On my first day of new teacher orientation at my first teaching job, the lawyer who worked for the district gave us a presentation about the legal issues related to teaching.
This was a sobering presentation, but a necessary one.
Being a teacher in our increasingly litigious society presents unique challenges. Like other aspects in life, extreme situations influence our everyday practice. Most of the time wearing a seatbelt is completely unnecessary when you ride in a car, but we wear them all of the time for those rare instances when we get into a car accident.
Most of the time when a teacher hugs a student, it’s a mutual expression of care, but there are the rare instances when a student feels uncomfortable or when the teacher initiates a hug in an inappropriate way. This makes us think twice as teachers when it comes to hugging a student.
I’ve heard teachers mourn the fact that we have to be more careful than they used to around students. I not really sure how to respond to this thought. I never taught in the “good old days.” I grew up hearing about Mary Kay Letourneau and other similar cases. And I came to be a teacher in a time where the trust that our society placed in adults who work with children was called into question.
Is it annoying that I have to be careful around my students? Not for me, because it’s how I’ve always operated as a teacher. I can see how this shift could be annoying for veteran teachers, but so was wearing a seat belt once upon a time. It’s worth it for that one car accident. It may be worth the precautions for that one student who is saved from a traumatic experience that could effect the rest of his or her own life.
I don’t doubt my own judgment, but that’s not what this is all about. This is about how other teachers view my interactions with students and the atmosphere that the choices we make about the boundaries we have with our students create.
I refuse to hug my students. It’s awkward sometimes but I’ve made that call not only because it could make a student uncomfortable but also because I’m not comfortable with that level of physical contact with a student. Does this mean I don’t care about my students or that I don’t develop meaningful teacher-students relationships? No. In the same way that capital punishment is an easy way out to correct a student’s behavior, hugging students can be the easy way out to show affection.
Our practices as a teacher have to reflect societies changes and concerns. Some of these restrictions can be annoying but they also challenge us to be more thoughtful about the relationships we have with students. I'm not any less invested in my students than teachers who taught generations before. I simply express my care in different ways.
Teachers, we need to be careful out there. If you're not sure about the legal boundaries and liabilities related to being a teacher, education yourself. That knowledge will liberate you the same way classroom rules make students feel more comfortable.
Friday, November 30, 2012
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Thunder Road - Part 2: What else can we do now?
Sometimes life answers our prayers in ways that we don’t expect.
Yes, Mary can hide from the world, throw down the gift of roses and push away the boys that have tried to comfort her. She can wait for some figure, some savior to appear. What Mary doesn’t realize is that the person she is looking for is right in front of her.
He knows he’s no hero. The only way he can bring her “redemption,” bring meaning to her sins and her heartache is ride out into the open road, to escape and find freedom.
He can’t offer her the world but he can help her find it. In the simple joy of feeling the wind in her hair, and the possibility of the open road there is liberation. There’s a sense that anything can happen. With uncertainty mixed with excitement, they’ve got one more chance to strip their wings, the angelic visions of their dreams, for the reality of these wheels that can drive them to everything and anywhere. It’s a transformation from the dreams you’ve prayed for to the blessings you’ve never imagined.
The name “Thunder Road,” an allusion to a Robert Mitchum film brings images of romance, the unknown and mystery. Like a “killer in the sun,” a criminal with no where to hide they can make it to this magical place, their own personal promised land, if they run.
What does he really have to offer her? In a moment of childlike excitement he describes his guitar. There’s a sense that he is trying to impress her but then he quickly pulls back. He knows that it truly is a long walk from her front porch to his front seat. He explains that the ride isn’t free because he knows that there are things that he is asking her to sacrifice.
There are words that she longs to hear from him that he can't speak. It’s in this acknowledgement that we realize that this is not the end of a journey but the beginning of one. He will eventually say these words she needs to hear as he promises that he can provide her freedom.
This part of the song is all about the things that we hope for coming true in ways that we never expect. Life doesn’t always have a sense of urgency because it all seems infinite but it’s not.
We need to trade in our illusions, face the possibilities in our life and take whatever path will make our dreams come true.
