The HEART of the Matter...

I am writing this with a heavy heart today.  Which is ironic considering the very nature of this post.  Since the school year began, I have been feeling like something was out of place.  It’s like when a picture is hanging crooked on the wall, or when a picture frame has been moved on your mantle.  I knew something was off, but I just couldn’t put my finger on it.  This year, the air has just felt different, so to speak.  Something was unsettling in the bottom of my stomach, and I have finally realized what it is.  Only, this realization didn’t give me relief.  It’s given me an overwhelming feeling of sadness and unease for the future of our kids.  It’s actually quite simple…

We’ve lost the heart. And we need to do something to GET IT BACK.

The heart is defined as the center of a person’s thoughts and emotions.  It’s the central or innermost part of something.  It’s a hollow or muscular organ that pumps the blood through the circulatory system by rhythmic contraction and dilation.  

If the heart stops beating…you stop living. 

Think about that concept.  The heart is what keeps you going.  It’s the very center of an organism, and everything else revolves around it, and depends on its very function.  Now, apply this concept to a school.  We can implement all of the most innovative new strategies, programs, standards, and evaluation systems.  We can put behavior plans into place, and set up expectations for our students.  The fact is…none of those things will ever work, nor will they even matter if we don’t have a heart that beats strong, and loud, and that is the very center for which all of those other things will stem from. 

Our educational hearts have stopped beating…and as a result, our schools have stopped living.

I’ve been spending a lot of time lately trying to figure out what really makes a school successful.  Is it the test scores?  The teacher evaluation ratings?  The amount of championships won, or the number of referrals?  I’ve thought back through my last nine years as an educator.  I was there when our school still had dust on the ground from construction, and fresh paint drying on the walls.  I was there to put the very first chairs and tables together.  I’ve been there every single step of the way, and it’s been a long journey of ups and downs. These days, there are very few of us left that have been there since day one.  It’s those teachers, the ones that have seen it all, that I have gone to the past few weeks to see if my whole “heart theory” was worth spending the time to write these words.  It’s through those meaningful discussions with my colleagues that I have come to the conclusion that the “heart theory” is absolutely worth it.  It just makes so much sense. 

It works like this…

When you work in a tough school, where the majority of your students live in poverty, and are lacking in most of life’s basic needs, you absolutely need to begin with LOVE.  Our students need to feel like they belong, and that our school is not only a safe place for them, but a place where they can grow, be nurtured, and feel like they are important.  Like they are part of something special and irreplaceable.  That should be our number one focus. Until we achieve that, nothing will change.

When I think about what contributes to a Title I school being successful, there are certain things you have to have in place that can help make your kids feel like they are on top of the world.  You need to have things like Multi-Cultural Fairs, and Literacy/Math Celebrations.  You need to celebrate Veteran’s Day by teaching your students about the men and women that have fought for our country, and you need events like Freedom Marches and Fall Carnivals to get your community and families involved.  You need to have Thanksgiving Food Drives where you collect hundreds of canned goods, and have your needy families come pick up a turkey and all the trimmings.  I was there to distribute those meals during our food drives, and I will never forget the look on their faces when they saw what we had provided for them.  During the holiday season, you can choose a student’s name off a tree in the mailroom, and then go shopping and purchase Christmas presents for that child using a list they made.  You could also have door-decorating contests for the Holidays, and Dress Up Weeks where the whole school would wear PJs for a day, or dress in attire from decades of the past.  You can have clap outs for the whole school when you win a championship for sports, and you can celebrate your successes on the morning news every day.  You should have a ceremony every quarter to celebrate the students that received Honor Roll, and invite their parents to attend. 

We need to show our students that we love them each and every day.  We need to show them that we are proud of them, and that we care about them, and that we want them to each leave a piece of themselves as a legacy for future generations on our campuses.  Academics and learning are the focus of education, but these acts of love are the HEART of education.  They are the driving force that makes the learning happen.

