The Shoe Tying Discussion

In After ~50 Years, I Learn to Tie My Shoes from CogDogBlog, Alan Levine aka CogDog talks about a TED Talk video that shows how to tie a shoe better. I have also heard about this video from other people so I had to watch it. It was amazing! For the past couple of days, I’ve been trying to tie my shows that way and so far, they have stayed tied and they do look nicer. I don’t know why after almost 55 years of tying shoes, I never thought of giving this a try. I have tried different ways for my hiking boots and found a way that helps to keep them tied but I really like this way better.

Here is the video:

This had me thinking about the ways that students learn. They learn one way and if it works for them, they keep doing things the same way. It is hard to find a better way if we don’t try new things.

I love knitting socks and there is always a big discussion about knitting heels. I have tried short row heels, gusset heels, fleegle heels, and finally the fish lips kiss heel. The last one was the easiest and best for me.  Now I don’t want to try anything new because I found the one I like. But how do I know that I won’t find one better?

I usually read the same genre of books and don’t branch out. I love to read romance novels and even some mystery novels by the same authors. For the past couple of years, I have really pushed myself to read nonfiction books and found out that there are some interesting ones out there. If I didn’t push myself to do this, I don’t think I would have read the great books that I have.

I love knitting, crocheting, and spinning yarn but I’ve been doing this for almost ten years now. Even though I love it, I feel like I need to explore other ways of being creative. I used to do digital scrapbooking but stopped for a few years when my favorite website closed down. Now I’m starting back with it again and I’m enjoying it. I am also exploring brush lettering and calligraphy which I find very challenging.

How do you tie your shoes? What have you done to challenge yourself? Please share.

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Grow Slow and Steady

In 8 Ways to Become a Better Educator Every Day from Cool Cat Teacher Blog, Victoria A Davis, Cool Cat Teacher, states,

“Growth is a slow, steady thing. When you learn and apply a little bit consistently, you look back and realize what a big difference it has made. Become a better educator every day. When you do, it means that you’ll be an incredible teacher after a pretty short period. All that growth adds up!”

When I first started teaching I wanted to be the best teacher ever without any behavior problems in class and teaching the most dynamic lessons all of the time!

Well, it didn’t happen. I think I had visions of grandeur because those were high expectations. In fact they were totally unrealistic.

Looking back over time, I realize that I knew nothing when I started teaching. It would take time and experience for me to become better (because I never became perfect!)

I needed to do the best I could and evaluate my own teaching on a regular basis. I needed to make sure that I learned something about my teaching from every lesson that I taught. These became building blocks to do a better job next time.

Every lesson I taught could be done better the next time. There was always something that could be adjusted or modified to meet my student’s needs better.

I may have used the same lessons over the years but I never taught the lesson the same way at any time. I was able to use the skeleton of the lesson but I was always changing the other parts to make it more interesting and meaningful. As time goes by, it is important to check the relevance of the lesson and if it matches the current events that are happening or is it really an obsolete lesson.

During my 30+ years in the classroom, I don’t believe a day went by that I didn’t learn something new about my teaching and myself.

There are constantly new trends in education, new tech tools, or new strategies being suggested. By keeping involved in knowing what is happening currently in education, I’m always growing and learning.

I believe that once a teacher believes they know it all and doesn’t need to continue to grow, then it is time to take a closer look in the mirror. They actually can learn that they are frustrated, overwhelmed, or burned out and need to look for ways to revive their excitement. This in itself is an important time for growth.

Do you continue to grow as a teacher? What activities do you do to help yourself grow? Please share. 

The View Has Changed

I was not very popular when I was in school. No, let me put that in a different way. I was the least popular kid in school, at any grade, on any level. I was the nerd. Here is how I know I was a nerd:

1. No one picked me to be on their “team.” (Whatever sport it was because I could not catch a ball!)

2. I had thick “coca-cola” glasses that I wore.

3. Because I had “flat feet,” I had to buy special shoes with arch supports (they didn’t have them in all shoes like they do now). This means I had to go to a special store and all of their shoes had to be the ugliest, most out of style shoes that you had ever seen in your life.