Yes, Mary can hide from the world, throw down the gift of roses and push away the boys that have tried to comfort her. She can wait for some figure, some savior to appear. What Mary doesn’t realize is that the person she is looking for is right in front of her.
He knows he’s no hero. The only way he can bring her “redemption,” bring meaning to her sins and her heartache is ride out into the open road, to escape and find freedom.
He can’t offer her the world but he can help her find it. In the simple joy of feeling the wind in her hair, and the possibility of the open road there is liberation. There’s a sense that anything can happen. With uncertainty mixed with excitement, they’ve got one more chance to strip their wings, the angelic visions of their dreams, for the reality of these wheels that can drive them to everything and anywhere. It’s a transformation from the dreams you’ve prayed for to the blessings you’ve never imagined.
The name “Thunder Road,” an allusion to a Robert Mitchum film brings images of romance, the unknown and mystery. Like a “killer in the sun,” a criminal with no where to hide they can make it to this magical place, their own personal promised land, if they run.
What does he really have to offer her? In a moment of childlike excitement he describes his guitar. There’s a sense that he is trying to impress her but then he quickly pulls back. He knows that it truly is a long walk from her front porch to his front seat. He explains that the ride isn’t free because he knows that there are things that he is asking her to sacrifice.
There are words that she longs to hear from him that he can't speak. It’s in this acknowledgement that we realize that this is not the end of a journey but the beginning of one. He will eventually say these words she needs to hear as he promises that he can provide her freedom.
This part of the song is all about the things that we hope for coming true in ways that we never expect. Life doesn’t always have a sense of urgency because it all seems infinite but it’s not.
We need to trade in our illusions, face the possibilities in our life and take whatever path will make our dreams come true.
Monday, November 26, 2012
8th Grade Playlist: 6. Dynamite by Taio Cruz
I don’t really like this song.
When one of my 8th graders submitted this song to me as one of his favorites, I groaned a little on the inside. Sometimes when things go “viral,” my reactions is negative. I still have a little of the “when something gets incredibly popular, I don’t want to go with the crowd,” thing in me. ( I didn’t actually watch Titanic until this last fall).
Honestly, I don’t really know this song that well and I don’t know a lot about Taio Cruz beyond what’s in his Wikipedia. As I listened to this song repeatedly on the way to work, I just didn’t find something in this song that I found that interesting. And then I watched this:
. . .and it reminded a lot of this:
I’m not saying that “Hungry Hearts,” is comparable to “Dynamite” on a musical level. They are very different songs, but both of them have inspired something similar, something truly amazing about music.
When you have an entire stadium full of people singing a song with complete joy, something is right about the music, something is really working. There’s objective arguments that one can make about the quality of a song but that’s not really relevant when you look at the way a whole crowd enjoys a song.
“Dynamite” is hooking into the singular theme that is present throughout all rock music: liberation. Rock and American pop music continues to inspire people through almost six decades, and each generation has different ways to express this idea feeling of liberation. For Taio Cruz, its going to a club and dancing, which really isn’t all that different than what the Beatles were singing about in “Twist and Shout.”
“Dynamite” doesn’t connect with me, but that doesn’t mean it’s not important, significant and meaningful to other people. It’s hard sometimes when you look at another generation’s music to make sense of it, but that’s okay. It doesn’t have to “work” for you. In the same way that younger people don’t get the music I love, I’m not going to love all of the music my students bring to me. What’s important is not that we convince each other of the quality of the music we like but rather what the music means to us. That’s where we find common ground.
The love of music is a beautiful thing. If you really love music, then rejoice in people’s love of music, even if that love is directed towards a song you don't like. This is something we should all celebrate as we live our lives, and if you are of a certain age, while singing “A-Yo.”
When one of my 8th graders submitted this song to me as one of his favorites, I groaned a little on the inside. Sometimes when things go “viral,” my reactions is negative. I still have a little of the “when something gets incredibly popular, I don’t want to go with the crowd,” thing in me. ( I didn’t actually watch Titanic until this last fall).
Honestly, I don’t really know this song that well and I don’t know a lot about Taio Cruz beyond what’s in his Wikipedia. As I listened to this song repeatedly on the way to work, I just didn’t find something in this song that I found that interesting. And then I watched this:
. . .and it reminded a lot of this:
I’m not saying that “Hungry Hearts,” is comparable to “Dynamite” on a musical level. They are very different songs, but both of them have inspired something similar, something truly amazing about music.