Guys, I can’t stress how important it is to show our pride for our children.  It not only does wonders for them, but also for staff morale.  When things are looking down, or when things are tough, we have to grasp onto those happy moments and never let go.   We recently took our students to the Florida Holocaust Museum after we’d been learning about Anne Frank and the Holocaust.  We tied behavior and grades to this trip, and we honestly took the most amazing group of kids to experience something they never have before.  Not only did they get the chance to extend their learning outside the classroom, but they also were able to hear a Holocaust Survivor Speak.  This is such a rare occurrence these days.  When the speaker asked if any students had questions, one of our kids quietly raised their hand….only they didn’t have a question.  They simply wanted to thank the speaker for letting them hear her story, and they wanted her to know that they appreciated her, and loved the experience.  Another student hugged the docent on the way out, and thanked her for devoting her time to teaching them about the Holocaust today.  

#ProudTeacherMoments

After we were finished with the tour, one of the docents pulled me aside to tell me that we had some of the most well-behaved, intelligent, and wonderful students they’ve ever had visit their museum.  I was told that not only were they impressed with their manners and behavior, but also, they were impressed with how much the students knew about the Holocaust.  This is a testament to not only our teams of teachers, but also to the whole staff here at my school.  We honestly make a difference in our kids’ lives, and we really do have SO MANY kiddos here that care, and that want to learn.  This was such a great life experience for our students, and it made me, and them, very thankful for what we have everyday.  Especially seeing firsthand what so many people had to endure during that horrible time in history.  

When it gets tough…sometimes all it takes is a little reminder of how fabulous our jobs truly are.  

Events like those above not only elevate students, but they elevate the teachers.  I honestly never noticed that I worked at a “difficult school” because I was always so focused on all of the awesome things that our kids did, and all of the accomplishments that we achieved. 

Throughout the past few years, we have been losing the heart little by little.  It’s been getting weaker and weaker.  Now more than ever, we are in serious danger of flat lining unless something is done to revive us.  We need to grab those paddles and shock the heart right back into the life of our schools. 

It’s not a lie that behavior issues might be worse than they’ve ever been, and that the motivation to learn anything has dimmed to almost nothing.  The problem is that we are looking at it in the wrong way.  We are trying to put Band-Aids on the problem rather than trying to look at WHY it’s broken.  We are so focused on the kids that are making the wrong choices, that we’re letting the other students slip right through our fingers.  Our kids are constantly reminded of what they are doing wrong, and they are constantly told what they AREN’T doing. At this time, most teachers are so overwhelmed, exhausted, and frustrated that many of them don’t want to do anything more than their contract requires them to do. It’s not just the students that have given up, the teachers have too.  This is a time when teachers, administrators, parents, district and school staff need to come together more than ever before to unite for the same cause.  We all have the same “WHY,” and we should all be on the same page.

Our kids come from homes where they may not be shown love, acceptance, or a sense of belonging.  We should pride ourselves on the fact that we can at least show them those things while they were at school.  I honestly feel that we would be SHOCKED to see how much the behavior and motivation would improve on our campuses if we simply brought the heart back.  We need to start showing that we will not stand for our schools to become institutions that we don’t even recognize anymore.  We need to stop trying to make our schools something that they may never be.  We need to stop trying to compare schools to other schools, and we need to stop trying to be perfect on paper. 

We have all of the pieces in place.  We have amazing teachers who are the best of the best, but for many, their lights have just started to dim.  We have wonderful office, custodial, and cafeteria staff who go above and beyond on a daily basis.  We have hard-working administrators and school district employees that put their sweat and tears into making education in America something to value.  We have an over-abundance of technology, programs, and curriculum resources that can help our students reach goals they have never imagined were even possible.  Above all else, we have smart, hard-working, beautiful children in our schools that deep down inside want to please us, and want to be successful. 

We just have to find our heart again. 

We need to bring life back to schools that are barely hanging on right now.  We can’t expect for things to change overnight, and we can’t expect to find the one solution that will fix it all.  What we can do is start working little by little to show our students that we want what’s best for them, that we stand behind them, and most importantly, that we LOVE them.  We need to stop getting caught up in the technicalities, and the data, and the state requirements.  Those things are what are driving teachers to leave the profession.  Those things are what are keeping that revolving door turning. 

