Teacher Thoughts- New Year Addition

And just like that it's 2022. Thankfully, right? In 24 years of teaching - and at least 20 years as a student on top of that - I've never had two years as trying and demoralizing like 2020 and 2021. Putting together my yearly Teaching Thoughts has been a passion of mine for several years now. I composed them over the course of the summer and then completed each Smore newsletter at the end of that summer; however, after being named head football coach last year, I found any free time suddenly in short supply. 

 While I love coaching and inspiring and impacting student athletes in a way I wasn't able to before, I missed doing this research and writing. The extended winter break, though, gave me extra time to get the first several Teaching Thoughts newsletters organized. 

 This all comes at the perfect time, for I found my passion for teaching waning over the past couple of months. That's something that hasn't happened since my first few years teaching. In fact, for the first time ever my thoughts began to turn to actually leaving the profession all together. For someone who has a bumper sticker that reads, "I'd rather be teaching," that should speak volumes about how challenging the past two years have been! 

 But putting these newsletters together injected me with passion that has been sorely lacking. I hope you find some inspiration in this first Teaching Thoughts newsletter. 

If you have any suggestions, topics, books, videos, or articles that have inspired you, please send them my way so that I may include them in a future newsletter. Inside this week’s Teaching Thoughts, you’ll find – 

Images – Check out "Good" by Jocko Willink. This image comes via one of my amazing assistant coaches, Austin Farnlof (who married an amazing former student of ours, Sarah Korpi). It is based off of this snippet from Willink's podcast. This image became a rallying cry for us in football, but I think it's perfect for this post distance-learning world we are now in. Willink's main point is that whenever you face adversity, instead of sulking or complaining, just utter the phrase, "Good." Why? Because any set back is another chance to improve, to pick the pieces up and try again, to hone your skills, to make a bigger impact. Start thinking like this and see how quickly your mindset changes when something goes wrong. 

Book of the Week –Think Again by Adam Grant. I included this text in a Teaching Thoughts edition from last year, but it's just too vital not to start off this year with. Mr. Zutz recommended it, so I knew it was going to be excellent. And it didn't disappoint. Grant's main point is that smart people change their minds when presented with data that logically counters their original opinion. How wild is that? Why have we stopped doing this? Why do we dig our heels in and just believe what we originally thought no matter what the data says or how many conspiracy theories, alternative news sources, or Youtube "experts" we have to cite? Well, that's what Grant reveals. 

 Teaching Thoughts – Check out tip #3. This is how I was able to actually make it through this year despite my lack of passion and motivation. It's a great reminder. Podcast of the Week – 60 Minutes episode from 11/14. This podcast is a great companion piece to my book recommendation for this week. Kristie saw this episode and recorded it for me as she thought it would be worth sharing with my Hot Topics in Writing class. I was able to find a podcast version of it to share. This episode features an interview with conservative Andrew Sullivan who examines what we have lost as a republic when it comes to being able to disagree with each other yet still compromise and move forward. 

 Video of the Week – The Present. I stumbled across this a few weeks ago and was floored by it. I tried to share it with Cash and Kenzie, but they had beaten me to it. "The Present? The one with the boy and his dog?" Kenzie said. "I watched it on Youtube Kids already. It's pretty good." Well, there you have it.

 Give this a try in your Classroom – The Social Media Scavenger Hunt Several teachers on second floor have scavenger hunts, for I see the clues taped up in the hallways. To wrap up my first quarter Blogging and Social Media Influencer Writing class, I sought to develop a scavenger hunt that kind of drew upon all the skills we had worked on previously. In short, students had to solve a crossword puzzle (based on trivia for LHS staff) in my classroom (shout out to my TA, Debbie, who is amazing) in groups. Once that was solved, Debbie gave each group the location to the first clue and they were off. Each clue called for students to do some research and share the answer with me via different social media platforms. Ultimately, the first group to find my location won. It took almost the entire block, and, best of all, kids showed off their skills and had a blast. What's better than that for a final assignment? 

 Have a great 2022! Link to Teaching Thoughts Post-Football edition. The background image for this newsletter - I tried to snap a picture of the Father's Day present my oldest daughter, KoKo, got me - a coffee cup that reads "I'm silently correcting your grammar." Ha ha. Perfect for an English teacher.