The Art of Making Resolutions: A Mindful Approach

     Every year I make a New Year's Resolution and it seems that with every passing year, the resolutions seem to be harder and harder to keep, making me feel like a New Year's Resolution failure.  Over the past few weeks, I've done a lot of thinking about how the goals that I've successfully achieved are strikingly different from my New Year's Resolutions.  This has shed some light for me on how to make resolutions in a more mindful way.

     As a goal-oriented person, I enjoy setting my sights on an accomplishment and figuring out how I will get there.  My executive functioning skills are quite intact.  I am quite good at setting realistic goals, determining the steps I need to take to reach them, planning my time accordingly, and staying disciplined as I work toward my goals.  So the question becomes: Why can't I stick to my New Year's Resolutions?  Looking back at three goals that I have successfully achieved this year has helped me to clarify what conditions are needed to ensure my success in accomplishing goals.


GOAL #1:  Finding an Apartment

     Back in February, I learned at the beginning of my February vacation (10:00am on Saturday morning!) that I would need to vacate my apartment in several months, right around the time of my sister's wedding.  Heartbroken and anxious to leave an apartment I had grown to love, I set my mind to finding an apartment by the end of the week, before returning to school.  Throwing aside my plans for vacation, I put all of my time, effort, and energy into finding an apartment.  That whole afternoon I researched listings and booked appointments.  Luckily, I found a great place within a few days, signed a lease a few days later, and received a key a few after that.  Since my first goal was accomplished within a few days, I created and successfully reached two new goals:  packing up my apartment by the end of vacation week and actually moving into a new apartment only thirteen days after finding out I needed to move.

Conditions that Helped Me to Be Successful and Disciplined in Reaching this Goal:
A pressing need (needing to find a new place) with a specific time frame attached (knowing that I would need to move before my sister's wedding) and the resources to achieve the goal (time, energy, effort)




GOAL #2:  My Professional Development Plan for School

     At the beginning of every new school year, I always think of a few new things that I want to work on or develop.  This helps to keep my teaching new and fresh from year to year.  My district requires teachers to formalize goals into a written statement, signed by both the teacher and the principal.  It contains a series of steps that will be taken to reach the goal, people who will help, and evidence that the goal has been accomplished.  Each year, I choose something that I am already interested in working on further-- that way I am already motivated.    This year, I am already well on my way to accomplishing my goal.

Conditions that Helped Me to Be Successful and Disciplined in Reaching this Goal:
My interest in pursuing the goal, being held accountable for achieving it, and the timing of the goal (at the beginning of the school year when there are a whole new set of kids and it makes sense to try out new ideas and teaching techniques.)


GOAL #3:  Maintaining This Blog:  Living, Teaching, and Creating Courageously 

 
     In July 2010, I had the incredible opportunity of attending a weeklong Courage to Teach Institute.  As a requirement for obtaining Professional Development Points (PDPs), we were required to write a five page reflection paper that included what we had learned/gotten out of the institute and how we planned to continue the Courage to Teach work.  In my reflection paper, I included the following section about maintaining my blog:

"For the past year, I have been wanting to start a personal blog but never had a topic, until now.  Inspired by great blogs that my colleagues write, I became excited about having a forum to share my ideas and to create discussions.  A fellow participant in the workshop sent a piece of her art work in the mail to members of the group as a thank you gesture.  What I thought was really neat was that she included thought provoking and engaging questions to accompany the art.  And the wheels in my head started turning...

Thinking about the CTT Institute, I realized that so many of us involved in the courage work are artists, writers, poets, creators.  I thought it would be neat to create a blog where art can be used as third things to promote the discussion of ideas.  Writing and creating art are two things that help me to be creative.  I'm hoping that by making a committment to post to the blog throughout the school year, it will help me to achieve more balance.  I'm not sure what a reasonable goal would be:  perhaps an entry every two weeks?"

I am proud to say that not only have I achieved this goal but I have far surpassed it.  A blog entry every two weeks would have brought me to about 10 entries at this point, but this entry is actually #21!


Conditions that Helped Me to Be Successful and Diciplined in Reaching This Goal:
My enjoyment in keeping up the blog (both writing and taking pictures for it), positive feedback and encouragement from people who read it, and it fulfills a personal passion and need of mine to create.


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In reflecting back upon the conditions that helped me to be successful and disciplined in reaching goals, I've realized that my success is not only dependent upon creating the goal but also in having some of these conditions in place:

*A pressing need
*Specific time frame in which the goal needs to be achieved
*Resources to achieve the goal (time, energy, money)
*Interest and enjoyment
*Being held accountable for reaching the goal
*Goal is created at an appropriate time
*Encouragement from others
*Fulfills a personal need and/or passion

What I finally came to realize is that my New Year's Resolutions are often just that, resolutions.  I have thought about goals for the upcoming year without making sure any of the above conditions are put into place.


My Advice:  If you are going to make a New Year's Resolution, make sure that you have the appropriate conditions in place to ensure your success.  If you determine that you will not be able to have the necessary conditions in place come January 1, then hold off on the goal or the resolution until these conditions can be available.  That way,  you will not feel like a New Year's Resolution failure!


Questions to Ponder:

1.   Think about goals that you have successfully reached.  What conditions were in place that helped you to achieve your goals?

2.  Think about your New Year's Resolutions for 2011.  What conditions will you need to make sure are in place in order to ensure that you successfully achieve your goal?

Unexpected Learning Opportunities

     Today I had the great opportunity to chaperone a trip to the Peabody Essex Museum with a fourth grade group from my school who is studying China.  A docent led us through the Yin Yu Tang House, a late Qing dynasty merchants' house that was originally located in southeastern China and then re-erected at the museum.  We also toured the new exhibit entitled:  The Emperor's Private Paradise: Treasures from the Forbidden City.

