I blogged about this in the past, but I finally was able to finish up my third book of the summer, Chip and Dan Heath's The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact. There is no use beating around the bush: it's the best education related book I've read in several years.
Absolutely amazing. Here is a link to the notes I took on it. If you are interested.
The big take away - it doesn't matter if you're a business owner, boss, teacher, or parents, if you want to make an impact, you have to be diligent about recognizing defining moments and even creating them.
They focus on four specific types of defining moments in our lives -
1. Moments of elevation (where the situation is such that our senses are heightened and we are naturally more impressionable at that moment) - examples - great customer service experiences or "first days" (I mean you most likely remember your first day of work, first day of kindergarten, first day of college . . . but why don't you remember you 67th day of school? Just the fact that it's your first time or a significant occasion help create the moment of elevation).
The authors explain - Remarkable moments stand above the normal routine. This is often triggered by hitting a particular sense (like the popsicles served at the Magic Castel being delivered on a silver tray).
How I aim to create moments of elevation: I recall one remarkable moment I used to have in my 11th grade lit class when we read Poe’s “The Masque of the Red Death.” As part of our intro to the story, I had students read this account on the Black Death. I recall how that document talked about how if you had the plague, you’d get these large boils in your armpits and groans that were full of blood and puss. They often were the size of apples. I don’t know why that description caught my eye, but it did. So when we began this unit, I’d have a good old Braeburn apple in my hand that I’d toss up and down once awhile. Then as students took turns reading the eye witness account, I’d keep tossing the apple and draw their attention to it. Then when they read the description about the boils, they were disgusted. I said, holding the apple up, “could you imagine having a boil this size in your armpit or crotch?” Then – without any hint at all – I’d bite a huge chunk of the apple out. Man! Kids would lose it! Ha ha. It was great.
Next year - the first day of class is a built in moment of elevation. Why just read through the syllabus and do boring crap? You're ruining a built-in moment of elevation! I am thinking about taking my class to the DQ on the first day. I do that on the last day, but flipping the script on a moment of elevation is a great way to make it more impactful. We can still cover all the boring stuff on the way over if we choose. I just want to give them a day they won't soon forget.
2. Moments of insight (these are like 'epiphany' moments or as Gru from Despicable Me would say, "Lighhhhttt Bulbbbb!") - examples - These can easily be engineered. A great lesson is a wonderful example of this. Remember when your parents wanted to 'teach you a lesson' - well that's a moment of insight. The more time and effort and thought they put into the lesson, the more insight it offered you and the more you can remember it. Examples - this one I heard on the Entreleadership podcast a few years ago. An entrepreneur/author, Roy Vader, author of Take the Stairs, recounted how as a high schooler, he always forgot to lock the door to their house. His mother, of course, reminded him time and again to do so, for they lived in a neighborhood that was rampant with crime. Of course, Vaden forgot again and again. So one day he came home from school for lunch and the house was cleaned out! Everything (his clothes, his electronics, the TV, the coffee maker . . .) was gone! He called his mom in tears lamenting that he forgot to lock the door and now they lost everything.
His mother said she'd be right there . . . and she pulled up in a moving truck with all of their belongings boxed up safely inside.. She was moving them out of the neighborhood finally. She just didn't tell him because she wanted to teach him a lesson. Talk about a moment of insight!
The authors explain - Remarkable moments re-wire our understanding of the world around us. I call these epiphany moments. These can be very effective - IF you put the time and effort into calculating them properly.
How I aim to create moments of insight: This type of moment still occurs in class. If you read “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, you’ll have a moment of insight in your class. But if you pair that with this fascinating read, “Body Ritual Among the Nacerima,” you’ll pair one epiphany moment with another, even more shocking.
Next year - I want to be more tactical on creating these types of moments. I also want to build them into the gradual release model which we will be studying more in depth this year.
3. Moments of pride (these are moments of recognition or achievement. Here is one of mine. These are often milestones in our lives, and, thus, mark significant moments in our lives.) These moments take a lot of work and building up to. But they are so worth it. Examples - moments of achievement - when the robotics team is recognized at the end of a competition for their design award or when a player scores her 1,000th point in basketball and the whole gym pauses to recognize the moment or when their is a surprise 30th birthday party.
