Friday Thought : Things worth a Damn

Early in the week, the following quote came across my computer:

"Because anyone who has ever done anything worth a damn, knows that they probably weren’t the main beneficiaries of their efforts. Our work may have lit up the world, but we still remain down in the mud, somehow" (via). 

As educators, we understand this. We understand that no matter our good intentions, our allowances of second, third, and forty-third chances or how much we truly love and care for the students and staff around us, we will most definitely find ourselves, somehow, down in the mud of false accusations and unfair judgment. 

And that can be discouraging. Because it is. But only if we focus on the mud. And only if we interpret being in it as a bad thing. 

"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena," Theodore Roosevelt said, "whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood {and mud}. . . who spends himself in a worthy cause."

Mud pasted on our jeans or splattered on our faces is not the result of being trodden upon, it is the evidence of our work. Just like the mud the marks the efforts of a running back who gave his all in a hard fought game, or the dirt that marks two young girls collecting wood, so too we, as public servants and servant leaders, are marred and dusty-faced because we are all in. We don’t stand on the sideline or hide in timidity. We engage. We lean towards difficult solutions, wrestle with ugly realities, and embrace the hard conversations. We are muddy because our students are. Because life is. And we do not shy away.

We care more about cleaning the world than we do ourselves.

Thank you for that. It isn't always easy to get messy, to slip and fall, or to sit in the muck and the mire with our students, their parents, or the staff next door. But it is always right. 

As educators, it is our calling, above all else, to ensure others are the main beneficiaries of our labor for that is the core of education and the heartbeat of teaching! To embrace our gifts, our talents, and our resources and to proudly use them for the benefit of others. Because "doing something meaningful . . . will pay off in the end, it just might not pay off for {us}." As educators, we are okay with that because that is what we do. That is who we are. 

That is who you are.

Because you genuinely care, your work provides light to the world. The mud is proof that you were there.

That's what I've been thinking about this week.

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Friday Though : What we Focus on is what we See.

Just recently, while on a layover at the O’Hare Chicago airport, I overheard a man thanking the gentleman who was cleaning the urinals, and I was jolted for a moment. We don’t often see the man who cleans the toilets. Even less do we hear them thanked for their services.

But in that moment, I was aware of both. I was also suddenly aware of just how clean my urinal was.

On my way out, I too thanked the man for his diligence, and ever since, I’ve been trying to be more aware of those who selflessly and scrupulously serve my school and community, many of whom do so in the dark of the early morning or long after the last student has left for the day. Like the bus drivers who wake up extra early on October winter mornings and ensure our kids get safely and on time.

There are others too, of course. Like the kitchen staff and crossing guards, the engineers or custodians, and of course the office or support staff who are often unnoticed in their efforts because we have become accustomed to their presence and the role they play in ensuring our schools run so smoothly.  They aren’t ignored, but they aren’t fully seen either. Until they are absent. Until the many little things that they do so quietly and without applause or Facebook posts are left undone. Then, suddenly (and continuously), we are reminded that things don’t just happen on their own, that there are people working diligently behind the scenes, and that they desperately matter.

That what I’ve been thinking about this week. What am I focusing on? And what am I not seeing? In my home, my community, and in my school. Who is right in front of me yet not fully seen?

Or, when considering my students, what about them do I focus on (because it is obvious and consistent) yet fail to see? Because yes, that child is frustrating and rude and often struggles to follow our school-wide norms, but is that all that he or she is? Because if that is what I am focused on it will also be all that I see. And they are so much more than those mere behaviors.

For as my good friend recently said, “If all we see is the ugly in a person, we’re not looking hard enough.”

All of this, in a week where I stumbled across the inspiring story of Trea Turner, a baseball player in Philadelphia whose disastrous season was turned around by a standing ovation he did not deserve, have brought me to a goal for the month of November: Acknowledge the behavior; Applaud the potential.

For that student who is a constant disruption, we must focus on the behavior and acknowledge it as inappropriate. But we also need to see their whole person. Their gifts, their hopes, their potential, and we must applaud the hell out of them whenever possible. We must see all of them, and we must choose to love them entirely.

