Where I'm From

I am from home

from ice skating on the pond, marching through forts

and swinging on the monkey bars

from “don’t fall in the hot lava” and scavenger hunts

I am from tree with moon

and purple room

from Wapato Point, Lake Cavanaugh

and camping at the ocean

I am from “when I was a kid” and “hate is a very strong word”

I am from mom and dad and big sis

From George and Betty, Margaret and Howard

I am from red ribbon cake, potato salad

and cheeseburger frie diet coke

I am from exploration and adventure

from 4 generations of teachers

and strong women

I am from dependability and stability

from lots of “I love you’s” and hugs

I am from “my name is Jessica not Jesse!”

I am from where my daughter lives

I am from home

The Other Side...

          During last nights discussion the "other side" of the standardized testing debate was brought up.  People wanted to know more about the reasoning someone might use in support of these tests.  I feel this is a very important question because it is always imperative that we see an issue from multiple perspectives.  To know the other side means to be able to know your own side better as well. 

          For me the question is not only, what justification and or reasoning do supporters of standardized testing use to back their claim of the necessity and benefits of these tests, but also who are the people making these claims?  What credibility do they have?  With this specific issue, of standardized testing, it appears quite clear to me which side I deem more credible. 

          Most of the articles I have read, videos I have watched and people I have spoken to that stress the negative effects of standardized testing, and the way they are used in U.S. public schools, are critical educators, scholars, parents, and researchers.  The people in the classrooms who experience the effects of standardized testing first hand have more credibility, to me, than politicians, corporations and policy makers. 

          My overall point is that, while we must inquire about the reasons for supporting the "other side" of the issue, we must also ask, who is making those claims and what might be their motives be? 

Technology Anyone?

          I have to admit that I am kind of loving the technology we are learning.  I didn't ever picture myself saying that so it's kind of a big deal.  While yes I know how to use my computer, iPhone and iPad, I truly envisioned myself as a teacher who wouldn't use a whole lot of tech in my future classrooms.  I now see how absurd that sounds since we live in a tech world.  When I was in high school the cool and new high tech gadget that everyone just had to have was a pager, not a cell phone because those weren't readily accessible to everyone until a few years later, but pagers...everyone had a pager and if you didn't you wanted one. 

          My point is that I realise my future students are all growing up in this tech world that already has iPads, iPhones and blogs.  My two and half year old daughter can work the iPad with little to no assistance, this amazes me.  I get that to kids these days all this tech stuff is normal, but for me a lot of it is still new and though I was admittedly resistant a couple weeks ago, I am now all for it.  Now that I have learned how to use this stuff I see the its potential uses in my classrooms.

          This experience of learning how to use cool things like google docs, wikis and photostory has opened my mind to a whole new world of knowledge.  In doing a project for another class I came across this super cool resource for teachers called a webquest.  A webquest is an interactive learning tool that is created by teachers, and used by students, to explore and learn about different topics via the web.  Another awesome thing about the webquest is that teachers can create their own and or choose from the thousands of others that have already been created by other teachers.    

Here's the link to find out more about webquests
http://www.webquest.org/

My Brain and Heart Hurt

          My brain hurts after tonight's discussion in class.  I can't stop thinking about all the responsibility and pressure kids living in poverty must feel.  How hard it must be to live without hope!  The activity we did in class was excellent at giving some perspective on how difficult it would be to choose which bills you are going to pay each month.  After just a few minutes of trying to figure it out I just wanted to give up.  I wanted to give up because I didn't want to choose between food and electricity or running water.  I wanted to give up because I didn't want to think about the physical and emotional pain these families must feel everyday but of course, it is all I can think about. 

          After tonight's class I feel this weight on my heart when I think about all the stress these kids and parents are put under everyday.  What specifically can we do as teachers to lessen the burden these kids feel?  How do we empower these kids to end the cycle of poverty?  I am glad we are diving deep into these difficult issues and I know it will make us all better teachers, I greatly appreciate the difficult work we are doing.   But at the same time, as a very wise cohort member said tonight, "throw us a life raft"!  With all these questions and issues being raised we need some answers.  We need some hope!  We are wrestling with so many heart wrenching issues and I want to make sure I don't get all swallowed up, we need to come up for air every now and then and hear something positive.  So please someone tell me something positive.  