We need to start the heart beating again.  We need to nourish it, cherish it, and let it thrive, and through finding our heart again, everything else will just start to fall back into place.

Take the Power Back...

I had an eye-opening experience at car loop duty yesterday, and it caused a fire to start to slowly smolder inside me.  It’s a fire that’s always been there, but that has started to ignite more than every this year.  As the day and evening wore down, I found myself fixated on this one stupid incident, and I just couldn’t hold back my words any longer.

As I am enjoying my morning coffee while aimlessly waving my arm like a traffic conductor to move the parents through the car line on this beautiful morning, my ears perked up at the sound of a very naughty word that begins with an “F.”  It was clear as day, and it came from directly behind me.  Imagine my surprise to see a group of four 8^th grade girls standing less than three feet from my spot, yet carrying on a conversation that I would be shocked to hear out of an adult’s mouth, yet a child’s.  I immediately walked over and asked the young ladies to please watch their language as we do not speak that way on our campus.  I went back to my car line monitoring, but kept my ears perked up.  Just a few short moments later, the same girl yelled out the same profane word once more.  This time, I walked over and told the girls they had to move to the courtyard where they were supposed to be anyways.  Miss Potty Mouth proceeded to look at me and say, “You can’t tell me where to move.  I don’t have to go anywhere if I don’t want to.  I speak that way at home, so there isn’t anything wrong with it.” Then she looked away.  After I explained exactly how I was going to prove that I had a right to ask her to move locations, I said, “Start walking.”  Her friend whispered to her, “Just move down a bit, she’s not going to do anything.”  Oh, these poor, naïve children.   I then began to follow directly behind them.  In fact, I followed them all the way to the courtyard, and I remained right by their side until the bell rang, and then I escorted them to class.   This companionship was met with some epic nasty looks, but the profanity stopped. 

This incident stayed with me all day.  What a wonderful start to a Monday, right?  The more I thought about it, the more irate I became.  It wasn’t the profanity that bothered me.  I teach middle school.  It comes with the territory.  It was the blatant, intentional, downright disrespect that I received from these girls that really put me up on this soapbox.  I was dumbfounded that they would speak to an adult the way they did, and that they absolutely seemed to think that rules did not apply to them, or need to be followed.  Now, I live in sixth grade world everyday, and I am just not used to kids speaking to me that way.  It doesn’t happen.  Even my worst students have some shred of respect for me.

GUYS, WE HAVE TO TAKE THE POWER BACK…What are we teaching our children?

When I say we, I am not only talking about teachers, I am talking about parents as well.  Let’s be real, guys.  It’s not a coincidence that these girls were disrespectful.  They speak to their parents that way, and they probably listen to their parents speak to others that way.  They learned it somewhere.  It’s acceptable somewhere. 

Now, as educators, we can’t control what goes on at home, but we CAN control what happens on our school campuses.  We need to demand that our students know the difference between what is allowed in their personal lives, and what is allowed here at school.  Trust me, my NUMBER ONE rule as a teacher is to get to know my students, and I will rarely resort to bringing in administration or writing referrals.  I always try to get to the root of their behavior, and figure out WHY they are acting out. 

The truth is…sometimes that doesn’t work.  What do you do with the student that REPEATEDLY will not follow directions or show you respect?  What do you do with the student that will literally verbalize to you that they “don’t care” about getting in trouble, or that “it doesn’t matter because nothing will happen anyways?”

I have had students ASK me for a detention because they think it’s fun.  There are students in our schools that can honestly say that they don’t WANT in school suspension, and they’d rather have out of school suspension so they can stay home.  They refuse to serve it….and we let them.

There is something very wrong with this picture.  What message are we sending our youth?

SOMETHING HAS GOT TO CHANGE.

It blows my mind to think that a child would have the guts to speak to teachers the way that I hear students speak to teachers every day.  They do it because they are allowed to.  As teachers, administrators, district and state leaders, we need to TAKE THE POWER BACK.  I know it’s not just my school.  I also know that our school and district administrator’s hands are often tied.  This is happening in districts and states all over the country.  We want our children to become successful, productive members of society.  We want them to grow and thrive, and move on from us to be able to provide for their own families someday.  But how can we do that when we are teaching them that the basic foundation of life, respect, is something that isn’t valued?

