Thrivapy: Live, Learn, Have Fun

Recently, I wrote a post defining what I call the Open House Culture .  Basically, an Open House Culture in your school does two things: Provides a guide to how you can be your best at all times. Creates a welcoming environment that causes others to take action to be a part of your school. What I did not explore in the previous blog post are the various components to an Open House Culture. The 5 components to an Open House Culture are represented in the graphic above. Friendly Trustworthy and Reliable Responsive Interactive Presentations Briefly defined… Friendly :  If you genuinely like being an educator, let everyone know from the first impression (if you do not, find another line of work).  Smile.  Produce more “happy endorphins.”  Dress professionally and/or appropriately.  Greet everyone with an implied invitation to engage rather than to “get this over with.” Trustworthy and Reliable :  Answer your emails and messages.  Keep your appointments with students and pa

I really liked this video featuring Seth Godin .  There are some very interesting and valuable lessons about the present and future state of business, marketing, and the internet - many of which certainly apply to schools. Enjoy.     Link to video: http://advertising.yahoo.com/creative-showcase/creative-thinkers?video=Seth%20Godin

 Image Source Page: http://smarteregg.com/why-too-many-options-might-be-a-bad-thing/  Leading change in schools is one of the more difficult tasks an educational leader faces.  It would seem that a population whose work is rooted in making a change in the lives of students would be the model for how to implement positive changes.  After all, what happened to modeling a lifetime love of learning?  Wouldn't that imply living a life of seeking and making positive changes? So, why do teachers seem to resist change so much?  Let's use a popular topic to examine a possible answer - technology integration in the classroom. In some ways, I think access to the volume of resources offered by technology integration prevents teachers from incorporating technology in the classroom.  This follows the concept of decision paralysis.  Decision paralysis is a concept that suggests that people who have too many options will delay or avoid making a choice.  Eventually, these people are mo

In doing my part to help liquidate the Borders store in my town, I raided the business section for titles I have been wanting to read. (As a side note, I am quite sad to see the store close) I decided, quite happily, to choose Ignore Everybody: and 39 Other Keys to Creativity by Hugh McLeod .  Hugh, who is best known for his cartoons drawn on the backs of business cards , offers plenty of insight into embracing your creative self based on his own experiences. There are numerous examples of his work in the book, but the one that stuck with me the most was this one.   Generally, I find schools are good at providing examples of things to work towards.  Examples include deeper understanding of subjects, better grades, higher standardized test scores, and admission to a respected college. There is nothing wrong with using concrete images to help provide a context for why the efforts in school are worthwhile.  These images are important and the ability to articulate that message in a

One of the standard practices for school admissions is open house. Similar to a real estate open house, these events invite new families to the school for a few hours to explore the facilities, ask questions, listen to presentations, and satisfy their curiosity about what the school has to offer. From a school point of view, open house provides a forum to promote the school’s academic, arts, athletics, and enrichment programs on their home field. Teachers are present to talk about their classes, coaches about their teams, parents about their great experiences, etc. The campus is clean and wearing its “Sunday Best.” Students may even be present to give tours and perform. It is all designed to capture enough of the visitor’s attention to prompt further action: schedule a private tour/meeting, inquire about the admissions process, or fill out an application – the equivalent of making an offer on a house. For some schools, getting ready for open house is easy. Their natural state of being

Skills need developing. Skills need practice. Skills help students learn. Skills will help students do well in college. Skills will help students succeed in life after school. Collaboration, communication, creativity, and critical thinking are skills. Reading, writing, synthesizing, thinking, presenting, and delivering on time are skills. On the other hand, United States History (for example) is a topic, a subject, a focus, etc.  It is not a skill. Schools help students develop skills through the introduction of diverse subjects.  Each subject is unique in its focus, thus requiring students to use diverse skills to learn the material.  Sometimes the skills developed in a course are as important to success in the next course as learning the material is.  For example, the research skills I learned in US History were more valuable to my success the following year in Ancient World History than the subject matter, which had nothing at all to do with Ancient World History. Skills ma

I am pleased to announce that my first ebook, Paying Attention: Thoughts on Communication in Schools , is finally available for Kindle via Amazon.com.  Paying Attention - The Wordle!  You may also notice that I set up a new page on the blog for the book .  I hope to provide updates about Paying Attention and other book in progress on that page. For those of you who read it, I hope you enjoy the book and find it useful.

