Life is Not Always What It Seems

Seeing the World Through a Different Lens

Dear Readers,

As children, the environment we grow up in and the people we are surrounded by is our reality and truth. We don't know any different. 

The way we are treated, the words that are spoken to us, the actions that people take against us is the norm. It seems like that is how everyone grows up. Why would other households be any different? Aren't they all the same?

But then we do grow up and we realize this is not necessarily the norm. Actually, it might be very outside the norm. There is a period of time when we go from being children in a very controlled and isolated environment to adults living in an extremely large world. We begin to see our childhood through a completely different lens.

Part of that lens includes looking at people from a different perspective. People can hurt others in so many different ways. The easiest scars seen by most people are the visible ones. The marks that leave an imprint on the body. But what about the invisible ones? The ones that are just as damaging, but hide in the brain, the thoughts, the self-esteem?

My principal and I were talking recently about something we had read. That when you are out in the woods and a bear chases you you have that fight or flight instinct. You run. Your adrenaline is high, your anxiety is high and you literally are in a state of panic and fear. However, once you are safe again, your body "resets" itself and you return to a "normal" state.

What if you brought that feeling home with you every day? What if you lived in a constant state of anxiety and panic? What if that feeling never went away?

Sometimes when people suffer from an addiction, such as alcoholism, their words, actions and behavior can overshadow what else is happening in a household. You see the person drinking, you hear the person being argumentative, you can smell it on them.

But what about the person who is quiet about being abusive? The person who manipulates and plays mind games? The person who appears to be the victim, but is actually causing turmoil and anxiety in someone else's life? 

Sometimes when people are separated (just like with our students) you see them in a different light. You see their true self because there is nothing to hide behind.

What about the victims in these situations? We keep quiet because that's what we are taught to do. We are ashamed, embarrassed, scared and isolated. We feel like we have nobody to turn to. We are scared. We think nobody will believe us. So we hide it. We learn coping strategies. We move through life.

But then one day we grow up. We realize the way we were treated was not okay. We learn to speak up and speak out. We seek friendships and relationships outside that toxic circle that was our life. 

In the process we distance ourselves from people we love and care about, but know our health and well being is essential. We make decisions others may not understand or agree with.

But we become healthier individuals in the process. We find ourselves outside of that circle of conflict. We learn that we have no reason to be embarrassed or feel ashamed or fear. We find amazing people to surround ourselves with. We build a life with loving, caring and supportive people who accept us for who we are. 

To anyone who knows exactly what I am talking about......

You are special.

You are loved.

You are cared about.

It's not your fault.

Warmly,

Teresa

March Book Madness

Sweet 16, Elite 8, Final 4......

Dear Readers,

My dear reading buddy, @kathyiwanicki, introduced me to March Book Madness this year and I have loved every minute of it!

Since we did not have time to read the books when I discovered this, we decided to have a little friendly class competition. I created the "rounds" on the wall with each participant's name on an index card. I then printed off brackets from the website (March Book Madness MG Novels ) and everyone filled out a bracket.

I also created a poster size bracket. A student wrote the names of all the titles on Post-Its so we could move them around. I wrote down the number of people who voted for each book as the tournament went on so we could see if the majority of us voted for the winners.

Additionally, we kept individual scores with the index cards. For each correct title, the participant received a point. On Wednesdays, we check the website to see what titles have moved on.

Even though we started a little late and did not read all the books (although some students had read a couple of titles or had heard of the books), it has still been a fantastic way to continue building our reading lives as an 8th grade Language & Literature Class. Now we are down to the final two!!!!!

I am so happy Kathy introduced this to me! I definitely plan on continuing this in the future! Happy reading everyone!

Warmly,

Teresa

#PD4uandme

A New Learning Community!

Dear Readers,

My PLN sincerely means the world to me. I honestly do not know what I would do without these amazing people! I am so incredibly excited to announce a new learning community!

Katie (@Katiemc827) and I met about a year ago at our local CoffeeEDU and became fast friends. Since then, not only do we meet with our CoffeeEDU group, but I have attended an EdCamp she organizes and we meet virtually and in person to discuss one of our passions-professional learning. Her ideas, energy and love for education is infectious! We have shared many conversations about how to provide professional learning opportunities to meet different needs and learning styles. In fact, Katie even utilized our snow days and offered #PolarPD options. 

Matt (@mlarson_nj) and I met about 6 months ago when we decided to develop a Voxer group as an extension of a professional reading hashtag. His ability to read, take notes and post them is truly inspiring! In addition, Matt and I have become book buddies and share our resources through good old-fashioned snail mail. Recently, him and I discussed the need to evolve and broaden the Voxer group to encompass more professional learning options and hopefully meet the need of more educators.