We are not giving them the tools they need to become college, career, and life ready by letting suspended athletes practice and play with their teams.  We are not giving them the tools they need by issuing inconsistent consequences among staff members.  We are not giving them the tools they need by giving them four chances to be tardy in each class before a consequence is issued.  We are not giving them the tools they need by giving them the impression that speaking to an adult in a disrespectful manner is acceptable. 

The truth is, by letting this kind of behavior be acceptable…we are setting them up for failure. 

I can tell you right now, that if you were to look at your boss and say, “I don’t have to do what you tell me to,” you can kiss your job goodbye.  If a college football player were to continually get arrested or get into fights, his butt would be sitting on the sidelines, if not suspended from the team. 

We need to take the power back in our schools.  We need to show our students that we care about them, and that we want to give them our respect.  But to do that, we need to demand respect back.  We need to remind them that they are here to learn, and that is the most important thing.  It’s their job.  One day, they will have the power.  One day, they will be the ones running our country, but until then, they are children.  They still need to be nurtured, guided, and pushed to make the right choices.  They aren’t ready to be in charge just yet.

Our students look to us for guidance.  They look to us for love, advice, knowledge…and discipline.  They want structure, and they want rules to follow.  It’s our job to help them struggle through their failures, and celebrate their accomplishments.

It’s so vital that we teach the standards, and teach our content, but perhaps it’s even more vital that we teach our students how to become someone that not only we can be proud of, but someone that THEY can be proud of.  In my opinion, math, reading, history, and science are not the most important things that we teach our children.  Values and character education need to come first.  If we can’t get them to respect others, and to have grit and pride and responsibility…we will never be able to get to the other stuff.  It just won’t happen. 

Somewhere along the line, someone slipped up in teaching respect to those young ladies from the car loop yesterday.  It could have been a teacher, or a parent, or an administrator, or maybe all three.  That’s not important.  What IS important is that it’s not too late for them. 

Our students DO NOT run our schools.  We do.  Until we get the ball back on our side of the court, we can’t expect to win the game.

Don't Let Your Light Dim...

It's the smell of newly sharpened pencils, the overwhelming satisfaction of trimming the laminate off your new posters, that brand new pack of neon Expo markers, filling in the calendar of your spiffy new planner, and the anticipation and excitement that goes along with wondering which smiling faces will fill those empty seats on Monday morning.  

It's a new school year...a clean slate...a new beginning.   

I was extremely fortunate to have been chosen to attend the Florida ECET2 Conference in St. Augustine a few weeks ago, and there were so many things that stayed with me long after I came home, that it would take a few blog posts to reflect on all of them.  However, there was one particular thought that I have found myself coming back to over and over again, and as we begin this new school year, I feel like it's something my district and my school need to focus on.  ECET2 stands for Elevating and Celebrating Effective Teachers and Teaching.  I honestly feel that teachers are widely celebrated; we have an entire week of appreciation devoted to us, after all.  That wasn't my "a-ha" moment.  Instead, the word that jumps out at me like a giant blinking sign on the Vegas Strip is...elevating.  

The sad truth is...our profession is dying out.  More and more college graduates are choosing not to become teachers.  Whether it be the pay, the horror stories they hear from others, or the amount of pressure and work that is piled on teachers to get their students ready for standardized tests, it doesn't matter.  It makes my heart hurt.  I consider my job to be the best job in the entire world, but I know many others don't feel that way.  Not only are college graduates being turned off from teaching, but we have so many current teachers whose lights are beginning to dim.  

They are burned out.  They are losing sight of their why.  They are feeling hopeless and alone.  They are NOT elevated.  They are NOT empowered.  

I believe wholeheartedly that as a school, as a district, as a state, and as a nation, we need to start figuring out how to EMPOWER and ELEVATE teachers.  We need to help them find their why....why did they choose this career path in the first place?  We need to remind them of the fact that despite all of the politics, the workload, the pressure, and the testing, they have multiple eager, smiling, sweet faces waiting in their classroom everyday that need good teachers.  It's about the kids, guys! I've said before, and I'll say it again...we need to get back to the root and the heart of teaching, which is the PASSION.  In order to get back to the heart of teaching, we need to start working on our teacher leaders to empower and elevate the staff at their schools.  

