Righting the Teaching/Learning/Living Ship: Next Steps

Today marks the last day of the Wade Science Institute, a week-long study focused on green chemistry and biomimicry. I learned a lot, and in the weeks ahead I'll take what I learned and update the year-long science curriculum with colleagues to include this wonderful, new knowledge.

At this point in my teaching career, there is so much positive work to do in order to provide students with a top-notch teaching/learning program, a program that's standards-based, relevant, meaningful, engaging, and reflective of who my students are, what they value, their interests, and their potential. The main areas of development include the following:

• Social Emotional Learning (SEL) in order to help students develop the strong personal and interpersonal skills/knowledge for successful living, working, and getting along with others.
• Math Education: Developing the program to better include standards-based worthy, deep, engaging learning tasks.
• Science Education: Developing the curriculum to be deeper, more targeted, relevant, meaningful, and interdisciplinary.
• Reading: Establishing positive reading teaching, habits, support, and conferencing for each and every child at fifth grade in the year ahead. 

These are solid goals that are well supported by the school, system, and state. There's lots of work to do to provide students with this rich foundation, a foundation of learning and living that will support their readiness for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Politically, I hate to see our country become a more divided country of servants and those served--I want to support a more equitable country, a country where all people have the opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness rather than a greedy few. I hate the way our current president hateful words, lies, exaggeration, shaming, blaming, name calling, greed, cronyism, nepotism, lack of research/reading, little collaboration, less creativity and seemingly lawlessness to lead. He is taking our country backwards in self serving, destructive ways. I will continue to think about how I can work against this terrible threat to our good country and people. 

My family is spreading its wings in many ways, and I'll do what I can to support them to be the best that they can be. I will support their potential to live good lives for themselves and others.

Personally, I'll work to learn, maximize good energy, simplify my life with regard to material items, and make some time for love, laughter, and fun too. Onward.