Home Alone

As many of you know, one of the Christmas traditions on my wife’s side of the family is to have a trivia contest based on a “Christmas” movie during the family party where I am the originator of the questions and sole judge on responses.  Forget the presents, tinsel, and eggnog, this is a yearly battle and the competitive side emerges.  This year, the movie is Home Alone 2.  This 1992 gem is a sequel to the original Home Alone starring Macaulay Culkin.  If you haven’t seen this, well, you would do poorly in the trivia contest.  The story is about a young boy who gets separated from his family at the airport, gets on the wrong airplane and ends up in New York City while his family is headed to Florida.  Kevin (Culkin) manages to find food and lodging using his Dad’s credit card.  Once again, he meets up with the “Wet Bandits” in the Big Apple.  The rest of the movie has Kevin outrunning and “outpranking” the bandits using ingenuity and pure kid power.  Our three kids laughed their little “pahanchas” off watching this when they were 9, 7, and 3 (now 33, 31, and 27).  I wish I had that time back. 

How many of our kids are “home alone” on any given day?  The answer is simple – more than you think.  The days of the nuclear family, Ozzie and Harriet, The Brady Brunch and 7^th Heaven may not be over, but are on life support.  This means that most families are two wage-earning families and prevents parents from being home with the kids as often as they would like. Also, check out the percentage of single family homes or “split” homes…you may be shocked.  “Latch key” kids are much more common today than in the 60’s when all of the Dads on my block worked shift work and the Moms took care of all of our needs.  None of this is my point.  My point is that kids, at least many of them, are naturally inquisitive.  Often, we stifle that trait because we box them in with restrictions and never allow them to go off the reservation.  Think about it – when was the last time you gave a “Tiered Assignment” with many possibilities or allowed them to develop their own projects?.  When was the last time that you simply gave the rubric and let them explore…outside of the frame work?  Maybe even coloring outside the lines while stepping out of the box?  While it is important to teach the critical content, there is also a place for exploration.  

13 Clocks

In June of 1776, the delegates from the 13 colonies had a HUGE decision to make.  They could break free of England’s rule by declaring their independence or they could remain under British taxation.  The former would result in war and the loss of lives.  The latter would leave them in a state of “Taxation without Representation”.  This was a difficult decision and was not taken lightly.  People like John Adams and Samuel Chase were pushing for a declaration of independence and in fact, Thomas Jefferson had already written it.  Other delegates were on the fence.  Adams wrote, “Some people must have time to look around them, before, behind, on the right hand, and on the left, and then to think, and after all this to resolve.  Others see at one intuitive glance into the past and future, and judge with precision at once.  But remember you can’t make thirteen clocks strike precisely alike at the same second.”  Eventually, the delegates agreed on publicly declaring their independence from Great Britain with a “non-consensus” vote that forever changed the country for the good of its citizens  This was on July 2, 1776.   This is why we have an Independence Day to celebrate.

Over the years, schools make changes in the form of initiatives.  In my 37 years in education, I have been through many school initiatives – too many to list.  I recall moving from a traditional schedule to a Block 8 schedule in 1993 and the issues associated with it as there were strong opinions on either side.  Our school has not been immune from initiatives including such things as RtI Period, PBIS, SSR, FIERCE Fridays, AR, Enrichment Periods, Advisory, Double Blocks, and the Menu of Opportunities.  I fully understand that not everything that is done is birthed from a “consensus” vote.   In history throughout the world that there have been few “consensus decisions” on world events.  In schools, the important factor in making decisions should be based on this question first – “Will this be good for kids?”   When you make instructional decisions and planning decisions, the same measuring stick should be used. If not, it shouldn’t be done.  That is my belief.  Hopefully, everything that we do is with the best interests of our students in mind.  If it is good for kids, then we should probably be doing it. If not, that’s what the scrap heap is for.  That should be the common factor.  It was that way in 1776 for an entire nation.

Second Chances

Here are some terms that you do not want to hear in athletics:  Swing and a miss, air ball, false start, worm burner, dropped TD pass, double dribble, it’s in the bunker, the crossbar fell, fault, missed the green, icing ……All of these terms indicate failure at some level.  The batter in baseball who swings and misses has a strike against him…but he gets two more chances before being called out.  The golfer who hits a “worm burner” gets another shot to reach the green. The high jumper who knocks the crossbar off gets two more chances at that height and the hockey player who gets called for icing gets to keep skating.  All have negative connotations.  HOWEVER, the commonality is that in each of these situations, the athlete gets a second chance.  Aren’t you glad that, for the most part, we are afforded second chances in life?  Maybe third, fourth, and 99^th chances.