Think about this.  If we spent more time on VALUABLE professional development to empower and elevate the teachers of America, and remind them of how we get to come to work everyday and help our babies grow, learn, and become well-rounded, productive members of society, well then...the grading, and parent phone calls, and evaluations, and meetings upon meetings, and state testing, and behavior issues, and learning scales, and all those things that burn us out on a daily basis...just won't seem that bad.

All that other junk won't seem that bad anymore because we will be focused and reminded of our WHY on a daily basis.   To me, the chance to change and impact even one of my student's lives in a positive way is worth all the stress, time, and work.  Every time I run into one of my former kids, or catch up with them on social media, and they tell me about the impact I had on them years ago, I am reminded of why I chose this career.  

My kids empower and elevate me.  My kids are my WHY.  My kids are MY highly effective.

Now, I won't take credit for that last statement.  At ECET2, I was fortunate enough to listen to one of the most incredible keynote speakers I've ever had the pleasure to witness.  Dorina Sackman was the 2014 Florida Teacher of the Year.  She shared her moving and powerful story with us, and it not only brought me to tears and made me laugh out loud, but it also resonated deep down in my soul.  It stirred a monster that I felt had been laying dormant for a little too long.  It brought my GRIT out like a roaring dragon, and that dragon is HUNGRY!

As a teacher leader in my school, one of my goals this year is to do whatever I can to empower and elevate my colleagues.  I want them to be excited to come to work everyday, and I know that enthusiasm will pour over into their classrooms, and get the kids excited to learn.  It's much more than just being a shoulder of support.  It's about creating and implementing valuable, meaningful professional development, taking strides to boost morale and keep teacher turnover numbers low, and being their biggest cheerleader.  Yes, there are many things about teaching that are difficult, time consuming, and hard to swallow, but the good SO outweigh the bad! Teachers need to be empowered to push their students to their highest potential, and become life long learners.  It shouldn't matter what school you teach at, or how long you've been teaching, or what your evaluation results or state test scores say.  

It doesn't take much to create a movement...and that's exactly what I'm going to try to do.  I want to start a movement to EMPOWER and ELEVATE the teachers of Pasco County, Florida and the entire nation.  It won't be easy, but I will not give up.  I'm hoping my district and administration will support me with this endeavor, because if they want us to be the best teachers we can be...

Then they need to let us move. Give us what we need to move. LET US MOVE!

One of the best ways that we can start empowering and elevating teachers is to share our inspirational teacher stories with each other.  It might be a story of how you overcame adversity and difficulty as a child, or how one of your teachers inspired you, or how one of your colleagues helped shape you as an educator, or even better, a story about how one of your students changed your life.  At ECET2, I was fortunate to hear many teacher's stories, and every one of them embedded itself into my heart.  Every one of them made me proud to call myself a teacher, and I walked away from the whole experience with a feeling of pure joy and a fierceness to come back to my school, and get my teach on! 

I want to challenge all teachers out there to share your stories! Share them on my blog by commenting on this post, share them on your campuses, share them in your PLC meetings, share them with your students, share them via email and social media, and share them with each other every chance you get.  There is nothing more empowering or elevating than hearing from other people who share your passion.  People who can remind you when you need it the most, and you are on the verge of giving up, that WE MAKE A DIFFERENCE. 

I will share my own story on my next blog post, and I can't wait to hear/read/experience some of yours.  I would even love to feature some of them on future posts!

As this first week of the new school year comes to a close, it's going to be hard to fight through the pure exhaustion, fatigue, brain overload, and craziness that comes with a new beginning.  You can do it.  Those bright, eager little minds are ready for you to guide them, and push them, and fight for them.  They are worth it.  They deserve it.  

They need you.  

So, get empowered!  Feel elevated!  Start this new year with a whole new mentality.  We are teachers, and we have the power to change the world.  

One beautiful, hopeful, innocent child at a time.  

