Doubt

I suppose today's Thought was more a product of what I was feeling when I woke up this morning than anything else. Today I had a rather significant event happen: I accepted a position teaching agriculture at Cedar Mountain High School. As I woke up this morning I just had this feeling of knowing that my future is taking shape, that my future is back.

However, throughout the day, I kept getting more and more nervous. What am I getting myself into? What if I mess up? What if I'm a terrible teacher? What is my future? All those little doubts that constantly bug me kept hitting me.
What is your future? If you don't know, that's ok. Everyone has those doubts. Everyone needs time to figure these things out. However, when you do figure it out, when you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is what your future is meant to be, go for it! Don't sit by and watch it float on by. Yes, pay attention to your doubts, they keep you sharp, but don't be paralyzed by them. Take action. Go for your goals. Is your future back?

Tool

While I originally posted this Thought last week, I think I just now came up with a  good application.

Today I had the wonderful opportunity to take part in some regional staff development with other agriculture teachers in the area. In essence, it was a great big exchange of ideas where we all had a chance to get together and share what works for us.
It was during this exchange that it hit me that all we were doing was exchanging tools. Just as every student isn't the same, if we only have one tool, we expect that same thing to work for all. What are your tools? Do you have one way to do things and that's that? Just like a teacher must have multiple methods to teach students, each and every one of us must have multiple ways of getting stuff done .

Thinking

For those of you who follow me on Facebook and Twitter may have noticed my status updates following school yesterday. In short, it was a bit of a rough day for me. However, the more I thought about it, it really wasn't all that bad. Perhaps the thing that had the most effect on my attitude was my thoughts about my own actions.

Upon reflection, I noticed that my attitude and thought process changed dramatically yesterday based on one relatively insignificant event. No doubt these small events will happen again and I must take action to train my mind to not get down on them.
What is your thinking? So much of the time things happen relatively the same, albeit with minor variations. For instance, yesterday was just another day at school. Sure, there was a two hour delay, but school is school. There's nothing inherently good or bad about these situations, but our mind makes them good or bad depending on our thinking. What is your thinking?

Doing

Today is the day. The day I begin the final chapter in my collegiate career as a student teacher at Mountain Lake Schools. Now, my task is taking all the knowledge that I have learned in the last 22 years of my life and somehow teach high school and middle school students.

As a student I found most things quite easy. It was my attitude that I could learn anything with enough effort and practice. And for the most part it was true. The knowing, understanding how something works was not that hard. However, when asked to do something, when asked to teach, I've found much  more struggle.
How hard is the doing? According to my experience, pretty gosh darn hard. However, that doesn't mean it's not worthwhile. It's good to know, but being able to apply that knowledge to an action is a whole other level. How hard is the doing? Pretty dang hard. Is it worth it? Absolutely.

Hunger

I think we've all had those experiences that we dread, yet know the necessity of. For instance, I am currently in the midst of the three week period in the 'dungeon' before being released into the world of student teaching. I don't know about you, but six hours in the same room really doesn't appeal to me. However, I'm still going to subject myself to this three week, six hour block of instruction if only because I am hungry to be a teacher.

Are you hungry? Maybe you have an intense desire to prove yourself. Maybe like the man in this picture, you are just thankful to have some baked beans in the middle of winter.

No matter what you are hungry for, I'm betting that you had to go through some tough times, a crucible of sorts, to get to that moment of satiety. It's that hunger, that desire to see what's on the other side that keeps you going even in the toughest of times.

Oaks

Today's Thought was born through the idea of spending the first three weeks of my semester in what is know (not so) affectionately as "The Dungeon". As I am taking the steps toward becoming a teacher, I can't help but notice how each day, each hour, is a small stroke toward felling the great oak of my student teaching experience. Each day, alone not much, adds up toward a larger goal.

What is your oak? Maybe like me, you are tantalizingly close to finishing a project, degree or licensure that you've been working on for some time. Or perhaps you are on the other end of the spectrum, just starting on your journey of a thousand miles.  I think the reason that so many people give up on their oaks is that they can't see the end goal, they don't care any less, they just lose focus of what they are trying to do.  The key is always giving yourself something to remember, something to say, "I did this today". While your oak may not be a towering tree, take the daily step to remember what you are working for and what you accomplished today.

Building

Today's Thought is one of those that I've been putting off for quite some time. Today marks a few different things. Not only is it the last 'first' day of my undergrad career, it is also the first day I step into the role of teacher. Thinking back over the years that have led to this moment, I can't help but see how things have built upon each other.

My Rome, has hardly been built in a day. Things worth having, important things, tough things - they take time. Even today, I'm drawing on things that I learned in my first teaching experience back in my high school chemistry class.