For that student who is excellent. Who gets straight A’s and volunteers for every student-lead club. We need to focus on their behavior and acknowledge its greatness. We need to applaud their potential to impact their community and future world, but we must also see the whole person. Their struggles, anxieties, and fears, and we need them to know that it is safe to be imperfect. We are still there for them, applauding our faces off, because we love them entirely.

For although we are focused on their behavior, we see their entire person. That is our focus for the month of November, and I am so excited to see what will come of it!

Then, just yesterday, on my drive home from a perfectly imperfect educational week, it dawned on me . . . Does this not also apply to my staff? My family? And to the man who cleans the urinals at the airport? Does it not apply the the stranger on the streets or the neighbor across the street?

Does it not apply to the face I see in the mirror, every single friggen morning?

What I focus on is what I see. And I want to be more intentional about seeing so more! About celebrating more, forgiving more, and applauding more. Because that’s what brings us together and inspires people to better. That’s what encourages us to be human.

That's what I've been thinking about this week.

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Friday Thoughts : Blog

Which answer to prayer will I be?

My school is days away from greeting the new students and starting the new year. As the day draws closer and closer, as the entanglement of excitement and nervousness increases, so do the number of prayers offered by moms and dads, anxious students, and excited teachers. Be it around the dinner table, alone in the car, or in the darkness of night, when faced with the fears of the unknown, we reach out to a higher power. We ask for help, plead for safety, and call for strength. We know we are not enough and that we need help. So we pray.

Recently, I’ve been struck with how we, as educators, have the unique responsibility of being the answers to those prayers. And that is a very sobering thought.

What’s even more sobering a thought is that if I am not careful or intentional in my actions and reactions, I may not like the answer I have become.

This simple line from a simple movie is a powerful reminder of the power of intentionality. How I choose to interact with my students, staff, and parents will be the difference between which type of opportunity I become.

Am I going to be the opportunity - the answer to prayer - that helps them walk through their difficult times? Or will I be the opportunity that encourages them to grow?

As Morgan Freeman argues, if I have a teacher who is praying to grow in patience, kindness, and self-control, I can play the supporting role and encourage them through it. Or, I can be the obstacle that they need to work through. Either way, I am the answer to their prayer. I may not like which one I become.

I don’t know the deepest fears of the staff, the struggles my students face at home or school, nor the deeper frustrations parents have when they come in my office frustrated and angry. Nor do I need to.

What I do need to know is that I have been placed in this school for this time. I have been gifted the opportunity to protect these students, serve this staff, and support this community. I have been placed here for a purpose - I am an answer to the many prayers!

I also believe that if I am not intentional about keeping that choice at the forefront of my thoughts - my prayers - I will miss the opportunities to be the answer I want to be.

That’s what I’ve been thinking about this week.

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Friday Thought : You Belong Here

*Ignore the typo in the images above. . . they have been fixed for the ordered banners:)

As educators, we are continually existing in two communities: the community we try and create for our students, and the community we try and create with our staff. And although there are a few distinct needs between the two, there is also a great deal of overlap. Most notably, the need for belonging.

This coming year, my school’s theme is, “You belong here” which I stole from a principal friend down in Texas, Mr. Martin Silverman, and I just love it.

Then, after listening to a podcast interview with Superintendent Kristi Dominguez entitled, “Building Belonging,” I am fully convinced of the power and purpose of its message.

Especially when the emphasis shifts:

YOU belong here : you BELONG here : you belong HERE!

Each word highlights a very different, very crucial component to being and feeling part of a community. Of belonging.

Here’s what I mean:

“YOU” emphasizes the uniqueness you bring.

You belong here, in this community. Your unique identity, your convictions and passions, your gifts and talents, and the experiences you bring - whatever makes you uniquely you - belong here. Your way of thinking refines our way of thinking, your perspectives complete our perspectives, your whole person (failure and quirks and all) helps create a more holistic and healthy community. YOU is what you bring, and you is what belongs.

