The World Record in *MY* Book Goes To…

Davy and Daryl Vogel.  Who are they you ask?  Well, they are two young boys who have done something that most of us would faint away just thinking about it: they rode from the northern edge of Alaska to the southern tip of Argentina on the Pan-American Highway.  They are the youngest people EVER to achieve such an accomplishment.  And they did it on bikes.

Yes, bicycles.  You can read about their journey here.  It is an amazing feat that should be recognized by the world at large.  Except that the people who bring those records to the world, Guinness World Records, are now refusing to recognize the incredible accomplishment because the people there have now said that they boys are “too young”.

Huh?  THAT WAS THE POINT!  Now, as their mom has explained– and I can see the point to a certain extent– the people at Guinness didn’t want to be responsible for young children doing stupid things.  But that was so far from the point here that it has no meaning.

If the boys’ parents, John and Nancy, had dropped them off in Alaska and said, “Okay!  We’ll meet you down there in about three years.”  Then yes, I would agree with Guinness’ sentiment.  That wasn’t what happened, however.  The trip was meticulously planned and carefully monitored by the WHOLE family.  They all went.  (And I’m STILL getting tired just thinking about it!)  The boys embarked on a once-in-a-lifetime journey that has enriched their lives and education.  Can you imagine not only teaching your kids about the world and its many rich cultures, but also showing it to them?

Well, I don’t think that’s fair to them.  Not one bit.

So here I challenge you.  Tell people.  Link to this blog.  Look at their website and blog posts about their journey– the boys did their own entries as well– and write something on your own blog.  Tweet about it.  Leave messages on their blog and Twitter feed (@familyonbikes).  If my friends tell their friends, and they pass it onward, there’s no reason that the world won’t know about this amazing adventure.

Davy and Daryl?  Regardless of what Guinness says, YOU ARE the record holders in my eyes and in every way possible.  I am so incredibly proud of your accomplishment.   Thank you for sharing your journey with us!

 

Editing to add Nancy’s Blog Post about the denial as well.

It’s been a while, so I have something to share…

My cousin linked a fantastic video on Facebook.  It’s something that I think ANYONE who has ever questioned what a teacher does– and is worth– should view.

Go ahead, watch.  I’ll wait.

Done?  Good.  I commented on the article after reading a few other comments (which I shouldn’t do, because they make my blood boil, as you will see), and instead of having you scroll down and play “Where’s Waldo”, I’ll copy my comment here because I kind of like the rant I went on!

Read on:

TO THIS DAY I remember my kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Bartko. (By the way, I’m now nearly 38 years old…) My grandmother taught for 35 years, and then another TEN as a substitute. I now proudly follow in her footsteps, although I teach in a very different world today than she did with her 7th and 8th graders.

To the… *charming* people who suggest that teachers whine, that they don’t deserve respect because they “don’t work a real job” (choking on that one, by the way), and especially to the one poster who suggested that we don’t complain because we seem to *always* “work in a nice building with all the comforts not like a carpenter or a police officer”, I challenge you to PROVE your generality. Step into the high school in my district where I get a headache every day because the building is old and not ventilated well enough to completely rid of the musty smell or the mold after it rains for more than a day. (Because of budget cuts, the proposed improvements to the school had to be prioritized and reconstruction is too expensive at this time…) Or, deal with the students who bring weapons to school because they fear the gangs in the area and know no other way to protect themselves. (Because even in our comfortable and nice buildings, they STILL don’t feel safe…) And deal with angry parents who sound JUST LIKE YOU on occasion yell at me when their child takes home a poor grade– to which I then have to explain, “He/She never turned in any assignments. I have tried contacting you five times since the beginning of the semester to set up a meeting, but was unable to reach you…” (By the way, that’s the polite version of the conversation and NOT the one I would like to have…)

This rant is SPOT on. Because in spite of all my “whining”, as some of you put it, I STILL DO MY JOB. I still plan innovative and intriguing lesson plans that inspire and keep 35 students engaged and focused for 50 minutes at a time. And not ONE of those students learn in the same way as the other. I have to make sure that my “easily planned lessons” (laughing here…) reach EACH AND EVERY child in my room, from the ones who just don’t care about school to the ones who care too much. Do you have any idea how challenging that is???

