Back 2 School: No Drinking From The Fire Hose Please!

Yo!

I'm in the Midwest and it's always a shock to learn that peeps in the South are already back to the grind or heading back to school/work really soon. But then I realize I have about 3 weeks left till I'm in the thick of things as well. One side of me wants to keep the summer mode going. The other is starting to freak out about the beginning of the school year and is pushing me to start getting mentally ready.

I've decided to honor each; I will continue my summer activities: writing and getting a podcast off the ground, but I will direct my writing to emphasize Back 2 School. The idea is to get myself pumped up and ready for the new year. For me, reflecting through writing is the best way to do it. Follow along and comment on what you do. We'll learn more that way. We'll learn together.

Back 2 School. It's real. Time to get with it!

No Drinking From The Fire Hose Please!

This one's real simple: Chill.

High school, and perhaps other teachers, have this real goofy tendency to overwhelm and freak out their students week 1. We hand each a big ass fire hose, shout open wide!, and crank the valve all the way open. I've seen this for more than a decade, but was somehow blind to it and did the very thing I am advocating against here for a long time. Instead of allowing for a smooth summer to the grind transition and getting to know my students, I over-informed, overloaded, and stressed (at least some, but probably many) out. And then, I had my light bulb moment.

Last year, I spent the entire first week back getting to know my students. I did zero instruction. I was open with my building colleagues about it. This new approach was met with the no comment type of silence as it is somewhat in opposition to our department/building culture. It's all good. I'll bug them and even more people to follow suit this year. Why not? I'll email our principal and ask if it'd be okay to promote this approach to the entire staff. You could do this in your school...

But... What do we do instead of the syllabus, the discipline talk, and the first week subject curriculum? Well... What kind of a friend and a teacher would I be if I send you into the wild without weapons? Weapons of mass creation that is.

Use Ice Breakers That Don't Suck

Let's face it. Most ice breakers suck, because they are cheesy or make people uncomfortable. Few students like taking social risks during week 1. Here's a novel idea: Let's not make them! Here's a great post by Jennifer Gonzales of the Cult of Pedagogy describing in detail Icebreakers that Rock.

Blobs and Lines and asking my students to gather in groups of how many languages they speak is one of my favorites. It's a safe way for students to share their culture and allows all of us to learn something about our multiculturalism. You can do one ice breaker each day of week 1 and sporadically throughout the year (just call them games then).

Who Am I Project

You can talk about yourself, or you can show your students what you're about. I used the visual below last year and then I had my students use Piktochart or another tool to make a poster about themselves. Not only will they learn a useful digital presentation tool, but they will be well on their way to becoming a valued member of your classroom community.

Check out this post from last August for more details on how to lead and share Who Am I project.

Mingle : Walk and Talk

It is an accepted part of my classroom culture to learn on our feet whenever possible. As students work on their Who Am I's, I walk around and chat them up. If this is completely new to you, my advice is to be yourself and just ask questions about their summer, their Nirvana or sports team T- shirt, the swag kicks they're wearing etc. Tell them about your wife and kids, your background, and what you like. Food is always a good conversation starter.

I live in the space with my students throughout the year. I got rid of the teacher desk, which allowed me to be more deliberate about doing that. This year, I will just sit at one of the tables students sit at. I will pick a different seat every day. Challenge yourself to be among your students 100% of the time you're with them, and I promise you that even if you click with students right away, your relationship with them will be even greater.

I realize that not everyone teaches in a cafe style flexible seating (Starbucks) classroom, but I (and a whole bunch of research) strongly recommend allowing your students to stand up and walk while in your classroom. The best way is to design lessons to allow for movement. Here's how I use station rotation to allow increased blood flow to the brain.

So...

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I want to enjoy being back and being with my students the first, the second, the thirty eighth, and all the weeks in between. And, I want to have a great start to the school year. It means easing into it and really getting to know my students. I hope you want the same for your classroom. Let's avoid stressing our students and ourselves out.

No Drinking From The Fire Hose Please...

Please share this post with other educators to spread this important message.

You have the power to change the world. Use it often.

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The Teaching Silver Bullet: Using Oxy In Education

Oxycodone is a narcotic found in the poppy plant often synthesized in labs to produce prescription pain killers. If you’re a superhero movie fan, you might know that Oxy was part of the prescription medication cocktail Heath Ledger, the latest Oscar winning incarnation of Batman’s Joker and my wife’s celebrity crush, passed away from in 2008.

And as unfortunate as this promising young actor’s death was, I hope you find solace in the fact that this article is not about Oxy. I mean seriously… Did you really think I was about to tell you to give your students Oxy?!?!

You were right. I am. I will talk about Oxy and how it helps you build relationships with students.

Building relationships with those you teach is all the rage in education lately. You probably thought about it and perhaps found out why it’s so important. But do you know why it is, that a student who feels cared for and loved is more motivated and often more successful? Have you ever wondered? About the science of the thing, I mean?

The answer might surprise you; it’s a well-kept secret after all. But I’m always honest with you, so I’ll tell you the truth.

The students taught by teachers they can relate to, be honest with, and lean on, perform better at school because those teachers give them Oxy. Oxy is the silver bullet.

