Sometimes something happens in your classroom, on the next-to-last day before winter break, with squirrelly kiddos, that just rocks your world, brings, you to tears, makes you so proud of your students, school, district, community, and profession....today was one of those days.
We were actually having a great day, engaging in some fun, seasonal STEM (more to come on that, but this is far more important now), but my students were SO DISTRACTED. NOT by the holidays or winter break (okay, maybe a little), but rather about the incredible story that hit the news yesterday about William (left) from our middle school. I know William's twin brother, Eamon, and both are involved in our district STEP program....and adored by all.
William is a 14-year-old who LOVES basketball, and is the manager of the middle school team. He does such a great job, works diligently, and makes everyone happy around him. WATCH & READ the news brief below to see the incredible story about William's "shot heard around the world" (which has gone pretty darn viral), and try not to tear up. I dare you.
We were actually having a great day, engaging in some fun, seasonal STEM (more to come on that, but this is far more important now), but my students were SO DISTRACTED. NOT by the holidays or winter break (okay, maybe a little), but rather about the incredible story that hit the news yesterday about William (left) from our middle school. I know William's twin brother, Eamon, and both are involved in our district STEP program....and adored by all.
William is a 14-year-old who LOVES basketball, and is the manager of the middle school team. He does such a great job, works diligently, and makes everyone happy around him. WATCH & READ the news brief below to see the incredible story about William's "shot heard around the world" (which has gone pretty darn viral), and try not to tear up. I dare you.
Did THAT get your attention? Keep reading.
Sometimes as teachers, we need to stop and listen. STOP.AND.LISTEN. All day I'd been hearing buzz about this video, but hadn't had the chance to view it yet. Then, I heard the conversation take a turn and suddenly one student was sharing how this reminded her of a music video: Renegades by X Ambassadors.
Finally, instead of trying to get students "back on task." I just gave in and listened. I needed to. This was the type of moment that we sometimes miss...amongst mandates, and testing, and stress, and meetings. This was the type of moment that reminds me of how ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL even our most challenging students are. This is the type of moment that tugs at your heart. This is the type of moment that reminds me why I'm an EDUCATOR.
I LOVE the song Renegades, but had never seen the video. From this student comment, I previewed the video, and proceeded to bawl my eyes out. NOT because I was sad or sorry for the subjects of the video, but because it/they were INCREDIBLE. INSPIRING. MOVING. IMPORTANT. Watch the video.
Finally, instead of trying to get students "back on task." I just gave in and listened. I needed to. This was the type of moment that we sometimes miss...amongst mandates, and testing, and stress, and meetings. This was the type of moment that reminds me of how ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL even our most challenging students are. This is the type of moment that tugs at your heart. This is the type of moment that reminds me why I'm an EDUCATOR.
I LOVE the song Renegades, but had never seen the video. From this student comment, I previewed the video, and proceeded to bawl my eyes out. NOT because I was sad or sorry for the subjects of the video, but because it/they were INCREDIBLE. INSPIRING. MOVING. IMPORTANT. Watch the video.
At this point, class completely stopped. I shut down everything else we were doing and we spent the rest of our time together, watching the news clip, talking about William, discussing the Renegades video, making connections between the two, the world, and our current theme unit of study. We all shared stories about personal connections we had to people who had overcome great obstacles, to those we know who are advocates for those people, and how incredibly important it is that we raise AWARENESS.....NOT of "disabilities," but rather of their incredible DEDICATION, PERSEVERANCE, and INSPIRATION.
Not only did my class make those personal connections, but they also linked it to our current study of the Great Depression and the incredible guts, sacrifice, and determination it took to survive the 15 year economic and environmental epidemic that plagued our country. YOU CANNOT WRITE THIS STUFF. You know why? BECAUSE IT IS REAL & IT IS IN THE MOMENT.
