Controlled Failure

Yesterday I did something that really scared me. No, I didn't go near a spider- I don't ever do that. Nope, I didn't eat veggies- I try and always do that. What did I do? I introduced something that I had never done before in front of my students: I introduced a new website tool and purposely fell flat on my face. Did they have any idea I failed on purpose? Nope, they had no idea.

Why did I do this? To show them that it is okay to fail..and miserably at that.  I told the students that I was not sure what I was doing and that I needed help to figure it out. While I did actually need a little bit of help to figure it out, I was nowhere near as "helpless" as I seemed to be. Soon the classes were feeling like they were in control and they rocketed off into the task at hand. It was an unbelievably productive 42 minute period.

Why? Because students had ownership. They had a horse in the race. It wasn't just me telling them information and making them take notes in their notebook. Especially with the 1:1 environment that we have, students need to feel ownership. They need to feel as though they are in charge- even when they really aren't.

Think about what they are in control of in their life? Really, it is not a whole lot. Why not make their education something that they feel they have a stake in? We were able to accomplish the exact same thing as if I had just "lectured" to them the whole period, but they were accountable and felt ownership. However, I do have to say that it is kind of scary to give away "control" of the class over to the students, but the results are undeniable.

I used to think that students needed to be sitting in neat rows, quiet, shirts perfectly tucked in...etc. However, I realized that is not the world that we live in. Think about all the things that these students are surrounded with in the world. They are used to multitasking and information overload. They want to be in control of the joystick of their learning- just like when they are playing Call Of Duty. Does there need to still be control by the teacher? Absolutely, but I have found that my students can express themselves better and learn more when they are actively engaged in a task. Part of this comes from the fact that I have a fairly laid back demeanor, but another part comes from what I have realized just watching my students this year. Why am I in teaching? To impact students and help shape them...so why would I not want to give them the opportunity to actively control their own future?

I still give the boring noun, verb, adjective, "blah, blah, blah" English lectures and papers...but I am trying to allow students to take control of their education. If I have to "fail" in order for this to happen, so be it.

School Year Wrapping Down....Wait, What?!

I have always heard the phrase "Enjoy it now, it goes fast." They were right about high school and college. And now, they are right about teaching. I can hardly believe that in 19 school days I will have completed my first year of teaching. There have been many highs and lows- but overall, it has been an absolute blast.  It doesn't seem possible that it is already almost the end of April. I guess that when you really do like your job time does fly. 

I can think back to that very first day of class...I was pretty darn scared when I walked in the door for my first hour class. Sure, you have four years of classes that you have learned all the theories and strategies..but here it was, my own classroom.  I had felt like student teaching had me ready for my own room but I found that there were many things that I had not thought of. Luckily, my mom was able to help me with many different ideas and suggestions (it helps to have a mom that has taught for 30+ years). 

I still find myself trying out new and different ideas- mainly because I can't seem to find the perfect way to do everything. Some of the things that I have tried have completely failed. I think that showing students that it is okay to have something go wrong and have something backfire is important. They need to understand that not everything in their life is going to go as planned...and that is okay, it is to be expected and embraced.

Between teaching 6th and 7th graders and coaching three sports, I have been able to interact with hundreds of different students this year.  I think that this has also helped to have the school year fly by. There weren't a whole lot of nights that were empty from a practice or game. Staying busy is a good thing, and it helped me to connect with students in a setting outside of an English classroom. I heard from other teachers that the years will fly by and all of a sudden I will have 30 years of teaching experience under my belt. To be quite honest, I thought that they were crazy. Now, after only one year, I can completely see where they are coming from. 

I wish that I would have started this blog earlier- like I had intended to. However, I still think that it is a good sounding board for ideas and thoughts. I see that some people actually even take a look at it (I swear I didn't even have to pay them!). Hopefully I can give someone an idea, a laugh, or a mocking jeer at some point throughout this process.

All feedback is appreciated! Enjoy this coming week- make a difference! 

Being Rich: Dependent Upon the Currency

All you have to do is ask any student that I have..."What do you want to be when you grow up?"    "Oh, I don't care. I just want to be rich."    That is the most common answer that I get when I ask my students. What do they really want to do? Honestly, they don't really care. Make a difference in the world and the future? If they can get rich doing it.

