MCC Friday Reflections

     The familiar winds of autumn blew rapidly through the playground.   Ponytails flying, unzipped jackets flapping, and soaring playground balls all took errant paths.        Just as fall has briskly left so has trimester one.   Reports cards were sent home today and I plan on placing the final touches to each student’s conference narrative.   The practice of filling out the narrative for my students has become one of my favorite “at home” aspects of teaching.   I look forward to retreating to my little office in the basement, surrounded by the faint noises of my family upstairs, and writing.   I seem to enter into a world only my students and I really know; the life of Room 211 on a daily basis.       My mind pictures each student as I am writing about them.   Their faces make an entrance into my thoughts followed by the smile I see each day.   I travel back in t...

There comes a time each school year when the students and teacher begin to fall away from putting one’s best foot forward and it becomes ok to make mistakes, ok to show your true colors, ok to just be yourself.  In doing so a classroom culture is defined.  Those special things that make each year special begin to emerge and take shape.  Moments that will become memories, often distant memories, are forged.  Emerging from their collective cocoons, my students and I are at the point where we are sharing personal stories from our lives; stories that accentuate the theme of a lesson.  Letting down our collective hair we have begun to find the quirks each possesses; celebrating the unique nature of each person.  Taking a collective sigh we are finally at a point where behavior and discipline are intertwined with comfort and relaxation; the common good of learning is taking precedence. A “collective” is made up of parts…in this case the collective is th...

  Before I Re TI r E When I was deciding to become a teacher I was given some advice… "while getting dressed for work, always dress for the position you desire rather than the position you currently hold".   At that time, many years ago, I was an after-school daycare supervisor.  My attire usually fit my job…jeans, t-shirt, gym shoes, etc.  When that advice was imparted to me and I began my education in education I started wearing more “professional” type clothing.  In doing so I was searching for a role model.  Men are few and far between in the field of education--as a consequence--the school I was working at in Oak Park didn’t offer anyone I could emulate. This dilemma brought me to reach back into my high school days.  I had plenty of male teachers at OPRFHS.  One of them was my Geometry/Trigonometry teacher, Mr. Chirko. Mr. Chirko was one of those people who always had a slight smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye....

Whether a seasoned teacher or one “fresh out of the box” the idea that establishing a routine for your students is highly valued. Kids are spontaneous.  We can hear this in their laughter.  We can see this in their actions. We can feel this through their emotions.  Spontaneity carries with it positives and negatives; both contributing to the endeavor of an education within a school day.  It can serve to help or hinder. Each class a teacher gets from one year to the next has its own “pulse”.  There is a level of spontaneity that must be sought in order to capitalize on it for positive outcomes.  Routines are a way of seeking that level.  Within the routine of a typical day one can gauge the level of spontaneity a class possesses.  As students intertwine within the parameters set forth from the moment they enter the school to the instant they leave for home, much is shared between student and teacher.  Roles become clearly defined and...

The role of a parent runs deep through the life of a child.      During curriculum night parents had an opportunity to write a note to their 4th grader.  The note was to be read the following morning  by the respective student.  Each parent that attended did in fact write a note.  They were left on their desks.  One note, however, was tucked lovingly away in the student's desk---to be found!      When the kids arrive to school we marched through the hallway and up the first flight of stairs.  I had them stop on the staircase to give them specific instructions on starting our day.  Being the day after curriculum night, I let them know that if their parent did attend the previous night that they would find a note on their desk.  I didn't realize there was a note tucked away.  I let those kids, whose parents were unable to make it, know that they obviously didn't receive a note but are to take the ...

     The sound of silence often accompanies the first days of school.  Students "check out" what their environment holds for them come the next nine months.  And while that silence is eventually broken a sense of comfort has prevailed since entering the building.  The "work" of a child lies squarely in school.  By the time 4th grade has arrived they have been "on the job" for a good 4-5 years already.  They're comfortable in their role.       Like any job an adult may have there are parts of it that kids like and dislike.  Regardless of their feelings toward any particular aspect of their work, they are asked and required to fulfill their obligations:  classwork, homework, tests, projects, social activities, and more.  They are put on a path of rigorous work that requires the act of thinking, responding, and questioning.  Their "job performance" is constantly being observed, judged, and c...

      On Monday I had to take our youngest daughter to see her orthopedic surgeon.  We’ve been keeping a close eye on her spine and hips; monitoring her scoliosis and hip displacements (respectively).  Among other things, Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) is a “progressive” disease in that those afflicted with it get progressively worse over time.  Needless to say this dictates that we must keep a close eye on her muscular as well as skeletal systems. The appointment did not go quite the way we expected it to go…without going into too much detail I can say we had to make some hard decisions…and we are working through the logistics of those decisions. The last thing that day I needed on my mind was to have to think about how my class was faring with a sub.  My energies needed to be with my family, they needed to be with the thought processes my wife and I went through, they needed to be with Ella. When I returned on Tuesday I sat at my de...

     There’s always a bittersweet feeling after Spring Break.  At this time, as a teacher, I fully realize that it’s all downhill from here.  April quickly turns to May and summer is upon us.       I reach back to August of last year…the room was fresh, the air warm, and the novelty for the kids was abound.  Methodically time marches along and I find myself sitting in an empty classroom early this morning.  The desks are all in their proper places, the morning works sits idly on top of the desks waiting to be completed.  The floor is clean and the wastepaper baskets are empty.  Silence permeates the room.  All of this, of course, will change dramatically quite soon as the students arrive and they bring with them much.         Twenty-one individuals…each have a story to tell of their own.  Each one has a plethora of emotions that follow them through their days.  They have as...

As we move forward into trimester 3 the tide has shifted.  I like to call this trimester the “application trimester”.  Trimester 1 was dedicated to learning routines, establishing expectations, developing relationships, creating goals, and setting precedence for a variety of situations (both academically and socially).  The trimester culminated in conferences and we were well on our way to trimester 2. The second trimester was the delivering of intense instruction in regards to the mechanics of learning and the concepts therein.  We spent much time deciphering our reading, writing, math, science and social studies.  We developed a deeper understanding of the general topics within each discipline and made connections between them.  We practiced skills and strategies that allowed learning to take place and established ways to work together for a common goal; students depending upon one another to learn. This leads us into the present…trimester 3…...

The winter months dig in, the cold grips the air.  Boots, hats, gloves. coats, and mittens fill lockers.  Sweaters, sweatshirts, and long-sleeves are the call.  Outdoor recess often takes a back seat to the frigid cold that surrounds us.  Children grow antsy.  The need for outdoor play intensifies as it is denied.  Energies are redirected into other activities.  Movement in the classroom becomes more of a necessity in order to allow for that release of energy. Energy can also be harnessed in the process of learning.  Over the years I have found that even though "stored" energy as a result of "lack of outdoor play" can be reigned in and put to good use on a mental level.  Having students engage in challenging educational endeavors, promoting group activities that require discussions, asking them to try new technologies, and encouraging them to try, try again are all ways of capturing that 'pent-up" energies. Often teachers wil...