D is for Differences in Learning

I thought it might be time again for another education op-ed type thing. One of the things that I hear a lot as a teacher---especially in my particular school is from parents and sometimes students--"My son/daughter/I have learning differences."  They usually say it in this whiny voice with an intent to look for an exception or a teacher to spend ALL of their time with them and ignore all the other students that they have.  I have taken to saying something like, "That's nice, so do I."

Parents will usually pause and the kids will stare at me like, "Really you are a teacher and super smart?!"  I continue talking about how everyone learns differently.  If we all learned the same, we would all have the same personalities, and then we might as well be robots.  We have to figure out what helps us to learn best--but we can't use it as an excuse.  I know that I learn well with visuals and sounds--so when I am learning something I figure out how to make that happen.  That is what our students need.

As parents and teachers we want to help our students to be independent.  So, don't let them use the fact that they are totally different from everyone else as an excuse--use it to empower them.  You learn differently?  Great! What are you going to do to help yourself?  How can you advocate for yourself?  Just because you have an IEP does not give you license to not work and it definitely does not allow you to just sit back and not work hard.  Will you have to work hard then another student because of that?  Yes it is possible, but they have to work hard at something else that is easy for you.

Be okay with the fact that we are all different.

Some Favorite "Memes"

Every once in a while I will tell you why I like Pinterest so much.  Today...it is because of memes.  Everyone uses this word and the sad thing is that it is such a widely used term that I never know for sure if I am using it right but I think I'm ok.

So the first one I love because it is so VERY true...I especially realized this when I went to college and would say West Wing quotes that my sister would have totally gotten and nobody was laughing...

Link: http://www.someecards.com/usercards/nsviewcard/MjAxMi0zMDc0ODk1ZGIyNGRjYWNi 

This second one was my day yesterday...I took about 15 minutes because I had people coming over and my front room looked better than it had all week. It is sad...but the life of a busy girl who doesn't want to clean.

http://www.someecards.com/usercards/viewcard/MjAxMi03ODE2NGU3MjRmZmYzOGZi 

The last one I think speaks for itself....when co-workers usually want a file from me and they say "Oh I'll just get on and find it on the network."  I have to give them like five folders to go to before they can find it.

http://nerdquirks.tumblr.com/post/15261235534/a-dream-within-a-dream-within-a-dream-a-folder

Hope I made you smile...at least just a little...because that is the best part about memes

The Little Things

The little things in life make it worth it. I spend just a little bit of time cleaning my front room, and it looks TONS better.  I spend a little bit of time outside of my usual work day with my students, and our relationships continue to grow.  And then my husband leaves me this on my fridge...

Yep that's a heart on my freezer

The middle part said....

Yep it is corny....but still sweet

Inspired by a Quote...to Write this

So there are many days in this 365 project that I struggle with what to write about each day....as I am sure those of you that keep up can tell.  Some of posts are better than others. Inspiration (as my blog title shows) can be a hard thing to come by...but today I am inspired by a quote.

I collect quotes...from lots of people.  That is one of the things that I love about Pinterest! And I get quotes e-mailed to me by Goodreads..so I am usually not at a loss for quotes.  Today's quote was the quote of the day on Goodreads a few weeks ago.

Hard times require furious dancing. Each of us is proof. --Alice Walker (author of The Color Purple)

This one spoke to me today because it is kind of a testament to my life right now.  As I'm sure many teachers can relate to...work can be hard and difficult sometimes and it is nice to have days like Presidents' Day off.  Other professions can relate to this too...like nurses--I have learned a lot about how hard that profession is from my sister.  (See her blog on the sidebar)  But we have to figure out how to deal sometimes with the daily grind.  And as Alice Walker encourages us to do---dance it out!! I don't dance as often as I should but I do bang on the steering wheel, tap my toes, and sing my heart out in the car on my way home.  Today's favorite song is:

Plus that video has some great dancing ideas...And all of this reminds me of the another dance it out idea from Grey's Anatomy!  (Couldn't do this post without it..and the French is actually kind of funny to see)

So...hard day?? DANCE IT OUT! Cuz Alice Walker told you too :)

Be Positive!

Today is going to be a rambling post...I'm sorry if these aren't the favorites...but I had an interesting experience today.  And to a certain extent it is something that I wonder if happens to a lot of teachers.  I ran into an old friend from work.  She and I knew each other about six months or so before she was let go by the company.  She did not and still does not agree with a lot of the decisions the company made. She was surprised to hear that I was still working for them, because of her negative feelings about it.  I was finally able to pull away from the conversation and get my grocery shopping done, but her words still bothered me.  And I have been thinking about it ever since...

People talk about how this and that needs to change in education. But I really think that of the biggest things that needs to change in education is the attitude of people about it.  We can't go beating up and putting  everyone down all the time--whether we agree on the decisions or not.  First of it is not healthy and second of all it is very toxic.  I felt just very yucky and disturbed by the whole conversation--and it is just not productive.

Sometimes it is hard to take the emotions out of the decisions that educators need to make, but I think that we need to say our piece and then deal with the problem rationally.  Because negativity, I think, will ruin some great teachers' careers.  I know for me the last few months with everything changing around me in the field, I have thought hard about leaving the field.  But I love teaching in my classroom, independent of everyone else, and honestly I don't know what I would do instead.

So I guess I send this cosmic thought out into the void....but I would challenge all of us to be a little bit more positive today, tomorrow, and the next day after that--because we sure need it around here.

I love daisies!! They are the happiest flower
Thank you www.smileyfaces.org for the pic

P.S. I made two "You've Got Mail" references...brownie points to who figures them out.