Thrivapy: Live, Learn, Have Fun

 A few days ago, I wrote an article titled,  2 Simple Steps to Boost Student Success .  In that article, I  suggested that having students determine WHEN  and WHERE  they would do their assignments would greatly increase their chances of actually doing the work on time and with better quality. These two simple steps are powerful, but their is another strategy I use with students (and teachers) to provide even more support to doing high quality work.  In most cases, I use this additional strategy in addition to "When?" and "Where?"  I call it using "predictive visualization." What is predictive visualization? Predictive visualization is reflecting on an assignment in a way that forms a mental image of the finished product based on what you predict is your best and most complete effort.  Predictive visualization answers the question, "What would that assignment look like once you have finished it in its best and most complete form?" There ar

T here are a few reasons why students may ask, "Why do I need to learn this?" They are searching for relevance. They have mastered the concept and are seeking a deeper meaning. They find the concept difficult and are trying to understand.  For reasons #1 and #2, asking "why" is an appropriate question.  Provide context, make connections, explore examples and possibilities, etc. For #3, if the student is struggling to master a new and difficult concept, asking "why" may actually lead to frustration, lack of follow through, and a less than expected outcome. A strategy for those asking "why" about a concept that they find difficult to master is to redirect the focus to asking "what".  Asking, "What do I need to learn?" (or a similar line of questioning) breaks down concepts into step by step pieces that allows for careful, focused efforts to result in gradual improvement. I often use a cooking metaphor.  

 O f all the work I do, among the most satisfying is working with students and teachers to examine goals and provide coaching to assist in achieving those goals.  Frequently, both students and teachers find themselves stuck.  They have good. clear goals set, but find themselves finding it hard to follow through and/or get their work done well and on time. One method that I have begun using in my coaching is to ask the person with whom I am helping to add two small pieces to their plans or assignments: think about and write down WHEN  and WHERE  they intend to actually do the work. For example, a student is having trouble completing his homework, and the work he does do is not of the quality he once was producing.  He is writing down his assignments in an assignment notebook, but his assignments are only telling him WHAT  to do.  However, as the video below (featuring Dr. Heidi Grant Halvorson) explains, deciding WHEN and WHERE he will actually complete the assignment suggests he is

I n part one of this two-part series , I shared 6 of 12 ways educators earn respect.  Simply listed, the first 6 are: set goals stick with it learn from mistakes take chances, but avoid recklessness over-communicate have a plan, but be flexible Now, here are the next 6 ways educators earn respect. Listen Students often just need you to listen to them.  This is particularly true when you are pointing out an error on their part.  I have found that if you stop and allow the student to have their chance to engage with you, you can still accomplish your objective AND have the added bonus of that student now knowing that their connection with you is a two-way street. Listening also allows you to model empathy and emotional intelligence.  When you listen, you are telling the other person that you care, at least enough to allow them the chance to be a part of the conversation.  Students want to be heard because they are often trying to find their voice.  Listening

T his is part one of a two-part series describing 12 ways educators earn respect.  In part one, I describe the first 6 ways.  Part two describes the second 6 ways.   Why two parts?   I intended this to be one post, but it began to get too long for my liking (I like my blog posts to be quick reads, not short novels) and to shorten the descriptions, I felt, didn't do the ideas justice.  So, I broke up the 12 ways into 2 separate posts. The order of the 12 ways is NOT in order of importance, only chance.    O ne of the reasons given by people who stopped teaching after a few years for their decision is a general lack of respect afforded them by their students and/or families of their students.  I find this reason interesting because of the three most commonly given (including low pay and lack of resources), earning respect is the one over which the teacher has the most influence. You have little or no control over the salary your school pays you. You have little or no

I have recently begun a series of discussions with groups of middle school students about setting and attaining goals.  While I have been having such discussions for years, I recently read a fabulous book about goals setting and attainment,  Succeed: How We Can Reach Our Goals   by Heidi Grant Halvorson. Below is a graphic I created to help organize my discussions and to help students follow along in the conversation. For students, I find that many need help with determining when to have "be good" goals and "be better" goals.  In addition, Dr. Grant Halvorson writes in  Succeed  about two other powerful ways to help attain your goals.  Both can have a big positive impact on student success. Use of "if/then" thinking Taking a moment when you have a task to think about "when and where" you will perform it "If/then" thinking helps students avoid procrastination.  While reinforcing the need to get started, "if/

