Friday Flush -- Week 1 done!

Well we made it through week 1…thank you for all of your hard work this week…you guys were truly AMAZING!

I LOVE this quote.  We have truly begun our year with the end in mind.  That is the only way to be successful.  We know the target and we know our goals.  We need to stay focused on driving towards those goals each and every day.  (Tired of football analogies yet?)

On Fridays, I try to make the “flush” be more “reflective” in nature.  It is something that I hope you can think about over the weekend as you recharge.  I hope this weekend, you are able to look for goals professionally and personally that you are working towards.  Are you facing the right direction?  Do you know how far it is away?  What are the steps you need to get there?  How can a team mate help you?

The joy of the game of football is you truly don’t know when the next big play is…you keep doing the basics as you practice them, and every once in a while the lane open up, and you make a huge gain.  I know that this year, we will see that. 

Our kids need to be a part of this process….they can’t score, if they don’t know their targets too.  As we look for more and more ways to bring students into their own learning, we will see them becoming more and more successful.  What are some practical ways that next week you can let students be more aware of their own goals?  How can they become stronger players by being more aware?

I thank you for all you do every day…thank you for working hard and keeping your eyes on those goalposts….

Happy Friday!

First Day of School--Monday Mush

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiqdA1B3_Nc (3:06)

One of my favorite clips of all time!  I know we have all seen it many, many times, but it is very appropriate for us to watch as we start our first day of school!

We all have different backgrounds…different things that make us unique and special…different talents... 

So do our students….

To be a team, we need to be on the same page at all times…we look for how we can work together, not about what makes us different. 

So, today, we set the stage as a team as well as leaders of our kids….we will come together, so we aren’t destroyed. 

I think the line at the end sums it up best….”I don’t care if you like each other or not, but I do care that you respect each other.”  That is what we do.  We get past the petty and we focus on the end goal.  We focus on playing our game together. We focus on winning by first supporting each other.  No team wins when there isn’t respect.

I respect you guys, and for a bonus I like you too!   We are an amazing team.  Thank you for working with the kids here to bring them together…to help them see that their differences make the team stronger.

Today will be a great first day of school…..thank you for all you do!

Happy Monday!

Monday Mush

I am so excited to be officially starting our 2014-15 school year tomorrow.  We are truly going to have an amazing year this year as we focus on being “ONE TEAM.”  Tomorrow we will start our pre-season training at 8:00, and I am excited to see everyone!

Every Monday and Friday I will send an email (Sometimes the nights before so you have them to read first thing in the morning.)  They are designed to be inspirational or motivating. They are NOT required reading ever, and I will not put in information about school “to do’s” in there.  They are not designed to give school information.  I want them to be available to you if you CHOOSE to read them. 

I had others want to “subscribe” over time to them, so I add each one to a blog for easy access and filing.  www.mushandflush.blogspot.com

They were coined the “Monday Mush” as a term of endearment as I am not usually “mushy.”  The “Friday Flush” helps us flush out the week to get reset for the next.  If you ever have a quote, video, etc to share, please pass that along.  I also look for “guest writers,” so feel free to volunteer!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sUKoKQlEC4 (5:36)

The theme of football will for sure not ever leave us short of clips of inspirational stories/speeches to watch.  Movies capitalize on the emotions of football and key players because we want to see a team come together…we want that “tough kid” to become a true leader….we want the underdog to win.  That is truly part of our DNA. 

The above clip is possibly the most overplayed video for the past two years.  I didn’t choose it for it originality.  You have all seen it…several times.  But, it pulls me in every time….and it is PERFECT for what we are doing this year.  We are having kids reach for their own personal best.  I say often that “each kid has a next step.”  We have to push them to find it.  We cannot accept that some kids are “doing fine” or some kids “will never get it.”  We believe in them and we push them. 

This year, I want you to know that I believe in you.  I have seen the great things you can do and the loads you carry on your back.  I will push you to look passed what others might be able to do or what they may say and focus on yourself.  I want your best every day.