“BELONG” reminds us we are part of a community

When we belong to a community we shoulder responsibility for it. We work hard to improve it, personally care for it, and passionately protect it. We invest in it. We pour our identity into it and in return gain identity from it, allowing us to do some pretty GREAT things! Largely because we are not alone. In our endevears, our dreams, or our hardships.

"Humans don’t mind hardship," Sabastion Junger writes," in fact, they thrive on it; what they mind is not feeling necessary." And when you belong, you are and feel necessary. And you are necessary because you BELONG. 

“HERE” is the call to action.

For whatever reason, you have been placed here, in education, in your school, with your students, for this time. And although The Powerful Play will indeed go on for them all as they transition to other schools and various journeys, for right now, you have been tasked with caring for your students, with your staff, in your community.

And they need you.

They need us, all educators everywhere, in all of our faults, insufficiencies, talents, and glories because we are here. We have been provided with this beautiful task of caring for and protecting these students, here and now.

Be it our first year here or our 30th, we have been given this time, this school year, to work with students, embrace our staff, and impact our surrounding communities.

We belong here! YOU belong here!

Let’s ensure our students and fellow staff members know they belong here, too.

That’s what I’ve been thinking about this week.

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Friday Thought : Beyond What I Deserve (A goodbye letter)

“Do - GREAT THINGS!

Go - EAGLES!!!”

I am good at creating goodbyes, but terrible at saying them. 

So this is mine.

Some of you know the journey that brought me to Chief Jo, but many of you do not. None of you know the whole story - which is good! Because as my wife constantly reminds me, "The whole world doesn't need to know everything about our life." And she's right. 

What you should know, though, is that I never wanted to be an elementary principal. Chief Joseph was never on my radar. Until I needed it to be. 

There is a poem that I used to teach entitled, "To a Mouse," by Robert Burns. The 7th stanza reads:

"But mouse-friend, you are not alone

in proving foresight may be vain:

the best-laid schemes of Mice and Men

go oft awry.

and leave us only grief and pain,

for promised joy!"

It is a terribly sad poem, but also extremely accurate, because oftentimes the worst and most painful moments of our lives are when dreams and plans are plowed into the ground,  gone forever. Suddenly, we are lost, without direction, grappling for hope.

That was the condition of my heart and mind when I applied for Chief Jo - lost, and grappling for hope. 

And then I got a call from Ruth Uecker, and suddenly, I was an Eagle. 

The poem To a Mouse has stuck with me because it is so devastatingly true. It is also fully incomplete, for it misses the other side of life. If dreams crushed leave us only grief and pain, unexpected gifts give us life and healing. For it is the dreams and plans that are far beyond what our simple minds can imagine that come most unexpectedly, because we could have never imagined them. And that is what makes them so great. So beautiful. They are beyond what we could have planned, hoped, or dreamed because they are bigger, they are better. 

Losing Fort Benton was a grief and pain I will never forget. 

Gaining Chief Joseph was a reward and blessing beyond what I deserved. It brought hope, joy, redirection, calmness, and clarity to myself and my family. And I will never have the words to fully express how thankful I am to you.

But I will try:)

Thank you for welcoming me. For being patient with my deep lack of knowledge, and for holding me accountable. 

Thank you for allowing me to be me! For allowing me to fail (often) yet still be treated with kindness and respect. Thank you for allowing me to venture into strange ideas (like the Renewing of the Vows and filling our cups, to name a few) and embracing - most of the time😉 - my challenging of things that always were. 

But more than anything, thank you for working hard, supporting each other, being open and honest with me, and for DOING GREAT THINGS! We are mixed bag of personalities, strengths, passions, and philosophies, but we come together beautifully and love our students - our profession - in a way I have rarely seen before. Our students and community are so blessed to have you in their lives. 

And so am I.

Truly, thank you for allowing me to lead you these past two years. It has been such a joy, and I will miss you dearly. 

Enjoy your summer!

That’s what I’ve been thinking about this week.

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Friday Thought : Create Meaning in the Mundane

Meaning is in the Mundane.