What is your Rome? Perhaps like me, it's a career and a way of life that you have cultivated over years and years of experience.  No matter what your 'Rome' is, just remember that something worth having takes time.

Direction

I found today's Thought yesterday while reading a rather intriguing article on classroom management. I decided to pull this picture, as it's a really good visual representation of what the author is trying to say. As this chart says, when a teacher gets frustrated and angry, he or she has a choice: retaliate with punishment or push students in a new direction. Each of these options has a whole other set of outcomes, some positive, some negative.

Just a quick look at the flowchart shows me which option I'd choose. I think this flowchart really illustrates the benefits a shift in direction can bring. For instance, this past summer, a shift happened in my life. I moved six hours away from home for an internship, I discovered that my true calling is in the classroom and I made many new friends. This change in direction really helped me to see where I needed to go.

Have you changed direction? Maybe it was a big event in your life that sparked a revolution in your own thinking. Or maybe it was something very small that had far-reaching consequences, consequences you were unaware of at the time. I'm willing to bet that a change in direction has in some way resulted in growth by you. As this flowchart shows, redirecting students can avoid even more frustration and anger and instead lead to growth by both teacher and student. Take those times of frustration, those times where it doesn't seem worth it anymore, and look for a direction shift. Who knows, you might just find something amazing on the other side of a redirection.

Motivation

Today's Thought is one of those 'diamonds in the rough' found in the slew of Facebook chain posts that so often clog my newsfeed. While I must admit that it took me a minute to 'get' it, once I did I had to chuckle and simply agree with it's sentiment.

In so many of my education courses at the University of Minnesota, the topic of student motivation is brought up. How do we motivate students? What keeps us motivated? Many times when we ask ourselves that last question, we have to think a minute before we can come up with an actual answer. You see, motivation isn't some 'finger-snap' solution. It can't be turned on like a tap. It has to be cultivated, coaxed and pushed in order to grow not only in our students, but ourselves as well. It's rarely inspired by a poster. Instead it could be inspired by a desire to obtain a better job, a desire to learn or even a desire to make a difference. What motivates you? I'm guessing that it takes more than a poster.

Coloring

I suppose you could say it's some curse, this being my 70th post (who knew I had that much to say?!), but in all honesty I have been much too busy lately to write a blog post. Tonight that will change. Having this Thought on my door for multiple days has given me a lot of time to think. This past weekend I had a fantastic time introducing my girlfriend to my family. Specifically, introducing her to my 18 month old niece, Anya.

I think the best moment came when Anya decided she wanted to color with her crayons. Now being only 18 months old, coloring generally meant just drawing squiggles and other lines on a blank sheet. Now maybe this isn't that big of deal, but as my girlfriend and I were coloring with Anya, I realized just what we were doing. Instead of a passive experience of putting crayon to paper, we were asking Anya what the various colors were. And more times than not, she got it correct on the first try.

This whole idea of teachers in our lives is a powerful one. Sure, we can probably learn a lot by passively doing an activity. However, our learning is multiplied a thousand-fold when we have a great teacher guiding us on our journey. Are you a teacher? Perhaps you can relate to my story, maybe you have your own experiences of being taught or teaching someone else. Sure, we can study all we want, but another person, a teacher is what makes the difference.

Teach

Yesterday one of my professors brought up a quote that I felt was very profound, at least in my experience. Thus, today's Thought was found.

I have long held the belief that as a teacher, I am constantly learning. However, this Thought put a whole new spin on my philosophy. Sure you can learn something. You may even be able to pass a test on it. But can you teach it?

You see, in order to teach a topic, you have to know that topic inside and out, right side up and upside down. As a student you have the luxury of only learning something the way it makes sense for you. As a teacher you have to learn something so that it makes sense to everyone you're teaching.

Many times I hear stories of teachers 'learning' something the night before they are supposed to teach it. I suppose throughout the next year this will become familiar to me as I continue my quest toward being a high school teacher. You see, it's not as if these folks are truly learning an idea the night before, they are simply taking a new look at it, finding all the angles so that they may more effectively teach their students.

Happiness

I must confess, today's Thought was one of those happy coincidences that just fell into place. Heck, I didn't even find this Thought. Usually when I wake up I look for a new Thought of the Day and I post it on my fraternity's bulletin board. As luck would have it, someone beat me to it today. To be completely honest with you, I have no idea whether this story is actually something that happened. For all I know, the poster could have made it all up.

But I prefer to believe in the goodness of humanity, so we'll roll with this Thought today. Buddha is implying that in order to find happiness, you must remove ego and desire from your life. I can see the merits of this. How many times have you messed something up because your ego prevented you from admitting that you were wrong? I know I've been there. But is finding happiness really this easy?

