A promise for my students!

“I promise to develop their hearts, their skills and their voices so that they themselves may be empowered to live their dreams.”

As a teacher, I aspire to always give my best to my students.  I hope that their experience in my classroom and in their four years in our high school always remains positive. For anyone who knows me, relationships have always been of vital importance.

As an English teacher, I have reflected immensely at what my true mission is as an educator. What are the skills we want our students to learn? Do we put those skills above content? Do my students enjoy reading, writing and learning at the end of our semester?

With these questions in mind, I have made a promise both to myself and to my students. I promise that I would transform what my English class would look and feel like. This does not negate that learning was occurring in my classroom or that students lived meaningful and enriching learning experiences with me. However, as I continue to reflect and ask myself: “Is this best for students?” and “Are my students becoming creative and avid readers and writers?” I know that I must adopt certain changes.

For my students to truly enjoy reading they need to learn to become readers and I need to create the conditions to make this happen. First, they need to have autonomy in their choice of reading. Every student is at a different level of reading; they all enjoy different genres and styles. As a teacher, I need to ensure that they have access to a variety of literature. To do so, I myself, must share my own reading journeys with them. Students can learn from the literature I read to help make informed choices of their own. In my first year of teaching English, I organized reading circles where students were able to share their current reading material. It gave them a voice, a place to share their thoughts with their peers, it helped them learn how to formulate opinions and share them with efficacy. It also allowed my other students to see what reading possibilities existed beyond their scope of knowledge. I also promise to promote and celebrate diversity in reading material. Readers often want to feel connected to characters and their stories. It is essential that there is literature available to them that tell the stories of various people from different cultures, religions, countries, sexual orientations. In short, books that share the stories of many different people, so that students may learn about the world through the eyes of another.

Second, students also need to develop mastery in their reading. Students love challenges; I have never seen a child enjoy an easy video game. They often spend days and weeks trying to collect the items, reach the end game or replay games to uncover all of the secrets that exist. We need to look at reading through the same lens. As our students begin to read more for enjoyment, as they access a more diverse series of literature, we now need to challenge them as readers to experiment with different styles and genres. Literature can be superficial, meaningful and complex. As we build our relationships with our students and as we get know where they are as readers, through various discussions and conversations, we must suggest and challenge them with books about social justice, empowerment, history, emotions, stories of empathy and kindness. We want them to ponder, reflect, live the stories and share their own reading journey. In my class, I had an avid reader. His suggestions, thoughts and choices influenced me and many of his peers. When challenged to read, he embarked on the journey thereupon enriching his classmates’ views, choices and reading diversity. Is that not what we hope for?

Finally, students also need to have purpose when they read. We cannot solely create reading experiences for students based on literary analysis, literary cannon, or curriculum expectations. Although we may want to develop and deepen certain reading and literary skills, the most important mission we have is to create a genuine love for reading and writing. As a school, one of our missions was to create and live a reading period every day as a school community. Every teacher, every student, every staff member, participated in this special time dedicated to reading. No book was assigned to them, this was not a study period for class; this was a reserved time for everyone to read for pure enjoyment. Our administration and I even took the time to walk the halls as we were reading to show all students that everyone took part in this community time. Even the custodians knew that no work was to be done; administration knew that no appointments should be scheduled: for those twenty minutes, as a school, we all wanted to read.

So today, I make my promise. For my students, I promise to promote voice and choice for their reading. I also promise to help give them autonomy, mastery and purpose (thank you Dan Pink) in their reading. I hope to never have a student submit work only because I asked it of them. I believe, and I hope, that my students will truly enjoy their learning, that they will grow as learners and that they will help build each other up. A curriculum may be the guideline and map of expectations that we must follow as educators. However, for my students who embark on this journey with me, I promise to develop their hearts, their skills and their voices so that they themselves may be empowered to live their dreams.