This made me question what was going wrong. The conclusion that I came to? They are only repeating the actions that they have seen around them. Look around you. Even right where you sit. I bet that there are ads telling you what you should or shouldn't buy- all because they say so and because they know what will make you happy. They most likely are hearing their parents talk about money a lot and see its value when they want to buy something.

Obviously, money is important. There is no way to deny that. It allows people to live and to enjoy themselves. However, having vast amounts of money is not an end all- at least not in my opinion. People get so fixated upon how much money they have and what nice things they can buy that they lose track of what really matters.

Our school had the honor of having Tim Green come and speak to us yesterday. While he was here, he told a story that I really enjoyed. He said that he was speaking in front of a very large and rich private school in the heart of Texas. A student asked him if he was rich. He replied yes, most likely richer than anyone that you will meet in your whole life. The students all looked around puzzled. He replied that he was rich because he had a job that he loved, a great wife, and four loving kids. That was the way that he measured if he was rich- not with dollars and cents.

When you are in your final moments on earth, what is going to really matter? The amount of money that you made, the nice car that you drive, how big your saving account is? No, it will be the friends and family that surround you.

It is so easy to get caught up in the physical world and in money. Take this weekend to spend time with your family. Call up those who aren't close enough to visit. Let them know what they mean to you.

"Coaching" English

It is unbelievably frustrating to hear someone say, “He/she only got hired because they coach.” Just because someone is a coach,does NOT mean that they are automatically an awful teacher. Coaching is a small part of the makeup of a person. Something that they are passionate about? You bet. But that doesn’t mean that they are not equally as passionate about their subject that they teach. 

Coaches get to leave school early? Yes, everyone sees that. What they don’t see is the coach coming back and staying until midnight to get everything done- they don’t see the connections that are made outside of the classroom with students that lead to more success inside it- they don’t see young men and women learning that there are more important things that winning or losing a game- they don’t see the hours that are spent trying to come up with the perfect game plan and perfect practice schedules-they don’t see the sleepless nights after a tough loss or an amazing victory. 

It is so easy to bash those who are hired “just because they coach.”  Did we not have to still go through the same accredited college program that you went through? Did we not have to go through the exact same Praxis test that you did? All the while (most of us) being a part of a college sport that took up 4 to 5 hours of our day with practice, weights, study tables and individual meetings. Thats not even counting all the game nights that we were gone until the early morning hours and still made it to our 7:00 class because we knew coach would run us into the ground if we didn’t. 

Was that our choice? Absolutely it was, and most of us would make that same decision again in a heartbeat. It was also your choice not to, and there is nothing wrong with that. It takes all kinds of teachers and people to make the world go round. However, to blankly judge someone’s teaching ability, based solely on the fact that they are a coach, is about as ignorant as to say that someone is a poor teacher because they teach English.

Are there coaches who are poor teachers? Of course there are- but those two do not always go hand in hand. 

Our Biggest Culprit

I have long been convinced that there is one thing that is at the heart of 99% of the world's problems..and I am slowly becoming more and more sure that I am, in fact, correct. Insecurity.

Now, I realize that at first that may seem to be a little bit silly- and I have to agree with you. However, the more years that I have pondered this theory and applied it to life situations, the more that I have realized that the shoe keeps fitting.

99% of the bullying that takes place is because of someone who does not fit the "media perception of cool, popular, (insert your own adjective here)". These people in turn want to feel as though they are "worthy" and they take out that anger on someone else. I have been watching this all year long, and it had fit in so many different situations. Insecurity is what drives us to buy a new car- even though we can't afford it, or to put an edition on our house, because the neighbors did, or to buy those cool new Lebron XLL's that just came out last week for the upcoming basketball season. These are all rooted in the same idea- we as humans, are insecure. Granted, that is a blanket statement and does not apply to all people. However, a majority of people do seem to fall into that group. I, too, am guilty of it. It may not even be something that we are consciously thinking about. We don't realize that what is driving our actions is insecurity, or wanting to fit in- but it is.

Even take the "outcast" group in society. They claim that they want to be different and that they want to stand out. What do they do? They find a group of people that are just like them to hang out with. Their difference again brings them back to a norm and a group. We don't like to feel insecure. We want to be with people that we fit in with, with people that are going to not judge and look down at us, and when are with those people, we end up passing that on to someone else- even if it is not intentional.