Each and every one of us has a unique take on happiness. We all find joy and happiness is something different. One of my greatest sources of happiness has been teaching. Something about seeing a student understand an idea and apply that idea to their own life just gets me every time. For me, teaching isn't an isolated event that happens only in the confines of a classroom. For me, teaching is a way of life. And by extension, the happiness wrought from that teaching is a way of life. You see, teaching is one of the most selfless acts out there. It's not about you, it's about the students. It doesn't matter what recognition you want. It's going to come down to what the students want. With that, desire and ego is gone. All that is left is happiness. What does it mean to live out happiness in your life?

Tools

Although I try to keep my Thoughts fairly neutral, today I have to post about something that I see misused a lot. That thing? Tools. Specifically, technology. Technology is a tool, not a learning outcome.

Many times in my life I have questioned why I want to be a teacher. And the answer is always the same: I want to help students make their lives better, I want to help them change the world. I want them to do just about everything that is a Right Answer.

When I hung this picture up at work today, one of my co-workers looked at it with a questioning look. She said, "isn't that common sense?" I had to laugh a bit, and as I said, "no, it's not", I had one of those moments of clarity that showed me just why I was doing what I was doing. Perhaps it was fate or simply good timing, but over the lunch table we got into a good discussion about just what we are trying to accomplish in education and why things are the way they are.

What are your tools? What are your outcomes? Everyone has their own unique tools and outcomes. I guarantee they are different things. However, that doesn't mean we don't get them confused from time to time. I think this Thought is a subtle jab at that tendency to get them confused. Sometimes, we all need a little reminder. Find your tools. Use them. But don't let them become the outcome.

Explain

I feel I owe you all an apology.  Looking back today, I have been not posting on this as regularly as I'd like.  This latest brief hiatus was due to a work trip.  Perhaps someday I will have an interesting lesson from this trip, but for now, let's get to today's Thought of the Day.  Today's Thought particularly calls to me as a teacher.  Coming from Albert Einstein, simple is a relative term.

As a teacher, I am striving to impart some knowledge and wisdom on my students.  Many times, I find myself causing more trouble than good by not being simple enough.  I'd like to think that this is a function of presenting too much information all at once.  Many times though, I have to question my own understanding.

As I have articulated my desire to be a high school teacher, many folks have told me, "You're too smart to be a teacher."  I have to shake my head at these people.  As a teacher, you are responsible for shaping students.  What you do and what you say has a profound effect on students.  I think we've all had that teacher who made an immeasurable difference in our lives, good or bad.  In my mind, a teacher should be the smartest person.  If you don't understand something, how on earth can you expect to help someone else understand it?  If you can't explain, what meaning can anyone hope to create?  Whether this explanation deals with nuclear physics, deep philosophy, or even how to tie your shoe, simplicity is the best option.  How can you explain yourself?  Do you understand?

Compensation

Have you ever wondered why it is that athletes are paid millions of dollars while teachers get paid very little?  I have, and I had to chuckle when I saw today's Thought.

This summer I'm reading a book for my internship called The Go-Giver by Bob Burg and John David Mann.  It's a story about a powerful business idea and focuses on The Five Laws for Stratospheric Success.  This comic strip is an interesting commentary on one of these laws: The Law of Compensation.  This law states: "Your income is determined by how many people you serve and how well you serve them."

Thinking about professional sports, this makes a lot of sense.  These athletes serve a lot of people.  The viewership on any given football Sunday certainly is in the millions of people.  Now I'm not saying that everyone should run out and become a professional athlete (there's gold in them thar stadiums!).  Rather, we should reconsider our idea of compensation.

As a future teacher, money scares me.  What if I don't have enough?  I sure could go make a more comfortable living doing something else.  So why do I do it?  I keep coming back to the idea that my compensation as a teacher isn't about the money.  It's more than that.  It's not only about my money, it's about the money and the lives that my students will have as a result of my teaching.  It's about the relationships, the people you impact.  What is your TRUE compensation?

Attitude

This last spring semester I had the opportunity to teach a group of middle school students as part of on after school program.  I had often heard that middle school is the hardest age to teach, but I had never experienced that challenge.  Throughout the semester I had good days and I had bad days.  Sometimes the students just got on my nerves to no end, and some days they gave me the best hour of the day.  The teacher whose room I used had a habit of putting up quotes on his whiteboard everyday.  This quote really spoke to me as I was teaching these blooming young minds.

Many days, it was hard teaching this group of students.  Looking back, it was the most challenging teaching experience I have ever had.  That's not to say I didn't learn anything, on the contrary, I  learned more about myself as a teacher than I had ever learned before.  Every day I walked into that classroom, I had a decision to make.  What was my attitude going to be for the day?  Was I going to let something that happened at college get me down?  Or was I going to brush it all off and do my best to teach my students?  It's a decision we all have to make, everyday.  We ARE in charge of our attitude.