When you have an entire stadium full of people singing a song with complete joy, something is right about the music, something is really working. There’s objective arguments that one can make about the quality of a song but that’s not really relevant when you look at the way a whole crowd enjoys a song.
“Dynamite” is hooking into the singular theme that is present throughout all rock music: liberation. Rock and American pop music continues to inspire people through almost six decades, and each generation has different ways to express this idea feeling of liberation. For Taio Cruz, its going to a club and dancing, which really isn’t all that different than what the Beatles were singing about in “Twist and Shout.”
“Dynamite” doesn’t connect with me, but that doesn’t mean it’s not important, significant and meaningful to other people. It’s hard sometimes when you look at another generation’s music to make sense of it, but that’s okay. It doesn’t have to “work” for you. In the same way that younger people don’t get the music I love, I’m not going to love all of the music my students bring to me. What’s important is not that we convince each other of the quality of the music we like but rather what the music means to us. That’s where we find common ground.
The love of music is a beautiful thing. If you really love music, then rejoice in people’s love of music, even if that love is directed towards a song you don't like. This is something we should all celebrate as we live our lives, and if you are of a certain age, while singing “A-Yo.”
Friday, November 23, 2012
Year 3: Week 11 - Teacher Marathon
Most of the time I’m a teacher from 7am-4pm. Sometimes when there’s a concert, my day can last longer like from 7am-9pm. The longer days are tiring but they don’t happen very often so it’s not a big deal.
The times when I’m a teacher I have to be more careful about what I say and what I do. When I’m at school I’m constantly watching to see what kids are up to so I can jump in if an issue comes up. So even when I’m not “teaching,” I still “on” and I have a responsibility to be a role model and take care of students in my school.
A couple weeks ago we took our fifth graders on an outdoor education retreat. We brought about 55 kids and 13 adults on a three-night/four-day adventure. This is a great trip that allow us to work with kids outside of the context of the school and challenge them with unique and meaningful activities. Instead of sitting back and letting the staff at this place take control, we take an active role in the teaching and lead most of the activities.
Teaching students, eating with them and sharing a cabin with them at night, meant that I was a teacher from 7am-midnight. Even when I was sleeping, I still had responsibilities, if a kid needed anything in the middle of the night.
Needless to say, this was exhausting.
It’s kind of like a “teacher-marathon.” The sleep deprivation and the depletion of patience places teachers is a challenging place. This is the kind of situation that separates the amateurs from the pros. Either you go crazy and say something to a student that you will later regret or you figure out ways to deal.
For example, after spending a night with the six boys in my sleep group, eating breakfast at a table of all girls is refreshing. Making jokes about situations with other teachers helps a lot and there’s nothing like a mini-rant to let off some steam. Then there’s simply balling up your jacket placing it on a table and burying your face in it (screaming is optional).
The thing is that it is totally worth it. The kind of experiences that we provide for our kids at this trip are profound. It takes so much out of the teachers but the kids get more than we will ever know out of our efforts. How do I know this? Well, the same way that I know I'm making a different every day as at teacher: faith.
So go on a retreat or a lock-in or some kind of situation when you have to spend long periods of time as a teacher. While I am glad that there is only one of these trips a year, I'm looking forward to next year's trip and running this marathon again.
The times when I’m a teacher I have to be more careful about what I say and what I do. When I’m at school I’m constantly watching to see what kids are up to so I can jump in if an issue comes up. So even when I’m not “teaching,” I still “on” and I have a responsibility to be a role model and take care of students in my school.
A couple weeks ago we took our fifth graders on an outdoor education retreat. We brought about 55 kids and 13 adults on a three-night/four-day adventure. This is a great trip that allow us to work with kids outside of the context of the school and challenge them with unique and meaningful activities. Instead of sitting back and letting the staff at this place take control, we take an active role in the teaching and lead most of the activities.
Teaching students, eating with them and sharing a cabin with them at night, meant that I was a teacher from 7am-midnight. Even when I was sleeping, I still had responsibilities, if a kid needed anything in the middle of the night.
