Try Something New!

I recently read Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull.  I had intended to read the book with my School Goggles on--trying to think about how the culture of Pixar could be a model for culture in schools.  In the first two-thirds of the book, I felt a bit discouraged.  However, as I continued to read, determined to glean some nuggets of wisdom, I found more and more of the information on the day-to-day operations--and the merger with Disney--in the last third of the book to be most helpful.  Catmull even closes the book with a list of handy bullet points (nuggets of wisdom) that are meant to be a guide and review of the most important tenets of life at Pixar. 

While I have much to reflect on from those (and will--in a later post), right now I want to focus on Catmull's point about failure:





Inspired by this quote, I got to thinking about the last time I tried something new...I'm a pretty picky eater, and I don't try a lot of new foods.  That idea spiraled into the video below--created on an app I hadn't used much before (Clips for iPad).

Try Something New

I'd love to hear about what you've tried new lately!

New Year's Resolutions

It's mid-February, so it's a good time to check in our New Year's Resolutions.  So far, I'm doing okay.  Here are my 3 main resolutions (this is the wallpaper on my computer, by the way):

Right away in January, I contacted a local non-profit to see how I could help.  I anticipated they'd like me to tutor local students or something like that--something that spoke to my current strengths and profession.  However, I was asked to chair a golf outing.  I said yes, and boy, will it certainly fulfill my goal to volunteer...all year long.  On that note, if you have any recommendations for Silent Auction items--or are willing to donate an item or experience for the Silent Auction, let me know!

To further my meditation practice, I paid for the full access to the Headspace library when it was on sale.  I was doing pretty well with this in January, and I was definitely feeling the benefits.  I've let things slide a bit in February, so it's time to get back at it.

Finally, to get off of my phone, I've taken a few measures to help reduce my attraction to my phone.  They include:

1. reducing the number of notifications I receive

2.  using the Screen Time tracking on my iPhone to help me set goals to reduce my screen time

3.  deleting the twitter app--a major time-suck for me

There are some other great suggestions at these sites:

Distraction-Free Iphone

Configure Your Phone to Work For You--Not Against You

Of course, I wanted to work on the whole get-healthier-exercise-more thing, but those were my top three.  I also wanted to read more.  

I read an article like this: Listen to Audio Books While You Work Out.  It wasn't exactly this article ( I can't find the one I read), but this one addresses the same idea.  

I always thought it was dumb to listen to an audio book while working out.  That wouldn't get me pumped up!  I needed music to really get me going!  But...I thought I'd give it a try, and I was surprised by the results.  I was actually more motivated to get back to listening to the book than I was to get on the treadmill.  But...since I was so intrigued by the book I was listening to, I wanted to listen to it more and more--and made it my habit that I would only listen while I was on the treadmill.  I couldn't believe that that worked!  I even got up early just so I could walk and read!  Yes, at this point, I am only walking and reading.  But walking briskly.  And sometimes on an incline!

Elizabeth Graves, Editor in Chief of Martha Stewart Living magazine, stated this in her Editor's Letter: "I'll focus lesson the things I think I should do, and make more space for what I want to do."  That really struck a chord with me because it helped me think about my treadmill reading in a new way.  I wanted to read.  I knew I should exercise.  This was such a great way to get me to do both.

How are your New Year's Resolutions coming along? I'd love to hear what they are and how you are progressing.

Poetic Lessons

This semester in AP Lit, I tried out Station Rotation for some work with poetry.  In brief, here was the focus at each station:

1.  share notes from previous night's homework (on imagery)

2.  Read My Papa's Waltz.  Make a T chart of positive or negative imagery.  Make determination of Woo Hoo or Boo Hoo for the poem.

3.  Read Those Winter Sundays.  Determine Woo Hoo or Boo Hoo.  Write brief paragraph explaining decision.

4.  Read poems on poetryfoundation.org.  Select a few lines from a poem of your choosing that would be suitable for hanging on a poster in our school.

5.  Read Blackberry Picking.  Then, listen to Seamus Heaney read it.  Annotate the poem to show what you noticed about it based on hearing the poet read his own work.