Birthdays and such...

          I have so many thoughts bouncing around in my head following our discussion about Birthdays and Holidays last week.  I want my classrooms to be extremely inclusive and safe.  I want to create a community with my students that lets them know that their voice matters and is greatly valued.  With that said I have to be honest with my thoughts.  I understand the problem of celebrating holidays and birthdays and how inevitably some students are always going to feel left out.

          I don't know why exactly but for some reason I am having a difficult time letting go of acknowledging Birthdays in my classroom.  It must have something to do with the fact that my Birthday is in February.  I was always able to celebrate my Birthday in school and I can still remember how excited I got, every year, to celebrate it at school.  And I would be lying if said I wasn't excited that my daughters Birthday just made the beginning of the school year.  Her Birthday is September 7th which means that she just barely made it into the "my Birthday is during the school year" club.

          My brain knows that this is unfair to kids who's Birthdays are during the summer or over long holidays, or those that don't celebrate them, but my heart is holding on to those cherished childhood memories.  I know I have to get past this, but for right now I am sad to let the parties go!  I loved everyone one of those parties but I also realise that not everybody has such wonderful memories of those days.  My love of all these parties has nothing to do with religion, so that part of it is a non-issue for me.  I loved all of these parties because they were a time to take a break and have a lot of fun.  I guess it's all perspective.  From my perspective, as a kid, these celebrations were nothing but fun; I now realise that was probably not the case for many of my classmates and for that reason I realise I will have to change my outlook on Birthday and holiday celebrations in my future classrooms.

Building Safe and Inculsive Classrooms

             I loved this week’s reading by Mara Sapon-Shevin titled, Building a Safe Community for Learning.  I couldn’t agree with her more about the importance of creating safe and inclusive classrooms for our students.  In fact, this has been a major component of what I envision my future classrooms to look like.  I am dedicated and determined to create with my students a community that helps them truly get to know and appreciated one another.  I want my students to feel safe and encouraged to take intellectual risks and chances in their learning.  I want my students to feel supported enough, by each other, that they ask and answer questions even when they aren’t sure of the answer.  I remember so many times in my early education when the teacher would ask a question and I was afraid to give an answer in case I was wrong.  I didn’t want to be embarrassed or made fun of if the answer I gave was incorrect.  This is one of the many reasons why I want to create a community, with my students, that gives them “the safety to learn and to fail” that Sapon-Shevin writes of.  I know that I learn a great deal from both my failures and successes.  My students and I need to be willing to explore and learn what is unfamiliar and confusing together. 

            I have envisioned my first day as a teacher for quite some time.  As I see that day now I am talking to my students letting them know who I am, what I expect of them, how excited I am to get to know them.  I want to sit in a circle, with the desks moved away, and just talk to them about what they envision the year to look like, what their interests are and what they are most and least excited about.  I want to find out their hopes and dreams and what they expect from me.  I also want to create our community rules and guidelines together as a group.  I feel that creating the classroom norms together will allow them to feel part of it and take pride in upholding our expectations of each other.  I know, as Mara writes in her article, that a community cannot be built in one or two days, but I feel it is imperative to start the building process from day one.  I want my students to feel that they are part of the decision making process, which I hope will lead them to take responsibility for themselves and their classmates.

Going Beyond the Walls

While putting pictures of people of color on the walls of our classrooms is important and necessary, it is in no way enough.  Children of color, and I would argue white children as well, need to be taught about the multiple histories and great minds that make up this country.  Instead of only teaching and learning about black history during February, we need to incorporate it into the curriculum all year long.  Instead of teaching history solely through a white lens we need to make sure we are continuously changing the lens from which we teach.

 It is our job and obligation as teachers to make sure all of our students feel empowered, included, relevant, inspired, and represented in the learning process.  To achieve this, especially as white teachers, we need to make sure we do our “homework”.  We need to take the time to learn about racially marginalized groups and their histories.  We need to read, read, and read some more about what people of color have to say, historically and currently, about their experiences in education and society in general.  As white teachers, of children of color, we need to be willing to reflect on our own biases and preconceived notions, resist becoming defensive and truly listen, learn and grow towards providing more equity and inclusivity for all students of all races.