Monday "Mush" -- Wet Pants?

Wet Pants

Come with me to a third grade classroom…

There is a nine-year-old kid sitting at his desk and all of a sudden, there is a puddle between his feet and the front of his pants are wet. He thinks his heart is going to stop because he cannot possibly imagine how this has happened. It's never happened before, and he knows that when the boys find out he will never hear the end of it. When the girls find out, they'll never speak to him again as long as he lives.

The boy believes his heart is going to stop; he puts his head down and prays, "This is an emergency! I need help now! Five minutes from now I'm dead meat."

He looks up from his prayer and here comes the teacher with a look in her eyes that says he has been discovered.

As the teacher is walking toward him, a classmate named Susie is carrying a goldfish bowl that is filled with water. Susie trips in front of the teacher and inexplicably dumps the bowl of water in the boy's lap.

The boy pretends to be angry, but all the while is saying to himself, "Thank you, thank you!"

Now all of a sudden, instead of being the object of ridicule, the boy is the object of sympathy.

The teacher rushes him downstairs and gives him gym shorts to put on while his pants dry out. All the other children are on their hands and knees cleaning up around his desk. The sympathy is wonderful.

But as life would have it, the ridicule that should have been his has been transferred to someone else - Susie.

She tries to help, but they tell her to get out. You've done enough, you klutz!"

Finally, at the end of the day, as they are waiting for the bus, the boy walks over to Susie and whispers, "You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Susie whispers back, "I wet my pants once too."

May we all see the opportunities that are always around us to do good.

Author Unknown

 

Simple story….huge impact.  We can all learn a lesson from it too, right?  We can take a little bit of blame, some ridicule, or discomfort, if we know we are doing a greater good.  And, the cool part is no one else ever has to know….We do and that is enough. 

Know that in your job, you do so many GOOD things that no one else sees, but the kids know.  They feel it, and they know you are there for them…. 

I appreciate you, and how you all give of yourself in ways that  I will never fully know.  I appreciate your ability to give when no one is watching.  I know that you get up and face the day each day because you know you are doing a greater good.  You truly are.  I think that is what makes a good teacher so great is that they are aware and compassionate…they look for how to take care of kids that don’t even know what they need…

And, I know that (figuratively) we all wet our pants now and again and need some help…I have a fish bowl ready if you need it…

 

Wow, that is perfect—how true it is that we can spend so much time on “what should have been” that wish miss out on “what could be!”  We spend time looking in the rear view mirror while parked on the side of the road wondering what life would be like if we had done this or that.  There is open road ahead of you…do those things that make you a better person… Find a way to start fresh today. 

Over the weekend, think of 3 things that you have always wanted to do…make a plan to do them in the future.  Make it realistic, so you can actually do it.  Now, as an educator, think of students that need to forget some of their past to reach their goals in the future.  How can you help them do this?  How can you support them in moving forward successfully?  

Covey says something  similar to  “Ask any Kindergarten class how many kids can sing…they all raise their hands….ask them how many can dance…they all raise their hands…ask them who will be famous one day…they all raise their hands…ask the same questions to junior/high and high school student and none will raise their hands.”  Something happens to students as they start to believe they can’t.  Some of it is just reality…I get that…but a large piece of that is they are spending too much time seeing everywhere they messed up in the past.  They don’t see a bright open highway in front on them anymore. 

I appreciate your ability to keep kids focused on what matters….to drive kids forward in reaching their potential. 

So, check your seatbelts, get your hands on 10 and 2, and lets drive!  (Too cheesy?  Sorry, if so!  Ha)

Where are the Scissors??? Monday Mush 4/22/13

I hope everyone had a great weekend…today’s “Mush” is a tad different.  I have watched this SEVERAL times, and each time I am amazed at the brilliant writing for what seems at times just silly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfwgKHcguMk (1:38)

In the comments of the video, someone said they counted 53 questions.  Do you notice that everything said was a question.  There were no answers, just more questions.  They were for sure spinning in circles because they were only asking questions.  They were taking parts of the message, but never addressing anything “head on.”  They heard enough to spin the conversation in a whole new direction.

I think as educators, we can learn a couple of things from this short video.  One lesson is that we have to find answers to direct and specific questions.  Kids will hear bits and pieces and want to take diversions, but we need to know the course that we have set.  We need answers to all the questions that we put out there to the kids.  Now, that isn’t to say that there isn’t a passion in kids becoming exciting and questioning more and more.  That is Science…we embrace that, but we find a way to keep it productive and on a learning track.  Also, it doesn’t say that we can’t use the Socratic method at times either.  Sometimes having students seek answers is much more effective than simply telling them the answers.  They must seek to find their own “scissors,” but hopefully in a more productive and guided manner.

Second, we also sometimes can’t “see the forest for the trees.”  Often times the answers or solutions are right in front of us…often we get distracted by everything around us and we miss the big picture.  There is a TON of great things going on…in your class and in the school…notice them and praise them.  It is a great thing to see good going on around you.  Don’t get so caught up looking for something difficult to find that you pass over the obvious.  Hey, you might just find a whole box of what you are seeking….

Happy Monday!

Friday "Flush" 4/19/13

“If any of you have a desire to be mediocre, you will probably find that you have already achieved your ambition.”  -- Hugh B. Brown

I like quotes that point us to look in a mirror and check ourselves.  I think this quote does that extremely well.  I once heard someone say, “No one wakes up one day and decides to be mediocre…it happens in small unnoticeable steps…”  How true!  Have you ever known someone that was always “on their game,” but one day you stopped and looked and said “what happened?  They just seem to getting by now or phoning it in.”  It might be that teacher that says something like “oh I would’ve done that a few years ago, but I am done with all that extra stuff now,” or “you get the paid the same to be mediocre.”  But, what was the bridge from passion to mediocrity?  That is the true magic ticket to be able to see the signs.