 

Reading with emotion

Reading has always been an event for me. As a child, my mom instilled an importance to education, structure, rigour and the traditional 3 Rs (Reading, wRiting, aRithmetic). As I grew up, reading became a personal journey, an event where I could escape into a fictional realm, a different narrative and live something that might otherwise be impossible. I experienced various professions, trips around the world, exciting adventures and accounts of historical events. Books opened my eyes to a person I wasn’t or a life I couldn’t live at the time.

As I went through the education system, I learned about different books; the classics, fiction, non-fiction and so many more. Almost always, the books were chosen for me and as a conformist, I did as I was told. Luckily, in my personal time, I did enjoy reading and I was able to experience different emotions as I read the books I chose. Many years later, as I began as an educator, I adopted the same practices of prescribed readings, mundane questions and traditional literary analysis. The one thing I failed to remember: the importance of reading with emotion. The one quality that was so important in my personal reading journey didn’t translate into my teaching practice.

In the last while, I was able to regain and restructure my schedule to start reading more. As I already read a lot of pedagogical books, I wanted to regain my love for reading with emotions. I recently wrote about my experience after reading the book Wonder. Yesterday, I had the chance to read the book Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon from beginning to end. There are certain books that you love and there are certain books that give you that ultimate emotional experience, and this one hit me like a train, in a good way.

There is one passage that really spoke to me:

“I’ll have to think of all the hope I had. Of how I fooled myself into thinking that I was a miracle. Of how the world I wanted to be a part of so badly didn’t want me back.”

As I read these words, chills ran down my spine, goose bumps appeared on my skin, and tears ran down my eyes. I start remembering my years as a high school teacher, walking the halls, teaching classes, interacting with students and wonder: how many of my students feel like this on a daily basis? How as an educator, can I ensure that all kids see themselves as true miracles and to not feel excluded or unwanted? How do I, myself, remember this when I feel the same way and sense doubt in my life? When we talk about diversity, equity and inclusiveness, isn’t that what we want for everyone? It has been one day since I read this book and I can’t shake these thoughts from my mind.

As we plan our lessons, run our schools, prepare activities and field trips, promote our school, find creative ways to change our pedagogy we cannot lose sight of the only true mission we have. We must remind kids that they are miracles, that we love them, that we want them to learn and that we make time for them. If we put this into place…if we lead with the heart  and keep people’s emotions, feelings and values as drivers to our decisions, not only will our school flourish, our kids will become caring, empathetic and kind citizens and adults, who will take care of one another and transform the world with unimaginable beauty.

I encourage you to take the time to read this novel. Take the time to read with emotion. Take the time to feel vulnerable, to feel empathy and think of others. As educators, we are there for our kids and for our community. Make every single person you interact with know that they matter. Emotions are driving forces in helping our society grow; let us not suppress them, let us embrace them! Pick up a book, read it, feel it and most importantly, share it. Reading can change lives, reading can move mountains.

Celebrating the colourful penguin

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sometime you are meant to stick out. This is a statement I say to myself often. When you feel like you don’t fit in, you try to find ways to go about your day, to accomplish your objectives and to feel proud of whom you have become. It isn’t always easy; there are many obstacles you will encounter, but in the end, you have to have hope that being different is your purpose.

As a child, I never fit into the norm. Although I came from a traditional family, my mom and dad, my sister and myself, I found out quite quickly that I was not like everyone else. I had different interests as a boy: I liked reading, spending time with family, having game nights and watching movies. My weekly schedule was different as well. I was sent to a French school, a language I did not speak, I spent my Saturdays in a Polish school to enrich my culture and I did not play sports or go on play dates or to birthday parties, because financially we couldn’t afford it. I went to Church every Sunday and I was part of my church’s children’s choir. As I reflect back on my childhood, although I learned so much and grew up in a loving environment, I am not surprised that I didn’t fit into the regular crowd.