Do students deserve a second chance?  Does anyone deserve a second chance?  Kids assigned homework for the first time should be assessed on their work, but NOT graded.  This is a practice session and is not worthy of a grade that cannot be erased.  What if they have a minor discipline infraction?  Discipline consequences should be progressive unless the violation is so egregious that Peter Francis Geraci needs to be called in.  Trust me, I grew up in a generation where trips to the woodshed were common.  Heck, the neighbors had full reign to whip your behind if necessary.  “Time outs”?...Yeah, right.   The onion didn’t get peeled back then.  Kids mess up.  Adults mess up.  I am in no way suggesting that kids should not be accountable.  EVERYONE needs to be accountable!  What I am saying is that often, we need to teach them how to be accountable. If you haven’t noticed the prevalence of “It wasn’t me” attitude, pay closer attention. So, we need to teach the kids how to be accountable. We do that through clearly stated expectations and through a great example for them to follow.  There needs to be consequences (both positive and negative) for their actions and “non-actions”.  Things will never change if not.   Back to academics – the practice of “test corrections” is debatable.  If these corrections are nothing more that “correcting “ mistakes, then it is a worthless activity.  Come on, if they didn’t get it the first time, they won’t be magically getting it now.  This “corrective” period needs serious feedback and some interventions from the teacher.  2^nd chances…yep.  Maybe even 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th  chances as most of us have been afforded.

The Indians at Thanksgiving

There were 90 Native Americans at the “First Thanksgiving” in 1621.  We are familiar with the “feel good” side of this event and smile when we see drawings of the Pilgrims and the Indians sharing that meal and singing  Kumbaya.  The Indians at the first Thanksgiving were ancestors of the Wampanoag Nation. These folks believe that what we conjure up for Thanksgiving is straight off the stable floor.  There’s a connection here to one of our greatest Americans – Abraham Lincoln. Approximately 240 years after the “feast”,  Lincoln declared that Thanksgiving was to be celebrated and he cited the Pilgrims and Indians peacefully breaking bread as the model.  Abe should have dug a little deeper. He made this declaration during the Civil War; a time when people needed some calming unity story; so he embellished a bit.   The Wampanoag Nation insists that there was a treaty made between the tribe and the Pilgrims that basically said, “We’ll watch your back if you watch mine”.  They go on to say that the Indians showed up only because the Pilgrims were blasting off their guns in celebration of a good harvest and they thought that a battle was ensuing.  The Indians decided to stay for a few days to monitor the situation.  Can you imagine the fear that the Pilgrims had when seriously outnumbered by heavily-weaponed Indians?  Heck, I would make a treaty too!  The Pilgrims came to rely on the Indians even though they thought of them as savages.  That, boys and girls, is one version of the first Thanksgiving that didn’t make the editor’s cut.

Why is the above important other than for historical purposes?  For teachers, it illustrates the importance of getting all of the facts right before presenting anything to students.  If you have never read, Lies My Teacher Told Me, I would recommend it.  Textbooks don’t always get it right.  Anything taught needs to be backed up with evidence.  We ask kids all the time to cite textual evidence in their answers.  The book goes on to relate that the subject that kids are bored with the most is History because they find it irrelevant.  If you want to deepen understanding in a student, make it relevant.  It is important, as I have tried to relate above, to present different viewpoints and let students expound upon theirs.  Whatever you are teaching, make sure that you do your homework by researching it for validity.  Things change rapidly in several subject areas.  Think of what Pluto used to be, the supposed “Massacre” in Boston, the food pyramid, and controversities about global warming as examples how things have changed.  Make certain that what you are telling kids is right on the money.  

Bugle Calls

During the Revolutionary War, drums and bugles were a fixture of military operations.  This was the way in which in which orders were communicated.  Each sound from the bugle indicated a message such as “Recall” when you dropped whatever you were doing and returned to camp…kind of like a mass tweet.  Bugle calls went out for “Assembly”, “Mess Call”, “Reveille”, and “Retreat”.  The final roll call of the day was signaled at 2200 hours to the sound of “Tattoo”.  The familiar “Taps” was the final call of the day and was the signal that all unauthorized lights be extinguished.  The bugler himself was someone of high importance in the regiment because not only did he need to be incredibly dependable, but he had to be a great bugler.  He had to play the notes clearly.  He had to be exact in his note playing or the troops would be in a mess; possibly a fatal mistake.  If the bugler wanted to signal the troops to retreat, but mistakenly sounded the call to battle, then the regiment would be annililated.  The bugler had to be perfectly clear in the message that he put out.  Without an exceptional bugler, the regiment was in chaos.