The authors explain - These moments catch us at our best. Moments that involve pride take a lot of prep and building up to. In other words, a goal has to be achieved. Seeing kids after a play, performance, or concert illustrates this well.
How I aim to create moments of pride: This one is actually simple: catch kids doing stuff right. A quick comment in the hall or a text is the best way I accomplish this.
An easy example (this was a text I received from a student once she read my comments on one of her essays)
Next year - I plan to be sure to build in moments of pride to recognize each student at various stages in my class. This can be as easy as when I go through the students' rough drafts, I'll highlight specific passages that are effective. Then I'll ask students to read them during class and recognize them in front of everyone for their effective prose. If they don't want to read it, I'll print out a copy before hand and read it to the class and acknowledge them still.
4. Moments of connection (Defining moments are often social. Because of this, they allow us to connect to others who share in our moment, making it powerful). Examples - Think about weddings, graduations, vacations, baptisms, and so on. How do you get your students to share and connect to help forge this type of moment?
From the authors - Moments of pride commemorate people’s achievements. We feel our chest puff out and our chin lift. There are three practical principles we can use to create more moments of pride: (1) Recognize others; (2) Multiply meaningful milestones; (3) Practice courage. The first principle creates defining moments for others; the latter two allow us to create defining moments for ourselves.
How I aim to create moments of pride: Build up special occasions during the class to celebrate our work. I recall Dr. Bonner's Advanced Prose class at BSU. She allowed us to submit one essay we'd written over the quarter for a class contest. I included one. She made copies (without our names on them) and broke us up into small groups to read the stories. Then we voted on our favorites. Then at the end of the class, she shared the results. The next class she read the top two selections. I still remember it 20 years later.
Next year - to be honest, I think this is one of the easier moments to engineer. Our passion project is a great example of this.
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How have I never seen this commercial before?
I came across it thank to a link in my fourth summer reading book, Teaching College: the Ultimate Guide to Lecturing, Presenting, and Engaging Students by Norman Eng.
Get out the tissues!
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What happened to the America I grew up in? The one with the idealism of Jimmy Carter and the hard-lined, family values of Ronald Reagan, and the wealth and prosperity of the Clinton years?
What happened to the America I grew up in? The one with the idealism of Jimmy Carter and the hard-lined, family values of Ronald Reagan, and the wealth and prosperity of the Clinton years?
And to be fair, those administrations weren't without their faults. But it seemed to me that they were focused on America first and personal interests later. Yes, Carter wasn't the leader Reagan was. Yes, Reagan dragged his feet over the whole AIDS epidemic and tens of thousands died as a result. Yes, Clinton was a lousy, wretch as a husband with very questionable morals. And maybe the prosperity of his administration set us up for the crash of 2008. But still. I never saw the divide among Americans that I see on a daily basis.
Under George Bush, it seemed we feared the radicals in the middle east. But it seems clear to me now that their radicalism has found a home right in the middle of our country.
Is it because we've had two of the most polarizing political figures elected the past two times? Is it because we've lost what it means to really be an American?
Dave Ramsey - a southern, evangelical Christian and conservative himself - talks about how if you don't think America is the greatest nation in the world, you need to travel more. In other words, appreciate what we have and learn to get along.
This is hate. No it isn't 'their' flag. It's your flag. It's our flag. You want to burn it? Fine. You have that right. You want to kneel? You have that right too. But you don't have the right to hate. You don't have the right to make up history as you so choose (such as denying the holocaust ever happened) and you don't have the right to decide what the media reports (you certainly can choose what to tune in to and what to tune out though - the more the better, if you ask me). But you don't have the right to hate or perpetuate it.
This is hate. Why can't we listen and civilly debate anymore? Yelling at someone and telling them to get out? Shame on you. That does more damage for your cause than any point you're trying to make.
What did Martin Luther King Jr and his protestors do prior to their first sit ins? They practiced how NOT to respond with anger. They sat while others played the role of the white managers. The managers yelled and screamed and called them all kinds of names. Yet, the protestors were conditioned not to respond with anything other than a smile and civility.