As I said earlier, the media multiplies this effect 100x over with their ads and commercials. We are constantly shown what we should look like, eat, wear, drive, drink, sleep on, watch on weekends, and every other aspect of our life. We see these people that are "happy" and we envy that. We want that. Even if it is very, very low in our subconscious, we do.  From a very young age we are taking all of this in and realizing that we are not able to stack up to this "media created perfect person". We see that we are not perfect and we want to make sure that we realize we aren't the only ones.

This post has not come out very succinct and easy to follow- but if you have read the other ones, that should come as no surprise to you. I use this simply as a place to throw ideas out and hope that maybe somebody can relate.  Which bring me to my last point. A very sincere thank you to everyone that has been reading and following my blog through this first week. I know that it has been rough, but I am hoping that I will get this whole thing figured out the more that I do it.  It is kind of a scary idea to be putting my ideas out to the world for all to see. Then again, it is kind of a fun "rush" too.

Enjoy your Easter weekend with family, friends, and loved ones!!

#42

"A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." -Jackie Robinson

"I'm not concerned with your liking or disliking me... All I ask is that you respect me as a human being." -Jackie Robinson




I have fallen of my "blogging horse". I was hoping to get a blog out at least every other day- well there goes that. Anyways, I am going to try and saddle back up...

Yesterday was Jackie Robinson day- one of my favorite days of the baseball year. I have shared a couple of my favorite Jackie quotes at the start of this post. I think that these two quotes really hit at the heart of what Jackie was all about. He was a man who was unafraid of the actions of others and wanted to be treated the way he should have been- as an equal. Unfortunately, that is not always the reception that he received.  If you have not checked out the Movie 42, I strongly encourage you to do so. While it may not paint the whole picture of what Jackie went through, it surely is leading down the right path. I always am amazed at the suffering and pain that he would be willing to go through in order to play in the MLB. He had multiple death threats, players going out of the way to try and injure him, constant verbal and physical abuse, as well as article upon article written about how he was not good enough and did not deserve to play with white baseball players.

Let's not forget that he was not only a great baseball player, but also an amazing all around athlete. He was a four sport standout at UCLA and most likely could have gone pro in three sports. That is an unbelievable feat, regardless of skin color. It is sad to think that he might not have even been given a chance in any sport, if it were not for one manager wanting to "shake it up"and "take a chance" (as stated in 42).

While racism is much better nowadays, let's not fool ourselves and think that is all dried up and gone away. There are still many parts of the country where the color of your skin dictates what jobs you can and can not have. It is sad to think that in 2014 we have no moved past something as petty as skin color. Nobody would even think about not giving someone a job, or treating someone differently because they are over 6 foot tall- but that is essentially what is happening.

I love that the MLB has retired #42 so that no player will ever wear it again. Mo was the only one that did wear it (He was grandfathered in) but now that he has retired, this was the first year that nobody in the MLB has had it issued to him. While it may not make up for the way that he was treated by many, it is a gesture to show just what he has meant to the game of baseball. On April 15, however, all players in the MLB wear #42 in order to honor Jackie. It is a pretty neat scene to see 9 #42 jerseys run out onto the field. Each player that takes the field is, in some way, benefiting from what the original #42 did so many years ago. I also really enjoy how all the professional players talk about what Jackie meant to them. While many of them did not know him personally, they have still been impacted by him and can learn from him

The courage that Jackie Robinson had is something that we can all learn from. He did not care what obstacles stood in his way. He did not care who was going to say negative things about him. He did what he felt was right and what he felt he was entitled to do. He set a tone for minorities everywhere to fight for their equal rights in all aspects of life. Even though the law might have "said" they were equal, there were, and still are, many places that was not the truth. Jackie changed the landscape of professional baseball and paved the road for some of the best baseball players that the MLB has right now. It is scary to think about how long the Major Leagues would have continued to keep African Americans out of the game if Jackie had not been courageous enough to take a stand.

Where did the "Youth" in Youth Sports go?

I have to start this post off with a disclaimer: I was blessed with unbelievable parents who have supported me 1000% in anything that I have ever wanted to do. They never forced me to be involved in anything, yet always encouraged me to be involved in everything.