     While the docent did a great job walking us through the multiple rooms of the exhibit, she was also flexible enough to take advantage of an unexpected learning opportunity when it arose.  While the students sat in front of a display of large calligraphy couplets adorning a wall, a patron of the museum, an older Chinese woman in her seventies, asked the docent if she could speak with the group.  And then she began to tell the kids about what her life was like growing up in China, as they sat there captivated, hanging onto her every word.

     In China, she began, there were four subjects that everyone had to learn, not including academics: music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.  Everyday after school, her father required her siblings and herself to write a page of calligraphy, write large calligraphy couplets, and date them.  When her dad wasn't home and it was just her mom, she used to change the date on a page of calligraphy she had previously completed, hoping that her dad would not notice.  The woman left the students with a final message of:  Young people don't work hard but older people understand the value of hard work.

     At the end of our time at the museum, the docent asked the students what their favorite parts of the museum were.  Among their list of several items was hearing the speech of the older Chinese woman.  The students had clearly enjoyed this unexpected learning opportunity and I appreciated the message that the older woman imparted onto them.


Questions to Ponder:

1.  What are the benefits of taking advantage of unexpected learning opportunities in the classroom when they present themselves, even if that means deviating from the schedule?

2.  Think of a time when this happened.  What was the impact of this on yourself?  on your students?

Captioning Photography: Personifying Nature

     One way to be mindful and to be fully present in the moment is to look at things from different perspectives.  When we look at an experience, a thought, or an image in a new way, our brains are processing novel information, requiring our full focus and attention.

     For me, the act of captioning my photographs in photosharing sites like Facebook, engages my mind in creative thinking.  Rather than merely labeling my pictures, especially nature photographs with simply the name of the subject (tree, leaf, branch), I enjoy engaging myself and the viewer with a caption that causes the brain to think about the photograph in new and unexpected ways.  This is one of the reasons why I love the commenting feature on Facebook, where friends can post comments about my photographs.  Inevitably, their comments cause me to view my images in new ways, often inspiring new ideas for future pictures.

     While browsing through the captions (and comments) on my photographs the other day, I realized that some of the most thought-provoking comments and captions are ones in which nature is personified.  These captions/comments fall into two categories:  Personifying with Motion and Personifying with Mood. 


Personifying with Motion

When inanimate objects are personified, motion can be invoked from what at first glance appears to be a still picture.  My friend Grace commented on the following picture.

“It’s like they are reaching out to one another to stay warm.”  Now when I view this picture I look for ways in which the branches seek each other out.  When I go outside, I look for ways in which branches seem to be extending their limbs toward one another.


The picture below makes me think of a different type of motion.  One bright sunny spring day, I noticed how these shadows appeared to be playing hide and seek with each other.  The shadow behind the tree appears to be peeking out—ready to pounce on the shadow on the grass.

Personifying animals can also make photographs more engaging.  To me, this was just a pretty picture of a swan in Spy Pond.  Grace’s comments have engaged me more with this photography.  “I like how the swan looks like he/she is investigating all of the stuff in the water.”  Now when I view this picture, I am immediately drawn in, thinking to myself, “What is the swan looking at?  How is the swan’s exploration similar to that of the investigations of a scientist?”    

Personifying with Mood

Another way to bring human characteristics to a still-life nature photograph is by infusing it with mood or emotions. 

What emotions does this picture evoke?

When I originally viewed this photograph, I captioned it, “A lonely fall leaf resting on the cold hard ground.”  To me, this picture evoked feelings of desolation and loneliness.  However, Grace had a completely different take:  “Or it’s the bright spot, still holding on.”  This exchange of comments made me realize that the interpretation of a photograph is not just about the image itself, but rather a combination of the image with what the viewer brings to it.  I’ve always realized that my interpretation of an image can vary depending on my own moods and emotions


What emotions does this picture evoke?

And this one?



When I originally .captioned this picture, I simply stated the obvious:  “Objects frozen in the ice but the warm temperatures are starting to make the ice crack.”  It was my friends’ personifying comments on the photograph that inspired me to view it in a whole new way.  My friend Caroline wrote, “I like this a lot.  It has a violent feeling about it, yet it’s so natural and innocuous at the same time, cool concept.”  Brenda replied, “Caroline and I are actually thinking alike.  It looks a little scary to me as if the ice is cracking, but it’s very artistic.”

Words that accompany photographs as captions can give viewers a new lens through which to view the image.  Personifying pictures of nature can evoke motions and emotions in still-life pictures.  As a result, the viewer can often experience the image in a more engaged and mindful way.


Questions to Ponder:

1.  Have you ever personified nature when outdoors or when viewing an image from nature?   If so, how did that affect the way in which you viewed the experience or the image?

2.  The next time you go outside, view the world through a different lens.  Think about how something from the world outdoors could be personified.  How did this affect your experience?

The Importance of Play

     Yesterday I had the awesome opportunity of attending a free SCRATCH workshop at MIT.  SCRATCH is a programming environment on the computer that enables young people to create their own interactive games, art, stories, animations, and simulations.  Not only did I have fun learning how to use the program and the variety of ways in which it can be used, but I also extremely enjoyed being able to play with my colleagues.  Over the course of three hours, we experimented with the program, shared ideas, and had fun!

     After the workshop, a few of us took some time to explore the new MIT Media Lab that just opened in January 2010.  As stated on the website (http://www.media.mit.edu/about/faq#what), the Media Lab focuses on the study, invention, and creative use of digital technologies to enhance the ways that people think, express, and communicate ideas, and explore new scientific frontiers.  Like tourists in New York City, we walked around wide-eyed, in wonder at the building itself—from the ultra modern construction to the open and airy quality of the space to the gleaming white walls to the open design of the offices to the sleek and colorful furniture to the transparent elevators where the pulley mechanism could be seen in action. 