My family loves road trips. And each summer, on our way to some far-off place, we have a stretch of time where very little is accomplished but racking up the miles. We start early and drive late, stop as little as possible, crank up the music, and talk. We spend time together. And after years of this routine, with a bucket full of memories and destinations reached, what we think about and miss the most on any given day is the time spent in the car.

Typically, the days between January through mid-March are considered the doldrums of education. There are very few major holidays to celebrate which in turn means very few days off, parties, and “things to look forward to.” There’s just time.

Which, if embraced, can make it the most productive and most memorable time of the year! But only if we are intentional, like a good road trip, and take advantage of those “drive-through states.”

Be intentional about building relationships with those one or two students who are always on the peripheral of your thoughts, who don't quite get the attention they deserve because they aren't a behavior kid . . . how can you spend time with them? See them? Get to know them?

Be intentional about BEING YOU! Over the next six-ish weeks, what can you bring to the classroom - our school - that is uniquely YOU? Most of the year we don't have time for silly moments or random FUN DAYS because we're too busy preparing for testing, concerts, or playing catchup . . . now, you have time, consistency, and a long road ahead . . . where can you inject something unexpected? Something new? Something YOU?

Be intentional about building memories. 

Road trips bring us to some pretty great and memorable destinations. But the pictures we love the most, the times we often remember and miss most often are NOT the final destinations, it's the journey - the what happens during the mundane. 

Take advantage of it and Create Meaning in the Mundane.

That’s what I’ve been thinking about this week.

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Friday Thought : Gap of Knowledge vs Curse of Knowledge.

photo by @justinmcroberts

In Make it Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, Chip and Dan Heath mention "the curse of knowledge." 

The curse of knowledge is when we become so familiar with something (an idea, way of life, purpose statement) that we can no longer remember what it was like to live without it. And because it is so familiar to us, we struggle to relate to those who don't understand it. In our minds, the concept is so simple; in theirs, it is complex and confusing. 

In a recent conversation with an old friend, I was convicted of how this divide of knowledge impacts our relationships with parents. 

As educators, we understand schools. The routines, expectations, norms, and the day-to-day pulse. We read books about learning and classroom culture, we attend conferences, listen to podcasts, and chat with colleagues. We eat, sleep, and breath education. And because we do, we cannot imagine what it would be like not to know so much about our schools, our classroom, or education at large.

Many of our parents, however, have a limited understanding of all that happens within a given school day. When they visit our school or chat with us on the phone, they come to us with gaps of knowledge. And the problem with gaps of knowledge is NOT that there are unknowns, it is how we fill the unknown. 

Our brains are pretty amazing at filling in the blanks of missing information. We take what we know (or think we know) and quickly fill in the gaps of knowledge or understanding. This practice, although normal and natural, often creates a false or incomplete reality of the people, places, and things we are trying to understand.

Our parents do this all the time. Especially those who have a natural mistrust of schools. Especially those who have had limited experiences. They take a single conversation we have about their child, generalize it, and then fill in all the unknown gaps with unfair, at times unkind, but almost always incomplete information. 

And we wonder why, when working through conflict, it feels more like a battle than a brainstorm.

Many of our parents have a misunderstanding of what we do and who we are because they have limited knowledge and experience of the educational system. Many educators have a misunderstanding of parents' perspectives because we forget what it's like to have gaps in our knowledge of that educational system.

My goal, and my encouragement to you, then, is twofold:

1. Tell your story, often and in a variety of ways. Call parents and celebrate your students/their children, email stories of the week that simply provide insight into your days, post random moments of life on social media. Fill in the gaps of knowledge with actual stories of what you're doing, who you are, and why you do what you do. 

2. Give grace. Many of our parents have no clue what we do or how we do it - how could they unless they walk in our shoes? When they come in, then, frustrated and full of incomplete assumptions, listen. Hear their concerns, listen to their stories, and look for the deeper fear that is almost always present. For as my friend said, "We aren't afraid of the dark, we are afraid of what we imagine is in the dark." And what we imagine is almost always scarier than what is real. 