Needless to say, this was exhausting.
It’s kind of like a “teacher-marathon.” The sleep deprivation and the depletion of patience places teachers is a challenging place. This is the kind of situation that separates the amateurs from the pros. Either you go crazy and say something to a student that you will later regret or you figure out ways to deal.
For example, after spending a night with the six boys in my sleep group, eating breakfast at a table of all girls is refreshing. Making jokes about situations with other teachers helps a lot and there’s nothing like a mini-rant to let off some steam. Then there’s simply balling up your jacket placing it on a table and burying your face in it (screaming is optional).
The thing is that it is totally worth it. The kind of experiences that we provide for our kids at this trip are profound. It takes so much out of the teachers but the kids get more than we will ever know out of our efforts. How do I know this? Well, the same way that I know I'm making a different every day as at teacher: faith.
So go on a retreat or a lock-in or some kind of situation when you have to spend long periods of time as a teacher. While I am glad that there is only one of these trips a year, I'm looking forward to next year's trip and running this marathon again.
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Thunder Road - Part 1: Magic In The Night
To celebrate my 300th post on this blog I presented “Thunder Road” by Bruce Springsteen. I felt that post did this song justice embracing all of what this song meant to me by letting the song speak for itself.
Lately I’ve felt myself drawn to this song. It’s like I need this song in my life right now. Maybe it’s my grandmother dying, becoming comfortable being thirty, or the other changes in my life. I’m not sure. But I’m finding what I’m searching for in my life in this song now more than ever.
I have hesitated to write about this song because it so magical and I fear that I lack the skills to really articulate everything that this song is about. It’s time to not be afraid and to look deep within this song. To know what a song is about is to know what it means and it is within this meaning that we find ourselves.
It starts with an invitation, a guitar and piano ascending carefully, dancing and flowing in and out of each other. “Thunder Road’s” introduction is one of the most famous album openings. As the first track on Springsteen’s pivotal album Born To Run, “Thunder Road” was the entry point into a universe of characters that would encapsulate everything that is rock music.
With each line Springsteen paints a vivid picture. The sound of a screen door, the waving of a vision of grace as Mary comes into our world. Originally, this girl was Angelina and then Christina but in the end Springsteen settled on Mary. This name brings forth images of the innocent virgin carrying an unimaginable burden to the mother watching her only son suffer. These visions mix together with a girl standing nervously facing the road ahead.
One of the ways that you know that you are in love is when love songs begin to make sense. As our unnamed protagonist identifies with Orbison’s song for the lonely we know there is something immediate and powerful about his feelings. He begs for her not to leave him because he “can’t face myself alone again.” She’s turned him home and he’s tried to imagine his life without her that he can’t.
She has doubts. Maybe she’s not that young girl, the idea woman. He begs her to have faith and believe in him. When he says that she “ain’t a beauty,” he isn't saying that he doesn’t think she’s pretty. Instead he’s embracing what she is, not the woman she wishes she could be.
The song starts by setting a scene and switches perspectives through Orbison’s song to this man speaking to a girl. These words reveal a vulnerability and a passion. He’s trying to convince her to come with him because there is something that she brings to the way he sees himself that he can’t live without. Also, he believes there is something that he can give her that no one else can.
In the opening of "Thunder Road," our main character embraces everything that this girl is, her doubts and her fears because he has faith. He knows that there is something there between them and that there is magic in the night.
Lately I’ve felt myself drawn to this song. It’s like I need this song in my life right now. Maybe it’s my grandmother dying, becoming comfortable being thirty, or the other changes in my life. I’m not sure. But I’m finding what I’m searching for in my life in this song now more than ever.
I have hesitated to write about this song because it so magical and I fear that I lack the skills to really articulate everything that this song is about. It’s time to not be afraid and to look deep within this song. To know what a song is about is to know what it means and it is within this meaning that we find ourselves.
It starts with an invitation, a guitar and piano ascending carefully, dancing and flowing in and out of each other. “Thunder Road’s” introduction is one of the most famous album openings. As the first track on Springsteen’s pivotal album Born To Run, “Thunder Road” was the entry point into a universe of characters that would encapsulate everything that is rock music.