Summers off? (more laughing here…) Do you realize that to stay certified, teachers are REQUIRED to keep taking classes? Our license to teach (yes, license– just like a carpenter, Mr. Frank…) does not go on indefinitely just because we graduate college. It must be renewed every 6 to 8 years, depending where you teach, and that renewal is dependent on taking *more* classes to prove that you are still bettering yourself as an educator.

And I don’t know about you, but my days off are normally spent around my job. I plan some more. I search for materials. I take trips where I take pictures and notes and relate them to what I am teaching in my class. During the summer, I continue to work on my 2nd Masters (if I have the tuition for it…).

In spite of all of the potential drawbacks (and I do NOT make a 6 figure salary… I barely make 5 it feels like!) I LOVE MY JOB. Because I like to be challenged on a daily basis. I LOVE to see the light come on in a child’s eyes when they finally “get” something they’ve been struggling to understand. I LOVE it when five years later, I run into a former student and they STILL remember my name– and that crazy project I made them do (which they still have at home). I LOVE spending my days learning new ways to reach the kids in my care.

I’m not only a teacher, I’m a nurse, a counselor, a parent, a study guide, and– on occasion– a friend, to ANY of my students (or any student *period*) who my need it.

And I don’t complain about my job. I just complain about the people who have the AUDACITY to question me for doing it.

Okay. Inspiration Time.

And I’ve needed A LOT of it lately. So here it is for me: I want to take an educational topic per week and write about it here. But, I want to know what all of *you* want to know about. Do you want to hear about testing? Do you want to hear about studying strategies? Do you want to hear about adult or continuing education? Want to hear my opinion on NCLB? Want me to shut up? What? Leave your ideas in the comments and pass the word along! Most of you who know me are GREAT at spreading rumors the word, so go do that!  Inquiring minds want to know!

Bullying is NEVER acceptable.

As a teacher, the heartbreaking story of Phoebe Prince hits me hard. As a victim of bullying once upon a time, her story strikes a nerve in me that I still carry to this day. Phoebe’s story is– sadly– not an isolated incident in our educational system these days. Several students have turned to suicide as a way to escape the constant mental and physical struggle of being bullied and harassed on a near daily basis in our country’s schools.

I cannot express enough how I feel Phoebe was failed from nearly every turn during this time in her all-too-short life. Failed by her peers, failed by her teachers, failed by the administration of her school, and failed in general by a public who writes bullying off as a “boys/girls will be boys/girls” thing. It. Is. Not. There should never be an instant where a child (or adult, for that matter) should be made to feel that they are less than what or who they are.  The school officials are saying they did all they could with the information they had. I don’t agree. They are saying they were not aware of the extent of how serious the situation was with Phoebe until a week before her death. Maybe.

Bullying is more– WAY more– than just name calling.  It is abuse, pure and simple.  Sometimes it’s mental, and often it’s physical.  And the sad thing is children don’t realize most of the time that they are committing that abuse, at least not in the strictest definition of the word.  Do they know they are being “mean”?  Yes, I believe they do.  Do they realize the full and potential consequences their actions may cause?  My answer would be: for the majority of the time, no.  Children often have a very limited sense of future consequences beyond the immediate of what happens to them.  Let me be clear here though, I am not condoning nor justifying their actions nor the actions of the students in Phoebe’s situation.  They need to have serious consequences for their actions because they both directly and indirectly set in motion the events that led Phoebe to take her own life.

But I am saying that it could have been prevented.  Bullying is a learned behavior.  It is not just something that happens out of nowhere.  Bullying can be learned from peers, from parents, from the community, or even from experience.  The thing about a learned behavior?  It can be unlearned.  Or, more succinctly, it can be re-taught and formed into something positive rather than destructive and negative.

The first thing you need to do?  Take it seriously.  VERY seriously.