Who better to develop a professional learning community than with Katie and Matt? We are so excited to announce our new hashtag

#PD4uandme

While it is definitely in the beginning stages of development, we would love for people to start posting, visiting and engaging in conversation using it! Please feel free to share professional resources such as books, podcasts, Youtube Channels, blogs, articles, anything you can think of!

• Are you someone who uses mentor texts in the classroom? We would love to see what is available to complement our current instruction!
• Do you sketchnote? Please share your learning with us!
• Are you a blogger? Post the link to your blog or tag specific posts you would like to share!
• Have a professional learning podcast you enjoy listening to? Post the link so we can all enjoy!
• Is there a Youtube channel you think people could benefit from? Share out the link so we can all learn!
• Do you have a favorite journal? Are there articles that are relevant to education today? Post them so people can build their toolbox!
• What technology do you love to learn or collaborate with? Flipgrid? Google? Voxer? Twitter? Ideas are welcome!

We thank you in advance for your support and helping us grow! Have a wonderful week!

Warmly,

Teresa

Suffering in Silence

A Trying 2018 So Far!

Dear Readers,

I think one of my favorite qualities about myself is I am a good listener. I sincerely listen to understand and not to problem solve, unless asked. In fact, it makes some people uncomfortable. The silence is not something they are accustomed to and they will often pause and say, are you there? (if on the phone) Are you okay? (if we are face to face) My response is, I am listening. 

In social gatherings and situations, I tend to sit back and observe and listen. The introverted part of me has to take in my surroundings and process everything. I tend to read people very well. In fact a friend and I joke that I would make an excellent FBI Profiler. 

People have told me that I give off "good energy" or they like being around me. I am incredibly empathetic to those going through tough times and do not often find myself in a conversation I feel anxious talking about. Pretty much any topic is within my comfort zone. 

I wonder why....when I am facing particular difficult times, I always choose to go it alone. There are plenty of people in my life who would support me, listen to me and be there for me. However it seems the more serious the situation, the more I retreat into myself.

About two weeks ago, I faced one of the scariest moments I have dealt with. I had to have an MRI done on my head. Not only did that terrify me, but I am also incredibly claustrophobic. It was a trying week to say the least. I honestly did not know how I was going to get through it.

Sometimes I think we keep things to ourselves in order to protect ourselves and those around us. If I did not talk about it, then it did not seem so real. If I did not dwell on the what ifs, then it did not seem so real. If I passed it off as everything is going to be fine, then I hopefully would not worry others.

Walking into that room and seeing that machine literally took my breath away. I was trembling, I was freezing and my eyes were welling up. It did not get better as I was asked to lay down, then the tears started to fall.

But the people were so good with me and helped ease my fears. They talked to me, worked with me and celebrated with me for making it through. I can never thank them enough nor will they ever know how much their kindness meant to me that day.

Even better news came the next day when the office called and told me all was well.

We can never truly know what is happening in someone else's life. People go through things every day we know nothing about. Sometimes we are living with a potentially life-altering "secret". Like me, sometimes people need time to think and process while others feel comfortable sharing right away.

A sincere thank you to those who knew and were with me every step of the way and those that found out right after and have sent their love and good wishes since. We deal with life in different ways and I am so thankful I am surrounded by people that understand and accept me for who I am. They give me space when I need it and listen when I am ready to talk.

The next time someone is having an "off day" or seems distracted, have patience and remember they might be going through something we know nothing about.

Warmly,

Teresa

Tomorrow's Classrooms Today 2018

Honored to Present

Dear Readers,

I received an email last summer from Evolving Educators requesting proposals for their 2018 4th Annual Tomorrow's Classrooms Today Conference.

Although I have been a teacher leader in many capacities, I had never submitted a proposal to present at a conference outside my home district.

In fact, the 1st proposal I submitted had a glitch and I received a request to resubmit it.

I wondered if it was a sign or foreshadowing that it was not to be.

I was wrong. 

It was accepted! 

When I received confirmation that my proposal had in fact been chosen I was stunned. 

Out of all the submissions from exceptional educators throughout the country, I was given the opportunity to talk about one of my passions! 

I believe in the power of the written word.

I believe that we can make a difference through writing.

I believe that blogging gives us the chance to reach a worldwide audience.

I believe that students have a voice.

I believe that all students are writers.

I believe in teaching them various formats to share their thinking, including blogging.

A sincere thank you to Brad Currie, Billy Krakower and Scott Rocco for the opportunity to share my passion with other educators.

If you would like information on the conference, please click the links below:

4th Annual Tomorrow's Classrooms Today Conference

Session Descriptions

Keynote Speakers

Registration

I hope to see you there!

Warmly,

Teresa