makes a teacher a teacher.  So the design of your lessons should be that creates the best plan for your students to reach the highest levels.  If that design is not working, change the structure of the walls!  Lastly, your “doors” would be the way out of a out of your plan and a chance to move to another plan.  If the path you are leading is not getting results, close that door and find another to go through. Building walls is not always negative. In fact, in this vein, they can be quite positive as your hopes for these kids will not crumble.  Connect, create, and keep the door open…unless you need to close it.

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Here we go…the Browns open up against our dreaded nemesis = the Pukesburgh Steelers. I do recall  that the Steelers built a new training facility across the street from the Pennsylvania  State Prison allowing their players an easier walk to work.