Ah, Saturday mornings! A chance to sleep in and wake up feeling refreshed and ready to take on the ever-expanding list of chores. Of course, when you wake up to that face, your first thought might be "Oh, holy cow! I have got to get out of here!" I assure you, his glare is worse than his claw.Well, no...not really.
Anyway...
I had been looking forward to this morning all week, and not just because it meant a little quality time with Mr. Warm and Fuzzy. Every Saturday morning I try to catch the latest Classroom 2.0 Live session. I was especially eager to attend the session this morning as the guests were Jim Beeghley and his daughter Sarah. Sarah is a remarkable young lady whose interest in the U.S. Civil War spurred her to create the award-winning Civil War Sallie project. Sallie Ann is a stuffed bear that travels around the country visiting classrooms and battlefields (hopefully they don't prove to be one and the same!)
Listening to Sarah this morning was absolutely inspiring! I left the session with dozens of ideas for future lessons, but also with a renewed sense of purpose. I need to do more for my students in the classroom. I need to be a better teacher for my students. And I know I can be. Quite often it seems too overwhelming, and I know that at least part of that is because I make it that way. Something to work on!
But then I hear someone like Sarah and I am reminded that I really can do this job. I have good ideas, I just need to work on my follow-through. And I need to get my students involved in more projects like Sarah's. I hope to find a way to help them create their own projects. Something Sarah said this morning has stuck with me throughout the day: "Find something you're passionate about, and have fun with it." I am passionate about education. But I have not been having fun with it. It makes for very long days when you're having to trudge through them.
And what about my students? What are they passionate about? How can I help them find their passion? How can I harness that passion into something they'll remember? Into something that will make a difference? To them and the world!
That's a lot to think about. But that's a good thing! Thank you, Sarah, for reminding me that I have a purpose. I can't wait to have Civil War Sallie come visit our classroom!
If you're interested in learning more about Civil War Sallie, check out the following links:
Thank you for attending my presentation and I'm glad you enjoyed it. Also, thanks for signing up for Civil War Sallie just let me know if you need anything.
ReplyDeleteThank you
Sarah
What a cool idea for teaching about the Civil War. I love listening to other people who are passionate about education. It keeps us going and encourages us to do more. Lets make our goal to out-do each other in learning!
ReplyDeleteSarah - Thank you so much!
ReplyDeleteKelly - Looking forward to changing the face of education with you!!