We have watched and we will watch a documentary on Nick Saban.  He says that he trains his kids to play “each down like it is the most important play in a Championship game.”  I really have thought about that. 

Great plays in history didn’t happen like this :  (In the huddle the quarterback didn’t look at the running back and say “ok, lets really try on this one…why do you break 7 tackles and do a spin move and oh yeah hurdle the guy to jump in the end zone.  ESPN has a camera over there, and that will be a great highlight they will show for years!”)

Great plays started like ordinary plays.  No one knew what was about to happen.  They just kept doing their best.  Amazing things happen when we are trying our best and working at 100%.  If we assume that nothing extraordinary will happen, then it won’t.  If we assume that we will only get a few yards on the next play, we probably won’t have the big gains we are actually capable of making.

Thank you for being on this team.  Thank you for giving 100% and asking kids to do the same.   Doing your best is tiring and hard, but it where champions are made.  We have all the potential to be just that, and I know we will do great things!

Happy first Monday!

Friday Flush -- Meet the Teacher

I hope everyone’s Friday is off to a great start….what a perfect start for how we are starting the year.  Tonight, we begin our preparations full force with “Meet the Teacher.”   I am excited for you this afternoon…you will begin forming relationships that will truly change lives.  That is a HUGE gift you are blessing others with.

Thank you for preparing to win…thank you for making a difference…thank you for giving EVERYDAY!

Today, you are Cinderella….you have sooooo many things that need to be done, but when those kids and parents are here today, be there for them.  Smile and make them the center of your attention….they are coming to meet/see you! 

I appreciate you guys so much, and I hope your Friday is amazing!  

We will win this year because we have the preparations in place to do so…thank you for being on this amazing TEAM….

Happy Friday

Final Monday Mush (See you in 2014-2015)

So, this is the final Monday, so it is our last Mush of the year.  I won’t be doing an email/blog “flush” either…we will do that during the last day as we grab some breakfast together. 

http://digg.com/video/this-dance-routine-is-unreal (5:57)

This for sure caught my attention.  According to the caption, it was a second place performance. 

Now, for the record, I am not a dancer (I know this is quite a shocker).  Maybe because I am not a dancer, this impresses me more, but I think it is a fabulous way to end our Mush/Flush “season.” 

The act opens with a teacher leaving the classroom…so if you have ever wondered what kids do when you are there, maybe this is it?  Somehow, I think we would love for them to have this much teamwork though…

I learned several things watching this performance…some are probably pretty petty while others have a deeper impact. 

I learned that things can be much better together.  Often times the soloists get the attention…not with this group.  They looked alike, they danced alike, and they performed alike.  The spectacle wasn’t that one person could do it…it was that they all could do it.  Teamwork is really the heart of it.  How many rehearsals did that take?  How many slow learners were in the group?  How did they react when one person messed up?  Did they all have to come to practice?  Did they allow people to give 50%?  Were all ideas shared?  We don’t know the answer to these, but I can assume some.  I would bet the group norms were so strong because of the centralized mission that people confirmed.  I bet tardiness to a rehearsal wasn’t just discouraged…I bet it was shunned completed.  They wanted to be there because they needed to be and the team needed them.  You can’t do moves like that together and only practice by yourself.  I am sure they all had to be forgiving and encouraging.  I am assuming some didn’t pick it up the first time.  Maybe they did section too fast or too slow, but I bet they had a culture to accept that and work with that.  The final goal was more important than the frustrations along the way.

You don’t have to be racy or edgy to capture attention.  I don’t think is really an issue with us in elementary schools, but I was impressed that a dance team was able to be impressive and 100% “above board” in costumes, moves, and song selection.  That tells me that we don’t have to always “play the game the media tells us.”  They can do all of that without a wrecking ball.   We can inspire, we can impress, we can captivate using the tools we have always had.  We don’t have to change the game, we just have to play it well.

