What about the Murals?

I was working with a class upstairs a short while ago testing the relationship of support stress points and distribution of mass.  At one point, I found myself staring directly at the mural of the Luther boys going off to fight in the Civil War or as some say in the South, “The war of Northern Agression”.  By the way, the murals that we have here were hand painted by one of the greatest men I know, Marion “The Professor” Kellum.  The Luther boys fought bravely for the North. In fact, John Luther was the person who served as an adjutant to Col. John Wheeler and was the one to carry his lifeless body off of the battlefield in Gettysburgh.  The Luther boys are no longer here. Their families are, but not the ones who paved the way.  One day, we will not be here.  One day, my good buddy “The Professor” will not be here. One day, I will not be here…that came close to reality in 2009.  One day, someone will tear this building down.  No one really thinks of that when it is built, but nothing lasts forever.  Our school replaced a high school that was torn down.  In time, our school will be torn down and replaced with God knows what. The people depicted in the murals paved the way for many to follow - The Luther’s, the Weiss Family, John Wheeler, and yes, Marion Kellum someday. They left a legacy.

What about you?  Someday, you will leave this school.  That could be five years from now.  It could be 10, 15, or 20 years from now…maybe more. It could also be 5 months, 10 days, or 20 minutes from now.  Nothing lasts forever, including us.  What mark do you want to leave?  What will you do now that will cause people to notice a difference?  What memories are you making for your students?  Have you taught them what is essential?  Have you shown them how to act through your actions?  Have you provided the example that you intended to?  Know that each day brings yet another chance to make a difference in someone else’s life.  That’s what it really is about. Who are you paving the way for and what will they say about you?  The question comes down to this:  what is your legacy going to look like?  Is doesn’t matter if that legacy to leave only has a few minutes left or many years left.  It is what you are doing today to make a difference in the life of someone else.  How will these kids remember you?  It may be what you do in the next five minutes.  Do not discount the difference you can make.  Realize that every decision you make, everything you say, and every action you take will contribute to your legacy.  If a mural was painted about you, what would it look like?

Next week, you have an opportunity to share in students reaching their goals.  Each student has an individual goal for the big test.  Each team has set a team goal for the big test.  The school has set a goal for the big test.  This is an opportunity to do something together, to see the fruits of our labor together, to revel in reaching goals together.  Spend this time before to encourage your kids.  Spend this time inspiring them.  Spend time telling them that you believe in them.  Spend time telling them that it is now time for them to show what they have learned!  It is time to make their teacher proud! It is now time to bring it!

Extend the Life of Your Vehicle

I am rarely asked to be the driver for any group trip.  When I was a new driver about 40 years ago, my friends insisted that I did not drive.  There are people decades older than me who insist that I not drive them anywhere.  This is not because I am a horrid driver who cannot seem to keep it between the lane lines. It is not because I take chances and consider driving to be an offensive show of will. It is not because I play the game of chicken while visualizing that I am driving in Hanoi where there are no traffic lights or stop signs. I do not drive recklessly.  In fact, I have never had a traffic ticket. So, why do people shy away from riding shotgun with me? The answer is simple:  I drive slowly. In multiple decades of driving, I have been given the one finger salute too many times to count.  One of my best friends says that I can be passed by erosion.  AARP tells me to speed it up.  Recently, I read an article about preserving the life of your vehicle.  The mechanic who wrote the article listed five ways to make your vehicle last longer.  These included regular service inspections, keeping your tires properly inflated, replacing your timing belt every 60,000 miles, and maintaining your vehicle’s exterior.  All these were great advice.  However, the number one way to make your vehicle last longer was to SLOW DOWN!  Yep, I feel vindicated!  The difference between driving 50 miles per hour and 70 miles per hour is that your vehicle is working twice as hard because the drag caused by the wind has to be overcome at twice the rate.  So, the next time you are following people like me, lay off the horn, put your finger down, and take notice that the car in front of you will be around for a long time.

