Beside the fact that I work with middle school students, the part of my job that people think is the unimaginable (and horrible) is teaching recorder.
One of my favorite principals observed one of my recorder lessons a couple years ago. She told me later that she had no idea how I managed to teach that class, and focus on the students with the sound of so many beginning recorder players. It was so bad that she confided in me later that the she turned off her hearing aid halfway through the class.
At my school the students start recorder about halfway through third grade and continue to use them in music class until the end of fifth grade. We weave the use of this instrument into activities and songs that we learn. It is one of the primary tools we use to teach note-reading, and this instrument helps students understand the family of wind instruments.
This week was a big week for recorders in my teaching world. The third graders started the recorder and I introduced my fifth graders to the alto recorder.
For about three weeks I’ve been lecturing my third graders to prepare them for their recorder quiz and showing them clips of professional level recorder players. I tell them that if they do not pass their recorder quiz, they will not get it. In reality, my third graders get so worked up about this idea of a “quiz” and being the one kid that doesn’t get the recorder that all of them pass every year.
It’s a simple quiz designed to help them start asking themselves about the recorder when they get it in their hands. I go over basics of which hand is on top, whether to start with slow or fast air, placement of recorder in the mouth and troubleshooting (e.g. make sure to cover all of the holes).
They deal with the lectures and this quiz because for some reason the third graders are insanely excited about the recorder. This unfortunately changes by fifth grade.
The recorder for many of my fifth graders has become a drag. For some of them, the note-reading has gotten in the way of making music and others simply have motivation and the patience to learn harder notes on the instrument.
To combat this feeling, I’ve done two things. The first thing is that I’ve created a packet of pop songs and written the recorder notes underneath the lyrics, “Some Nights,” “We Will Rock You,” “Let It Go,” “Shake It Off,” and “Rock and Roll Part 2.” These songs are a wide variety of skill level and purposely appeal to different genders. The idea is that kids will be learning songs that they like and want to learn and will be willing to work through the newer notes.
It’s been working really well. The kids enjoy having some freedom of song choice and breaking up in small groups to work through the songs. Along with a fingering chart, and how the song goes in their head, they have all the tools they need to make music.
I’m lucky to have seven alto recorders. During work time on the packets, I let each kid spend a couple minutes trying an alto recorder. I offered it as a different sound and an extra-challenge. In each class I had about four kids end up really liking the sound and the challenge of the instrument. Some of these students were the high-achievers in the class but a couple of the people who got most excited about the alto were some of my boys who aren’t as into the recorder and music class.
Between the excitement of my third graders and hearing my fifth graders explore the alto recorder and work really hard to make the jumps in “Let It Go” sound smooth, it’s been a good week for recorders in my life.
Friday, January 30, 2015
Monday, January 26, 2015
Parenthood – Week 87: The Insensitivity Of Keeping Score
Many relationship experts warn couples to not “keep score.” The idea is that a relationship should not be based on who did what and when. While I agree with this advice in general, it’s not always a bad thing to keep score.
It’s not unreasonable to ask your wife to cook dinner if you have been cooking dinner for the past two nights. When it comes to splitting up chores and house-hold duties a certain level of accountability is helpful in making sure that there is a level of equity within the relationship. At the same time one should not be so strict and dogmatic about chores to the point that it causes unreasonable amounts of tension in a relationship.
Sometimes get lazy and don’t do the dishes when it is our turn and our partners clean them for us. Yes, it is annoying when people slack off, but in general it’s usually not that big a deal and it’s not worth getting into a fight over if its not an everyday occurrence. Part of being caring and in a partnership is doing things when its not your turn, to be nice and to help out. Dishes can wait, yes, they get gross, but they can wait, and no one really suffers. However, if someone is being lazy and doesn’t want to do the chore of letting the dog out to go potty, there is very real suffering occurring and the same thing goes for changing diapers.
Feeding Buffy, taking her out for walks, cleaning up after accidents when she was a puppy and cleaning up Buffy when she is sick are all chores that have to be done in a timely way. While it’s a good plan to split up these chores and responsibilities, when the time comes for one of these things to be done, they have to be done, regardless of whose turn it is to take care of the dog. It’s cruel and selfish to let your dog suffer for you and your partner’s lack of communication and ego.