     Particularly drawing our interest was the whole concept of the Lifelong Kindergarten (http://llk.media.mit.edu).  On the website, the goal is stated:  Sowing the Seeds for a More Creative Society.  We develop new technologies that, in the spirit of the blocks and finger paint of kindergarten, expand the range of what people can design, create, and learn.  Within this building, there is even a LEGO learning lab, how cool! 

     Like kids in a candy store, we eagerly gobbled up everything that our eyes took in and everything with which our hands could play.  Hanging on the walls were several interactive exhibits.  My favorite was a huge magnetic board with lit up tiles that could be manipulated.  I had fun making messages with it, like the one below:

      As the writer of this blog, what was especially awesome, was when my friends Brenda and Grace came bouncing back into the presentation room, bursting with enthusiasm to share with me their newest discovery.  “You have to see what we found!  You will love it!  It is so you!”  Curiously and excitedly, I followed them into the hallway as they led me to a photographic exhibit on display in several areas throughout the building. 

     The exhibit consisted of clusters of photographs by an artist around a central theme that they had chosen.  Similar to this blog, next to the photographs were a few paragraphs, written by the photographer, explaining how the pictures related and posing thought provoking questions to the viewers.  It was fascinating to me to see how other people had presented a similar idea in a different way.   In a follow-up email later in the day, Grace wrote, “I loved the photography exhibit and it definitely spoke of you. If you were going to put together your own exhibit, which of your photos would you include?”  My mind has been on fire ever since, ignited by the idea of organizing my photographs into an exhibit, and playing around with themes and how I would display my pictures.

      In so many ways, my mind was at play yesterday: in learning Scratch, in sharing ideas with my colleagues, in exploring the new MIT Media Lab, in viewing a photography exhibit, and in envisioning ideas for creating my own photo gallery.  After the workshop, Grace also commented, “That was really fun today. It is rare to have 3 hours of totally focused time to learn something and share it with others.”

      An article called “Play, Creativity, and Learning: Why Play Matters for Both Kids and Adults" addresses the importance of play.  The benefits of play in the workplace include keeping you functional when under stress, refreshing your mind and body, encouraging teamwork, helping you see problems in new ways, triggering creativity and innovation, and increasing energy and preventing burnout.  (http://helpguide.org/life/creative_play_fun_games_html). 

     If my colleagues and I so thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and there is research that clearly defines the benefits of play at work, why don’t we engage in it more often?   Unfortunately, the answer usually is:  there is not enough time.   If elementary school teachers (who work with kids all day long) can not find enough time for play in their busy and hectic schedules, just think about what other types of work environments must be like.  So how do we create the time for play at our jobs?  This is a complicated and difficult question to answer, but a very important one to ask.


Questions to Ponder…..Feel free to post a comment in response to any of the questions below if you are so inspired.

1.    How do you define the word play for yourself?  What does it feel like when you are engaged in playful activities?  What activities do you consider to be playful?

2.   How is the element of play incorporated into your daily life at work?   If play is not already a part of your everyday routine, how could it be included?

Life Lessons Through Photography

Today I was outside taking pictures for only five minutes.  However, in that short amount of time I realized two important things about photography that can also be applied to life in general.

1.  You can't always plan on moments of greatness happening but you can prepare for them so that you are ready to seize the opportunity when they present themselves.

This afternoon, I was driving home from an incredible acapella concert, featuring the Yale Whiffenpoofs who will soon appear on NBC's The Sing Off.  The corner of my eye caught a tree whose leaves were illuminated by the late afternoon sun.  (Apparently the tree must not have gotten the same message as the other trees lining the street-- time for your leaves to fall!)  Luckily, I had my camera with me so I pulled my car over to the side of the street and was able to capture this afternoon sunlight on film.  Had I not had my camera, this moment would have passed, sans pictures.

 

2.  Changing perspectives can make the picture look entirely different, just as looking at a situation from a different vantage point can entirely change one's view of a situation.

Taking the same tree, I simply snapped several pictures but from different directions.  This completely changed the way that the light illuminated the leaves, affecting the composition and mood of the pictures.  Some of the vantage points created a neat effect.  In this picture, the silhouette of the house, nicely frames the tree.

In this picture, the angle of the sunlight indicates that the sun is going to be setting soon.  For me, the picture triggers what I feel when the sun sets early on a late fall afternoon.

The perspectives of all three of the above pictures are effective.  Although the pictures are of the same tree, the compositions and moods of the picture change depending on the vantage point.  Not all of the perspectives that I attempted this afternoon were effective. 

For example, in the following photograph, there was too much light and the picture looked overexposed.

This last picture was taken at a perspective where the sunlight created a glare on the windows of the houses lining the street.  The effect that this had on the photographs was that the light reflected from the windows detracts the viewer's attention from the subject of the picture, the tree. 

Questions to Ponder

1.  How can you make sure that you are prepared to seize the opportunity when moments of greatness occur?
2.  When has changing your perspective affected the way that you've viewed a situation?

The Healing Powers of Photography

 With the exception of a few highlights, this past week has been uninspiring and discouraging due to dreary weather, allergic/asthmatic flare-ups, and situations at work.  I had a feeling that taking my camera outside, on the first bright sunny day in over a week, would help to change my outlook.  And indeed it did!

My day started off with decreased breathing capacities and feelings of frustration that my asthma has been impacting recent activities.  Feeling annoyed and somewhat stubborn, rather than hide from Mother Nature, I decided to confront her head on, walking right outside in the midst of trees, grass, and leaves.  I hoped that taking pictures and appreciating the beauty of Fall would act as a peace offering.

For the first ten minutes or so, my shots were pretty uninspired.  Taking pictures head on, the angles were not particularly interesting, I wasn't satisfied with how I was capturing light on film, and the compositions were pretty boring.  And then suddenly, my eyes noticed light hitting the bright yellow leaves on the top of a tree in front of me.  Craning my neck upward, I realized that from this vantage point, the light hit the leaves in a completely different way, creating a very interesting effect.