Let me explain with a little story.

I loved my son even before he came out of my wife’s belly, but I’ll always remember many minute details of the day he was born. It’s because that day, I was high on Oxy. It was an especially potent dose. I remember feeling the sudden surge of love and happiness. The father me did not know it then, but the teacher me knows now the most powerful lessons are learned, and longest lasting memories form, in company of powerful feelings.

I was filled with happiness and motivation to be the best father I can be, because oxy was released into my brain. Lots of it.

And this is why you want to give your students Oxy. But don’t give them Oxycodone. Give them Oxytocin. More accurately, take actions that stimulate the release of Oxytocin in the brain.

Remember the warm feeling you got every time you met your future spouse when you dated? Or how much happiness you felt when your children were born? Or the hard to contain smile when you see a good friend or family member you have not seen for a while? Oxytocin baby!

Oxytocin is one of the happy chemicals, which are released in our brain when we experience things that help our survival and well-being. Oxytocin is released in social situations when we build relationships and trust others. The happy feeling leads us to be more motivated, which increases the chances of taking actions, which increases the possibility of success.

So... When you build trusting and caring relationships with your students, and this means going beyond teaching them and being nice, you increase the chance that they will actually like your class and the probability that they will learn from you becomes higher.

Now… It is important to know that it takes time for our brains to rewire, so while some students will like you and your class right away, the ones who have had bad experiences with your general subject (science, english, math etc.), might require several weeks for their brain structures and beliefs to change. This means that you will have to be consistently awesome at making sure you connect with and genuinely care for them.

Neural connections form and become stronger through repeated experiences. This is just as true in our social lives as it is in learning. Let's not sugarcoat and speak frankly. You will have to work much harder on reaching some students and be persistent when they don't receive your efforts the first, second, and third time. Just remember that it's worth it and persevere.

But there's more. When things become routine, excitement about them tends to wane. The shiny new and awesome teacher becomes familiar. They still like you, but you have to liven it up. by dressing completely out of character or doing something totally different every now and then. Be excited to be exciting. Change things up. Mix it up. But never forget to show them you love them.

'Cause you're the love dealer and Oxytocin is free. Give it to them.

You have the power to change the world. Use it often.

Inspired by Love, Teaching, and Meet Your Happy Chemicals by Loretta Graziano Breuning.

The Final Exam Playlist

I was recently inspired by Hip Hughes in his podcast Teacher's Aid to play Pump Up music on test days. Today and tomorrow are the last 2 days of school and they are filled with Final Exams. And, every year, a few seconds before the final bell rings, I hit play and blast Alice Cooper's School's Out For The Summer on full. But this year, I also decided to create The Final Exam Playlist; a list of songs I play during the 10 minute passing time breaks and at the beginning of each class.

I wanted to get my students more relaxed and more I Got This!

Here's how it went down during 3rd hour today. I started nice and easy with Till I Collapse by Eminem.

“‘Cause sometimes you just feel tired, feel weak
And when you feel weak, you feel like you wanna just give up
But you gotta search within you
And gotta find that inner strength
And just pull that shit out of you
And get that motivation to not give up
And not be a quitter, no matter how bad you wanna just fall flat on your face, and collapse”

— Eminem

Then, it had to be Stronger by Kanye.

“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, stronger
Just me, myself and I
What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger
Stand a little taller
Doesn’t mean I’m lonely when I’m alone”

— Kanye West

Yeah. You getting warmed up yet? How about Remember The Name by Fort Minor next?

“This is ten percent luck
Twenty percent skill
Fifteen percent concentrated power of will
Five percent pleasure
Fifty percent pain
And a hundred percent reason to remember the name”

— Mike Shinoda

When students were all there and seated, and before the last song ended, I had the Eye of The Tiger by Foreigner rolling and I might have done some air boxing while at it, I don't remember... The kids were rocking out too! I even caught a glimpse of a girl singing along. Oh yeah!

“It’s the eye of the tiger
It’s the thrill of the fight
Rising up to the challenge of our rival
And the last known survivor
Stalks his prey in the night
And he’s watching us all with the eye of the tiger”

— Foreigner

I was passing out the tests as the song was ending and then something unexpected happened. It was The Final Countdown by Europe and it was a chemistry final test taking party! I said I'll turn it off when I'll get back to my computer.

“We’re heading for Venus (Venus)
And still we stand tall
’Cause maybe they’ve seen us (seen us)
And welcome us all, yeah
With so many light years to go
And things to be found (to be found)
I’m sure that we’ll all miss her so
It’s the final countdown
The final countdown
The final countdown
The final countdown
Oh”

— Europe

When I hit pause there was a loud collective gasp.

Do you want me to let the song play to the end? - I asked.

YES!!! - shouted strong teen voices.

I'm not sure how that affected their performance on the first few test questions, but it was awesome!

Here are a few of my honorable mentions: Lose Yourself by Eminem, Heart of a Champion by Nellie, and Radioactive by Imagine Dragons.

Tests, especially finals, are stressful. Let's not add to the seriousness of them, but rather take actions that help pump students up and help them feel strong and competent. How about that playlist my teacher homies? Think about it.

You have the power to change the world. Use it often.