An Open Letter to the Parents

Dear Parents,

      My job started the moment your child entered my classroom for the first time.  They were already eleven years old, and already had an educational foundation given to them by five other teachers.  Your job started the moment that beautiful child came into this world and took their first breath.  Their eyes were full of wonder and hope, and you were the person they looked at to guide them on this journey called life.  The first time they smiled, you were there to witness it, and the first time they felt pain, you were there to comfort them.  Every decision you made since they were born has affected them, and every decision you make from here forward will affect them.  
     
     Every parent wants their child to grow up with the world at their fingertips, and has aspirations that they will become strong, independent adults, capable of anything.  There is just one problem, they can't do it alone.  They need YOU.  Lately, all of the Common Core talk has been about teachers and the educational system getting kids college, career, and life ready, but what about the parents?  What part do you play?  I'll tell you what, I can be the very best teacher that ever was, and I can spend every hour of my day teaching your child what they need to know to be successful in life, but it only goes so far.  My job becomes almost impossible if you haven't been educating your child at home.  I'm not talking about math, world history, or science.  I'm talking about character skills.  Life skills.  

     In order for the educational system in our country to improve, the biggest thing that needs to change is parent involvement.  We need people to step up, and start being involved, effective parents.  

     How many of you actually take the time to look through your child's backpack every night, or sit down with them on a daily basis and really talk about their day without a phone in your hand, or a TV buzzing in the background?  Being an effective parent is much more than checking the online grade book every day, or providing a safe home, clothes, and food for your child.  It's about teaching them manners, and the value of being polite to others.  It's about giving them chances to mess up, and then learn how to pick up the pieces on their own.  Let them know that failure is a part of life, and that it's necessary in order to grow and learn.  

     It's about putting responsibility for their education on THEM.  They only way they will learn to value their education is if they learn to OWN IT.  If they are missing assignments, or have low test grades, have conversations with them, and do not put blame on the teacher.  Ask them why.  Work with them, and their teachers, to find a solution and get them back on track.  

     Being an effective parent is about modeling appropriate behavior.  If you do not want your child going to school and solving their problems with profanity and violence, then do not demonstrate those behaviors yourself, at home.  It's about being there for them when they need you the most, no matter what.  It's about being involved with their schools.  Go to parent teacher nights, go to basketball games, go to the Fall Carnival.  Show them that you care about what happens in their lives.  

     Stop thinking selfishly, and start thinking selflessly.  

     Let's face it.  Nobody is perfect, and there is no such thing as a perfect parent.  We will all make mistakes at one point or another, but the important part is that we evolve from those mistakes and use them as learning opportunities.  I'm not asking you to be a perfect parent, and I absolutely am not telling anyone how to raise their child.  I'm just a teacher at a small town middle school.  I don't even have children of my own yet.  But what I have done is look at your child's bright face as they sat in my classroom for the first time.  I've helped dry their tears after they found out their father lost his job, I've celebrated success with them as they come in beaming with pride after winning a baseball game, I've seen them hide report cards in fear of bringing them home, and I've witnessed pure elation when they aced their last spelling test and couldn't wait to go home and put it on the fridge.  Every single day, I see the effect you have on your child.  For many, it shows through as bright and vibrant as the sun, but for others, it sends me home in tears as I realize there isn't much more I can do.  

     I am asking you all, please, be an advocate for your child.  If we have any hope of turning the educational system in this country around, it begins with you.  Please teach your children to be proud.  Teach them to be gritty and tenacious, and to keep going even when they feel defeated.  Teach them to be knowledge hungry, and to never stop being curious and wanting to learn more.  Teach them what the true meaning of respect means, and how to not only respect others, but also themselves.  Teach them to take ownership of everything they do, and how to crawl their way back if they fall behind.  As teachers, we need you to step up.  We need you to get involved, and we need you to help us build the foundation your child needs in order to stand on their own two feet someday.  

     My job will end the day that your child walks out of my classroom for the last time.  As a parent, your job will never truly end.  You are blessed to guide your child all the days of their life.  Even when you aren't there physically someday, they will still keep in mind all the things that you have taught them through the years, and they will still draw upon the values and morals that you have instilled in them.  Your child needs you.  My job title is that of a teacher, but so is yours.  In more ways than one...you are a much greater teacher than I could ever be.