When we first got Buffy, I was working from home. I took care of her during the day and Diana took care of her in the afternoons and evenings when she got home from work. We felt that house-training was very important, so even though it was sometimes Diana’s turn to take Buffy out, if it was clear that she needed to go out, I took her myself. In return, Diana has always been willing to pitch in to clean up after Buffy regardless of whether it was her “turn.” It was really that whole house-training process that really solidified in my mind that we had to do things for Buffy in a timely way or else she would suffer. We couldn’t let keeping score get in the way of her care.
Now there are diaper changes, spills, feedings, comforting, tooth brushing, and many things that Ollie needs from Diana and me. Since the day Ollie was born we have discussed and continue to discuss how we split up attending to Ollie’s needs. This agreement changes on a monthly, sometimes weekly basis. At the core of this is the understanding that things need to get done. We do the best we can to do our share, but sometimes one of us does more than the other because of circumstances and we try to balance it things out later if we can.
It is vital that our relationship has a level equity and fairness, but more important that this we have two lives, Buffy and Ollie in our care. While we strive to make sure that we keep the score even, when it comes to taking care of our kids, we need to keep in mind that we aren’t playing against each other. We are on the same team and every time one of us scores, we all benefit.
It’s not unreasonable to ask your wife to cook dinner if you have been cooking dinner for the past two nights. When it comes to splitting up chores and house-hold duties a certain level of accountability is helpful in making sure that there is a level of equity within the relationship. At the same time one should not be so strict and dogmatic about chores to the point that it causes unreasonable amounts of tension in a relationship.
Sometimes get lazy and don’t do the dishes when it is our turn and our partners clean them for us. Yes, it is annoying when people slack off, but in general it’s usually not that big a deal and it’s not worth getting into a fight over if its not an everyday occurrence. Part of being caring and in a partnership is doing things when its not your turn, to be nice and to help out. Dishes can wait, yes, they get gross, but they can wait, and no one really suffers. However, if someone is being lazy and doesn’t want to do the chore of letting the dog out to go potty, there is very real suffering occurring and the same thing goes for changing diapers.
Feeding Buffy, taking her out for walks, cleaning up after accidents when she was a puppy and cleaning up Buffy when she is sick are all chores that have to be done in a timely way. While it’s a good plan to split up these chores and responsibilities, when the time comes for one of these things to be done, they have to be done, regardless of whose turn it is to take care of the dog. It’s cruel and selfish to let your dog suffer for you and your partner’s lack of communication and ego.
When we first got Buffy, I was working from home. I took care of her during the day and Diana took care of her in the afternoons and evenings when she got home from work. We felt that house-training was very important, so even though it was sometimes Diana’s turn to take Buffy out, if it was clear that she needed to go out, I took her myself. In return, Diana has always been willing to pitch in to clean up after Buffy regardless of whether it was her “turn.” It was really that whole house-training process that really solidified in my mind that we had to do things for Buffy in a timely way or else she would suffer. We couldn’t let keeping score get in the way of her care.
Now there are diaper changes, spills, feedings, comforting, tooth brushing, and many things that Ollie needs from Diana and me. Since the day Ollie was born we have discussed and continue to discuss how we split up attending to Ollie’s needs. This agreement changes on a monthly, sometimes weekly basis. At the core of this is the understanding that things need to get done. We do the best we can to do our share, but sometimes one of us does more than the other because of circumstances and we try to balance it things out later if we can.
It is vital that our relationship has a level equity and fairness, but more important that this we have two lives, Buffy and Ollie in our care. While we strive to make sure that we keep the score even, when it comes to taking care of our kids, we need to keep in mind that we aren’t playing against each other. We are on the same team and every time one of us scores, we all benefit.
Friday, January 23, 2015
Year 5: Week 19 – Making The “Asian F”
I grew up experiencing the “Asian F.” The deal was that if I got an “A” on a report card it wasn’t a big deal. If I got an “A-“ that was an “Asian F” and I might was well have gotten a real “F.” The message that I got was that getting an “A” in a class was the baseline, that was suppose to be a given and getting anything but that “A” was surprising and concerning.