As a student, I wasn’t one to blend in either. I was left-handed, I was often the first to put up my hand to share the answer to a question, I excelled at the “game of school” from an early age and was an extreme perfectionist. I can still remember drawing in my art class. When I would want to make a change to a pencil drawing, I couldn’t simply erase my work because I knew there would be a mark left on the sheet; I would rip up the page with the mistake and start anew. Socially, I was more awkward. When you don’t spend your childhood in organized sports, you don’t learn the same skills as kids your age.  I was often the last kid picked in gym class, I often didn’t fit into the street hockey games at recess and I was chosen less often for group projects. That kid, who ate his lunch alone or would hide in the school to avoid recess, was me.

To this day, I don’t know if the teachers in my school knew the torment I felt in the halls. As an educator myself, I am assuming not, because I can’t imagine watching a child walk, feeling that little, and doing nothing. The whispers that came as I walked anywhere, the looks I got for being different, the teasing and taunting I endured were all part of my norm. These experiences, which for some would be characterized as “part of growing up” or “building character” or “building a tough skin”, were not always easy to get through.

Relationships and friendships have always been more difficult from me. I didn’t come from a social family. My lack of participation in traditional “western” events and ideologies did not contribute to the building of a positive self and the doubt created by an emotional school experience had a lasting impact. When you live a large part of your life in a deficit-based mindset rather than a strength-based mindset, your views change. The colours in the world that seem so obvious and vivid to some appear dull and lackluster to others.

There is no doubt that as an adult, I have been deeply shaped by the experiences I have lived. Where I once dreaded sticking out and preferred hiding, I now find strength and solace in being unique and different. My history has also given me a different perspective on education. I strive to find those colourful penguins who are different, who don’t fit in. I focus on building relationships and spending time with students. The time that I once hoped for with someone, the wish to be noticed, the relationships I once wanted as a child, are now the focus of my teaching career. Making a person feel noticed and important is the only way we can truly make a difference in someone’s life.

As I transpose this same celebratory mindset with adults, it is also both rewarding and challenging. It is a mission to help build people up, to help them reach new heights, to appreciate them, to celebrate them and to make them achieve more than they knew possible. After all, isn’t that one of the missions of a true leader? At the same time, like that seesaw in our childhood playground, as you push someone up, you often find yourself down. If you don’t find the balance in celebrating others and celebrating yourself, you can often encounter another challenge: finding your happiness and your accomplishment.

So what is the magic solution? There is none. No recipe exists to make the world a perfect place. But I do know one thing. If we all embrace being that colourful penguin who doesn’t mind sticking out in a crowd, if we all become conscientious of those around us, if we all take care of each other and treat one another with dignity…the world will be a more beautiful place.

So take the time to listen. Give the gift of your time. Reach out to those around you. Celebrate the uniqueness of every person around you. It is your heart that will make the real difference in someone’s life.

Be someone’s WONDERful

Everyone in the world should get a standing ovation at least once in their life because we all overcometh the  world. – Auggie

In the past few weeks, I saw the trailer to the movie Wonder with Julia Roberts and it looked amazing. It is one of those trailers that when you see it, you automatically get goose bumps and chills. I told my wife immediately, when this movie comes out, we have to go see it. The English teacher in me also said, you must read the book before you see the movie. There is nothing better than visualizing the story through your eyes before you see someone else’s interpretation.  So I bought the book, and yesterday morning, while on the plane to a meeting, I started reading it. Less than 24 hours later, I made sure I finished it. The impact? Immense!

The amazing and touching story of Auggie, a boy who is different and unique, who is often mistreated for the way he looks. Many prevalent school and life-related themes and issues arise when reading this book: bullying, kindness, courage, friendship, love, judgement.  English teachers for many years have debated the “literature canon” and what should be taught in schools; when you read Wonder, the reflection suddenly turns to why are we not reading this in our schools.

Auggie’s journey and his experiences are both enriching and heart-braking. As I intently read every word, one passage ripped my heart out. One character, Auggie’s friend says:

“I can’t imagine looking in the mirror every day and seeing myself like that. It would be too awful. And getting stared at all the time.”

“and I really think…if I looked like him seriously, I think that I’d kill myself”.

