Taking a Chance and Making a Change

I'm scared of change.  

Don't get me wrong, I like new, but something about the word "change" just scares me.  

And now I'm facing my fear and making a change in my life.


For as long as I can remember, I've always wanted to be a teacher.  From loving kids to being a complete Type A personality, education was the career path that I've wanted to follow.  About 12 years ago, I was bit by the curriculum bug.  I was asked to be on a Social Studies curriculum writing team while I was teaching in Maryland.  I realized that I wanted to impact education from a different way.  Then I became an educational consultant with SRA/McGraw-Hill and was able to teach and coach teachers using curriculum and best practices.  

I was in love!

Not only was I working with curriculum, I was teaching teachers.  I was impacting the learning of children from the top down.  This is what I wanted to do.  Unfortunately, there wasn't full-time work with this type of work, so I went back to the classroom.  

So now, 8 years later, and I was still in the classroom.  Until now.

I've recently left my teaching position.  

I left because that "curriculum bug" is still biting me.  I left because I felt that if I didn't leave now, I never would.  I left because I want to grow. 

Most people leave their jobs because they have something on the horizon.  Not me.  My husband gave me the "green light."  I've learned when you have the "green light," you take it.  I have one year to "find myself" and find something that I love.  I know it sounds crazy, but maybe crazy is what I need right now.  

This about sums it up!

Wish me luck!

Alexis

TeachHub ~ The Latest Resource for Teachers

 
As a teacher, I'm always on the hunt for the most current practices, as well as ideas and techniques to use in the classroom.  TeachHUB is the newest place for teachers to go for up-to-date education information, a place to share ideas and "borrow" others, and where you can go to find professional development of your choosing.  

TeachHUB's mission is to improve the quality of education by making available the most current, complete and affordable resources for all K-12 Educators.  "Built by Teachers, for Teachers, we offer free lesson plans, the latest in education news, professional development and real teacher blogs plus the tools and applications modern Educators need to maintain a level of excellence in their classrooms."  TeachHUB.com provides the latest in education technology, news and tools. It's a great free resource for all K-12 teachers.

My favorite part?  I really like that on the home page, they list the top 7 stories using pictures.  This way I can see at a quick glance the newest topics being featured.  It really draws me in.
 

Recently I administered a survey to my students asking them varied questions about what they know about reading, who their favorite characters are, and what do they know about certain library topics.  Some of the questions were really easy for the kids to answer, you know about fiction and nonfiction, their favorite books, and even how they like to read.  But some questions boggled their minds...especially "what does your teacher do in the summer".  (You should have seen some of the answers for that one!)

Check out the first infographic made by kids:

 
TeachHUB.com is a free resource for teachers and parents who want the latest in education news and technology. You can see the latest articles from TeachHUB by subscribing to their Facebook page or following them on Twitter.
 



I was selected for this opportunity by Clever Girls Collective, and content and opinions expressed here are all my own. To learn more about the TeachHUB.com, visit their website. #CleverTeachers #NLW13


Alexis

The Lost Art of Learning To Fail

I've had something on my mind lately.  When did we forget how to fail?

It's a simple concept.  You win some, you lose some.  You succeed, you fail.

For my generation (and no, I'm not that old...), it was just a part of life.  Not everyone was picked for the basketball team or the cheerleading squad.  Not everyone got the lead in the school play.  We learned how to lose gracefully...at least in public.  

I know this is hard to believe, but I was never the BEST at everything.  (you can stop laughing now)  I have had my share of let downs and heart ache.  I am a HUGE crier and wear my emotions on my face most of the time, so when I'm upset it's pretty clear.  But the best lesson my parents ever taught me was how to stand up after being let down.

I feel like our new generations aren't getting the same experiences that we did.  They aren't learning how to lose.

At an early age, if your parents pay the fee, you are on the team.  If you get a failing grade, your parents go in and talk to the teacher.  If you aren't picked for the play, your parents complain until a new part is created for you.  

It sounds to me like a lot of parental work.  What will these kids do when their parents aren't around?  Like when they aren't accepted into their first choice college.  Or when they aren't hired for their dream job.  

What are we setting our kids up for?  Failure or something worse, entitlement?

As a mom, I wish I could protect my kids from all of the hurt in their lives.  It kills me to think that they won't get everything they want in life.  But as an adult having gone through life for the past 30-something years, I know that not letting anything happen to them, then nothing will happen to them.  With every failure, comes a success.  With every let down, comes a lift up.  

