Joyful Anticipation

My mind is whirling with goals, plans, intentions, and all the things that happened at the beginning of a new school year.  There are so many ideals and ideas, there are so many things I would like to achieve.  

Just an average August in a teacher’s life!  

I do always say that one of the joys about teaching is that you get to reinvent yourself every year, you get to have new goals and thoughts, you are able to create the very best you can be and make it better every single year.

This year is different for me, I have a new role. One I’ve been striving for a couple of years, one that while I know I can do - one I also worry that I’m not ready for.  There is a complete mix of emotions rummaging around inside me right now. 

One, I’m still a teacher, and I need (as always) to strive to be the best I can be to support my kids. My first goal of doing everything I can to make learning joyful for both students and teachers, holds true for whichever role I am focusing on. 

Joy. There needs to be more joy.

Two, I’m there to support our newer teachers.  Lead, guide, coach. I’ve trained for this, I’ve practiced, I’ve read the books. Now it’s real. I’m excited to share my passion and ideas. I’m ready to research and do the work.  I’m also nervous because this could be a massive first step towards my future - but a lack of perceived success will mean that the opportunity will no longer be there next year.  Reality is though, I can’t think that way. If things don’t work out, it’s because it’s not meant to be. If positive results don’t abound then our collective thoughts about what role is best for Bridget, and how I can best help the team, are not correct. I know that I’m a good teacher - now I need to work on being a good teacher of teachers…

I must believe

I must focus on what they need and remember that I can only change myself

I must remember to be joyful 

Let the journey - and joy - begin

#joyful #teachersupport #leadingandlearning

Chasing Dreams!

 We can always be better. It doesn’t matter how good you are at teaching, how good your classroom management style is, how well you engage your students, there’s always more to discover and achieve. There are always better goals, there are always loftier heights to reach. And there are always dreams.

A couple of years ago, my principal shared an idea with me – what she thought would be the perfect job for me. A mix of literacy coach and media specialist, allowing me to extend my love of learning to many more students, to help coach teachers to bring literacy into different content areas, and to give me more freedom that the ELA curriculum does not allow.  I loved the idea, and it seems that many other people agreed that this would be the perfect fit. The problem was finding the principal who would be willing to create the position. Someone who would give up that allotment, to allow a vision to occur.

Sounds great, doesn’t it?

We almost thought it was going to happen. It was so close. But then, it ended up that the job didn’t happen. And the little fledging dream was crushed, as they so often are.

But the beautiful thing about dreams is that you are never stuck with just one. Dreams are yours, no one can stop you from having them, and they can be as elaborate — and detailed — as you would like them to be.

I like making up dreams. I like to think of possibilities. I like to imagine just what could be achieved in the right climate💡 

Of course, this is one reason sleep is often overtaken by ideas 🛌 

The old cliché is always true when one door closes, another one opens. But I also think you have to look for that door. Maybe you have to push that door a little, give it an extra nudge, make things happen.

So right now, I’m at that stage where I’m creating dreams again. Thinking of how I could find a way to move out of the strictures of the fixed curriculum and into a world of digital citizenship, real-life research, and authentic project-based learning. How can I bring that to students?     There’s limited scope as the traditional ELA teacher, but maybe there are ways. Would I be able to find that job in a not-so-traditional environment 🤔 Can I integrate more into ELA without competing with common assessments🤨

It’s ‘crazy season’ in our world right now

🤪 🤪 🤪 🤪 

COVID or not, we are hiring and planning for next year.  Teachers are shifting roles and competing for positions. There’s a fine line between 'speaking up’ and ‘being pushy.’ But then there’s that feeling of, “I was professional before and that got me nowhere...”

So I’ve had a suggestion made to me, one that I really like. I countered with one that I like even better, and that’s as far as it can go right now.

I really want to believe that my dream was taken away because there’s a better one around the corner. And maybe the corner isn’t going to be this summer, maybe it’s going to be next year, but at least I have begun to sow some seeds, and people who have the power are listening.

In the meantime, I have a simple job, to be the best teacher I can possibly be to the students that I am lucky enough to have🤷🏼‍♀️

But no one can stop me from dreaming 💭💭💭