 Image Source Page: http://depositphotos.com/3461353/stock-photo-Follow-the-Leader.html Are you worthy of followers? After all, you can't lead if you have no followers.  Therefore, it is perfectly reasonable to ask if you believe you are worthy of having any followers.  This applies to newly minted leaders and well seasoned veterans.  If you hold a formal leadership role, are you worthy of having followers? Strange question?  Maybe, but a good one to use for reflection. Most of you earned your position through, among other things; hard work, focus, attention to detail, respecting others, a willingness to accept responsibility, and a need to inspire others to be their best. Are the traits that helped you earn your role still an obvious part of your leadership practice?  What qualities are evident in people who deserve followers? Worthy educational leaders... have a vision of excellence, articulate that vision in a way that invites and inspires others to share i

I am happy to announce that I have, for the most part, completed my first ebook.  The book is about communication in schools and is intended to be the first in a series of three ebooks concerning my 3 Pillars to Uphold a Student-Centered Culture  blog post. I am working on publishing the ebook, Paying Attention: Thoughts on Communication in Schools , through Amazon Kindle publishing.  I hope to have an update on that soon and will make an announcement once it is available via Amazon Kindle. In the meantime, here is a sample from the ebook.  Enjoy. Introduction At the time of writing this book, I am working as the Head of Middle School at a private Preschool (3 year olds) through 12th grade independent school in Northern Virginia. As the leader of a Middle School division, I am constantly faced with issues of communication. While I believe in always trying to improve, I also recognize that there are contextual challenges that are present in some situations more than others. In o

By far, the most popular post I have written is 3 Pillars to Uphold a Student-Centered Culture .  That post was so well received that I made a Prezi for the it . Now, I am writing a series of short ebooks that address each of these 3 pillars: Communication , Motivation , and a  Growth mindset. The first one concerns communication. As a result, I am compiling a list of communication strategies and tips from other educators.  These should be as specific or generic as you like, but they must address effective communication in school.  These tips can be for student: teacher communication, teacher: parent communication, administrator: teacher communication, etc. Here is where I am seeking your input.  This is a link to a Google Doc for you to share your communication tips.  Simply click the link and share . I also have Google Docs to collect tips about motivation and growth mindsets .  If you wish to contribute tips about those topics, feel free to do so.

Schools are diverse and dynamic organizations.  These factors help contribute to the complexity of school leadership.  This complexity can cause confusion and distract teachers and administrators. One way to make sure that the most important work is done or that the most important objective is addressed is to keep things simple. By simple, I am not referring to easy.  I am referring to a simple as finding your core objective. No lesson plan survives contact with students.  Therefore, keeping your core objective simple and being able to articulate how you will address that objective is powerful. Finish these statements: "If we do nothing else during tomorrow's class, we must ..." "The single, most important thing we must do tomorrow is..." While I have been a long time believer in the power of the "simple" thinking described above, I have struggled to articulate this concept clearly - until recently. The ideas above (such as the two stateme

 Photo taken by yours truly.  Every faculty has at least one and every administrator needs at least one. I'm talking about the rock steady, reliable, port in the storm, A+ teacher.  Not only are these instructional rock stars our best examples of our M.I.A.(mission in action NOT missing in action), but, when things are rough, they remind us that things are not as bad as they may seem. These are the teachers who spark the collegial conversations in the faculty meetings and in the teachers' lounge.  These are the teachers that parents reference when telling their stories.  These are the teachers with whom students can't wait to be in class. If we could give out a daily award for excellence, it would be named after these teachers. Educational leaders, do not forget these instructional linchpins .  Value them.  Invest in their wisdom.  Find ways to get them in front of as many students, parents, and fellow teachers as often as possible.

Following up on my "Enchanting" schools series , I found this infographic.  I found it here . Enjoy!

 Image Source Page: http://apeoplepath.com/motivation-daily-battle-your-mind/  By far, my most popular post is the one I wrote about the  three pillars that uphold a student-centered culture .  In that post, and on my "3 pillars" Prezi , I explain how communication, a growth mindset, and motivation help keep your school focused on student achievement. That post was mostly written with students in mind, but as educational leaders, we also need to apply those same concepts to teachers.  In this post, I explore the motivation "pillar" from administration/teacher point of view.  As with the "3 pillars" post, I am using Daniel Pink's Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us as the basis for these thoughts. Let's start by examining a few observations about the "work" involved in teaching. Teaching, as a job, requires one to use a wide range of skills.  It is not a factory job at which you do one task over and over ag

One of my most offered pieces of advice is: Identify your strengths, recognize your challenges, use your strengths to address your challenges. The art of leadership, given this concept, is to remember that our espoused strengths and challenges may not actually align with what the people in your organization, or school, see as your strengths and challenges.  In a further twist, how others view our strengths and challenges is greatly a result of their own strengths and challenges. For example, many teachers are perfectly capable, comfortable, and effective with less detailed instructions from their administrators.  For these teachers, a leader who is less specific about HOW to do things and more focused on WHERE the school needs to go.  Teachers in the, “Just tell me what to do and I’ll do it.” camp are going to be somewhat frustrated with a leader who is not inclined to “hold their hands.” So, does this mean that leaders need to always be aware of how their teams are reacting and p

As much as some teachers hate to admit it, there are times when the teacher needs to present lessons to students.  The lecture or the presentation itself is not necessarily the problem as much as the ability of the teacher to do so in an engaging and meaningful way. Here is a tip.  View the lesson as a sales pitch. I'm not suggesting that you mislead or offer crazy incentives to learn.  I said a sales pitch, not an infomercial!  Rather, you (teacher) are pitching an idea to a venture capital group (students).  You are passionate, driven, and informed.  You just need their support and the idea takes shape.  If you use Power Point, Prezi, or some other tool - remember these rules: 10 slides 20 minutes long No less than 30 point font Also, as you are presenting remember the two words that scared me to death when I presented my dissertation proposal: "SO WHAT?" You should always be prepared to answer this in your presentation because the students are asking it!  T

Salespeople sell. Cooks cook. Teachers teach. Here’s the difference.  Buying a new car is transactional, not transformative. Eating a good meal satisfies, but is not sustainable. Education transforms.  Education sustains. We teach our students and raise our children not because we are given the opportunity, but because we are obligated to do so. Your class is your cause.  You are obliged to promote it and advance it.