As I read these words, I filled with emotions and tears rolled down my cheek. How many of our students and how many people around us walk around every day feeling this broken? To some, it is the way they look; comments about their hair, body type, facial features, etc. To others, it is comments about how they look on the inside; the choices they make, the friends they have or do not have, their religion or beliefs, etc. Everyone has a certain image or perception of themselves. This image is often thwarted or modified based on our relationships or on constant comments made from people around us.

This book needs to be read by everyone. A dialogue needs to be started. A reflection ought to take place. We can no longer hide behind ignorance, inaction, blame or traditions.  Kindness, love, compassion, empathy, these are all values we get to choose and they should be part of how we teach and how we build relationships.

You never know what is hiding behind someone’s smile. You never know what someone has lived that morning, in the past or the anguish they are going through. We all need to be more aware, more caring and better people. It is up to us to make the difference in someone’s life.

So as the end of the school year approaches or for some, has just concluded, reflect on how compassion and love will become regular priorities in your life, in your class and in your school. Do not judge, do not abandon, do not mock. Everyone has worth. It is up to us to make their worth shine, to nurture it and to protect it. If we don’t, the end result could be dangerous. So take the challenge! Be there for others, celebrate them, love them and build them up. For some, it may simply be an affirmation of self-worth, for others, it will define their existence.  Remember, everyone deserves a standing ovation once in their lifetime.

Life lessons

“One of the largest barriers to our success is the creation of our own limitations through these fears.”

Social media has changed the way we live our day to day lives. Today, Facebook helped me remember an important step in my life. On this day two years ago, I began the interview process for a job that changed my educational career. For the first time, I would leave the comfort and happiness of my classroom with my students. I would now work at a larger scale helping develop and implement programs for student success in middle and high school.

This wasn’t an easy decision for me. It weighed heavily on my soul. How would taking this step change my vision? How would it help me realize my dream of learning and influencing change? The first time the posting went up in the fall, I did not apply. I kept wondering how my students would react to me leaving. Would I be happy? Could I make a real impact outside of the classroom? How would this impact my family?

The second time the posting went up, in the spring, I took it as a sign. I felt like I need to live a change and so I tried. I figured I wouldn’t get the job, so at least the application process would be a learning experience. To my surprise, I was the chosen candidate. Now here I am, with an amazing PLN on Twitter and beyond, learning more than I could imagine and connecting more and more with exceptional educators who help me grow as a person, as a parent and as a teacher.

One of the most important lessons this has taught me is the place fear plays in your life. Fear of the unknown, fear of judgment, fear of inadequacy and the fear of failure. Usually, one of the largest barriers to our success is the creation of our own limitations through these fears. And as I reflect today on everything I have learned, I am reminded of a thought: “Stars can’t shine without darkness.” It is okay to live our emotions and feel fear. However, that fear needs to be our driving force to help us achieve what we want and what we need.

I find many parallels in my story and in my dreams to Dorothy’s journey down the yellow brick road. Life will take you to many places. It will present you with many unknowns. As you travel down your path, you will find those who give you courage, those who impart wisdom, those who show you love, and yes, there will also be those who darken your path and who create negativity in your life. In the end, you will create your own story and you will draw out your destiny. As you try to build the relationships with the people on your journey, you must remember that everyone is there for a reason. Not everyone that crosses your path is there to stay or there to encourage. Sometimes they are there to help you learn a valuable life lesson. And this is okay. As an educator and as a leader, you need to reflect on what your goals are and how to stay focused on them. In order to move forward, you sometimes have to let go of certain things or certain people weighing you down. And that is such an important lesson in growing as a leader. I recently read a blog post by @CoriOrlando1 called Zoom Out. Cori reminds us that we need to take the time to stop, pause and give ourselves perspective, to shift our focus and to continue growing. That is so very important, and we rarely let ourselves reflect like this.