I not only want to raise winners, I want to raise people who know how to lose and how to learn from those failures.  

Are you a someone who would rather kids win and be included in everything or do you think there's something to learning how to lose and fail?


Alexis

The Teacher In Me ~ David Goes to School

Ah, the beginning of school....a time of new beginnings. 

This year, my team and I decided to shake it up a bit, change our old beginning of school routines.  One teammate of mine was scouting some new ideas on Pinterest (you know, the place for EVERYTHING!!), and came across this idea for teaching rules using the lovable and troublemaking "David." 


The idea came from Fall Into First.  What a cute idea using the book David Goes to School by David Shannon.  The kids love David because his extreme rule breaking makes them laugh, yet reinforces the need for rule following.

After reading the book, we brainstormed some rules that should be followed at school.  

Then the kids chose one or more to write about.  Since it was the beginning of the week, I wasn't so picky about true sentence structure.  And finally it was time to make our "Davids."  I love how unique each "David" came.  It was the kids' interpretations of this loveable character.

They came out SO cute!

How do you teach about rules?

Alexis

Mission Possible ~ A Book Review with Giveaway

I educate first grade children.  I educate other educators.  I educate myself.  I am a teacher.

I think back to my years in school before I went to college or graduate school.  I remember the teachers who genuinely loved what they did.  I could tell they loved their profession because it was conveyed in their demeanor and their way of reaching the students each day.  Those teachers taught me to love to learn.  Then there were the teachers who were burnt out.  You know the ones, a few years until retirement, sat at their desk all day, barked at you instead of engaging you.  Those teachers made me look at the clock the entire time.

It makes me wonder…were those teachers being pushed to reach their highest potential?  Were they continually trained in order to better their craft.  Or were they just the ones who were "born to teach?"

I always thought I was born to teach.  At the beginning of every school year, I enter with vigor and excitement of things to come.  Only to find my self three months in and tired.  I am at a place in my career where I feel stagnant.  In no way do I feel that I have reached my peak or my full potential.  I’m not even at the point in my career where I want to be.  And now I'm getting burnt out.  I think to myself, "maybe I'll go back to school or maybe I'll change careers."   

I recently read Mission Possible: How the Secrets of the Success Academies Can Work in Any School by Eva Moskowitz and Arin Lavinia.  It's a book that chronicles the workings of the Success Academy Charter School in Harlem as it rose up to be one of the top schools in New York City.  Wow!  How inspiring.  Moskowitz and Lavinia explained the ways that they created the Success Academies and how it's all about the adults.  "Achieving excellence isn't about the students.  It's about the grown-ups.  When the grown-ups are running on all cylinders, they bring the kids along for the swift, exhilarating ride."  I honestly couldn't agree more.  

When I worked as an educational consultant, I would work in failing schools and coach the teachers with the techniques to help the students meet the grade level expectations.  I saw many energetic teachers who were willing to do whatever it took to help the kids learn.  I would also see the flip side; the teachers who had hit a wall in their teaching, and they didn't want to better their skills.  Teachers tend to get stuck in one place and get complacent with the “known.”  We are in need of continual growth and development of the craft in order to help pump up the excitement for the very thing that drew them to the profession in the first place.

Other countries deem educators as masters of information.  They are, in some countries, the highest revered because they dedicate their lives to enrich others’ lives.  Educators are respected for what they know, do, and say.  I feel that in the US, there is no respect for educators.  Emphasis is placed too much on people in the spotlight.  Oh everyone says the right thing, "Teachers should get paid more.  It's a shame."  But where did the respect go?

I didn't go into teaching for respect.  I certainly didn't choose this profession for the money.  I love to learn and I love to share that learning with others.  That is why I teach. 

Reading Mission Possible lit the spark I have for education.  I feel empowered to go back to school in the fall and demand professional development that will help to improve everyone's fervor for education.  I am lucky that I work with a wonderful staff of dedicated educators, but we all still have so much to learn.



Do you want to get inspired about education?  Here's your chance to win your own copy of Mission Possible.

a Rafflecopter giveaway




I hope to hear your thoughts on why you think this country treats teaching so differently than it does other professions. 


Eva Moskowitz would love to chat with you on Facebook and Twitter as well.  Let her know your opinions and share in the conversations on the importance of making change NOW.






**Disclaimer:  Although I was paid to participate in the review of this book through my relationship with SITSGirls, all opinions are my own.

Alexis