I just finished reading a nice article about how emotions and self-regulation may have a negative effect on how well someone is able to remain organized and on-task titled, Life's Messy.  Train Your Brain to Adapt by Megan Erickson for bingthink.com . In addition to drawing upon research to explain how the brain works to regulate stress and emotions, the article points to how the energy used by that function depletes our ability to follow through on goals and remain on-task and organized.  Fortunately, all is not lost!  the piece also provides expert opinions on how to redirect our energy and adapt our brain to handle life's complexities. As a middle school administrator, one of the most challenging parts of working with students is helping them get better organized.  The article helped provide a possible explanation for the middle school "plague of disorganization" by explaining how the brain functions can get in the way - especially for middle school students w

  O ne of my favorite blog posts of 2011 was published in The Innovation Issue of  Think Quarterly  on thinkwithgoogle.com .  The article was written by Susan Wojcicki and is titled, The Eight Pillars of Innovation . Susan begins her post with the following statement: The greatest innovations are the ones we take for granted, like light bulbs, refrigeration and penicillin. But in a world where the miraculous very quickly becomes common-place, how can a company, especially one as big as Google, maintain a spirit of innovation year after year? Nurturing a culture that allows for innovation is the key. As we’ve grown to over 26,000 employees in more than 60 offices, we’ve worked hard to maintain the unique spirit that characterized Google way back when I joined as employee #16. She then lists and explains each of the eight principles of innovation that Google has adopted that continues to guide the company.  They are: Have a mission that matters Think big but start small Strive

image found at http://www.stuartduncan.name/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/square_peg_in_round_hole_2-300x225.jpg I t is possible to fit a square peg into a round hole.  School leaders do this all the time, especially when trying to implement an idea or program that appears to have a large potential benefit and seemingly low cost.  In other words, the peg appeared round before we started playing with it. Now that you see the peg is square, there is pressure to make it fit.  To do so, you have a few options. Option 1:  Hammer the peg until it squeezes into the hole. Sure, this may get the peg in the hole, but at what cost?  More than likely the peg will still stick out (it will still be obvious that it isn't the best fit), you will have damaged the peg (it will not resemble the nice one you thought you were going to play with), you will have damaged the hole (now, your school is also wounded), and there are still gaps between the idea and the issue. Option 2:  Dril

O ne of the most enjoyable parts of writing this blog is seeing which posts get either the best responses or most views.  When I began writing The Art of Education , I wasn't sure what response I would get or how many readers would visit.  Today, I am overwhelmed by the tens of thousands of readers who have visited in such a relatively short period. As a "Thank you" to all who have spent time here, I have created a free eBook (available as a .pdf file),  Take Five: the Best and Most Popular of The Art of Education, volume 1 . Take Five, volume 1  is a compilation of my five most popular blog posts as of  the end of January, 2012.  Topics covered in  Take Five, volume 1   include: the 3 pillars of a student-centered culture, what school administrators should say daily, the "evolution" of education, identifying who should do the "heavy lifting" in your school, and why some people resist technology integration in schools. Clicking the links to the

F rom time to time, you may find that your faculty team appears stuck in a daily routine that consists of them doing one task after another.  Teachers who are stuck in this cycle may be identified by looking for a few signals. lack of motivation and energy to perform tasks noticeable lack of advanced planning/thinking thinking in near future terms only when faced with a new idea, they focus on feasibility much more than desirability they appear to be all business, no pleasure So, what can you do to help "unstick" your faculty team? First, recognize that teachers who are focused on the daily tasks are operating mostly as concrete thinkers whose actions are guided by the question, "What do I do?"   What thinking is good for complex or unfamiliar tasks because it helps keep one focused on realistic, specific actions needed to act quickly and safely.  The problem is that this type of thinking is only productive with difficult and unfamiliar tasks which may

A s I see it, an educator has three options. One is to be better . The second is to be good enough . The third is to not care about either.    Those who choose the third option should do something else.  You are not only doing a disservice to yourself and your students, you are damaging the profession that you, hopefully, once loved enough to care about. If you choose the second, you are choosing to chase a mirage.  There is no such thing as an educator that is "good enough."  Good enough for what? That leaves option one, be better.  If you choose to be better, you are empowered to make a difference.  Everyone can be better. I am a better educator today because of the work of other professional educators who were willing to engage and share their wisdom with me.