A Different Drug Problem

The other day, someone at a store in our town read that a Methamphetamine lab had been found in an old farmhouse in the adjoining county and he asked me a rhetorical question, “Why didn't we have a drug problem when you and I were growing up?”

I replied, I had a drug problem when I was young: I was drug to church on Sunday morning. I was drug to church for weddings and funerals. I was drug to family reunions and community socials no matter the weather.

I was drug by my ears when I was disrespectful to adults. I was also drug to the woodshed when I disobeyed my parents, told a lie, brought home a bad report card, did not speak with respect, spoke ill of the teacher or the preacher, or if I didn't put forth my best effort in everything that was asked of me.

I was drug to the kitchen sink to have my mouth washed out with soap if I uttered a profanity. I was drug out to pull weeds in mom's garden and flower beds and cockleburs out of dad's fields. I was drug to the homes of family, friends and neighbors to help out some poor soul who had no one to mow the yard, repair the clothesline, or chop some firewood, and, if my mother had even known that I took a single dime as a tip for this kindness, she would have drug me back to the woodshed.

Those drugs are still in my veins and they affect my behavior in everything I do, say or think. They are stronger than cocaine, crack, or heroin; and, if today's children had this kind of drug problem, America would be a better place.

God bless the parents who drugged us.

Guest Post: Letter to a High School Teacher

This post is from a Middle School student to their future High School teacher. Have you seen that movie “American Pie”? You know how Jim thinks he knows “things”, but only knows apple pie?
Remember that when I walk into your class for the first time. I will likely have what my old social studies teacher calls my “bravado mask” on much of the first quarter. Whatever that is…I don’t get it. We watched a lot of movies. I had an English teacher that talked about how he didn’t expect us to be professional writers because, well, none of us were. That gave me confidence to take risks in my writing (he always told us to do so!). Please don’t expect me to write like Lois Lowry or Jordan Sonnenblick. But, they’re cool.
Oh, here are a few things I’d like you to know before I get into your class. I still care a lot about what people think of me. My school counselor says that is my most adult-like trait. I don’t get it. I still have to move around a lot in class. I’m addicted to teachers allowing us to work in groups. I kind of get why. I see the workers at Target always talking (my math teacher said he likes to dress up in khaki pants and a red polo on weekends and walk around at Target answering people’s questions) My PE and computer teachers used sarcasm and, for the most part, I understood what was going on. However, I did get in trouble a few times when I was trying to be sarcastic but it came across as me being a jerk. I’m still learning how to use sarcasm. I understand that you are trying to treat me like I’m an adult. But, I’m not yet. Point to the older students for me to look up to. Especially if they are cute. In all honesty, I’m not too afraid of the school work and homework because my middle school teachers have trained me to only think about that lame test we take every spring. Seriously, that is all they talk about. The only thing I have mastered is how to bubble in circles. I think that is sarcasm.
I’m still immature and my parents say I will be until I get a real job other than handing out flyers for the local ice cream shop. You should try their mint-n-chip…it’s a party in your mouth! Especially if you put rainbow sprinkles on top of the ice cream! Now that’s sarcasm! Right? The only remaining curiosity I have is related to my social life: both my real and made up one in my mind. Sometimes I get the two mixed up. I want friends, but I want to be left alone – both make life easier. Even though I may look annoyed when you talk to me, I am listening to what you are saying just like Jason Biggs’ character in “American Pie” is outwardly annoyed with his dad giving him advice on “things”, but inside is intently listening. Oh, I secretly like Justin Bieber.

Everyone has the potential to learn.

• We learn in different ways, depending on abilities, learning styles, preferences and interests.
• Learning takes place through inquiry: questioning, exploring, experimenting and problem solving.
• Learning takes place when we make connections between previous and new understanding.
• Learning for understanding occurs by acquiring skills and knowledge, constructing meaning and transfer to other contexts.
• Learning is active and social and best takes place through collaboration and interaction.
• Learning takes place when we feel secure and valued and are able to take risks.
• Learning needs to be challenging, meaningful, purposeful and engaging.
• Learning includes meta-cognition and reflection, and requires learners to take ownership of their learning.
• Learning is continuous, lifelong and ever-evolving.

Beliefs-Coach G

When teachers ask me what I did to turn things around, I stress at first that it wasn't what I did so much as what I believed. In particular, even in my darkest moments, I clung to the belief that there was something I was doing (or not doing) to contribute to if not cause my classroom woes. This may seem like a lot to put on any teacher, let alone a new one. Yet this sort of ownership over classroom outcomes has been a hallmark of successful teachers I've known over the years. And if you think about it, to believe otherwise is to accept powerlessness over your situation.

From Seth Godin- again

Check-in, Chicken

One way to start every morning with your team is to have them check in. Go around in a circle and let people update and contribute. It's not a silly exercise, in that it helps people speak up and it communicates forward motion.

Another way, probably a better one, is to have each member of the team announce what they're afraid of. Two kinds of afraid, actually. Things that might fail and things that might work.

What are you, chicken?

Yes, we're chicken. We're afraid. The lizard has us by the claws.

So, tell us. What are you afraid might happen that would destroy, disintegrate, or dissuade--that would take us down? And what are you afraid of that might work, thus changing everything and opening up entirely new areas of scariness?

From Spencer's scratchpad

"So, it makes me think of the school year. I'm going to encourage my students to be free and to speak up and to go places emotionally and intellectually that might be uncomfortable. Yet, I also want to create a safe environment with a community who cares about them. Parenting has taught me that these two goals are often in tension with one another, but still worth pursuing. I want my students to feel safe enough to be free and free enough to be safe."

How about this for a school culture goal?

Learning - Technology

“What is the best technology for the learning experiences we want to craft?”

the learner develops the habit of “asking questions about the answers that he finds.”

A literacy machine enables us to communicate, not merely with words, but with pictures, sound, and motion. It enables us to get the attention of those who can help us accomplish our goals.

What is going to help students learn to become literate, resourceful, and habitual learners — engaged in a learning lifestyle?