In education, we sometimes get too bogged down in how fast things happen.  We get the feeling that we “have to finish the book” before the school year ends or some sort of cardinal sin has occurred and the line for the confessional is going to be long. Education isn’t just about breath of material, it necessitates depth of material.  Deeper levels of understanding need to take place.  Knowledge and comprehension are fine, but what needs to be embraced is movement toward achieving at levels of analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.  That is critical thinking. There is nothing biblical about any of our textbooks.  They do not hold the answers to the world’s problems; those problems seem to be increasing.  The textbook that you use in your classroom is only a resource.  It is only one of many resources that are available for you to use to help kids deepen their understanding of what you have deemed to be essential in their education.  I watched a 5^th grade teacher this weekend teach his kids about the Civil War by having them participate in a mock battle complete with the correct colors.  That is not in the book.  It’s okay to get out of the book.  It’s okay to get kids out of their seats.  It’s okay to get kids to use all of their senses to understand something.  The textbook is only a resource.  I have heard one of our teachers say multiple times, “Here’s something that your textbook won’t tell you, but I will.”  You don’t have to race to finish a textbook. Find ways and resources to get your kids to the highest levels of understanding.  Plan carefully to make the product last; in this case, an education where retention and transfer of material is the highest value. 

The River

Garth Brooks rise to stardom was meteoric.  He seemed to hit just the right chords (pun intended) with people across many age groups and musical tastes.  He was largely responsible for the surge of “New Country” music being generated on the radio and for the purchase of long-sleeved cowboy shirts and ropers. He opened people up to this style and people came to realize that they too may have “friends in low places”.  He sold millions of albums and packed every concert that he offered.  We saw him in 1992 at whatever they called the venue in Tinley Park at that time and mercy, this guy could put on a show.  This man had more hits than a lounge lizard at a Holiday Inn open mic night. Now, he makes millions doing stints in Vegas where he packs the house routinely.  In my opinion, one of his better songs is called “The River.”  It is a song of inspiration.  It is a song of hope.  It is a song for dreamers.  It is a song for those chasing a vision.  It is a song that implores you to stay the course, to keep fighting the good fight, and to never lose sight of your dreams. 

“You know a dream is like a river; every changing as it flows and the dreamer’s just a vessel that must follow where it goes

Trying to learn from what’s behind you; never knowing what’s in store, makes each day a constant battle just to stay between the shores.

I will sail my vessel till the river runs dry. Like a bird upon the wind, these waters are my sky.

I’ll never reach my destination if I never try, so I will sail my vessel till the river runs dry.

Too many times we stand aside and let the waters slip away.  We put off till tomorrow, it has now become today.

So don’t you sit along the shoreline and say you’re satisfied.  Choose to chance the rapids and dare to dance the tide”

The vessel in which all of us engage kids is this school.  The momentum that is created is by the people given the charge of making this the most productive and most memorable three years of a kid’s school years.  If you don’t believe that can happen then you’re in the wrong place.  Each day we create another memory for each student. If you are not in the memory creation business then you’re at the wrong place.  We learn from what is behind us from taking a real look at formative data to plan for future success.  Yes, each day may be a battle, but it is a battle that produces satisfaction.  If you do not desire satisfaction from what you do, then you are in the wrong place. The river is the kids.  They just keep coming.  We are a growing school and a growing corporation.  That is to be embraced and not cursed.  Without this river, we don’t get to come here.  What is your destination for your students?  Do they know where you want to take them?  Do they understand your long-term goal that you have posted?  Don’t miss this opportunity in your life and the one chance that you get with these kids.  Don’t let this time slip away.  Don’t wait to bring your best – bring you’re “A-Game” every single day. Don’t be satisfied with the status quo.  Aspire to achieve more and more to take your kids far beyond what is typical. Dare to be different.  Never lose sight of the fact that you get a chance to make a huge difference in the lives of hundreds of kids.  Not many people EVER get that chance.  You do.  Choose to chance the rapids and dare to dance the tide.   

Spring Cleaning

About this time of the year, “Spring Fever” takes over from “Cabin Fever”.  Hopefully, this is not linked to watching “Saturday Night Fever”….or that you have a fever… This season is really a season to anticipate and many will say this is their favorite season after months of being inside watching the snow fly and the mercury dip. Of course, we just did this this past Sunday night and Monday morning. Soon, the trees will be budding, the flowers will be blooming, and love will be in the air.  I proposed to my wife on April 1, 1979 and unbelieveably, by the grace of God, she said yes…yep, I am blessed.  It will also be a time to cut the grass or as they say in France, “Mow ce lawn”. Then, we will fertilize it, watch it grow thicker and then complain about having to cut it.  Spring also brings a mindset of “spring cleaning”.  This is a time where we try to make the remnants of winter exit our home. We work hard and in a weird way, are kind of excited about this spring ritual. We clean the windows, put the screens up, get out the patio furniture, power wash, change the décor, maybe plant a few things and get the dirt outside where it belongs.  Spring is a time of renewal. It is a time of new life.  It is a time of hope. Spring is a time to refresh. Spring brings energy to our lives. This weekend, we celebrate renewal, new life and new hope.  Happy Easter!

