handwritten on February 4, 2020
I had a beautiful conversation with (what I believe to be) one of the greatest teachers and mentors to me. She is a complete expert in early childhood education and has worked around 50 years in the field in various positions. We talked today "in her den" about the future of education, what she hopes for one day, the memories she has had, the wonders she has learned and the advice she wishes to pass on to teachers still within the field. To say I admire this teacher is a great understatement. Her intelligence is beyond me, her vision articulate and her pure joy for the field unmatched and completely unwavering. Towards the end of our conversation (which happened to go in many directions)...
handwritten on February 3, 2020
3.2 miles: This has been the strangest winter I have endured in a long time. We have seen little snow but much warm air has been blowing through. In fact, outside today it felt like Spring and the sun kissed your cheeks as you walked outside amongst the trees. And i've come to the realiza tion that though we may not admit it affects us, lack of sunlight does something to the soul. Without windows in my classroom, I could still detect the stir from my students. It was as if they felt the sunlight chasing them down and they wanted to partake as long as possible. And with that, how often are we chasing sunlight or do we feel like we are chasing sunlight? Or do we just feel the sunlight when it...
handwritten on February 2, 2020
For whatever reason today, I was thinking a lot about the fact that I have sent more students to the nurse this year than any other year. I tried to rack my brain today as far as what the reasons may be..
Am I getting weak?
Do I not care as much about my instruction?
Am I "softer" than I used to be?
I think the answer to all three questions is no and as I was searching for greater clarity on this issue today, I think I finally realized the difference. For whatever reason, I have come to the realization that if a student needs to sleep on my carpet because they didn't get sleep the night before..they should sleep. If a student is doubled over in pain at their desk, they should go lie down....
handwritten on January 31, 2020
4miles: This was a bit of a hectic week and thus writing was slightly limited, and I think this is okay. It was a good week. Strange in the sense that the week went by quickly but the hours in the evening seemed longer and allowed time for much needed reflection and thinking. I had multiple raw conversations with close friends and colleagues this week. And I noticed a lot of the talking was centered around looking underneath the life that has been created, the actions that have passed by and the behaviors that have occurred and the decisions and why certain decisions were made. I think what I realize when talking with people about how they are personally or their story up until "this point...
handwritten on January 27, 2020
3.0 miles: My brain tends to be one that has a difficult time turning off. For those who know me, they know this bears some truth. But whilst running today, I was reminded of the importance of thinking but also the importance of thinking outside of you. I asked a lot of questions during my run like: "Why did that child say THAT at that specific time?" or "Why did that particular student do "x, y and z" a specific way? Or, more recently entering into my mind: "Why did my own mother decide to go into education, why is she still there and what hopes does she have for the future?" I think sometimes (I know I am guilty of this) we tend to surpass questions and just talk about the new and...