 Throughout my high school career I was involved in four sports, chorus, newspaper, yearbook, student council, student rotary, and probably some others that I am forgetting. I was lucky enough to have parents that came to 99.99% of my events. This often meant that they were have to give up things that they wanted to do in order to support me. I always loved seeing them in the crowd and knowing that they were there to watch and cheer me on. However, until recently, I did not realize exactly how much they really did give up to come to all my events. I understand that many youth today are not this lucky. Many simply get dropped off and picked up when the game is over. I know that there are many different reasons for this and no two situations are the same.  

I am getting off topic....My parents never once told me that you HAVE to go out for (insert activity). They told me that I should try it and that if I didn't like it...I didn't have to go back out for it next year. The key? I was the one that got to make the decision- not my parents. Would I be devastated if my son did not want to play baseball one day? Honestly, yes, I probably would. But I would never even think about making him play just because I love the game of baseball. If it is not something that he wants to do, I would not want to force him to partake in it. (This is all assuming that I do not end up with triplet girls....).

 It truly saddens me how many parents I see living out their "second sports life" through their children. In these parents' minds, they are doing nothing wrong- simply trying to each their child how to "be a winner". Well, it isn't working. Those kids are not having fun. They are either going to end up hating the sport/activity that they are being forced to play, or they are going to end up hating their parent. I have seen way too many parents yelling at their 7 year old son/daughter for making a mistake in a game or practice. I don't get it. Youth sports are supposed to be about learning and having fun. What happened to the days where you played the baseball game and went out and got an ice cream cone? Nobody knew what the score was...and, honestly, nobody cared. I had no idea what the scores were from my youth baseball games..and it didn't matter to my parents. All that mattered was that I was hustling, being a good teammate, and, heaven forbid, having fun.

 There is this idea that you have to sport specialize and be pushed to the outer limits to be good at a sport these days. The truth is far from that. Why did I work so hard in baseball? Because I liked the game- it was fun for me to play.  If that would have been taken away in youth baseball, I don't know if I would have wanted to play anymore. I ended up being an all-state pitcher and pitching four years of college baseball at two programs that were both ranked top 25 nationally while I was there. But what do I know? As I have been told my parents, (that never played college baseball...let alone high school baseball) I have no idea what it takes to me a good player.

These few stories that I have shared have come from four different towns that I have been in over the last five years. Sadly, almost all of them follow the same script. It truly saddens me to see the way that youth activities are headed in this country. Why can't parents just allow their son or daughter to do what they enjoy? I understand wanting what is best for your children- but is that really what they want? Or, are they living vicariously through their children, looking for another shot to win it all. I hope that the culture of youth sports has a mind shift....

The American Sport

What comes to mind when you think of America? Of course, it is apple pie and baseball. As I sit in my chair watching the Red Sox and the Yankees battle it out, I can't help but think about how amazing of a sport baseball is. There is no other sport that you can go to and see such a plethora of people. There will be young children, elderly who have held season tickets for 50 years, first dates, business men in suits, and college age guys with their chest painted. No other sports allows that many people to come to an event and appreciate it the way that baseball does. 

I will say that I am very biased. Baseball is my favorite sport, and it is not even close. I do really enjoy football and basketball (I coach both), but there is something magical about baseball that any other sport can't touch. Baseball is one of the most mental games out there. There is no other sport that you need to be mentally sharp and in tune as baseball. Golf might be a close second- but if you are there live you only see one hole. You can't hide in baseball like you can in other sports. In football, you might miss a tackle but there are 10 other guys on the field that have a shot too. Many times, you are so caught in the mess that it is hard to see anyone that really misses a tackle anyways. In basketball, you might miss a shot or get blown by, but you are right back into the action on the other end. If you miss a ball in center, you might not get another shot until three innings later, if you even get another shot at all. You are standing out there all alone, with everyone knowing that you missed that ball. That can really eat away at some people. You have to be mentally strong in order to be a successful baseball player. What you can lack in physical ability, you have to make up for in mental fortitude. 

Another reason I love baseball is that you don't have to be a world class athlete to be a good player. I know that this is the same reason that some people don't like it, but I love all the "underdogs" that are able to make it big. A couple inches can be the reason why a quarterback isn't even give a shot. How many second baseman are there in the MLB that are 5 '8 and 177 pounds? A lot. Determination and hustle can get you a long ways in the sport of baseball. Not saying that they can't get you a long ways in other sports, because obviously they can- but they are even more prevalent in baseball. 

