2017 OMLA Presentation

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The Addicting Phone Call

The power of the positive phone call is well documented. I've read the stories and the blog posts. But for some reason, I get busy, I forget or I just don't make it a priority. I admit, I haven't made very many positive phone calls home lately.

Recently we were challenged to make at least 2 positive phone calls home during Parent/Teacher Conferences. So I sat down before most of my conferences started to make a few calls.

I made the first call and left a message. 1 down 1 to go.

When I made the next call and the mother answered. I told her that we were challenged to some positive phone calls and I told her that I enjoyed having her daughter in class and to tell her to keep up the good work.

Mom paused and said thank you. She was obviously surprised and happy at the same time. The conversation continued for about two minutes.

There, I made my two calls so I was done right?

Nope.

It felt really good.

So I made another one.

It felt really good.

So I made another one.

If it felt that good for me, I can't imagine how good it felt on the other end.

It was addicting.

That's right folks, positive can be addictive.

#oneword in August

So the whole #oneword movement was sweeping across the social media universe in a big way at the beginning of the year. It seems like a great way to do a new year's resolution. It is simple and easy to remember and focus on. I chose commit. I wrote these four things to commit to 6 months ago, underneath is my update.

1. Commit to my family. Spend quality time and commit to them.

I am proud of this. I threw hundreds, possibly thousands of pitches to my sons in the front yard. They may not make it to the pros, but they will remember me not saying no to them when they asked.

2. Commit to understanding. Ask why. It's not always what you think.

I'm still working on this one. The end of the year was tough, so I have worked hard this summer to seek understanding.

3. Commit to literacy in my classroom. No more stand and deliver. My students will spend time reading and engaging with text. Everday.

This one was huge. I can't wait to get back into my classroom and making time for reading. The less I stand and talk the more time students get to read.

4. Commit to blogging. I will blog more, I even started a new one. It's not ready yet, but it's getting there.

This one is mostly a failure. I still have a few more months, but I have neglected it. I'll get back into it.

If you had a #oneword for this year, what was it and how have you done so far?

I'm a teacher, I can't lead

Have you ever heard this? Maybe not in so many words, but I'm sure the sentiment carries over into other statements as well. I don't think it's laziness, I think there are many reasons and motivations for teachers to pass the buck onto someone that has a leadership "title." 

The fact is that teachers can and should be leaders. I actually could argue that teachers have more impact on initiatives than the leaders that enact them. Here are a few things to think about with teacher leadership.

1. Build Relationships - The best leaders that I have worked with are masters of this. I am still working on this myself, but teachers have the best opportunity to do this. Besides students, who spends more time with teachers than teachers? Make the best of the time with other teachers to build a relationship that can lead to positive change.

2. Conversations - Teachers can lead through one-on-one conversations with other teachers. You don't have to give lengthy speeches at staff meetings to be a leader. Sometimes the most powerful acts of change can start with a small conversation.

3. Stay Positive - I know it's hard. I didn't say you can't ever vent. That's different. Venting every day is not venting, it's just being a Debby Downer. Even in the face of negativity, the best leaders spread positivity. The change that leaders enact should focus on the positive, not the negative.

Teachers can be leaders. We have the opportunity to be leaders and we need to make the most of those oppotunities. 

#oneword Commit

If you haven't heard about this #oneword movement, now you have. It's simple, pick just one word to focus on for the year. One word is simple and allows you to focus on that for the year.

I had to think for a while on mine. One word just kept popping up. Commit.

I want to commit to a few things this year.

1. Commit to my family. Spend quality time and commit to them.

2. Commit to understanding. Ask why. It's not always what you think.

3. Commit to literacy in my classroom. No more stand and deliver. My students will spend time reading and engaging with text. Everday.

4. Commit to blogging. I will blog more, I even started a new one. It's not ready yet, but it's getting there.

It's public now, so now I am committed.

On the Teacher's Lounge and John Kasich

If you haven't heard Ohio Governor John Kasich had to say about teacher's lounges, you can read and hear it here. What if John Kasich has a point about Teacher's lounges? I'm not saying that they should be banned, but I see a lot of comments in social media by teachers saying that they don't eat lunch in the teacher's lounge. Why?

The unfortunate answer is that the teacher's lounge can be an intimidating place. During my student teaching, my professor instructed us not to eat in the teacher's lounge. She didn't tell us why at first, but she later revealed that it can get negative at times. She was protecting us from the negativity during a stressful time when we needed to stay positive.

I know we don't want to hear this, but teachers do complain in the lounge, a lot. I am not trying to shame anyone here. I have most certainly contributed to this negativity at times. And this is not to say that all lounges are like this, I have experienced good ones and bad ones in my time. And even the best lounges can turn nasty with a few comments. But the truth is that it can get bad, bad enough that some teachers refuse to go in there.

I do not find myself agreeing with John Kasich very often. I really don't agree with him here either, I just think he has a point, a point that he argued in a very inarticulate way.

So what do we do?

Turn the lounge into a positive place. Show John Kasich that the teacher's lounge can be a positive uplifting place where teachers can talk with other adults. Show him that the teacher's lounge is a place where teachers can laugh and support each other. Show him and everyone else that teachers need to spend time together and be social just like other human beings.

My professor has retired, but wouldn't it be cool if we could turn the teacher's lounges around and she could lift her ban on student teachers in the lounge? Yep. That would be pretty cool.

Hello Cleveland

I consider myself a connected educator. I consider myself a progressive educator. Confession time; I have never been to an edcamp. 

There have been plenty of excuses, but I won't go into them here. The fact is that I was neither of the two until I attended an edcamp Cleveland.

I am an unabashed advocate of social media. I also believe that our electronic connections lead to stronger face-to-face connections. In Cleveland, that belief was only strengthened. Twitter avatars became faces and 140 characters became conversations with no limits.

When I walked in that first room, I didn't know what to expect. We sat down and the conversation started. There was no Sage on the Stage or projectors, just teachers talking. Real talk about real problems. I came away with more questions than answers, and I like that.

I was able to share the day with a colleague, from my school. We started talking about hosting an edcamp for our district or building. The goal of anyone that attends an Edcamp should be to share. Share your questions, share your answers and share your love of education. #iWill share and I will be back.

Hello Cleveland. Hello edcamp. See you again soon.