And the same applies to teachers, principals, and support staff towards our students and their families.

Educators have a misunderstanding of our students because we have limited knowledge and experience of their homes, their families, and their lives. We have some knowledge and understanding - what we see and experience during the school day - but what happens after they leave is unclear. We have large gaps of knowledge that are often filled in with what we think we know.

Understanding this deficiency not only allows us to grow in our empathy with parents, as we try to understand the fear and confusion of life and decisions, it also opens the door for curiosity, for questions, and for new discoveries. Instead of resting in our gaps of knowledge, we seek further and deeper understanding. Which, in the end builds us together rather than keeps us apart.

Whenever parents and educators come together, often times, one side suffers from the curse of knowledge, the other from the knowledge gap.

And no matter our role, be it parent, teacher, or educational leader, our task is to turn on the lights. For when we do, we fill in the gaps and provide a firm foundation from which we can build relationships with parents, community members, students, and each other. We create a culture of understanding and trust, and we eradicate fear. 

That’s what I’ve been thinking about this week.

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Friday Thought : What is the Origin?

"What's the origin?"

Oftentimes there are themes to my weeks. Be it from conversations, podcasts, books, whatever, every now and then a very specific theme arises in a short period of time. This past week the theme has been centered on how we interpret the actions of others, and more importantly, how we respond to them.

For me, it is all too easy to fill in the gaps of unknowns with assumptions. When someone says an unkind thing or acts in a somewhat offensive way, I get defensive, argumentative, and - at my worst - judgmental. I fill in what I don't know with what I assume, and falsely attribute someone's actions to their (therefore assumed) faulty character.

Yet, when I dig in, when I sit and chat and seek further understanding, I am often provided an entirely different - and much more accurate - picture of understanding.

In a recent conversation with a friend, he encouraged me to ask and consider, "What is the origin?" of someone's actions, and I have truly appreciated that perspective.

This month, the month of GRATITUDE, one way we can continue to show and pursue a grateful spirit is by appreciating the power and opportunities we have of asking, "What is the origin?"

When a child acts up or lashes out . . . "What is the origin?"

When a coworker responds with sharpness or is curt . . . "What is the origin?"

When a spouse greets us as we walk through the door with a scowl instead of a smile, consider the origin rather than jump to conclusions (Not speaking from experience . . . not at all! ;)

Oftentimes, when we seek to understand the story behind the action, we find that there is a great deal of "shtuff" happening beneath the surface and behind closed doors. When we discover more of the story, oftentimes we find that, instead of frustration, we cling to grace and EMPATHY because - just like us - their intentions were in the right place, they just didn't have the capacity to endure one. more. thing.

And in that, we can all relate.

"What is the origin?"

That’s what I’ve been thinking about this week.

Happy Friday!

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Friday Thought : Show Gratitude; See the Gorilla

In a recent staff meeting, we watched the above video. Then, we talked about gratitude.

A few days ago, I was showing Rick - my lead custodian - the few cracks in our hallways that are in need of some attention. They aren't terrible, but they aren't perfect either. And because they aren't perfect, they can cause students and teachers alike to trip up. Their imperfection draws our attention.

However, they are just a fraction of the hallways. The bulk - almost 100% of the hallways - are great! Yet, how many times have we walked the halls and acknowledged how clean they are? How smooth and reliable they are? How beautiful and encouraging the bulletin boards are?

Not very often.

This week, I have been reminded of how quickly we take for granted the things and people in our lives who do good things, who work hard, and who are reliable, kind, and helpful. Instead of seeing and appreciating the good that is done, we get discouraged by those who are destructive. Instead of focusing on the coming opportunities, we get distracted by the task at hand and the cracks that trip us up.

We can can’t the number of passes made by those in white t-shirts but miss the gorilla.

This month, my school is focusing on the word Gratitude, and what I love about the definition is that it does not merely focus on appreciating the people and things in our lives, but the CHOICE to do so.

Gratitude is choosing to appreciate the people and things in our lives!