That bridge is paved with conscious choices to take the easy way.  Little things turn into patterns…   How many of us were told by our parents that “the easy way and the right way are rarely the same.”  -- Annoying cliché to a teen, I know, but very true.  We have choices that seem to have no immediate consequence, so we chose the easy way…do that enough, and you crossed the bridge to the land of mediocrity.  Scary. 

As we approach a weekend, I hope everyone has some time for reflection.  Think about things that have “gotten away from you” over time because of little choices that were made along the way.  No one can make you great or make you care….only you have that power.  I think every one of our students wants to go home feeling special, and that they were engaged and driven by someone with passion.  It is April…passion is a dwindling resource…think of what you can do personally to bring more into your work and your life. 

I hope that we don’t settle for mediocrity personally or professionally.  I look forward to all the great things that are still to come this year. 

Happy Friday!

Monday "Mush" 4/15/2013

 

I like this cartoon for a couple good reasons….Number 1…It goes to show how we can find the positive in ANY child.  We can find a strength or skill that every child has….hopefully something a little more productive than the one before.  The second is that we, as educators, are all “spin doctors” to some degree.  We have to find the right way to say everything to the kids to get buy in.  I once heard an teacher say, “I knew I was good when my kids were excited about learning the quadratic formula…no one likes learning that.”  They learned to sell their product well.

We all have something to sell…we all want buy in…we need to know our customers.  They are small, but I can promise you that something will make them want to be on board with you…if you just find it. 

I hope this week you find ways to make every child buy in to the instruction in your classroom.  I hope it is a great week of encouraging and “spinning education” in a way that creates raving fans!

Happy Monday!

 

"Flush" for 4/12 -- the marshmallow test

“Strength is the capacity to break a Hershey bar into four pieces with your bare hands - and then eat just one of the pieces.”  Judith Viorst

That quote reminds me of this Youtube video….can you WAIT if you know something better is coming?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QX_oy9614HQ (3:28)

I thought the quote and this video went hand in hand.  It is very difficult to wait sometimes.  It is difficult even when we KNOW something greater is to come.  I saw a college friend of mine’s Facebook post that said “Why does delayed gratification have to start now?”  -- I think that sums up my mindset sometimes.  When I do a single situp…I want to see abs like that wolf boy on Twilight.  When I listen to “level 1 of how to speak Spanish”….I want to be fluent. 

We find strength is our  ability to wait and be persistent.  We find our love and passion for things that we are fully committed to.  It makes them have a greater value to us.  Things that have meaning to us are things that we often had to work for, fight for, or even wait for.  If everything you wanted was given to you today, I would hypothesize that you wouldn’t be content…you would just get that “I need” motor started.  Sometimes the waiting is the contentment…

That dovetails into what we do as educators….we plant seeds that are SLOW to grow sometimes.   We work daily in a challenging, uphill environment because we know that the reward for them is coming.  There are greater things for them to come, and that our dedication to that goal shows our love for the kids and for teaching.

Over the weekend think of something that you have waited for that was amazing when it finally came to fruition.   What is something that you could “get two marshmallows for later” if you didn’t settle for the “one marshmallow” now?

Thanks for all you do!  Happy Friday!

Monday "Mush" -- Just do it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEHQ9tzJpYA (1:02)  -- Thank you Ms. Sharber for sharing!  So awesome!

We have said it or heard it all before, haven’t we?

There is ALWAYS a reason why you can’t do something that you should do or want to do.  Always.  You can’t look at the situation from that side…you have to look at the possibilities and not the obstacles…

In a similar fashion, I have once heard that Art is only beautiful because of the color black.  It is the color that outlines everything, defines the shapes, and gives meaning to the painting.  As an obvious tie in to the video….overcoming those obstacles define you and gives you meaning. 

I hope for everyone this week that you think of something that you want to “excuse away” and you find a way to do it anyway.  I guess the phrase “suck it up, Buttercup” comes to mind too – ha!  Or my motivation phrase of “Just Do It”

I hope this week is a week of doing…a week of achieving….I hope that excuses don’t weigh you down. 

Happy Monday!

Friday "Flush" 4/5/13

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ja9BFx5Mhqo (5min)

I think the above story in amazing.  It is a story that is about goal setting, persistence, determination, and focus.  It is a video of a man that was quite overweight, but had a lifelong ambition to run the Boston Marathon.  When that desire crossed with his passion to raise money for his niece who has Cystic Fibrosis, he was able to reach his goals.  He set goals along the way, but he used his determination and his passion to keep him on course.  He wanted to achieve a goal that was bigger than himself.

Isn’t that what we do?  Personally and professionally we need some of the same ideals that he had in the video.  He is inspiring because he did something that seemed impossible.  So can our kids.  We can show them that goals that seem too lofty ARE reachable by setting small goals.  If you can only run 100 yards now….that doesn’t mean you can’t eventually run the Boston Marathon. 

I appreciate you guys and the passion that you have for education.  I love seeing kids excited for school and excited that they learned something new and challenging.  It isn’t easy to find a way to “light a fire” under kids all the time, but you are called to do it everyday.  Thank you for doing that.

This weekend think about what areas professional and personally that you can apply some of the values from Roger’s life in your own.  It is way more than just about weight and running….

If you want to see his follow up video where he talks about HOW he did it….check it out at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_qufoiKfgw (7 min)

Happy Friday!