Looking upward, I also became intrigued by the way that branches of different trees appeared to make patterns in the sky-- connecting with each other in interesting ways.  I thought back to several pictures that I have taken from this perspective.  This photograph came to mind first.

My friend Grace commented that she loved the connectedness of this shot.  I realized that what is interesting about photographs with connected compositions is that your eye keeps moving around the picture.  You brain is engaged in thinking about ways that the parts of the picture interact, inspiring multiple thoughts about the photograph.

Thinking back to this past week, I realized that in multiple ways, I had been feeling very disconnected from activities I love (photography due to the drab weather), from my body (due to my erratic breathing), and at times from my job (due to some discouraging situations).  When feeling disconnected, it is very difficult to feel inspired, to find things interesting, to be engaged.  Same holds true when there is no feeling of connectedness in a photograph-- it can be uninteresting, uninspiring, not engaging. 

Realizing that I had begun taking more connected shots (not by going to a different place) but by changing my vantage point, I decided to try to flip my perspective on my past week.  In my head, I zoomed in on some highlights (student successes, great stories at parent teacher conferences, listening to new acappella songs, and taking great photographs in the present).  I started thinking about all of the highlights in a more connected way, thinking about what they had in common-- how they had made me feel, and why I enjoyed them.  This helped me to start feeling better about the past week.

The problems had not disappeared but my feelings of connectedness were returning.  Feeling connected with Mother Nature and the moment, I started feeling more engaged with the pictures I was taking and as a result became more creative with my photography (the angles, how to best capture the light, how to frame subjects in interesting ways).  The quality of my photographs improved.

In this picture, I zoomed in on the rocky shore along the river...

I took many pictures of what appeared to be a cornfield in the middle of New England until I found an interesting angle...

Just like looking at a "connected" photograph, when I am feeling connected with the moment, fully engaged with what I am doing, I can almost feel the neurons firing rapidly in my brain-- creating new ideas, being creative, approaching situations in new ways.  It is exciting, invigorating, and stimulating.

When I uploaded my pictures on my computer, I releashed my energy once again into cropping my photos to highlight the most interesting and engaging parts of the photographs.  In this picture, I cropped out the dock that I was standing on in order to make the blue of the water and the sky really pop!

In this picture, I thought it was really cool how the tree was reflected in the puddle of water, even though it was more than several feet away from the tree.  In order to highlight this part of the scene, I cropped out many leaves that were scattered in front of the water.

Today, for me, healing meant replenishing my creative energy, bringing back my inspiration, and engaging in a stimulating activity to help me feel more connected.


Questions to Ponder:

1.  What activities are healing for you?
2.  How do those activities help you to heal?
3.  What does healing mean to you?

Spreading the Message of Mindfulness

I relearned a simple lesson this morning:  There is no need to intentionally spread the message of mindfulness.  Just by being mindful in my everyday life, people might decide to join in with me...as was the case on this crisp autumn morning in November.

Pulling into my regular spot in front of my school building, I parked my car next to a tree with magnificent leaves of bright yellows and oranges.  Instead of dragging all of my things into the school building to start my day, I grabbed my camera, almost jumping out of my car and across the street.  Walking first to my right and then to my left, I tried to determine where the sun's morning light was hitting the tree at just the right angle to highlight the vibrant colors. 

After taking several snapshots, I walked back to my car just as a colleague opened the door to hers and asked me, "Were you taking a picture of that tree?"  When she discovered that indeed I had, she remarked on what a good idea it was and thanked me for reminding her to take the time to appreciate the beautiful tree.  She then even pulled out her iphone, walked across the street and began taking her own pictures.

This experience made me stop and realize the times that I am suddenly captivated by the moment-- not because someone told me to-- but because an incredible sight or burst of expression (such as the singers I come across when walking in Harvard Square or Faneuil Hall) sweep me up in the moment.


Questions to Ponder:

1.  When have you been captivated or suddenly drawn into a moment through a sight, sound, or experience?

2.  When has your captivation of a moment drawn someone else in to be mindful of the present?

Breakthrough Moments: One of the Rewards of Teaching

One of the most rewarding aspects of teaching for me is that moment when I finally feel like I've gotten through to a student-- possibly making a difference in their life by helping them to feel good about themselves.  Such a moment happened to me on Friday...

As teachers, we've all had those students who've tested us, to try to figure out our limits and to push our buttons.  For me this year, that student is Sam.  Sam enjoys making off topic comments to make his peers laugh and laughing at inappropriate times.  Then he has difficulty getting back to task.  At first I tried talking with Sam, explaining why his behavior was problematic.  He seemed to understand.  I asked Sam what he could do differently to change his behavior the next time.  Although he always seemed to have the right answers and even apologized, inevitably, the behavior remained the same.  When asked why he was acting that way, he would reply, "I don't know."

After talking with Sam's classroom teacher, the three of us sat down together, to talk with Sam about how he would be held to the same expectations by all teachers.  That didn't work.  Since the classroom teacher had had Sam in third grade as well, she had already established a close working relationship with his mom.  Sam's mom was very supportive when the teacher called her and then she had a long talk with Sam.  Still the behavior continued.  A few days later, I called Sam's mom.  Once again, she was very supportive and asked me what I thought we should do.  I explained that I thought it was very important for Sam to know that we are all on the same page, that we are all in communication with one another.  Although this was a crucial part of our conversation, it wasn't what interested me the most....

As a dyslexic student, I work with Sam on both reading and writing, especially in elaborating upon his thoughts.  In third grade, he was not very expressive in his writing.  So at the beginning of the year, I was thrilled to witness Sam's voice shining through, loud and clear on a piece of paper, whatever form it came in.  Sam's class had been required to write what Lucy Calkin's calls a small moment, taking an individual event and writing about it descriptively so the reader can picture what happened in their mind.  When I read Sam's piece it wasn't written in this style, however, it was a good piece of writing.