When we return from break, there will be approximately 3+ weeks until round two of ISTEP. Round two is completely on the computer, so begin praying now for secure connections and a wide bandwidth.  The kids will return after 10 days off and will need to be returned to our regularly scheduled program.  As you do a little spring cleaning around your homes, remember to do the same in your professional life.  Rest is an important part of preparation (I am not the best example of this).  Return to school refreshed.  Return to school recharged.  Return to school renewed.  Return to school with new ideas to engage kids as we fight against spring fever.   Return to school with the hope that you will get the results you have been working hard to get.  Enjoy the time away and then get ready for a sizable spring because we will not get caught watching the grass grow.  As in spring cleaning, we will be getting the job done.

Changing the Ending

If you are like most people, you have watched quite a few movies in your life time.  Which genre do you enjoy most? Action movies like Twister?  Adventure movies like Apollo 13?  Comedies like Animal House or Cleveland Browns highlight films? Horror movies like Nightmare on Elm Street or Cleveland Browns lowlight films?  Sci-Fi’s like Back to the Future?  Love stories like The Way We Were?  That last movie genre usually is accompanied by a box of tissues… or so I have heard since I enjoy this genre about as much as foot fungus. Some movies take an unexpected turn and we just don’t see it coming.  Others are about as predictable as my snoring through yet another viewing of Sleepless in Seattle. Ironically, watching this has never made me sleepless. Did you ever watch a movie, get totally engrossed in it, waited for the ending that was sure to happen and then…bang…the ending just stinks? You feel let down because you have invested two plus hours in this film, perhaps ordered popcorn and a soda (which you financed for 36 months) and you were hoping for something a little better than the ending that was shown.  It may have been so bad that you considered asking for a refund.   Those are the ones that if you were the director, well, it would have a better ending. However, since none of us were the directors of these films, simply complete this task: in your opinion, what movie had the worst ending ever?  

Our school year will have an ending.  Unlike watching a movie on the big screen or at home, you have total direction as to how it ends.  We have completed nearly three-quarters of the school year.  You know your kids. We recently completed the first round of the ISTEP.  Now we are preparing for the second round, a round in which ALL students will be assessed via the computer.  Did you ever pray for technology?  How do you want this movie called “The 12-13 School Year” to end?  It really is up to you.   You have the director’s chair. Your students will conclude our most high-stakes testing in late April and early May.  Our school will receive a letter grade based on student achievement and student growth.  Your will receive a rating that is “significantly informed” by the achievement and growth scores of the kids under your tutelage.  So, we can focus on that long-term goal and devise a bunch of daily goals to see the big one through…or we can just take it for chance that all is well and “it is what it is.”  I hate that phrase because it implies that outside forces cannot change what is “written in stone.” (do you know where that phrase comes from?)  We can direct the ending of this school year.  Stay true to the plan.  Believe that you can make a difference every single day.  Keep your foot on the pedal, but hit the brakes every once in a while.  Keep the kids focused toward their individual goals.  Do not let your guard down because that can change the desired ending.  Yes, you are the one and only director as to how this year ends for your students.  Rehearse the scenes and watch what happens.  You want to leave this year quite content with the ending.