I wanted to share some of the results of my students' work on #4.  I thought they had great ideas about how to inspire others through poetry (and even gave pointers about where to hang the hypothetical posters!).

Here are some of their selections:

• Books are door shaped portals carrying me across oceans and centuries, helping me feel less alone.  —Margarita Engle

• We need you and your stories and questions that like a fresh path will take us to new vistas.  —Pat Mora

• You had my back.  We fought the fight.  And though our score was less last night, we’re walking tall.  Our team came through and stuck together like crazy glue. I’m proud to say I lost with you. —Sara Holbrook

• The windows of a classroom always open to the future. —Yehuda Amichai

Warm Reads for Cold Winter Days

With the freedom to read what they wanted over Winter Break, my senior AP Lit students hit the stacks.

Here's a sampling of the books they read:

Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology by Leah Remini

Psychopathy of Everyday Life by Freud

River’s End by Nora Roberts

Brain on Fire

Al Franken books

Great Tales of Horror

A Purpose Driven Life

Becoming by Michelle Obama

Kingdom of Ash by Sarah Maas

The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas

Turtles All the Way Down by John Green

Everyday

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

P.S. I Still Love You

Always and Forever, Lara Jean

Blood Oath

Bad Behavior by Mary Gaitskill

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

Hollow City

Library of Souls

Everybody, Always by Bob Goff

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

The Scythe

Talk Like Ted

Emergency Contact

1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

Wizard’s First Rule

Supersystem by Doyle Brunson

The Wrath and the Dawn

Dune

Streets for People

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

If you are looking for a new book, maybe consider one of these.  They come highly recommended.  Happy reading!

The Importance of Play

It's possible that students have always felt the anxiety that is present in our classrooms today, and that we are just noticing (and managing) it more now.  Even so, the number of students who seem or verbally express their anxiety and stress is higher than ever in my classroom.  Some perspective: I primarily teach AP Literature & Honors courses at a high-performing high school.  More and more, I see students struggling with managing their school work, studying, completing applications, etc.  And frankly, their stress leads to my stress.  And I don't like it. 

As an adult, I have the coping mechanisms to manage my own stress.  I recently started meditating, and I LOVE it.  I use the app Headspace (https://www.headspace.com/ ), and it brings me an incredible sense of calm.  I receive no sort of incentives to say this.  I just like it.  And it's on sale now.  I digress.


I know that I need to manage my stress, and so I do.  I find ways to cope.  Whether that's through meditating, getting outside, exercising, focusing on the good in my life, playing a game with my family, or any other means, I make sure to take time for me.  And that's something I don't see my students doing.


I recently read the article "Record Numbers of College Students Are Seeking Treatment for Depression and Anxiety--But Schools Can't Keep Up" by Time Magazine writer Katie Reilly.  Important take-aways from the article:

• the number of students visiting counseling centers has increased by about 30% on average (while enrollment overall increased by less than 6%)
• 40% of college students said that they had felt so depressed in the prior year that it was difficult for them to function
• 61% (SIXTY ONE PERCENT, people!) said that they felt overwhelming anxiety

So, as a high school teacher, how can I help?  There are several things I have tried in my classroom, but the one I will highlight here is: the Importance of Play.

As noted in "Current Health," taking time to play helps relieve stress in a variety of ways:

1.  exercise is good for the body AND  the mind
2.  play usually requires engaging with other people (which is good for you!)
3. "it makes life fun!"

To incorporate play, the last day before Final Exams, I host Stress Busters in our class.  This includes coloring sheets, board games, a physical game (my favorite: Catchoo!), and, of course, food! This year, as a part of my seniors' Senior Bucket List (another great idea to keep them focused on something positive they look forward to), we hosted The Great Litish Bake-Off!  Students brought in treats to Stress Busters, and we voted on Star Bakers!  It should be noted: this was OPTIONAL.  Students were not required to attend (they could go study elsewhere if they wanted), and look how many showed up!  They craved the chance to have a space to relax and enjoy each others' company before the long week ahead.