Not wanting to squash Sam's enthusiasm for this piece, I borrowed a technique that I had learned about this summer from reading Katherine Bomer's book (Hidden Gems: Naming and Teaching from the Brilliance in Every Student's Writing)  In her book she talks about providing students first with feedback about what they are doing well in their writing before giving constructive criticism.  Sam was using a technique that Bomer discusses that good writers use-- modeling their writing after a style that a good writer uses.  Sam had written his paragraph in the style of Jeff Kinney, author of The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.  Sam's small moment was funny, filled with commentary and a huge dose of his voice.

After complimenting Sam on his writing style, his body seemed to swell with pride-- he sat up straighter and a smile spread across his face.  Afterward, I had to explain to him that in fourth grade, he needed to practice the more descriptive style of writing in school.  But outside of his assignments, he should continue to practice writing in Jeff Kinney's style.  Although Sam was disappointed, he seemed to understand.  However, for some weeks later, I did not see that same spark or enthusiasm in Sam, or in his writing.

In talking with Sam's mom, I mentioned to her his first piece of writing.  Unbeknownst to me, that very afternoon, he had shared it with his mom.  Sam's mom, proud of him, sent a copy of his piece to his grandparents.  She told me that he had been very excited about it.  This story inspired my second piece of advice to his mom about what would be helpful for Sam-- providing him with plenty of positive reinforcement about what he is doing well.

The next day, Sam came into school, completely turned around.  He was attentive, polite, dutiful in focusing upon and completing his work, and even resisted his peers' attempts to engage in inappropriate behavior.  Usually one to complain about having to write and to ask how much more until he was done, that day, Sam wrote an entire small moment paragraph.  His voice appeared back within the lines of the page, but this time, also included the descriptive style required of fourth grade students.  Sam enjoyed my praise of his piece, responded well to constructive criticism, and even thanked me at one point in the session.  He asked if he could begin a second small moment and was excited to hear that he could. 

In my ninth year of teaching, I'm not naive enough to think that Sam's fooling around behavior and testing of limits will never again rear its ugly head.  In fact, I am confident that it will resurface from time to time.  What I do know is that my opinion of Sam changed that day.  I saw a student in front of me who could control his behavior and genuinely did want to do well, as all students do.

At the end of the session, I called Sam into the hallway.  I told him that I had talked with his mom the day before and she had told me about sending a copy of his story to his grandparents.  Sam's body once again swelled with pride and he looked up at me, smiling, his eyes wide open as I explained to him that we were going to xerox a copy of his most recent small moment so he could go home and share it with his mom.

About 45 minutes after the last bus pulled away from school that afternoon, I called Sam's mom to thank her for talking with him and that whatever she had said to him had worked.  She was glad to hear it and thankful for my phone call.  When I mentioned that we had xeroxed his newest great piece of writing to bring home, she told me that it was already hanging up on the refrigerator.


Questions to Ponder-- Choose one or both of these to think about.

1.  What is a breakthrough moment that you've had with a student?
2.  How do you use positive reinforcement to help students feel good about what they are doing in the classroom?

Rediscovering Photography: My "Flow" Activity

On Saturday, I had the wonderful opportunity to attend a mindfulness workshop through the Karuna School in Lincoln, Massachusetts led by Daniel Rechtschaffen.  He talked about how life moves so quickly.  We get shaken up like snow globes and our minds keep going.  Mindfulness is the practice of letting our minds relax, befriending and taming our minds with discipline and care, with sweet dedication and steadfast determination.

One of the mindfulness practices Daniel discussed and had us practice was meditation.  As an asthmatic, traditional meditation practices of focusing on my breathing often do not work for me.  In fact, they can be some of the most stressful activities!  So I was very excited when Daniel taught us some breathing actvities that linked movements with breathing.  Shifting the attention from the act of breathing allowed me to relax and opened my lungs right up!

Another type of mindfulness Daniel discussed was the mind in motion-- being in the zone as with sports or a favorite activity.  A workshop participant mentioned the idea of "flow" (when one is thoroughly engaged in an activity) which Daniel said was the same idea. 

Photography is a "flow" activity for me.  When I take a camera in my hands and take pictures, especially outside, I become totally absorbed in the momeny-- my focus completely tuned into the light, the shadows, the colors, the composition.

For the past three weeks, there has been no photography.  My computer, sent away to be fixed, has left me without my store of pictures on iphoto.  Last week, my friend Grace called me out on my flimsy excuse for not taking pictures-- telling me that I still had iphoto on the "loaner" computer that I've been using and that I could store my photos on my memory card.  Very true, I thought.  As a result, I've carried my camera with me for the past few days-- without actually using it until early this afternoon.  Something about the bright fire orange red leaves called out to me in the front of my school building....

as well as the last few leaves left dangling on another tree...

Then as I drove to a meeting across town, more magnificent trees called out to me, literally bursting with color.  So I pulled my car over to the side of the road and began snapping again....

Driving home from my meeting, the world seemed suddenly more vibrant.  Inspiration struck and drew me towards one of my favorite spots, a place that I have not visited for far too long, Spy Pond.

You can't get much more New England than this-- rowing crew on a pond with the beautiful fall foliage!

According to Daniel, the world isn't boring.  The world is miraculous and we are the ones who are shut down if we feel bored.  He says that boredom is a smokescreen over the present moment when your connection to the magic of the world is severed.

Until my photography expedition this afternoon, I did not realize how "bored" I've been the last few weeks without my camera.  As Daniel says, "The more mindful you are, the more wonder there is out there."  Driving around this afternoon, the New England fall landscape appeared magical and wondrous.


Questions to Ponder:

1.  What is your "flow" activity?
2.  How do you feel when you're engaged in your "flow activity"?
3.  When do you feel in the zone?