Respectfully Yours, 

A Desperate Teacher

SHIFT Happens.

On Monday, I attended a professional development on the CCSS ELA Shifts. I feel like I'm fairly proficient in my understanding of the shifts, but when I left at the end of the day, one major thought stood out in my mind.  As educators, we must be willing to adapt and change our teaching methods.  Period. 

The reason this stood out in my mind is because I honestly feel that we have too many teachers out there who are still reluctant to change or alter the way they've taught for years.  I know we can all relate to this when we've taught a particular lesson or unit that we love, and that we don't want to part with.  But guys, we have to face the fact that our secondary students are quite simply growing out of the lecture/notes style of teaching.  We need to keep up with the demands that colleges and careers require, and we need to move towards a twenty-first century classroom.  This is a classroom that is technology based, interactive, devoid of drill and kill and maybe even textbooks in some cases.

I believe whole-heatedly that every single classroom in this country needs to embrace the 80/20 Style of Teaching.

I first heard the term "80/20" from Chris Christoff of the Pasco County District Office.  He spoke of it at a PLC Facilitator training that I attended, and the concept really stuck with me.  Essentially, an 80/20 classroom is one in which the students spend 80% of the time "doing," and the teacher spends 20% of the time "teaching." In order to meet the demand of the Common Core, we need to SHIFT and make that transition to having the students take ownership of their leaning. These CCSS Shifts are only going to happen if we relinquish control of our classrooms, and let the kids take the stage.  For some teachers, this concept is extremely difficult to digest, and I don't blame them.  For so long we have been the ones standing in the front of the room leading our students, but the truth is so clear...it just hasn't worked.  Sure, back in the day, having kids copy notes from the overhead about pronouns, then having them complete three pages of "practice questions" from the textbook, worked.  That's how I learned what a pronoun is, and how I can still tell you today.  The problem lies with the fact that was almost twenty years ago!  The world is changing! We are way past simply needing our kids to know how to diagram sentences.  They need to know how to use those sentences to formulate arguments based on texts they have read, and apply them to the real world around them.

MIND BLOWN.

The 80/20 classroom is something we need to see happening in schools all over our country in order to make Common Core work.  We are definitely headed in the right direction, but I still see so much resistance when I speak to fellow teachers and even parents.  I wanted to give you an idea of what I envision an 80/20 classroom looking like.  This is the direction I am aiming for with my instruction and planning this next school year, and I hope I can inspire other teachers to not be afraid of these shifts and changes, but to EMBRACE THEM!

TECHONOLOGY BASED

Let's be real...our kids know more about technology than we do! It makes no sense to not utilize every opportunity we have to embed technology into our classrooms every day.  We don't even teach handwriting anymore, and why should we? This is the age of computers, and it will only get more advanced as the years move on.  In my ideal 80/20 classroom, I would have an iPad or computer at every table group so that my students could explore, learn, and research any moment they feel they need to go deeper.  Use Smartboards, CPS clickers, iPads, Prezi, Socrative, etc! The 80/20 classroom is all about keeping students engaged, and we all know that they are much more likely to be engaged when technology is involved.  I get fired up when I hear teachers say that "powerpoint" is using technology in the classroom.  Maybe five years ago! There are SO MANY amazing programs and tools available for you to use right now.  Spend some time, ask for help, and explore some of them! I think you'll surprise yourself at how easy they are to use, and how much of a difference they will make in your instruction.

NO MORE ROWS

To me, the 80/20 classroom means that desks are arranged in cooperative groups or pairs.  I struggled for years to find the perfect classroom arrangement, and I'll admit that I used rows...one year.  One of the most important shifts that we will need to make in our classrooms is evidence based discussions. Our kids NEED to talk about and hash out what they are learning.  It's not easy for them to speak to one another when their desks are arranged in rows.  I know that teachers will argue that they talk too much and misbehave unless they are sitting in rows, but if you establish firm classroom rules and teach procedures, and create meaningful lessons that are engaging and purposeful, you'd be surprised how the talking will switch from being focused on who's dating who, to conversation based on the activity they are involved in. 