As Angela Maiers puts so simply and so eloquently: You matter! It is necessary and okay to think about you. Happiness is rooted in how you help others, but you need to be truly grounded and proud of what you are accomplishing. Time is the greatest gift and the greatest symbol of love for another. So make sure to give your time to others. In Stephen Covey’s metaphor of water, rocks and sand in a jar, he reminds us that we decide what our priorities are. For those who give you that time, cherish it and celebrate it. For those who need your time: make yourself available to them, make the choice to be there for them. It can sometimes be the one thing that saves a life.

Kids and adults are living in a fast-paced life. They are bombarded with stimulation, entertainment, stresses, priorities, money. As a teacher, as a leader, we need to cognizant of what people are feeling and we need to just be there for others.  So why do I do what I do? It is simple. I do it to make a difference. I do it for the kids. I do it to be there for others. Am I perfect? The answer is simple, no. But I will always keep trying to be better, to be proud of myself and to help others find their purpose. As you reflect on your story, on your purpose, on your impact, just remember one thing: You matter!

Finding your voice

“I used to think that a teacher needed to know everything and be the expert at the front of the classroom. When a student asked me a question, if I didn’t really know the response, an immediate sense of panic, accompanied by a sudden onset of sweat droplets found themselves taking over my life. This was how teaching was always presented to me: an adult who had the answers who shared them with students. Funny enough, that is what I wanted to become.”

Today, as an educator, it is important to help students find their voice, not simply listen to ours. Everybody has a story; relationships are built on stories. Cultures and societies for centuries have relied on stories to progress, support and develop their communities. Yet since our “modern day” education system has been implemented, as a whole, educators have left little place for students to use and develop their voice. This must change, if we want society to grow, prosper and make a meaningful impact, we need to transform education and how it is lived by all people involved.

For students to find their voice, they need to see teachers who also find their own voice. They need to know how to take risks, to be comfortable and how to deal with mistakes and changes. Do we allow such an environment for our students? A visual representation for the word FAIL is well known to educators.

 

The question remains. Do we really build this growth mindset in our classrooms? Are our actions congruent with the message we are sharing? For students to feel comfortable to share their voice, they must truly feel as if they are in a safe environment to learn, to make mistakes and to start over. They must also be comfortable to live and share their emotions. Life isn’t always “pink” and things aren’t always okay. Through the hardships, we learn how to deal with challenges and obstacles. Are we willing to share our own hardships to help them overcome their own?

Over the past several months, I have slowly begun to build my own voice. After a lifetime of feeling like my voice was suppressed, some people have helped empower me and helped me continue to grow as a leader. My life growing up was filled with betrayal, disappointment, shame and doubt. As I went through the motions of school, I never felt like I belonged, never felt like my voice was important.

Although I came from an immigrant family, first generation in Canada, as a white male, I was definitely not a minority. I had lots of love and structure in my family, but we came from near poverty. I didn’t play sports, didn’t go to birthday parties, didn’t wear the brand name labels and didn’t have big group of friends. All of these involved a big investment in time and money, something we just simply didn’t have. I went to Polish school on Saturdays instead of watching cartoons or playing hockey. I sang in our Church choir. I developed my culture immensely, but at a young age, that just wasn’t cool. I also battled weight issues and still do to this day. As I didn’t fit any traditional mold, I spent most of my life being ridiculed, bullied and alone. I would never talk about it because I couldn’t bear breaking my parent’s’ heart. I was often considered a teacher’s pet, but for most of my life, some teachers, who were truly angels, made me feel safe and made me feel somewhat important.

As I reflect on my past, on my experiences, I see how broken my voice was and sometimes still is. I hope that every year, as I work with students, I can be a pillar of strength, a supportive ear and a sense of empowerment to their voice. No child should ever live a life of shame, guilt or loneliness.

There is no perfect way to teach a class. There is no magic way to help students find their voice. In the end, it is the relationships we build with our students, the experiences we help create and the support we give them that empowers them. As teachers continue to explore new ways of teaching and learning, incorporate technology-enabled learning and continue in professional development, we simply need to remember one thing: our voice is important. Students’ voices are important. Let’s make a greater place for these voices in our classrooms and our schools. It is these voices that will help change the world, that will bring happiness to those who need it most.