As we continue to work hard at completing the tasks before us, as we navigate through or correct the cracks ahead of us, my challenge to you, my staff and students, as well as myself is to not only CHOOSE to see and appreciate the people and things around us but do acknowledge them with a note.

This month, as often as possible, write down the moments, the things, and for sure the PEOPLE who inspire, encourage and support you. Who reminds you of the goodness in life. Who keeps you accountable and heading in the right direction. Who make you a better person.

Let them know they are noticed and appreciated, and that they are making a difference.

Or, as my fifth-grade teachers did, make a poster and hang it in the hallway.

That’s what I’ve been thinking about this week.

Happy Friday!

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Friday Thought : "What's best for the student?" Pictures and Stories.

A few days ago, when discussing options to a difficult situation, my boss asked, me, “What’s best for the student?”

With that simple question, she eliminated so much confusion and consternation, as well as all excuses. No longer were my feelings or wants part of the discussion, nor anyone else’s, just the needs of the student. And within a short while, we had a solution to our problem.

There are many motivators in life that inspire or encourage us in our decision making. The most common being rooted in selfish ambition and vain conceit - whatever makes life easiest, whatever makes us look or feel better, makes us popular or liked, and whatever allows for personal advancement. And the problem with these foundational motivators is not only that they produce comfort rather than growth, its that they are decisions that willingly sacrifice the needs and growth of others.

And we are all guilty of it. At least I know I am. Which is why I truly appreciate a boss who grounds me back to why we are here and do what we do: to love and support kids.

Its also why the above picture is so important because it is a powerful reminder to me, to us - educators, leaders, parents, adults - that we are here in our positions for the purpose of helping, guiding, and training those who need helping, guiding, and training.

We are here to help others.

Pictures of our kiddos hanging on the wall can help remind and reground us. So too can unexpected visits.

Inspired by the above picture and conversations with my boss, I have recently been inviting high school students to come back to our elementary and share a few of their favorite stories. “Whatever you remember,” I tell them, “be it funny, sad, or seemingly insignificant, just share a few of your favorite memories from elementary.”

One student shared about the time he and his friend (the son of one of my students) got in trouble for drawing the male anatomy in the snow during recess.

Another student shared about the time she was struggling and a teacher knelt down to her level, affirmed and encouraged her, then hugged her. Tears flooded her eyes as she expressed how important that moment was for her, then and now.

Others simply shared how teachers made them feel. How they loved their classes not because of the content but because of them, the teacher.

Like pictures on a wall, hearing the stories of our recently departed students has been a tangible reminder that in the midst of data discussions, state testing requirements, and exhausting weeks of hard conversations, there are students in our classrooms who need to be loved and supported. There are students who are showing up with heavy hearts, distracted minds, and empty bellies. There are students who are coming to our school who, that very day, will encounter a moment that will stick with them for the rest of their lives.

And that, more than anything else, should be enough to inspire us into hard conversations and purposeful solutions.

To paraphrase Andy Jacks in Discipline Win, Our legacy is defined by how we support our students. They are the reason why we are here and the WHY to our decisions, and it is therefore they who should be plastered on our walls and the forefront of our minds. Not ourselves.

“What’s best for the student?” my boss asked me. Recently, the answer has been to remind myself and my staff that at the heart of everything we say and do, it is our students who will suffer the consequences or reap the benefits of our decision making.

And that, for me at least, has been a much needed grounding and what has been on my mind lately.

Happy Friday!!!

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Friday Thought : Why We Thank Our Crossing Guards

A few days ago one of my teachers emailed me, asking if we could recognize our crossing guard because, “We have had him for several years” she wrote, “and he is so good with the kids and always waves at everyone.”

So today, we celebrated him (you can see the full video here).

And as Kevin entered the foyer, students and staff cheered, and a few tears began to role down his cheeks.

When asked, “Raise your hands if Mr Kevin has ever made you feel safe,” a sea of hands rose and waved in the air. Students and staff alike.

And when it was over, the hearts of all who were present were filled and encouraged.