TEACHER BECOMES FACILITATOR

This is one of the things I am personally struggling the most with.  It's physically and mentally painful when you design an interactive lesson, and you watch as your students don't understand at first, or don't know what to say to each other during discussion, or can't figure out the answer to the question right away.  It's in our nature to want to help them along, and intervene.  Something I'm learning, is that sometimes I have to take a step back, and let them fail.  Let them mess things up a bit, and then find their own way out of it.  I promise you, as hard as it is to loosen the reigns, you will be so pleasantly surprised and ECSTATIC the first time they figure it out themselves.  Our children are resilient and brilliant, and problem solvers. We just have to give them the chance to show it.  I always tell my students that the most they will hear me talk ALL year is the first week of school.  Nobody wants to spend fifty minutes sitting in silence while their teacher talks.  Instead, I spend the majority of my class time listening, adjusting when needed, offering assistance or guidance if they get lost a bit, and laughing or giving praise when they figure something out...on their own. 

TALKING, MOVING, CREATING

One of the biggest shifts we have to make for an 80/20 classroom is to allow time for meaningful, text-based reflection and discussion.  This can be done through partner sharing, Socratic Seminars, online, or whole group.  For me, discussing a concept or a text with your peers is almost, if not more, important than writing or answering questions about it.  We all learn from each other, and if we really want our students to reach a deep analytical understanding of these CCSS, then the discussion piece is essential. Many educators are afraid to let their students talk in class because they assume things will spiral out of control.  It's not going to be a pretty transition, but just like anything we want them to do, we have to teach and model procedures for class discussions.  Our students should be engaged every second of the period in our classes.  In addition to meaningful discussion, we also need to add in movement, and opportunities for students to learn based on their own personal needs.  I never limit my students to one particular product that I want them to produce, to show they mastered a skill or concept. Some might want to write, some might want to draw, some might want to speak, and some might want to build.  Part of our job is to allow students the opportunity to express themselves in our class.  I guarantee you that your jaw will drop the first time you let a student who finds writing to be difficult make you an iMovie about the Holocaust rather than write a paper about it.  Sure, they have to know how to write, but we can also give them chances to shine their own unique ways as well. 

GET RID OF "THEY CAN'T"

All of these components of an 80/20 classroom don't mean anything if we can't get rid of the dreaded words, "They can't." This is the big barrier.  These are the words I often hear at my own school and at PDs at District.  These words are vile to me, yet I've heard myself utter them many times in the past.  This is my biggest "Aha Moment" as I've learned more about these Common Core Shifts. None of them will happen unless we start changing our attitudes.  We need to have faith in our students, but more importantly, we need to have faith in ourselves as teachers! They CAN have a meaningful class discussion without getting off task, they CAN read that complex text if you help them through it, they CAN sit in groups and be productive, you CAN learn how to create a Prezi presentation, you CAN take a step back and let your kids take control of their own learning!  If we, as educators, can get rid of the "They Can't" epidemic, then we CAN make these shifts happen in our classrooms across the county, state, and country!

Guys, we are on the verge of something great here.  I am so proud to be a teacher not only because of the kids I am blessed to work with every day, but also because of the EDUCATORS I am blessed to work with every day.  We need to stop resisting change, and start embracing it.  It doesn't matter whether we agree with Common Core or not.  However, I think we CAN all agree that we need to make a major adjustment to the way we've been teaching to really help our kids be prepared for whatever life may bring them.  Start small.  Your classroom doesn't have to transform into an 80/20 classroom over night. The important thing is that you begin to realize that kids learn better by doing, and that you begin to take those baby steps towards creating the ideal learning environment to foster that concept.  

One of the best lessons that I've been taught as a teacher is that I have to be open to change. I have to accept when things don't go the way I intended them to, and know how to grow from the experience. I have to be willing to do whatever I need to in order to ensure that my students are becoming productive members of society.  I want my students to learn in an 80/20 classroom, and I will adapt and change my teaching methods to get there.  It might take a while, but that's the fun of it!

After all...SHIFT happens :)