Mindfulness Exercise: Eating a Raisin

Today I had the wonderful opportunity to attend a day long mindfulness workshop through the Karuna School in Lincoln led by Daniel Rechtschaffen.  During this workshop, I learned some new mindfulness exercises for myself and my students, some new breathing exercises, and some new ways to engage in meditative activities even when my asthma/allergies are bothering me (and yes, they did flare up today in the middle of the workshop!)

One activity today that I got a lot out of involved a raisin.  Perhaps it was because we had been engaging in quiet activities leading up to it, but my senses seemed to be heightened, enhancing the experience.

In writing this blog entry, I debated whether or not to write about what I experienced during this activity.  Ultimately, I decided not to because I do not want to superimpose my experience for anyone who wants to try it on their own.

1.  Take two raisins-- place one in each hand.   Roll them around, feel them with your fingertips. What do they feel like?   Squish them a little bit.  How does that feel?

2.  Close your eyes.  Put the raisin up to your nose.  Really take in the smell.  What does it smell like?  Put the other raisin up to your nose.  Does it have the same smell as the first one or do they smell different?

3.  Place one raisin on your tongue. Close your mouth.  Roll it around with your tongue  and move it around your mouth.  Pay attention to the way your tongue moves.  What does it feel like?  What do you taste?


4.  Eat your raisin slowly.  Notice the way your jaw moves, your tongue moves.  What was it like to eat the raisin?  What did it taste like?  Repeat the same thing with the second raisin.  Was the experience the same?  Did the two raisins taste the same?


As I participated in this activity, I was surprised-- learned things and experienced sensations that I did not expect to.  This is an open invitation to anyone who would like to try this.  Go to your cupboards, your cabinets, your shelves, your local grocery store and open up a box of raisins and eat one as if for the first time.  Feel free to leave a comment about your experience.  I'm also curious about what this activity is like for other types of food.  If anyone tries something else, I'd be interested in hearing about your experiences too.

Being Mindful: Snowgeese Moments

Standing outside today with a group of enthusiastic fourth grade students, I was reminded of a poem by Mary Oliver called Snow Geese, which is featured at the end of this blog entry.

Gathered around a tree adorned with brightly colored fall leaves, I watched as a fourth grade class set up their new project:  "Library Under the Tree Tops".  Based on the world's only natural library in Slovenia, the library at my school was created for all students to enjoy outside during their recess.  Underneath the tree, the students worked together to display books like in a bookshop, with some books in the crates and others featured prominently on top, an invitation to be read.  Soft blankets were laid out on the grass for students to sit or lie on as they enjoyed the library.

Looking up toward the clear blue sky, I spotted a flock of birds, flying towards us in a perfect "V" formation.  As I watched the birds, mesmerized by their synchronicity, one enthusiastic boy called out, "Look up.  It's snow geese!"  Several students began chanting, "Snow geese!  Snow geese! Snow geese!"  We all stood still in that moment of time, staring at the snow geese in wonder.  It's moments like this where I am completely absorbed, and mindful of the moment.  Experiencing this, it made me hope for a snow geese type of moment everyday. 

In fact, one occurred merely fifteen minutes later...

The best aspect of the "Library Under the Tree Tops" was the surprise element: this one fourth grade class were the only kids in the school who knew the library would appear.  As soon as the first set of students descended onto the playground for recess, the fourth graders eagerly stood peering outside of the windows lining the wall of their classroom on the third floor of the building.  The students stood, mesmerized, as they watched kindergarteners, first graders, second graders, exploring their library, taking a book, and sitting or sprawling on the blankets.  It was quite a moment, witnessing these fourth graders exclaiming joyfully about students at the school discovering their library, picking up a book, and reading.

Questions to Ponder:

1.  What kinds of "snow geese moments" have you experienced recently?
2.  How do "snow geese moments" make you feel?
3.  How can you incorporate more "snow geese moments" in your life?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 
Snow Geese
by Mary Oliver

Oh, to love what is lovely, and will not last!
    What a task
         to ask

of anything, or anyone,

yet it is ours,
     and not by the century or the year, but by the hours.

One fall day I heard
     above me, and above the sting of the wind, a sound
I did not know, and my look shot upward; it was

a flock of snow geese, winging it
     faster than the ones we usually see,
and, being the color of snow, catching the sun

so they were, in part at least, golden.  I

held my breath
as we do

sometimes
to stop time
when something wonderful
has touched us

as with a match
which is lit, and bright,
but does not hurt
in the common way,
but delightfully,
as if delight
were the most serious thing
you ever felt.

The geese
flew on.
I have never
seen them again.

Maybe I will, someday, somewhere.
Maybe I won’t.
It doesn’t matter.
What matters
is that, when I saw them.
I saw them
as through the veil, secretly, joyfully, clearly.
 

Building Community at School: One Lunch at a Time

It is important for teachers to feel a sense of community at school in order to work together and communicate with each other effectively.  There is a tradition that I participate in each day that helps me to feel like I am a part of a larger school community:  lunch.

Ever since the staff of my school moved into a new building five years ago, some of my colleagues and I have gathered together in a classroom to eat lunch together.  There are several things, particularly this year, that make this a very special time each day.

1.  The lunch is conducted like an Open Circle lesson.  We start out as a group eating lunch and anyone is welcome to come and join us, any day, any time.

2.  The group consists of people who hold various jobs throughout the school including classroom teachers, special education teachers, specialists, and most recently, teachers from different grade levels.

3.  Although school subjects are discussed, lunch is often used as a time to get to know each other better, on a more personal level.  One teacher has commented that what makes the lunch so special is the kinds of conversations that occur.  This inspired her to invite a teacher from another grade level to join.

4.  Lunch is a time to relax and talk with other adults since the majority of the school day is spent working with kids.

5.  A group of teachers make lunch for each other on a rotating basis.  This way, each teacher is only responsible for making and bringing in lunch one day a week.  Teachers have commented that since lunch is their least favorite meal to prepare, they enjoy only having to make lunch once a week and being pleasantly surprised the other four days.  It has also been a great way to introduce and share recipes.