Here are some photos of our Stress Busters in action:

These groups are playing BananaGrams:

Judging for the Bake-Off:




Here is Catchoo! in action:





Some of our Star Bakers:

Who doesn't love Apples to Apples?

I'd love to hear some of the ways you help your students manage their stress!  Feel free to share in the comments!

Desk Arrangement

Playing with the desk set-up in our classroom brings me joy.  It may bring (some of) my students pain--as they frequently walk into the room with a different set-up.  While, no joking here, this can cause some student anxiety, my intent is not just to play.  My goal is to have the most ideal arrangement for the learning goals of the day.  For example, here you can see that I have the desks grouped for my students' current literature circles:


Students are reading three different novels, so the desks are grouped for those reading assignments. 



Below is a frequent arrangement for us:



Students are frequently grouped into learning teams that are selected based on current student need.  Often, students are permitted to select their own tables to sit at; however, I often group them based on need, assignment, task, skill, etc.

Students may be grouped based on:

• a different reading they are working on
• different aspects of writing
• academic support
• academic enrichment 
• and more!

So, while, at the beginning of the year it may be frustrating for students to see the desk arrangement constantly change, they do get used to it--and sometimes even excited about it.  ("Oooh...what are we doing today?")

Bored on this Snow Day?

This week, our AP Literature class analyzed the poem Bored by Margaret Atwood.

You can view the poem here:

https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/bored/

After analyzing the poem, students produced their own discussion questions and discussed them in self-selected groups. 

Then, we got down to business...




No, not to defeat the Huns...to WRITE OUR OWN POETRY. 

Students were prompted to write their own "Bored" poems, explaining what they have learned from boredom--or what they could learn from boredom. 

Here are a few of their poems:

It is often
one's mind experiences
It's own greatest

when idle, when unoccupied.


Time is slow when bored
I've learned to try new tactics
Creativity


"A Minute of Boredom"
Dew drops, tip tap, tip tap,
glistening on green leaves.
I notice discarded bread eaten by birds,
laughter of a child--and adult?
Sat still, I feel...
Bored?
The drum of daily live
prevents loneliness...boredom?
Sun shining, babies whining, notice through...boredom?
Sat beneath the sun, 
I observe bees on flowers,
trees towering over toddlers,
my hands still...
they have nowhere to be.
Dew drops going tip tap, tip tap, 
still glistening?
But I have been bored for 
only a minute.


"The Art of Boredom"
Boredom is rarely boring.
Driving down a country road
with the windows down
is the freest feeling.
Mind clear, and clear skies.
Boredom is the goal.


"Get Bored"
Did you know?
    Ants can be killed by a parasitic fungi.

Did you know
    If you listen to the Sponge Bob
    Squarepants theme at 1/5th the
    speed, it sounds like a modern masterpiece?

Did you know
    If you look at the thesaurus for 
    synonyms you're bound to find
    a word that rhymes?

Did you know
   If you graph 4cos20+2=z
   you might get a 3D slinky on 
   your 2D computer screen?

Did you know
    if you stopped reading 
    this boring poem and 
    got bored, you could have
    figured this out yourself.



"Boredom"
When I am quite bored
My still idle brain will roar
Memories are stored


"Bored"
Are we there yet?
The flat, desolate prairie stares at me.
Waiting, waiting, waiting.
There't nothing to do.
"Stop fighting your sister."
C'mon. I'm bored, 
I'm hungry, 
I have to go to the bathroom.
"It's only a two hour ride.
You'll be fine."
I'm gonna die of boredom.
"One day you will enjoy your 
rides."
No. I won't.

He was right.


"Boredom"
A sober wake up call
that awaits us all.
The silence, the nothingness
The beauty, the significance
You sit in the darkness reflecting
Holding onto everything,
Stupid, worthless,
Peaceful, perceptiveness
Boredom, destructive downfall
Boredom, a key to all.


So, today, as you relish your Snow Day, think about all that's available to you when you are "bored."  And maybe take some of your classmates' advice.