Can't we get back to that?
This is hate. I've said it time and again: there is nothing more pathetic than an angry, irrelevant, old, white man. Stop contributing to the hate and divide. And you're going to say you're praying for the protestors while every other word is a profanity? Keep it classy Mr. Nugent. And to the protestors, why not try to have a civil discussion of how to try and meet in the middle with political leaders instead of just making a ruckus outside a concert with maybe 6,000 people inside?
This is hate. Or ignorance. Right where I live.
Is it because we've had two of the most polarizing political figures elected the past two times? Is it because we've lost what it means to really be an American?
Dave Ramsey - a southern, evangelical Christian and conservative himself - talks about how if you don't think America is the greatest nation in the world, you need to travel more. In other words, appreciate what we have and learn to get along.
This is hate. No it isn't 'their' flag. It's your flag. It's our flag. You want to burn it? Fine. You have that right. You want to kneel? You have that right too. But you don't have the right to hate. You don't have the right to make up history as you so choose (such as denying the holocaust ever happened) and you don't have the right to decide what the media reports (you certainly can choose what to tune in to and what to tune out though - the more the better, if you ask me). But you don't have the right to hate or perpetuate it.
This is hate. Why can't we listen and civilly debate anymore? Yelling at someone and telling them to get out? Shame on you. That does more damage for your cause than any point you're trying to make.
What did Martin Luther King Jr and his protestors do prior to their first sit ins? They practiced how NOT to respond with anger. They sat while others played the role of the white managers. The managers yelled and screamed and called them all kinds of names. Yet, the protestors were conditioned not to respond with anything other than a smile and civility.
Can't we get back to that?
This is hate. I've said it time and again: there is nothing more pathetic than an angry, irrelevant, old, white man. Stop contributing to the hate and divide. And you're going to say you're praying for the protestors while every other word is a profanity? Keep it classy Mr. Nugent. And to the protestors, why not try to have a civil discussion of how to try and meet in the middle with political leaders instead of just making a ruckus outside a concert with maybe 6,000 people inside?
This is hate. Or ignorance. Right where I live.
Are people that paranoid? Are they just trying to make a scene? Is this some new type of crazy trend (like the clown obsession a few Halloween ago, eating Tide pods, or thinking the freaking earth is flat?)
It's ironic that as I walked my kids to this very fair, yesterday, I saw a young man in his Jeep. He was relaxing in an unorthodox way. He had a hammock set up around his Jeep. So he was sitting in his passenger seat with his feet propped up in the driver's seat. His head was sticking up through his sun roof while he watched his phone. He had a military sticker on the side of his Jeep.
It was unorthodox, certainly.
I thought "Creeper" right away. I mean who does that as they chill in the parking lot of the fair? Yet, I knew he probably wasn't a creeper and had every right in America to do what he wished as long as he was hurting anyone.
I thought his set up quite unique so I studied it for awhile. Then I started worrying that maybe he thought I was a creeper staring at him. So I nodded at him and smiled. Then when I saw his sticker I smiled again and thanked him for his service. I've no idea if he heard me, but he deserved respect for his service.
We all deserve respect. If we take the time to realize why. Does Ted Nugent deserver respect? Sure. I'm sure he's done a lot to help his community with his wealthy. It's just hard to have that respect granted when he curses every fourth word and has no ability to argue at all.
Or maybe we just need to rediscover a few things? Mercy would be a great start.
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Enough with the negative.
This is what both sides (all sides, actually) should want for their children in America -
This is what is right and just with our world.
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I am part of our Leadership Team at LHS. We just finished up a two day meeting where we examined the direction for our strategic plan, our professional development, and our common prep for next year. We also went over the senior survey, where the seniors all give us feedback about LHS.
One of the most impressive responses was how a vast majority of the graduating seniors felt that they had someone at LHS who not only knew them but had their best in mind.
Here is how another school does that -
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And finally a really interesting take on lecturing as the dominant form of instruction in college: A Lecture from the Lectured. You can feel their pain.
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