That took time….that took an investment.  I am sure they said no to some parties, some time with family, some other hobbies, and such.  It was worth it because of the mission.  They wanted to be the best…be together…so they devoted time. 

I bet you could come up with 20 more “take aways” from that….I hope you do.  I hope you know that I was proud to be on your team this year.  That I enjoyed getting better alongside of you.  I appreciate your willingness to go slow when the group needed more time than you did.  I appreciated how you curbed your frustrations when you had time you could have shown it more.  I appreciate how you helped establish and carry norms that don’t have to posted to be respected.  You set a high bar for excellence, and you didn’t stop until you got there.

I appreciate you guys…I brag about you guys…I am looking forward to summer, but I looking forward to even a better year next year too! 

Happy Final Monday!

Final Friday Flush -- Message from Morgart

Ok, so I outsourced again....thank you to Ms. Morgart for offering to write our Final Friday Flush (say that 3 times fast!).  It is a great topic and a great read!  The inspiration can be found in the blog article attached.

http://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2014/02/how-opening-up-classroom-doors-can-push-education-forward/?utm_content=buffer27058&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Transparency.

I read an article that made me think about my first few years of teaching. When I started, I taught in an open concept school that literally had no walls. I could hear and see everything that was happening in the other classrooms and as a new teacher, I remember how scary and amazing an environment it was. There were no doors to hide behind…

As educators, I truly believe that we are all committed to being life long learners. It’s what we want for our students and what we model for them every single day. We make the commitment to learn and grow in our profession and we do this out of the love that we have for our kids. Being transparent to what we do everyday is part of that growth. Sometimes we have wonderful and creative ideas to share with others and sometimes we have to be able to answer to the question….did I do everything I could for my class, the lesson, that one child that needs me the most…

It can be uncomfortable. Opening yourself up to your team, staff, and parents can be scary but think of the rewards. We have amazing teachers on our staff that I am sure in no time at all would drop what they are doing to share with you the happenings of their classroom. You just have to ask….and be willing to be open to how we all learn from each other (both our successes and our “not so great” moments). Be willing to answer the hard questions….own it…and gather new ways to achieve success for your students and for yourself.

My door is always open….as many others are too….

Lynda 

Monday Mush -- Rufo Style

From time to time I love having others write our mush!  Thank you Ms. Rufo for offering to do so.  There are some great reminders in there, and I loved the video at the bottom!   (And, if anyone else ever wants to write one or share your thoughts, I am certainly happy to have you do so!)

Happy Reading and Happy Monday!

Why Did You Become a Teacher?  By Jamie Rufo

Why did you become a teacher? Why did you on purpose, after FINALLY getting out of school.... COME BACK!!??

For me, it's an ego thing. I actually think that what I do MATTERS. I think I MATTER to the kids I get to share a small space with. They grow up, some remember me, some don't. But you can't ever convince me otherwise. I need these kids as much as they need me because I need to do something with my life that matters.

Ask yourself why you do what you do. Is your heart in it? Do you love it? Have you lost your passion and would rather be elsewhere?? What motivates you?

Every year I'm a different teacher. I learn from my mistakes- and man do I make them. (sometimes more than once). But every year I'm better. I'm stronger. I'm more motivated to get out of my comfort zone and meet that maybe not so lovable, challenging kid where THEY ARE, instead of where I am. THOSE kids... Make us better. They make what you do MATTER. 

I had a special young man hold my hand today and tell me that some adults in his life didn't believe him. What a bold statement. 

BELIEVE in your kids. See beyond those eye rolls and short comings. See potential in the ones that don't care. Be that one person that believes them and believes IN them. Because what you do MATTERS!!

Enjoy this video below. I had the honor of hearing Ms. Ooey Gooey herself speak a few years ago, and she's all about kids. 

I just love kids....well then you haven't met enough! LOL

Thanks!

Jamie Rufo

Check out this video on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjS2FdUrFPI&feature=youtube_gdata_player