Not only did my class make those personal connections, but they also linked it to our current study of the Great Depression and the incredible guts, sacrifice, and determination it took to survive the 15 year economic and environmental epidemic that plagued our country. YOU CANNOT WRITE THIS STUFF. You know why? BECAUSE IT IS REAL & IT IS IN THE MOMENT.
Why am I writing this?
Of course I'm writing this because I think it's crucial to raise awareness about the incredible achievements of so many who are deemed "disabled." I'll tell you what.....I wouldn't want to go up against ANY of those featured in the Renegades video in ANY sport. They would kick my bootie from here to Sunday in a second.....but at the end of the day, I don't think that's the main reason I felt so compelled to write this.
There is SO MUCH NEGATIVITY constantly engulfing us about teaching, our education system, Common Core Standards, our students, this generation of children, families, etc, etc, etc, ad nauseam. It's slapping us in the face from all directions, the news, parents and community.....and from fellow educators. Is some of it true and accurate? YES. Is teaching extremely tough? ABSOLUTELY. Do we need things to change in our education system for the better? ALWAYS.....but NONE of that is really why we teach, and we have to OUTSHINE the darkness that we face with the BRIGHT LIGHTS that we often ignore, don't stop to listen to, or that simply get choked out by those hazy clouds.
This story of William, his coaches, his advisor, his teammates, his family, the basketball fans, Elm Place Middle school...it's MAGIC. It's GOOD. It's REAL. IT MATTERS. The story of my students being so enthused by his story that they couldn't stop thinking and talking about it, they made a connection to a popular song, and they left NOT feeling sorry for anyone, but ADMIRING them and self-reflecting, is the most important lesson I could ever hope for them to learn...and they didn't learn it from ME, or a BOOK, or a MANDATE. It came from WITHIN.
There is SO MUCH NEGATIVITY constantly engulfing us about teaching, our education system, Common Core Standards, our students, this generation of children, families, etc, etc, etc, ad nauseam. It's slapping us in the face from all directions, the news, parents and community.....and from fellow educators. Is some of it true and accurate? YES. Is teaching extremely tough? ABSOLUTELY. Do we need things to change in our education system for the better? ALWAYS.....but NONE of that is really why we teach, and we have to OUTSHINE the darkness that we face with the BRIGHT LIGHTS that we often ignore, don't stop to listen to, or that simply get choked out by those hazy clouds.
This story of William, his coaches, his advisor, his teammates, his family, the basketball fans, Elm Place Middle school...it's MAGIC. It's GOOD. It's REAL. IT MATTERS. The story of my students being so enthused by his story that they couldn't stop thinking and talking about it, they made a connection to a popular song, and they left NOT feeling sorry for anyone, but ADMIRING them and self-reflecting, is the most important lesson I could ever hope for them to learn...and they didn't learn it from ME, or a BOOK, or a MANDATE. It came from WITHIN.
Despite what any data or society says, WE are not failing, our KIDS are not failing. Are things perfect? NO. Do we still have to work on improving LEARNING & SCORES? OF COURSE. However, we just need to STOP.LOOK.LISTEN. If our hearts are open to the little miracles happening around us in our classrooms every day, then we will be able to WEATHER the storms that come and go in education and be better teachers for our students, leaving the ultimate lifelong impressions on them, lifting up our colleagues, and being proud of who we are. EDUCATORS.
-PASS IT ON-
Inspired by the one-and-only Greg Smedley-Warren of The Kindergarten Smorgasboard, every time I read something negative about education on Facebook or other social media, I'm posting and reposting William's story. I challenge you to do the same. You can use the direct link to his newscast, or simply push this blog post out....but either way, pass along the positive. UTILIZE this amazing, yet simple, story of a sweet, hard-working kid and his amazing coaches to hit home the message that we are STRONG, we CARE, we are WINNING. WE ARE EDUCATORS.
All hail the underdogs
All hail the new kids
All hail the outlaws
Spielberg's and Kubrick's
It's our time to make a move
It's our time to make amends
It's our time to break the rules
Let's begin