Later that afternoon, I wrote my staff this email:

Thank you for taking the time to come and celebrate Kevin.

I don't know about you, but moments like these are powerful reminders of how important it is to reach out and acknowledge those who do GREAT things.

It's also a great learning opportunity for our kiddos! For them to see the POWER of gratitude and thankfulness is so important. Even at a young age, they have the ability to make a difference in someone's life.

Thank you for providing them this opportunity.

In a time where educators are exhausted and in need of encouragement, there is no greater gift than to celebrate another.

As you consider ways to encourage, support, and inspire your staff, instead of reaching for the checkbook, fancy food trays, or handwritten notes (all of which do matter and definitely help), consider sending a few emails, gathering a few gifts, and spending a few short minutes intentionally and personally celebrating the individuals around you who make a difference.

Receiving gifts is nice. Giving someone a memory they will never forget is even better. For them, and for ourselves.

Happy Friday!!!

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Friday Thought : The Least of These

A slide from the same presentation by Dr. Andy Jacks (@_AndyJacks)

This, roughly, is a quote from this past weekend. "Your school should be judged by the way it treats the least of these."

It is often said that great teachers - great schools - make their decisions based upon their best students, teachers. And I fully stand by that. When we create lesson plans, when we consider the future of our school, it is the best students, the best teachers, that dictate what we will and won’t do, can and can’t do. We make decisions based on the top students and teachers, not the least common denominator.

And this is where the above quote convicted and challenged me this past week, because I desperately want my school to be considered the best, to lead the state and the nation in academics and excellence! Yet, ultimately, that is not how we will be judged, how we should be judged. If we have the highest GPA’s and ACT score but graduate jerks and kids who are not considerate of others, we have failed. And everyone will know it.

How we treat those kids who are at the bottom of the social ladder (be it academic, financial, popularity, whatever) is what defines us as a person, and us as a school. Do we spend extra time on some kids, and less on others? Do we send some parents emails and neglect others? Are we kinder, more patient with some kids and not with others?

If we’re honest, or at least if I am, the answer is yes. At least sometimes, anyway, and not because I like one kid more than another or because I think one has more value than another. But because, largely, the kids who have better home lives, more supportive parents, or more stable living conditions (generally) work harder, are more polite, and are better students. They’re easier to work with. Easier to spend time with. But they're also the ones that need us and our resources more.

“Are you spending as much time being concerned about and brainstorming ways to help a child’s behavior as you are a child’s reading or math scores?” This was another question posed, and I thought it a perfect distinction, or manifestation rather, of how we can love each child equally, yet differently, and according to their needs.

Perhaps you’ve heard the phrase, “Maslow before Bloom.” If not, it is simply implying that before we can work a child through the increasing stages of Bloom’s Taxonomy, we must first consider Maslow and the basic needs that each child must have in order to live. 

Just today, I saw this play out with a particular student who bombed a test. And I mean he BOMBED it. When he and it were brought to my attention, the student spent a good deal of time explaining the morning he had had the day of the test and how that difficulty, that upheaval of a morning affected his day and ability to work. We then spent a little bit of time discussing his emotions, his normal morning life, and how he could have handled those frustrations in the near future.  We spent time working through his Maslow needs: safety and love and belonging. And it only took about 10ish minutes.

Then, he retook the test and it was RADICALLY different. 

As teachers, as educators, we must always be pushing our students to achieve great things. We must never settle for mediocrity or ordinary - we aim towards and teach towards the best! But we also equally love on and support those who, for one reason or another, cannot achieve such great heights because their foundation of life - their basic needs - are absent or threatened. We reach and teach those kids, too.

We didn’t come to be teachers to serve and teach to the best of the best, but to change lives, to inspire lives worth living, and to improve the world around. Sometimes that means pushing the extremes of Bloom’s higher levels of Taxonomy. Other times, it is working through Maslow before attacking Bloom because that is what that kid needs, and because that is what we can provide. That’s why they call us teachers!

Although it is hard work, exhausting work, and at times extremely frustrating, it is the best work. 

It is a great time to be an Educator.