It wasn’t that bad in reality. My mom wasn’t really that much of a “tiger mom,” but she did have a high standard for my performance at school. It was important that I learned things in school but it was also important that I got good grades. My parents were smart enough to know that just getting good grades didn’t necessarily mean that you were learning well, but it did mean that you understood how to play the game that was school. Whether we want to admit it or not, how to work a system is a skill that’s important in life. Sometimes that “system” is a teacher’s grade book.
Did my parents overemphasize grades? I don’t think so. The emphases they put on grades translated to putting value in education. School was my job growing up and the priority in my life. School was important and the attention they put on grades was just one of many ways they expressed this to me.
Now I’m on other side working through giving students grades and writing up mini-essays on each of my students. It’s a lot of work that mostly happens on the weekends. School keeps going when I have grades to write, it’s not like I can stop lesson planning. There is always teaching to be done.
It’s an interesting process. I reflect on a student’s overall performance, balance observations with objective assessments and figure out a grade. I write comments (the mini-essay), about 100-200 words about each kid supporting the grade.
Initially I try my best to not think about the student’s reaction or the parents’ reaction. I want to focus on the salient points and not worry about my audience. At some point though in the editing process I think about how these grade and comments will be received.
Here’s where things get tough.
We are creating a written record about a student. Our words and our grade have to be relevant, meaningful and also written in a way that does not invoke defensiveness and emotional reactions. At least we try to.
I work at a progressive school, and we philosophically believe in process over product but we are still a school in 21st century America and we need to have grades. It’s frustrating when parents put too much emphasis on the grade itself, but that’s the world we live in.
I get being worried about the grade. My parents focused on this and so did I, and this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s frustrating as a teacher because sometimes the grade masks other more relevant concerns.
This is a tough issue. My colleagues and I are doing the best we can. Maybe the “Asian F” isn’t such a good thing from some people’s perspectives but in family it was an expression of care and maybe that’s not such a bad thing at the end of the day.
It wasn’t that bad in reality. My mom wasn’t really that much of a “tiger mom,” but she did have a high standard for my performance at school. It was important that I learned things in school but it was also important that I got good grades. My parents were smart enough to know that just getting good grades didn’t necessarily mean that you were learning well, but it did mean that you understood how to play the game that was school. Whether we want to admit it or not, how to work a system is a skill that’s important in life. Sometimes that “system” is a teacher’s grade book.
Did my parents overemphasize grades? I don’t think so. The emphases they put on grades translated to putting value in education. School was my job growing up and the priority in my life. School was important and the attention they put on grades was just one of many ways they expressed this to me.
Now I’m on other side working through giving students grades and writing up mini-essays on each of my students. It’s a lot of work that mostly happens on the weekends. School keeps going when I have grades to write, it’s not like I can stop lesson planning. There is always teaching to be done.
It’s an interesting process. I reflect on a student’s overall performance, balance observations with objective assessments and figure out a grade. I write comments (the mini-essay), about 100-200 words about each kid supporting the grade.
Initially I try my best to not think about the student’s reaction or the parents’ reaction. I want to focus on the salient points and not worry about my audience. At some point though in the editing process I think about how these grade and comments will be received.
Here’s where things get tough.
We are creating a written record about a student. Our words and our grade have to be relevant, meaningful and also written in a way that does not invoke defensiveness and emotional reactions. At least we try to.
I work at a progressive school, and we philosophically believe in process over product but we are still a school in 21st century America and we need to have grades. It’s frustrating when parents put too much emphasis on the grade itself, but that’s the world we live in.
I get being worried about the grade. My parents focused on this and so did I, and this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s frustrating as a teacher because sometimes the grade masks other more relevant concerns.
This is a tough issue. My colleagues and I are doing the best we can. Maybe the “Asian F” isn’t such a good thing from some people’s perspectives but in family it was an expression of care and maybe that’s not such a bad thing at the end of the day.
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Monday, January 19, 2015
Parenthood – Week 86: What I Learned About Parenting From Raising My Dog-Part 1
Some of the most important things about parenting, I learned from raising my puppy, Buffy.