Think of yourself as the bugler in your regiment (classroom).  None one else gets that position. You are the vessel from which orders are communicated.  Teachers need to be perfectly clear in the messages that they put out.  Classroom expectations need to clearly articulated.  Learning goals need to be clear to the students.  Connections between the daily goal and long-term goals need to be clearly communicated.  Scale expectations need to be crystal clear.  Everything that comes from your words and  through your actions needs to be right on the money. You have to be spot-on with your words and actions.  Miscommunication does not pay dividends in education. Heck, it doesn’t pay dividends anywhere.  Feedback is an area that needs excellent communication. Kids need to know exactly what they are doing right and exactly where they are falling short.  Be a great bugler!

Veterans Day

We owe the protection of our freedoms to the sacrifices made by the military veterans of our great country.  Tomorrow, we will honor the military veterans of our school family.  During all lunch periods, we will have brothers, sisters, Moms, Dads, Uncles, Aunts, cousins, Grandpas, Grandmas, and friends who will be honored by our students and staff.  61 Veterans will be with us!  Make no mistake – tomorrow there will be heroes among us.  Please make an effort to stop by the cafeteria to take part in honoring these fine patriots.  Throughout the country, veterans will be honored in various programs….tomorrow.  They will be center stage and given a well-deserved thank you….tomorrow.  That’s November 11^th.  What about November 12^th?  Even though we’ll move on to Saturday, it will still be “Veterans Day” for these folks and will be for the rest of their lives.  I never really understood these things as a kid and as a young man, but being so close to a veteran of six tours of duty, my learning curve is rising.

It may your assumption, as it was mine, that troops returning from active duty want to be treated with pity.  Ask a veteran and they’ll tell you that is simply not the case.  Our veterans want to be treated with respect.  That is why we hold an annual program for our school family members – to show them respect and to tell them thank you.  It is not a photo op or a chance to be in the newspaper or to make ourselves feel better or to garner support.  Veterans just want to be treated with respect.  The respect that they deserve.  Too many have endured unspeakable things so that we can sleep at night in relative safety.  We really have no clue what happened in their lives while defending us.  Make it a point to stop a veteran when you see them.  Shake their hand and tell them thank you for their service.  The problems that veterans deal with in health care, pharmaceutical insurance acceptance, suicide, homelessness and unemployment are well-documented.  Look it up – it’s appalling.  One of the biggest failures in our country is the treatment that our veterans receive.  While we may not be able to change the larger things quickly, we can most certainly show our veterans respect  by acknowledging their service.  We owe these people so much. 

Rejections

“We don’t like their sound and guitar music is on the way out.”  That was the response of Decca Records in 1962 turning down The Beatles for a recording contract.  The Beatles, of course, went on to sell 1.6 billion records.  William Golding’s, The Lord of the Flies was rejected 20 times before it was finally published. Over 150,000,000 copies have been sold.  Louisa May Alcott was told to stick to teaching.  Little Women sold millions of copies and was adapted for plays, movies, musicals and operas.  Michael Jordan was cut from his junior varsity high school basketball team. He went on to become possibly the greatest basketball player ever.  Oprah Winfrey was told that she was “unfit for television.”  She went on to stardom with a show of her own and is now one of the most recognized names in the world.  Jerry Seinfeld was initially booed off the stage.  He went on to have an incredibly successful career as a comedian and had a #1 hit television series.  In his first film, Harrison Ford was told “You don’t have what it takes.” He is one of the biggest stars in the movie industry.  Charles Schultz had every one of his cartoons rejected by his high school yearbook staff.  Without him, we don’t have Charlie Brown and the Peanuts Gang.  The list goes on for miles with people who have been told by others that they weren’t good enough.  Isn’t it great that so many evaluators were wrong?

All of the people above persevered and became what they intended to be despite the criticism they received from others.  They rose above the rejection.  Not many people can do that.  It is vital that kids experience some success in school.  It is up to us to find that; whatever that may be. There is not a teacher reading this that has not had to struggle with a student(s) having one failing grade after another.  Assignment = F. Next = F. Next = F…just do the test corrections – are you kidding me?  I didn’t get it the first time, how on God’s green earth am I supposed to get it now?  Feedback is essential.  Let me write that once more – feedback is essential!  We cannot expect kids to grow if we never give them feedback on what they have done well and not only what needs to be shored up, but how to shore it up.  You pour into kids.  You can pour all nasty negative stuff or you can pour good stuff.  Everyone reading this has at least one student who is struggling.  If not, you aren’t looking closely enough.  Those students will never gain competence until they gain confidence.  Take a step back and find SOMETHING that he or she do successfully. Then build from there.  Confidence has to come before competence.