With each line Springsteen paints a vivid picture. The sound of a screen door, the waving of a vision of grace as Mary comes into our world. Originally, this girl was Angelina and then Christina but in the end Springsteen settled on Mary. This name brings forth images of the innocent virgin carrying an unimaginable burden to the mother watching her only son suffer. These visions mix together with a girl standing nervously facing the road ahead.
One of the ways that you know that you are in love is when love songs begin to make sense. As our unnamed protagonist identifies with Orbison’s song for the lonely we know there is something immediate and powerful about his feelings. He begs for her not to leave him because he “can’t face myself alone again.” She’s turned him home and he’s tried to imagine his life without her that he can’t.
She has doubts. Maybe she’s not that young girl, the idea woman. He begs her to have faith and believe in him. When he says that she “ain’t a beauty,” he isn't saying that he doesn’t think she’s pretty. Instead he’s embracing what she is, not the woman she wishes she could be.
The song starts by setting a scene and switches perspectives through Orbison’s song to this man speaking to a girl. These words reveal a vulnerability and a passion. He’s trying to convince her to come with him because there is something that she brings to the way he sees himself that he can’t live without. Also, he believes there is something that he can give her that no one else can.
In the opening of "Thunder Road," our main character embraces everything that this girl is, her doubts and her fears because he has faith. He knows that there is something there between them and that there is magic in the night.
Monday, November 19, 2012
8th Grade Playlist: 5. Red by Taylor Swift
Define work . . . if you define works as: Can you get something out of it? Was it good for you? Was it good for them? Did you grow in this relationship? Do you look back at it with some fondness if it should end before your death or his death? Than yeah, it can work. . .
Dan Savage Savage Lovecast: Episode 226The idea of a relationship for many people is a relationship that lasts 50 or 60 years. Sometimes in our struggle to find that relationship, we see the relationships that don’t last the long haul as not really “working.”
If you think about what Dan Savage is saying, a relationship that lasts 60 years and then ends because someone dies, may not have necessarily “worked.” And a relationship that lasted a year could have really worked for that period of time. Just because it ended, as all relationships eventually do, doesn’t mean that it didn’t work.
“Red,” the title track from Taylor Swift’s most recent album is about a relationship that worked. It ended, but Taylor is able to look past this to celebrate what the relationship meant. I’m reminded of Springsteen’s “Bobby Jean,” which has a similar message. It’s not about trying to get back together, but rather its' about acknowledging how what was meaningful about a relationship.
Taylor goes into some great similes and metaphors, “Loving him is like trying to change your mind, Once you’re already flying through the free fall." However I got to say though the opening line “Loving him is like driving a new Maserati down a dead end street,” is kind of hard to relate to for most of us. She takes us through different colors, expanded on the idea of feeling the “blues,” to feeling “grey,” and most powerfully: “red.”
Taylor effortlessly sings through this song and introduces some great musical touches that are heard throughout the album. Right after the bridge she sings the chorus in a slightly different way with more intensity and darkness. Also the line “and that’s why he’s spinning round in my head,” feels like its twirling. Taylor could have made an entire section of this song repeating this part but rather she leaves it undeveloped as a catchy and beautiful musical nugget.
“Red” revels in the wide range of emotions that love can bring and celebrates the drama, the lack of control, the intensity and the true wonder that is love. We hear her struggle in the bridge trying to get over the relationship but part of her doesn’t want to because she remembers everything about the relationship that worked.
Sometimes we feel like the only way that we can get over a break-up is by convincing ourselves that the relationship never worked and that there was never anything worthwhile in the relationship. Well, if there wasn’t anything of value even for five minutes then the relationship would have never happened.
Yes it’s hard to get over the end of a relationship. However this process isn’t always about burning photos, bad mouthing the other person with friends and being bitter.
After Ellie dies in Up!, Charles struggles to move on with his life. The way he accomplishes this is by cherishing the time they spent together, which helps him realize the value of the relationship he develops with Russell.
If you go out with a guy for a month and it doesn’t work out, am I saying you should strap some balloons to your house and go to South America? No, but don’t let the way it ended cloud the beautiful colors of the memories of when it worked.