6.  During our lunch time we eat on real plates and use real utensils.  Teachers have commented that this makes them feel like real professionals eating lunch together, rather than eating out of lunchboxes.

Eating lunch with this group of colleagues has become a special tradition for me-- making me feel like a part of my school community on a daily basis.  I enjoy this time as a true break from the hecticness of the school day.  Getting to know my colleagues on a more personal level has also been a very enjoyable experience for me.


Questions to Ponder:

1.  Where/when do you feel a sense of community in your school?
2.  How can you create more opportunities for community building in your school?

Joyfulness in the Classroom:)

In talking about standards for education, politicians often discuss curriculum frameworks and standardized testing such as the MCAS, the Massachusetts Curriculum Assessment System.  During the Courage to Teach Institute I participated in this summer, it was very refreshing to see a new kind of standard that was presented to us:  a standard for joyfulness!  The following is an early draft toward a standard for joyfulness in school and classroom for Hillcrest School in Turner Falls, Massachusetts, October 2008.

"The importance of a successful start is well recognized.  What is too often overlooked, however, is that a successful start involves more than just skills and socialization.  It involves instilling in students that learning is a joyful experience and schools can be a place of joy."  Robert Balfanz.  What Your Community Can Do to End Its Drop-out Crisis:  Learning from Research and Practice, John Hopkins.  May 9, 2007.

Joyfuness is important because it fosters lifelong learning.  A joyful learning experience should help children feel empowered by:
*Engaging them in meaningful activities.
*Making them feel comfortable with their surroundings built upon trust and validation.
*Having pleasurable interactions with peers, adults, and materials.
*Having a school communitywhich is predictive and focused on each other's strengths.
*Participating daily in free exploration of learning opportunities.
*Starting and ending the day positively.

As a teacher who often works with students who struggle with learning, it is especially rewarding to witness these students having joyful learning experiences.   When I first read this standard this summer, two memories immediately popped into my head.

1.  One of the many concepts that I teach fifth grade students who are working on dividing long words into syllables is the schwa sound.  The schwa sound is an unaccented syllable in a longer word that is often pronounced "uh".  One day, Amy, a fifth grade student with long blond hair, bounced excitedly into the Learning Center to tell me what had occurred in her classroom.  She told me that another student had looked up a word in the dictionary, came across an upside down "e", and her teacher asked the class if anyone knew what it meant.  Amy's hand shot up-- she explained that the upside down "e" represented the "schwa" sound and told the class what that meant.  Her eyes lit up with enthusiasm as she described how impressed her teacher had been.  Seeing the joy and pride in Amy-- in her eyes, the way she related her story, the way she carried herself-- was truly a great experience.

2.  Another memory involves a group of fourth grade boys preparing for the statewide MCAS test.  It was our last session before they were to take the Long Composition portion which requires them to write a narrative essay (about five paragraphs)-- rough draft and final copy in the same day.  It was unbelievable to see a dry and boring topic (reviewing what to look for when proofreading a piece of writing) turn into a joyful learning experience!  I taught the kids how to write acronyms to help them remember what they need to look for when proofreading.  This sport-loving group of boys decided to write acronyms based on the four major Boston sports teams:  Patriots, Red Sox, Celtics, and Bruins.  Other acronyms were created as well and the students reveled in creating acronyms of real words and sports teams, incorporating the information they needed to remember.  As a teacher, what was really cool was seeing some of these students actually write down and use the acronyms on the day of the MCAS! ( http://thoreau.colonial.net/Teachers/Kalikstein/Writing-- Fourth Grade Revision/ Editing Checklists)

I think that a school system that places such a high value on joyfulness, such as Turner Falls, must be a really exciting place to work.  Not only do students learn and retain more information when they are engaged, but learning is also more fun when it is joyful!

Questions to Ponder:

*What does joyful learning look like in your classroom?
*Think of a time when a student or group of students were joyful-- Why were they joyful and how did they exhibit their joyfulness?
*As a teacher, when do you feel joyful in the classroom?
*As a learner, when have you felt joyful in a learning experience?


ADDENDUM
One of my favorite features of blogs is their interactive nature.  After receiving several responses, both on the blog itself and in separate emails, the wheels in my head started turning once again...And so I add this addendum to the original entry.

Joyful learning environments can be created in a classroom when the adults have a joyful time in  planning instruction and in presenting the material.  That's one of the things that I love about co-teaching with my colleague, Brenda--  the fun, joy, and excitement that goes into planning lessons.  That energy then gets conveyed to the students, resulting in a joyful learning experience:)

One such joyful learning experience involves a crazy professor....

In Massachusetts, fourth grade students are required to take a standardized test in English Language Arts.  On this test, they are required to read fiction and nonfiction passages, and answer multiple-choice and open response questions.  Some of the topics of these passages are not always captivating in the minds of nine and ten year olds.

In order to help combat this situation, Brenda and I modeled a strategy called the Crazy Professor which brings a lot of energy and excitement to what could otherwise be a dry topic.  In short, one person takes on the role of the Crazy Professor and the other, the role of the student.  The Crazy Professor reads a passage with a lot of emotion and excitment to the student.  There are various stages to the process where the passage is read multiple times with different things occuring during each step including telling the story excitedly using gestures, telling the story from memory, the student asking the professor questions, etc.  The culminating step of the activity involves the Crazy Professor enthusiastically retelling the passage from memory while the student frequently repeats some of the information, exclaiming how interesting it is.

As Brenda and I modeled this strategy for the students, our joy, laughter, and enthusiasm spread throughout the classroom like wildfire, igniting the students' energy.   When it became their turn to try out the strategy, all of the students were fully engaged, animatedly being both professors and students themselves.  That day was definitely one of the most fun and joyful teaching and learning experiences that I have ever had.  And the topping on the cake...a few days later, many of the students could still retell and remember the information from the passage!