With young children, bullying in its early form is often known by another word- tattling.  But with name calling, or the ego-centric “me” culture of young children where they push and shove their way through the classroom and playground because it is– in their minds– all about them, there is still the potential for those seeds of bullying to be planted and cultivated.  Take it seriously.  Address it.  Children learn this behavior, remember?  And if they learn they can get away with it, they will push those boundaries again, I guarantee it.  Talk to both children, but remember they are learning.  They will take their cue from you.  If you get angry and affronted and make the name-calling child feel bad, that is not going to help.  If you simply say, “Don’t do that again”, there is no solution.  And then you have the child being affected feel like he or she was not taken seriously.  You don’t want them to learn at this age that they shouldn’t go to an adult for help because they won’t really get any.  Again, this will not help.  In fact, I can almost promise both responses will hurt the situation.

Get on their level, literally.  Crouch down, take both of their hands and talk.  Calmly.  Have them explain to each other why they said what they said and reacted the way they did.  Have them come up with a plan to keep it from happening again.  Follow up.  Don’t assume (especially with young children, actually, even with older children for that matter!) that what you said and what they said sank in.  Talk to them again.  Ask them to remind you what they agreed to do.  And guess what?  Follow up again.  The next day.  A few days after that.  One, this lets them know that you are watching and taking this very seriously.  And two– they LEARN more every time you do.

With older children, the above still applies, with possibly the exception of the hand holding.  That connection that younger children need to form should be there when the children are older.  The big difference here is their world should have a little more of a morality-centered tilt to it.  They know right  from wrong.  They know good from bad.  Most of the children I have personally dealt with at this age have had one of three things happen that pre-date their bullying attempts: one- they were bullied themselves and are looking to establish some power and control over their lives.  Two- they are experiencing something in their lives that has left them feeling helpless and out of control and they are looking for a way to (in their minds) reestablish that control in their lives.  Three- they are bowing to peer pressure and feel like the only way they can maintain some of their own control over that situation is to redirect that pressure onto someone else.  All three things have one word in common: control.

Control is a powerful motivator for bullies.  Hell, it’s a powerful motivator for just about everyone in the world.  No one wants to feel like they or their lives are out of control.  It’s a sinking feeling that can leave a person feeling helpless, worthless, numb, depressed and anxious.  And it’s easier to go for the “quick fix” rather than find a way to directly address the issues that are causing those negative feelings.  It falls into the mind set of “I’m-having-a-bad-day-so-you’re-going-to-have-one-now-too”.  Misery loves company, right?  Not exactly, but Misery does love feeling better when someone feels worse than they do.

So what else can we do?  Help these students find a constructive and positive way to get that control without hurting others.  Let me be honest: this is not easy by any stretch of the imagination.  It requires time and effort on your part and on the parts of those who you are counting on to back you up.  This is where most intervention honestly fails in my experience.  It becomes a case of, “Again?”  But, yes, that word “again” is often a close relative of bullying.  If a bully gets away with it once, they will try and get away with it twice.  And three times, four… and so on.  See the pattern there?  Every time it happens, it needs to be addressed.  And not with just a consequence.  All of the children involved in a bullying incident need new strategies to deal with these situations because the “norm” is not working.  They need alternatives.  They need you to point and guide them in the right direction.  They are learning, remember?  You need to teach them in order for that positive learning process to happen.

And, as with the younger children: FOLLOW UP.  Don’t assume they got it.  Talk to them.  Ask them if what they have done.  Have they made changes?  Have they worked?  If they didn’t work, why do they think so?  What do they think they can do to make it work?  A lot of the conversations that follow up after a bullying incident need to be child/student centered.  We are the facilitators, they are the ones who have to act on it.  If they don’t have any stake in the process, more than likely they won’t care a bit about the outcome.  Then you’re back at square one.

Finally, address EVERYONE, not just the bullies or the victims.  Come up with a process that all of the students can take part in and take pride in.  Make them a part of the process in fixing it.  They will be more likely to intervene if they know what they are looking for, and what they can stand up for.  They are learning too.  I’ve taken entire lesson plans and scrapped them on a moments notice to address issues like this in my class.  I tell them about how I was bullied in 7th grade and still remember that even now– 25 years later.  Most of them are shocked.  They need to learn that these experiences are not something that just “go away”.  They stick with you.  For a very long time.