There are a lot of different reactions to the statement above and that’s the reason I’ve hesitated to write this blog post. I’ve had this post floating around in my head about how raising our puppy prepared me for raising my son Ollie. The reason I haven’t written this post yet is because I’ve been trying to figure out how to frame what I’m talking about here and not give people the wrong idea and ruffle people’s feathers.
For many people, comparing raising a dog to raising a child is inappropriate and annoying. It’s a dog. It’s not a human; it’s not your flesh and blood. Usually dogs live for a much shorter period of time than children and in many ways, dogs are easier to raise and live with than kids.
In some ways I agree that comparing raising a dog to raising a human doesn’t make sense. It’s not because I think that raising a dog is so much easier than raising a human baby, it’s that both dogs and kids are unique. The love I have for Buffy is like no other kind of love in my life. I would say the same thing for the love I have for my mother, my wife and my son. The way we feel, the love that we have for different souls in our lives is unique and that’s what makes this love and these people important and meaningful.
The other reasons that comparing raising a puppy to raising a human is problematic for people is the wide variety of approaches people take to puppy and child-rearing. Some people spend a lot of time with their dogs, take them to classes, play with them daily and regularly go on outings with their dog. Other people buy a dog, never train the pet, rarely take them out on walks and provide as much attention and care to their canine companions as most people do a houseplant.
The same thing goes for children. Great parents spend quality time with their children, support their school education at home, and spend time and resources to help them grow into independent and empathetic human beings. Unfortunately there are negligent parents in the world who have their children watch television for hours every day, treat school like a daycare, and make no effort to help develop their children intellectually and emotionally.
Between these extremes we all fall somewhere. If you were not as active in raising your dog, it may seem ridiculous to apply that experience to raising a child. However, if you are like Diana and I who put a lot into raising our puppy Buffy, it’s not such a crazy idea to compare some of those experiences to our son.
The other factor to consider in this discussion is the fact that it is impossible to know what it’s like to raise a dog or a human without actually raising one. If you have a child but have never had a dog, you may think that its ridiculous how much time your friend spends with his dog. There’s a lot of assumptions from dog owners without kids about their friends with kids and parents about their friends who only have dogs. When these two parties meet and empathize with each other struggles, there’s a sense that something is weird. Rather than seriously talk about what is similar, it’s easier to brush off what can be learned from each other’s experience as invalid. We miss out when we do this.
To dog owners without kids: These points are important to consider and will help you better understand what it means to think of your dog as more than just a “pet.” I hope this series of posts also validates your feelings and emotions about some of the most beautiful canine souls in the world.
To parents who don’t have or never had a dog: This isn’t about raising a dog being more important. This is about how experiences in life outside of parenthood can help us think differently about what we do for our own kids. You may not understand or agree with the comparison, but these lessons are important regardless of their origin.
To parents who have a dog in their lives: Hopefully you will get what I’m talking about here, but you may not if you took a different approach to puppy and child-rearing. The connections I draw between raising Buffy and Ollie will help you draw your own connections and see how these experiences, as different as they are make us better dog owners and parents.
That's the introduction.
First up: “The Insensitivity Of Keeping Score”
There are a lot of different reactions to the statement above and that’s the reason I’ve hesitated to write this blog post. I’ve had this post floating around in my head about how raising our puppy prepared me for raising my son Ollie. The reason I haven’t written this post yet is because I’ve been trying to figure out how to frame what I’m talking about here and not give people the wrong idea and ruffle people’s feathers.
For many people, comparing raising a dog to raising a child is inappropriate and annoying. It’s a dog. It’s not a human; it’s not your flesh and blood. Usually dogs live for a much shorter period of time than children and in many ways, dogs are easier to raise and live with than kids.
In some ways I agree that comparing raising a dog to raising a human doesn’t make sense. It’s not because I think that raising a dog is so much easier than raising a human baby, it’s that both dogs and kids are unique. The love I have for Buffy is like no other kind of love in my life. I would say the same thing for the love I have for my mother, my wife and my son. The way we feel, the love that we have for different souls in our lives is unique and that’s what makes this love and these people important and meaningful.