Friday, November 16, 2012
Year 3: Week 10 – Working Through The Crazy
Okay, I’ll be honest, this week was a little crazy.
My 5th graders had a presentation this last Thursday and my 3rd graders are preparing for their Thanksgiving assembly next week. Both of these grades have to prepare for a Holiday program in December. Also, today, the Middle School orchestra, which I conduct, performed at an assembly. And then I have my middle school band kids who I still need to attend to.
I didn’t schedule all of this stuff to come together in these couple weeks. What happens is that the different grades and musical groups schedule these performances reflecting their own needs. They don’t really think about the fact that I may have multiple performances in one week. Honestly, they shouldn’t. It’s my job to manage all of this.
Sometimes the way the difference grades’ schedules line up make my life at school a little crazy, but it’s also what I’m trained to do. I don’t remember the first time I performed in front of an audience because I was so young. It’s something I’ve done my entire life and it’s part of my job to be involved in kids' performances and have the ability to balance all of these things out.
Yes, I have to somehow get groups of fifty kids to perform on stage, but I don’t have to grade essays. I don’t have math test to write. I’m not outside early in the morning coaching a sports team. I don’t have to prepare food to feed the entire school. I’m not responsible for helping kids get into college and I don't have to nurse 1st graders who fall down at recess.
It’s easy to forget when things get tough that other people in the school have just as challenging jobs as you do. Just because a teacher never has to put on an assembly doesn’t mean that he or she isn’t working as hard as a drama teacher.
Let’s say for a minute that this is not true and that there are some teachers who have harder jobs than others. Does focusing on this fact really get you anywhere in the day? This kind of thinking just leads to bitterness and pull your focus away from your students.
One of the things that keeps a positive school climate is maintaining a community of teachers that truly respects and admires each other. One of the joys of being in a K-12 school like mine is that every teacher can look at what another teacher is doing and reflect, “there is no way that I could EVER do what they are doing.” That’s a really good feeling because while it makes us feel proud of our work, it also humbles us at the same time.
My next couple weeks are going to be a little insane, but it’s all good. Its what I signed up for. Yes, I may have the challenge of putting together musical programs but the feeling of watching these performances makes it totally worth it.
My 5th graders had a presentation this last Thursday and my 3rd graders are preparing for their Thanksgiving assembly next week. Both of these grades have to prepare for a Holiday program in December. Also, today, the Middle School orchestra, which I conduct, performed at an assembly. And then I have my middle school band kids who I still need to attend to.
I didn’t schedule all of this stuff to come together in these couple weeks. What happens is that the different grades and musical groups schedule these performances reflecting their own needs. They don’t really think about the fact that I may have multiple performances in one week. Honestly, they shouldn’t. It’s my job to manage all of this.
Sometimes the way the difference grades’ schedules line up make my life at school a little crazy, but it’s also what I’m trained to do. I don’t remember the first time I performed in front of an audience because I was so young. It’s something I’ve done my entire life and it’s part of my job to be involved in kids' performances and have the ability to balance all of these things out.
Yes, I have to somehow get groups of fifty kids to perform on stage, but I don’t have to grade essays. I don’t have math test to write. I’m not outside early in the morning coaching a sports team. I don’t have to prepare food to feed the entire school. I’m not responsible for helping kids get into college and I don't have to nurse 1st graders who fall down at recess.
It’s easy to forget when things get tough that other people in the school have just as challenging jobs as you do. Just because a teacher never has to put on an assembly doesn’t mean that he or she isn’t working as hard as a drama teacher.
Let’s say for a minute that this is not true and that there are some teachers who have harder jobs than others. Does focusing on this fact really get you anywhere in the day? This kind of thinking just leads to bitterness and pull your focus away from your students.
One of the things that keeps a positive school climate is maintaining a community of teachers that truly respects and admires each other. One of the joys of being in a K-12 school like mine is that every teacher can look at what another teacher is doing and reflect, “there is no way that I could EVER do what they are doing.” That’s a really good feeling because while it makes us feel proud of our work, it also humbles us at the same time.
My next couple weeks are going to be a little insane, but it’s all good. Its what I signed up for. Yes, I may have the challenge of putting together musical programs but the feeling of watching these performances makes it totally worth it.
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