I had one student ask if I thought I would always remember that and I answered honestly- yes.  Luckily for me, I never became the bully.  I had friends that stuck up for me.  I had teachers that supported me.  I had (and have) a wonderful family that made (and makes) me feel loved and wanted.  Two of the bottom lines here, are that bullying is something that can be addressed, and can then be prevented.  It is sadly too late for Phoebe, or for Carl Walker, or for Megan Meier.  But it absolutely does NOT have to be too late for anyone else.

Still Teaching at 90.

This is Beth Vinton.

She taught for over 30 years at a junior high school helping children learn about her passion: Geography. She taught through some of the most difficult times in recent history. She taught through the peaceful times as well. She taught her family at various points in time.

She taught me, even though I never set foot in her classroom. And that’s not just because I am a teacher now too. My first steps into the Geography class in Jr. High were under the tutelage of one of her former student teachers. I also was taught on many (if not all) of the family trips we took together. I have many of her classroom resources in storage for use.

Beth Vinton turned 90 on July 15, 2009. Vibrant, full of life and stories she weathered a surprise birthday party a few days later with grace, humility, and smiles. She still taught us all that day that 90 is just a number– as any of the probably 50 people there that day would affirm.

Sadly, Beth Vinton passed away on September 8, 2009. But, as was pointed out by the pastor at her beautiful service, she will continue to teach us all every day.

Thank you Nana for your inspiration to me and all those who knew you. I hope I do your inspiration to me justice and my students remember me as yours did you.

Discipline Outside of the Classroom

So right now I’m working at a summer program. Our kids have varying needs and sometimes those needs override the common sense I know they all have in them. When that common sense is thrown out the window, things go wrong. This is even more prevalent in a social setting outside the classroom atmosphere. Make that social setting a fun place (we’re currently at a moon-bounce place), and the threat of common sense loss quadruples within the first ten minutes.

A multitude of things can happen including back-talk and disrespect to bullying and fights. Today it led to a physical fight. Normally with verbal arguments I’ll have the two children separately tell me their sides and try to guide them to solving the problem more on their own than letting me tell them what to do. A time-out does follow (the child should sit for no longer than their age- i.e.: 5 years = 5 minutes, 10 years = 10 minutes, etc) and they’re asked to reflect on the conversation. Then they need to verbalize their agreement to each other and to me before they go back to playing. With most children a fight can happen, be over, and forgotten in a relatively short time. The point is, you really have to know your children to know what works best for them as far as discipline goes.

With physical fights it’s very different, especially with the children in my care right now. When dealing with children who have emotional and anger issues to begin with, physical altercations are even more important to deal with and take seriously. The two children explained their sides and have lost their privileges for the remaining time we’re here.

It may seem harsh, but when these children start down the road where their anger leads to a fight, it’s hard for them to pull it back to a place where they can function normally.

This is even more important when out in public. So many of these kids see fights every day– at home, in their neighborhood, at school, and it’s hard for them to be their own person and decide: “That’s not going to be me.” Especially when they don’t see the consequences of those altercations. When it happens to them in their own safety zone and they see the results that affect them, it tends to be learned on a more personal level. They’re still learning that their actions have consequences, both good and bad.

It’s hard to discipline children in a fun place. The puppy dog looks, the long sighs, the constant requests for, “How much longer?” can make it very difficult, but in the long run it is even more important to stick with the consequence that you originally gave them. Changing your mind is a dangerous thing to do with any child, because they think they can get away with it any time.

Children are resilient, they will forgive you.

Words of Inspiration

Today’s post comes with a message.  A strong one.  It’s about inspiration.  Whether you have a kid who is a terrific student or an indifferent one, they can all use inspiration.  For many, it’s the first step towards motivation.  And without either, you will have a child who is lost: in school, maybe in life.

Right now I’m working at a summer camp with at-risk children.  They all have social, emotional, and medical needs.  They are children who go through life with nothing, or close to it.  Many have issues with controlling anger, fighting depression, and troubled childhoods filled with just about every disadvantage  you can imagine– and probably some that you can’t.   We are making this summer as fun-filled as therapeutic for them.  And I believe we are succeeding– with inspiration that leads to motivation.

As a teacher, I have many resources at my disposal.  One of my favorite things to use around the classroom are posters.  In our halls here, we have several posters with words of wisdom.  I’d like to share those with you, because I believe in their power.