The other reasons that comparing raising a puppy to raising a human is problematic for people is the wide variety of approaches people take to puppy and child-rearing. Some people spend a lot of time with their dogs, take them to classes, play with them daily and regularly go on outings with their dog. Other people buy a dog, never train the pet, rarely take them out on walks and provide as much attention and care to their canine companions as most people do a houseplant.
The same thing goes for children. Great parents spend quality time with their children, support their school education at home, and spend time and resources to help them grow into independent and empathetic human beings. Unfortunately there are negligent parents in the world who have their children watch television for hours every day, treat school like a daycare, and make no effort to help develop their children intellectually and emotionally.
Between these extremes we all fall somewhere. If you were not as active in raising your dog, it may seem ridiculous to apply that experience to raising a child. However, if you are like Diana and I who put a lot into raising our puppy Buffy, it’s not such a crazy idea to compare some of those experiences to our son.
The other factor to consider in this discussion is the fact that it is impossible to know what it’s like to raise a dog or a human without actually raising one. If you have a child but have never had a dog, you may think that its ridiculous how much time your friend spends with his dog. There’s a lot of assumptions from dog owners without kids about their friends with kids and parents about their friends who only have dogs. When these two parties meet and empathize with each other struggles, there’s a sense that something is weird. Rather than seriously talk about what is similar, it’s easier to brush off what can be learned from each other’s experience as invalid. We miss out when we do this.
To dog owners without kids: These points are important to consider and will help you better understand what it means to think of your dog as more than just a “pet.” I hope this series of posts also validates your feelings and emotions about some of the most beautiful canine souls in the world.
To parents who don’t have or never had a dog: This isn’t about raising a dog being more important. This is about how experiences in life outside of parenthood can help us think differently about what we do for our own kids. You may not understand or agree with the comparison, but these lessons are important regardless of their origin.
To parents who have a dog in their lives: Hopefully you will get what I’m talking about here, but you may not if you took a different approach to puppy and child-rearing. The connections I draw between raising Buffy and Ollie will help you draw your own connections and see how these experiences, as different as they are make us better dog owners and parents.
That's the introduction.
First up: “The Insensitivity Of Keeping Score”
Friday, January 16, 2015
Year 5: Week 18 – The Needs Of The Many
Spock: Do not grieve, Admiral. It is logical. The needs of the many, outweigh...Decisions we make as a teacher are complicated. There’s always a trade-off, a drawback to a decision that is made in a classroom. For example, when you schedule an extra-curricular group in the morning, some students may not be able to make it because they cannot get a ride to the school. If you have the group meet after school, then other students will not be able attend because of sports practices.
Kirk: The needs of the few.
Spock: Or the one.
In these situations we weigh the needs of the many against the few. Right? Choose the time that most kids can show up and go with that option. Unfortunately, it’s really not that simple.
Our country is built on the idea that there is a voting majority, however this way of decision making must be tempered with the a responsibility to make choices that are not only best for the majority but for minorities as well. The majority unfortunately often overlooks the rights of the few. It was the majority that put American citizens who were of Japanese descent in internment camps and it was the majority who voted in many states to outlaw marriage equality.
We as teachers are in an important place. Every day we make decisions for our children that need to respect the our students as a group but also consider the needs of minorities. When we give a lecture, some students may need to have notes printed out beforehand because they aren’t as good auditory learners. If a student in the class has hearing issues every time we watch a film, the subtitles need to be turned on. If a student in the class has allergy issues, birthday treats we give the entire class should accommodate for that students.
As Spock concluded, it is not logical that one or a few should have an impact on the way that many have to operate in a classroom. This logic is faulty because it assumes that by addressing the needs of a minority of students, the majority doesn’t benefit. The reality is that they do.
The majority of students benefit when the treat they get is absent from allergens that may harm one of their classmates. They see that everyone is getting the same treat. Also, they see that this one students who has an allergy isn’t all that different and that the things that could divide us can be overcome.
When we make choices so that all of our students can feel included, safe and part of a community, we are placing value in each student's experience. This value calls into question not how the needs of the many out weight the few but rather how can we best address each students as a learner and a human being. Sometimes we go with what’s best for the most kids, but more often we think of the few, and the one. Through empathy and care we find by serving the needs of that one we are enriching the souls of all.
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
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