 Image Source Page: http://www.prominentdesignlab.com/chad/Logo%20Development/ccld.html  I just started reading The Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki .  Though the book is subtitled, The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything , I can see already that there are many lessons and suggestions discussed that apply to schools. One of Guy's first steps is to make mantra.  By that, he means to write down, in a very short phrase, what you do and have that be the repeatable phrase you chant (either out loud or internally) over and over again. For example, Guy illustrates his point by providing a few mantras from established companies. Nike : Authentic athletic performance Disney : Fun family entertainment Starbucks : Rewarding everyday moments (pg. 7)   Mantras should not be confused with tag lines.  As Guy points out, the mantra is for the EMPLOYEES (teachers, administrators, staff members); a guide for what they do.  Tag lines, on the other hand,

Congratulations! If you have been following this series of posts, you have made it to the end.  Congratulations are in order.  In addition, THANK YOU! Writing this series on enchanting schools has been a great learning exercise for me.  I hope you have also found some nuggets of wisdom to use. This entire series was inspired by two sources.  One is the outstanding book, Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions by Guy Kawasaki .  The other is a blog post summary of Enchantment by David Deal .  If you haven't read either or both of them, I encourage you to check them out. Enchanting Up and Enchanting Down From David Deal: Enchant up Enchantment begins inside your own company. You can’t enchant others if you can’t enchant the people with whom you work. And the most critical person to enchant is your boss. If your boss asks you to do something, drop everything else and do it. Go to your boss with a prototype of your solution to her problem and get her feed

For those of you who have been keeping up with this series, thanks for hanging around.  If you are new to this series of posts about "enchanting" schools, you may want to check out the following: The prelude to this series - Responsibility or Cause  Part 1, Likability and Trustworthiness Part 2, Getting Ready and Launching Part 3, Overcoming Resistance and Enduring If there were two most practical items in this series for schools to address, I believe they are the two discussed in this post - presentations and using technology. As I have done throughout this series, here is an excerpt from Davis Deal's excellent summary of Enchantment that addresses presentations and using technology to enchant others to your cause. Present Enchanters learn the art of presentation. Present your ideas clearly and with graphics. And customize your discussion. Wherever Guy talks, he customizes content by capturing images of the place he’s visiting and includes the local color in h

While vacationing at Walt Disney World about 10 years ago, my wife and I were on one of the boats that transport visitors to and from the Magic Kingdom.  It was late.  The parks had all closed.  There were only a handful of people on the boat.  One was an employee (cast member) of the park. As we were sitting, my wife and I decided to strike up a conversation with the cast member.  During that conversation, we asked her about working at Disney.  She replied, "I love it.  It is great to bring so much happiness to people each day."  When pressed about how hard it must be to maintain such a positive outlook, the cast member said, "Well, some people do not last too long.  Early on, it is so exciting to be here, but once the 'pixie dust' wears off, only the truly committed endure.  Yes, it can be rough at times.  I had a visitor get upset and throw a drink at me once, but you smile your best smile, think happy thoughts, and wish the person's day gets better.

In part one of this series , I examined the need for enchanting schools to achieve both likability and trustworthiness.  In this post, I explore the next two ways that schools can become more enchanting: Getting ready to launch and the actual launch. Launch is not a word that is used much in schools, but I believe it is one that is very appropriate.  One reason is that launching implies power, forward movement, and ascension.  At the same time, a launch has its share of danger, risks, and unknown outcomes. Schools start new years every fall.  Classes are retaught with a new set of students.  Students leave.  Students arrive.  Every day presents a new opportunity to do something powerful and extraordinary.  Every day is an opportunity to launch (or relaunch) an outstanding learning experience.  Remember my prelude to this series .  When you view the work of the school less as a responsibility and more of a cause, the chance to launch or relaunch each day takes on a whole new meaning

In my recent post, a prelude to this series , I suggested a change in thinking about education from a responsibility to a cause.  In this post, part one of a five part series, I examine how schools can address the first two ways to make your cause more enchanting - being likable and trustworthy. As a reminder, the 10 ways to make your cause more enchanting are taken from Guy Kawasaki's Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions .  If you want a quick reference of the 10 ways, I suggest this blog post by David Deal . Likability From Mr. Deal's post: The cornerstone of enchantment is achieving likability. You cannot enchant anyone without likability. Being likable means getting little fundamentals right, such as: * Have a “Duchenne smile” — or a smile so strong it gives you crow’s feet. * Dress for a tie. Don’t under dress for our audience. Don’t overdress. Dress for your peers. * Develop a great handshake – not too long, not too short. For schools The