“You won’t be rewarded for having brains, but using them.”

“Self control is knowing you can, but deciding you won’t.”

“Character: it’s how you live life…

…when no one is looking.”

Top 10 Steps to Success:

1. Try

2. Try again

3. Try once more

4. Try it a little differently

5. Try it again tomorrow

6. Try and ask for help

7. Try and find someone who’s done it before

8. Try to determine what isn’t working

9. Try to determine what is working

10. Just keep trying

You’ve Decided to Teach! Now What?

I should have known from an early age that I would be a teacher.  I used to steal one of my mother’s tray tables, some paper, pencils, pens, and folders and then square them away in my room with my favorite rocking chair.  Next I would grab my ‘teaching outfit’, one of my favorite blazers and skirts, and settle in to teach my stuffed animals the virtues of reading, writing, and ‘rithmatic.  I would give them grades, read stories, and generally pretend to be a lot smarter than I was at the time.  I was six and I definitely had my own view of the world.

My grandmother was a teacher.  Several of my cousins are/were teachers.  It’s in the DNA.  But it took me a long time to realize that it was truly what I was meant to do.  I graduated from college with my first degree– Spanish for International Trade– back in May of ’96.  I was intent then at taking the marketing world by storm!  Except I couldn’t find a job that fit what I wanted to do.

Then came ‘the moment’.  A freak offer at a lunch one afternoon that I almost didn’t go to.  I had just quit my ‘job’ (and I use the term very losely!) as a telemarketer because I absolutely hated what I was doing, even if I was good at it.  Somehow during the course of conversation that afternoon, I brought up the idea of babysitting again.  One of the ladies that came with my mom’s friend about bounced out of her chair.  “I run a daycare center, would you be interested in teaching?”

After working there for a year and falling in love with my preschoolers, I went back to school in 1999 and completed my student teaching in 2001.  But, I still put off actually going after that classroom that I so desperately wanted.  Until last summer.  September of 2008, I stepped into my first real shoes as a teacher here on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.  And I loved every minute of that day– even if it was three potentially terrifying classes of 5th graders!  So now, here I am, almost one year later, waiting to hear if I’ll get a classroom of my very own this fall.

I have my paper, pencils, pens, and folders all ready to go.  I even have my ‘teaching outfit’ ready for that day.  I’m ready.  I just hope the kids are too.

So what about you?  If you’ve decided to teach, what is your ‘Now what?’

“I touch the future. I teach.”

A great quote from an equally great and brave teacher: Christa McAuliffe. The thing is, even though her life tragically ended when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded on January 28, 1986, she was still right. She still does touch the future.

I certainly remember her to this day, 23 years later. Even though she never taught a class to me, I still learned from her. I learned that bravery is earned, not given. I learned that every thing I do as a teacher matters. I learned that even in tragedy, hope can be found.

This blog isn’t only about sentimental moments in teaching, although there are plenty of those I hope to share. It’s about how we are all learners just as we are all teachers. It’s about getting the most out of the resources around you. It’s about reaching the child, not just teaching to the test.

I am a firm believer that anyone can learn at any time in their lives. We may not all learn at the same rate or in the same way, but we do learn. You may think that just because you don’t work in a school and create lessons that you aren’t a teacher.

Wrong.

We all teach, we all learn. Kids minds are like sponges just waiting to be filled with knowledge. They may not like ‘school’, but I guarantee you they like learning. You don’t agree? Well, then I guess they’ll never learn to ride a bike or drive a car. I guess they’ll never learn to help cook or wash their own clothes when they grow up. I guess they’ll never learn to play nicely with others.

These are all teachable moments. You may not know the physics behind why a person can balance on two wheels while propelling themselves forward, but tell me you didn’t experience that moment of *YES!* pride when they started peddling on their own.

Kids, more often than not, love to help their parents. Especially when they’re younger. Give them those teachable moments. Teach them how to measure ingredients. Teach them it’s okay to get messy and make mistakes. Teach them how each ingredient might not taste so good on its own, but when put together it makes a meal. Teach them that helping out can be fun and not just a chore.

With the utmost of respect to Christa, I would like to amend her quote just a little:

We all touch the future. We teach.