Just look at Dustin Pedroia. He only received one scholarship out of high school. He was told that he was too small and not strong enough. Even the college that did take him, Arizona State, wasn't sure if he would be able to play at that high level. However, they heard about his work ethic and his tough nosed attitude. Now he is one of the best second basemen that plays in the Major Leagues. It makes you wonder how many of these other athletes there are in other sports that are never given a chance. There are many more chances given to baseball players simply because they have much more expansive minor league systems than in other sports. 

Baseball: American as apple pie.

The Start....

When I started this year, I had the idea that I was going to start a blog of a first year teacher. Well....it is now April 11....and this is my first post. I guess that Rome wasn't built in a day....

Thanks to a great presenter at a 1:1 meeting, I decided that it was about time that I actually begin this "journey". I often read blogs (mostly Cubs related) and have always wanted to have my own. What I have always wondered is how people come up with the ideas for them. I am hoping that I am not going to be one of those bloggers that dies out after only a week or two...

My original idea was to post a blog every day or two about the sorrows and joys of being a first year teacher. Since I have missed the last nine months or so, I am going to try and pack all of these highs and lows into a succinct post. This should be interesting....

I should start with the basics. I am 23 years old, a first year teacher, former college baseball player, middle school English teacher, book nerd, Cubs and Packers fanatic, and teaching in the school district that I graduated from. Baseball is a huge passion of mine- it has been ridiculously difficult to not be around college baseball this year. One of the difficult things about going back to the school that you grew up in, is that people often don't realize that people have changed/grown up. Lots of people still felt like I was the same 17 year old that I was when I graduated from high school- this could be both good and bad! It also takes some time to adjust to teaching next to someone that was your old teacher!

The school district that I teach in is going 1:1 Apple MacBook Air computers next year, and the 6th graders were the "pilot" group for this. I teach both 6th and 7th grade English- so all 6th graders having a computer and the 7th not was quite a difference! Next year, all students from grades 6-12 will have a computer. Being a first year teacher comes with its own share of headaches. Then you throw in being a pilot group for a 1:1 school and it can become a little overwhelming. Then throw in coaching football, basketball and baseball.... It is safe to say that there were many times that I was in WAY over my head this year. Luckily for me, I teach with an amazing group of people who were always there to help me out. If nothing else, they were an ear for my voice to land on.

At the start of the year, I thought that I was semi-tech savvy. Wow, was I wrong. There are so many things that I had no clue about and have to be helped by students and staff. We have a wonderful Tech Director that is always willing to come in and help teach students things that are above my ability level. Looking back at the year, I did a very poor job of using the technology as well as I could have. I already see many different ways that I can integrate much more efficiently next year. I really like the idea of having some sort of a semi-flipped classroom.  I think that this would really lend itself well to English. Being able to be with students as they are trying to craft a paper or assignment would be awesome. I am not sure exactly how it would look- but that is something that I really want to look into this summer.

The technology was very overwhelming at times- and that was on top of trying to figure out the "ins and outs" of having your own classroom. Student teaching is a great time to try and learn things about your teaching style, but even there, you are not really learning what YOUR style is. I found myself shifting towards the teacher that I was with- rather than "my own way".  Trying to figure out all the small things that go into a classroom was something that proved to be much more difficult than I first thought that it might have been. There are so many small decisions that either make your classroom a good learning environment or not. I am not quite there yet, but I feel as though I am headed in the right direction.

Coaching has made for some very late nights this year. I think that I should have invested in Mountain Dew stock. That could have been a nice addition to my retirement portfolio. Coaching may have added many hours onto the day, but the stress relief was undeniable. It was nice to be able to leave the day behind and walk out to the football field or down the high school gym and just forget about the day for a couple of hours. Then, when it was time to do school work, my mind was refreshed and ready to get back to work again.

I feel as though it is very important for middle school boys to have positive male role models in their life. Many students are lacking these in their life- I hope that I can fill that void for a couple of hours a day. It may not make a huge difference, but I hope that it can make some sort of an impact. I am lucky enough to have a job that I truly love coming to. I get to wake up each morning excited to come to work. That is something that very few people are able to say. I still have many, many things to learn over the rest of my career, but I am very excited to keep learning and finding new ways to improve my teaching/coaching (I can take all the help that I can get!).

Hopefully you will join me in this journey! I always appreciate any feedback that I get!