4. While other girls were cheerleaders or popular athletes, I was on the math team and called a “mathlete.”

5. I wasn’t allowed to date. (My parents were strict Chinese from the “old school.”)

6. I made straight As because I had nothing else to do but study.

7. I had a few friends but they were as not popular as I was.

8. I joined the Drama club and helped out backstage by building the sets, painting, prop hunting, and then basic dogsbody on performance days. This helped me be near the major actors and actresses who could sing, dance, act like famous people.

9. I didn’t smoke -cigarettes or marijuana. I never experimented with drugs so other kids called me a “goody two shoes.”

10. I was different than others since I was the only Chinese kid around.

Now that I look back at the popularity or unpopularity of my teenage years, I’m kind of glad I had that life. If I could go back and talk to myself, here is how I would explain it:

1. It is okay not to be athletic. I can support the team by being there to cheer them on. Not everyone is athletic and when I get a job, no one will care if I was on someone’s team or not (unless I go into professional sports, which just isn’t going to happen.)

2. Eventually I could afford contact lenses or even lasix surgery. (When I had the surgery, I thought it was the best thing to ever happen to me other than marrying my husband!)

3. Now, I can buy the shoes I like. Arch supports are in most shoes. No one talks about “flat feet” anymore.

4. I should have been proud to be a mathlete. I wish more students were proud of this.

5. Dating is what it is. It is a way to meet others and see what you like and don’t like. This helps you choose a future mate. Unfortunately my parents were overprotective and there wasn’t anything I could do to change that.

6. Straight A’s helped me when I went to college. Those AP courses helped me save a lot of money! Now I’m pretty proud that I made them and that I knew how to study.

7. It is the quality of my friends that count and not the quantity. I would rather have a few close friends that a ton of acquaintances.

8. I enjoyed the Drama club. Not everyone has to be the lead in the play and it takes a lot of people to have a successful production. I believe my efforts helped do this.

9. I was concerned about my health even when I was young. That is nothing to be ashamed about and I never gave in to peer pressure about this. I’m very proud of this fact.

10. I would embrace my individuality and my uniqueness. I wish I paid attention more to my parents and relatives about my heritage.

I also look back at the many kids I thought were so popular and had it all. Many of them are now unhappy with their lives or dead due to poor choices they made. I’m not saying that all popular kids come to a tragic end of course. But I look back at these kids and try to see why I thought they were so popular. Many of them chose to do illegal things and got away with them (maybe in my immature mind, I thought they were brave). Others pursued their dreams but gave up their values. Some made poor choices about their health which have impacted their adulthood. Now I look back at them and think, “why did I ever think they were popular and why did I want to be like them?”

Isn’t it funny how our views change when we grow up? I wish there were ways we could get today’s students to understand this. How have your views change from your school days to now? Please share.

Found on flicImage: 'Snowy October morning in Millstone'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30201239@N00/6304328420
Found on flickrcc.netkrcc.net

Before and After

When we first moved into our home, I took before pictures. As we have done work on the house over the years, I have taken pictures of it before and after. I love seeing the difference but especially when I look back over the years.

I guess I like to do that with my spinning too. I love taking pictures of the fiber and then after it becomes yarn. After it is finished, I always feel surprised at how it turned out because it seems so different than the beginning fiber.

I love seeing progress. Whether it is in my writing, or my gardening, or my knitting, I love to see progress.

I imagine that my students feel the same way.

As the end of the year approaches, I take the time to meet with each student individually. I love to share the growth that I see in the student. Sometimes they don’t realize it about themselves. I like to ask them if they see any differences in themselves and what they are.

I like to look at myself and think about how I have grown throughout the year. I like to list the new things that I have learned, or things that I have changed about myself.

Change is all about growth. Growing more sure of myself and learning what I need to grow is important. Measuring growth is easier if you have can see before and after.

Meanwhile as I continue to change and grow, I will keep taking those pictures.

How do you document before and after? Please share.

Image: 'The Start'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28879181@N06/4929948998