Quit Being Normal

The normal human blood pressure is 120/80.  A normal pulse rate is 60-100 beats per minute…unless you count the first time I saw my wife-to-be…I thought they may have to get the paddles out.  The normal level of saline in your body is 9.0 grams/liter. After a bag of Doritos, that number rises significantly. The normal body temperature is 98.6 degrees farenheit. By the way, the most accurate place to measure this is not by mouth or armpit…that’s as far as I am going with that. The normal size of an adult liver is 3.3 pounds.  Side note = do you know why it is called such?  The normal size of paper is 8.5 x 11 inches. Ironically, this was the same size of space left on my essay for admission to Harvard.  Begin to substitute “average” for “normal” if that helps get the point across. The normal shoe size for women is 8, for men it is 10.5. By the way, whatever happened to shoehorns? The normal number of extra miles driven by men in a year because we are just too stubborn to ask for directions is 276. Not a shocker, that statistic was reported by a woman. The normal number of teeth for an adult is 32.  For a hockey player, that number declines significantly.  The normal number of t-shirts owned is 27…how many are leased is unknown.  The normal number of times a person moves in a lifetime is 14.  Heck, I moved six times just at Butler.  The normal amount of calories one consumes in a day is 1940 for women and 2550 for men.  Those numbers during holidays are off the charts.  The normal number of times a person sneezes in a year is 200.  The normal number of times someone sneezes on you is about equal.  The normal length of a paragraph is 5-8 sentences – looks like I exceeded that.

I never want to be characterized as normal.  A kid in the cafeteria told me that I was not a normal Principal.  I said “thank you”.  Normal is a setting on a dryer. I have no intention of being an appliance.   It should never be a tag on an exemplary teacher.  It should never be a tag on an exemplary administrator.  It should never be a tag on an exemplary custodian, secretary, treasurer, or anyone else who works in a school.  The experience a student receives at this school should be anything but normal.  We want this to be a place where kids want to be.  Normal is not what they want.  As an example, do you choose books because they are normal?  Do you choose a romantic dinner with your spouse because it is a normal place?  To me, normal is synonomous with average.  Average is not something that you should aspire to.  Think of it this way:  average is the best of the worst and the worst of the best.  Hmmm…starting to see the point?   Choose to rise above just being normal.  In fact, if need be – quit being normal!  The experience that kids get in your classroom is just once.  The experience they get at our school is just once.  The experience they get from you today is just once.  Why settle for normal? 

Teddy Roosevelt AND Disabilities Awareness

Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States and served from 1901-1909.  I used to think highly of him…used to. He does have many “positives” on his resume. He marched our troops up San Juan Hill during the Spanish-American War after forming the “Rough Riders”, a volunteer calvary.  He was an original “tree hugger” and fancied himself as an environmentalist President.  He created many national parks and wildlife refuges.  He supported the Sherman Antitrust Act, which broke up some of the monopolies in our country.  He devised the “Square Deal”, which reformed the American workplace which, in turn, helped the middle class.  He supported desegregation and womens’ voting rights.  A whole bunch on the plus side – bully for him.  Recently, I read something about Roosevelt that I simply could not believe.  In 1907, President Theodore Roosevelt signed an immigration act which excluded the following groups of people from being admitted to the United States = “idiots, imbeciles, feebleminded persons, epileptics, and insane persons.”  What?  Huh? Are you kidding me?  I spent many years teaching kids with multiple types of handicaps.  I treasure those times and those kids.  During the time this act was signed, mentally handicapped people were referred to as “imbeciles, idiots, and feebleminded.”  So, his mission was to prevent the disabled from entering the country…that really frosts my cakes.  Obviously, this act has been repealed and thank God for that.  I am no longer a fan of the man who said to “Walk softly, but carry a big stick.”  I don’t think he would like my recommendation as to where to put that stick.

Our school is home to a population of kids with various disabilities.  We provide a continuum of services to meet their needs.  We have kids who have been identified as having specific learning disabilities with corresponding processing deficits.  We have kids on the autism spectrum and those identified with mild and moderate mental handicaps.  We have kids with cognitive challenges and those with emotional disabilities. We have kids who have physical handicaps and social anxieties. The common thread is this:  we have kids!  We look at all 917 of our students as kids whose needs we are trying to meet at many levels.  Some of them are disabled.  So what?  I prefer to look at the “abled” side of our kids.  Five years ago, I had a person approach me with this question, “I don’t know what good you think it is for “those” kids to be in a regular school.”  Wrong thing to say to me.  Mustering up all of the steadiness that I could, I replied, “I think that it does them a world of good to be here, but I know it does me a world of good that they are here.” This neandertheral moved away and most likely crawled back to his regularly scheduled meeting with Og and Grog.  Our “abled” kids are a huge part of our school.  Our teachers in this area have their best interests at heart every single day.  In this month of “Disabilities Awareness”, we are aware mostly of what kids can do, not what they cannot do.