Find the Good

My list today was long.  My two kids had the joy of tagging along.  We needed to get some more shopping done.  We approached the escalator to go upstairs to buy my son some dress shoes.  I had forgotten about his fear of escalators.  As we approached, he became more and more nervous.  I calmly said let’s get on the escalator.  He backed away and avoided it.  My hands were full of our earlier shopping and we were all tired.  As we moved to the escalator, he had a death grip on me. (Actually, more of a bear hug that I had to carry him)  When we step on, I think my younger one is following behind me.   She flinched and did not get on.  I am now going up an escalator holding a 7 year old and bags of shopping begging for Little Bit to get on.  Luckily, another mother was watching this occur and swooped in and got Little Bit onto the escalator.  We all made it to the top.  She calmly told me that her daughter too was once afraid of escalators.

I tell this story now because of all of the challenges we are facing.  If you listen to the News, you hear the hurt and pain that is occurring around the world. I wanted to shine the light on something that would never be carried on the News (even on a slow day).  Someone stepped out of there comfort zone to help.  Originally my post was going to be about creating a school environment that allows students and teacher to step up when it would be easier to ignore, but as I mowed the lawn this evening, I thought of all of the other kind things that happened during the shopping trip.  A couple of cashiers searched through the fliers to find a coupon for us.  Another person gave both of my kids samples of the slushie because Little Bit asked for “ice cream” instead of the pretzel I was ordering.   The hairdresser who was patient with Little Man as he said no to blow dryer, clippers and trimmers and still gave him a great cut.

So my dear readers I challenge you to find the good in others.  Once you start to look around, you will be amazed how kind and wonderful we humans really are.

My Blurbs

This blog post is inspired by a conversation I had with Liz in which she mentioned this post by Four O’clock Faculty.  (Side note: if you don’t read Liz’s blog you should.)

So reflecting on this past school year, here are what I want people to say about me:

• “She always made me feel like I was important.  She listened and reflected on what I said.”
• “I looked forward to seeing Megan because I received the support I needed.  She always made time for me.”
• “She was always quick with a smile and a resource for support.”
• “I am glad that she does tons of listening and asks great questions.”

In the end, I hope people can say that they are better because of me not in spite of me.  I learned so much this school year and I can say that I am better because of the people around me who taught me so much.

Thanks Liz for the encouragement.  So what do you want people to say about you at the end of next school year and what are you going to do to make that happen?

#ISTE at school

I am glad to say that my second visit to ISTE was successful.  My district made a commitment to send about 85 people.  These teachers and educators were inspired and joyful.  They collaborated with each other, joined Twitter and did so much more.  I asked a couple of teachers could this/would this happen in our district at an inservice day.  The answer I received is a resounding “NO.”

Here’s why I think ISTE worked:

1. Choice-Teachers chose to come and chose the sessions they attended.
2. Reduced Pressure-During this time, teachers did not have to think of about the adult day to day things (ie grocery shopping, laundry, and many other fun chores)  and the work of running a classroom as well.
3. New Voices-Teachers also collaborated with teachers from other districts as well as other countries.

My goal over the next year is to help create this ISTE environment for teachers.  I will work to provide choice, reduce some pressures (No, I won’t do your laundry), and bring new voices to the table.