Counting down

“Let’s not countdown the moments until we have a break, and instead starting today, let’s countdown the moments that we have left to make a difference in the lives before us.”

On social media, so often we see posts of countdowns to the weekend, Christmas, Spring Break, summer; it is usually accompanied by elation and celebration. As students and educators, we often can’t wait until there is a break from school. Why is that? We know it’s because we work HARD!  Education is a tireless job and the breaks are something we look forward to and desperately need.

This “tradition” has been around for many decades. We don’t know about you, but we can definitely remember our teachers keeping track of countdowns. In many cases it isn’t done with a negative intention; however this seemingly harmless practice can have profound consequences.  

You may have heard the phrase “perception is reality”; think about it, when someone online, who is not an educator, sees us gleefully posting about how much we can’t wait for a break, what message does that send? What about to the parents of the children we serve?  It sends a message of “these kids are driving me insane and I need a break” or “Woe is me, my job is so much harder than others so I deserve this break”.  Now don’t get us wrong, teachers do work hard. We work harder than most realize and with many unpaid hours.  But again, what message do we really want to be putting out there?

Let’s have a quick comparison with anyone who has ever trained a dog. We are taught with dogs to be conscious of our tone of voice. When disciplining a dog for a bad action, we should not use a pleasant voice, because a dog will associate that with good behavior. This of course is possible because of that pleasant tone we use to praise a dog. We are also taught to be repetitive with dogs. In order for behaviour to be learned, it must be constantly addressed.

Now let’s come back to school. Hypothetically, from a young age, teachers put down that innocent countdown on a blackboard or a bulletin board. Also regularly, when referring to that countdown, a pleasant and often exciting voice is used by the teacher. Students in turn mimic that pleasant voice and share their excitement from that break from school. We all need breaks because we feel tired, overworked, and uninspired. But we think that maybe instead we should be building up a pleasant tone with the amount of time we have left!

I don’t know about you, but we’ve had those teachers who talk about how they can’t wait to be out of this school.  How they deserve this break.  And as a student, I (Todd) remember a teacher once telling us just that, and somehow, in someway, I felt like the problem.  I felt like it was my fault the teacher was counting down the day until she could rid herself of me and my classmates.

I (Roman) also had a similar experience. As a child, I loved school. It was a place to learn new things, to meet new people and to escape reality that wasn’t always fun. I knew that no matter what, with the teachers that were there, I was in a safe place where I could shine and be recognized. Every time teachers would put up that countdown, I would always feel a sense of being weird and different. While most were like the teachers, happy to be escaping school, I was disappointed that I wouldn’t be in my “fun place” for the summer. These made me feel inadequate. I couldn’t share what I felt because no one would understand. Unbeknownst to be, I kept this tradition alive in my early years of teaching.

This is where our disappointment comes in; disappointment for two reasons. First, we all have been guilty of this practice in our careers. Second, disappointment because the very job we chose out of love for learning and teaching has so many students and teachers celebrating the end moment instead of focusing on the here and now.

And that’s the kind of countdowns we now need to hold in our offices and classrooms.  Not countdowns that celebrate the moment we get to “escape”, but instead countdowns that celebrate the moments we have left. Even more, why not start a count up until the beginning of the next school year, where greater learning adventures and fun will take place? Where all of us, kids and adults alike, will grow together as a family.

Our world is so filled with turmoil and pain.  As educators we are held to a different (and sometimes unfair) standard.  So even though it may seem like a countdown to summer is innocent, we have to take a step back and evaluate.  What is the message we’re sending, even unintentionally?

We know that the message we want to send is that every moment matters.  That even though we look forward to time with our families and time to decompress, we know that at school, that is a child’s safe place.  A child’s place to feel valued, important, worthy, and get the best education possible.

Let’s not countdown the moments until we have a break, and instead starting today, let’s countdown the moments that we have left to make a difference in the lives before us.  Our Kids Deserve It.