Managing the Frustrations of the Creative Process: The “Michelangelo” Approach

Writing can be a very liberating and exciting experience when the inspiration is abundant and the ideas are flowing.  On the other hand, it can be very challenging when it is difficult to think of ideas or the ideas are there but not quite connecting in the right way.  In the past, becoming “stuck” in my writing was a very frustrating experience, especially when I had already committed many ideas and words to the page.  Even more exasperating was when several sections of a piece of writing had been written well but for some reason or another did not connect, affecting the entire flow and overall meaning. For a school assignment, this might mean completely starting over and when writing a short story or a poem for fun, it might mean abandoning the piece and not pursuing a writing activity for quite a time afterward.

This summer, my friend Grace’s comment on my blog entry, “The Power of Cropping and Mentors” inspired me to think about the act of writing in a new way—revolutionizing the way that I have approached and thought about the revision process.  She compared the act of cropping photographs to the act of writing. “With photography, it can be analogous to writing -- what are the important parts of your story. The same for photographs, what is the important feature of your photo?” 

This started the wheels in my head turning, and I wrote this in response:  “I really like this idea of comparing writing to photography. Interesting to think about revising in a different way. Instead of taking away the "bad parts" or what does not work, revision can be thought of as taking away words to enhance or highlight the most important parts. This way, the reader can focus on the most interesting parts of the writing. In reading your comment, I immediately thought of what Michaelangelo said when asked how he made his statue of David. "I just chipped away the stone that didn't look like David."

This new philosophy about revision has really come in handy the past few days.  Wanting to write and post a blog entry for the past week, I was excited when an idea began percolating in my head, inspired by a comment that once again, Grace had made.  She spoke of enjoying having people to “bounce” with as she teaches.   Suddenly, a flurry of neurons were fired in my brain, furiously brainstorming the different ways that the word bounce can be used:  “bounce” or body with hair, “bouncing” with the ball chairs in the classroom, ideas “bouncing” rapidly in someone’s head like pinballs in a pinball machine, and “bouncing” ideas off of someone as a sounding board or in collaborating on ideas.  Using these various definitions of the word “bounce” I began thinking about how they are related to Parker Palmer’s idea of holding the tension of paradoxes in the classroom, especially that a teaching and learning space should be both bounded and open.

When I started my piece, I thought I was really onto something and in fact, many of the points that I made in my still unfinished blog entry are interesting and thought provoking.  Unfortunately, the paragraphs read better separately paragraphs than as one united piece.  Finally, I decided that as a blog entry, it was just not working.  In the past, I would have become completely frustrated, giving up on writing the piece and writing altogether for a period of time. 

However, now I am thinking that I may have created pieces of what will eventually become parts of different masterpieces, presenting themselves to me at some later point in the future.  I also feel better because I no longer feel disappointed about not writing a blog post.  Realizing that this blog is about teaching, learning, and the creative process—I realized that it is just as worthwhile to write about the challenges of the artistic process, as it is the successes.  Having accomplished my goal of writing a blog entry, I am now once again motivated and inspired to keep on writing.


Questions to Ponder:
How do you deal with the frustrations and challenges of the artistic process?  How do you help your students manage their frustrations? 

Experimenting and Taking Risks: Keeping Our Craft Fresh

In photography, just like in teaching, some of our best work comes about when we experiment and take risks.  Trying different techniques and new ideas keeps us on our toes and our craft fresh.  Often our minds are more open to new ideas when we are playful and these are the times that we are often at our most creative.

When I take pictures, I like to experiment with light.  I love to see the different ways that light can affect photographs.

1.  Light can have very striking effects on clouds, creating textured pictures in the sky, such as in the picture below:

2.  Light can also highlight the underside of clouds, creating a three-dimensional effect.

3.  Taking pictures at different times of day can affect the lighting in the sky, especially at sunset.  This can result in some very pretty colors that contrast well with dark objects, such as the buildings in this picture:

4.   Light can accentuate a silhouette, highlighting its shape.

5.  Light can also give a picture a dramatic effect, especially the role that it plays with clouds before or after a storm.  The lighting can affect the entire mood of a scene.  In this case, it creates a sense of impending doom that a storm is coming or one of hope that it is leaving.

6.  Light can give a photograph a magical effect when it streams through an object, such as in the picture below:

Light can also create a luminescent effect in a picture:

When the sun hits an object or a scene at a certain angle, shadows are created.  I've also enjoyed experimenting with the role that shadows play in my pictures.



1.  Shadows can add depth to a picture, making it more interesting.

2.  Shadows can become the subject of a picture, especially when they have shapes that engage the viewer.  Look carefully at this picture.  It looks like the shadow on the left of the tree is trying to sneak up on the one on the ground!  Both look kind of scary.

3.  Shadows can also be funny.  (Just think about using your hands to make animal shapes with the light of an overhead projector.)  In this picture, I captured my shadow taking a picture.  For some reason, it looks like I have the head of a clown!

4.  Last, shadows can create striking patterns, giving a photograph texture.  I like how the shadow of the banister creates stripes that look like a flag.

In experimenting with the role of light and shadows in my pictures, I have taken risks with the ways that I frame subjects, the angles at which I shoot pictures, and how I crop my photographs.  Continuing to play around with my techniques keeps my ideas fresh.  Since the environment, the lighting, and the weather are different every time I go outside to take pictures, it is helpful to have a repertoire of different techniques to use.  Similarly, in our classrooms, the environment is different each year-- shaped by our new crop of students.  Having a wide range of techniques and strategies to experiment with helps us to reach the variety of learners in our classrooms and to keep our teaching new and fresh each year.

Questions to Ponder:  How can you take risks and experiment with your art?   How can you tweek a technique that you've been using in your art or in your classsroom to make it different this year-- to make an old idea new?   What risks will you take in your teaching this year?  With what techniques or ideas will you experiment?