I’m sorry that I’m been out of touch lately. The school year
got off to a rocky start and I’m just now starting to catch-up. How is
everyone’s school year going? Is yours as crazy as mine? I’ve been teaching for
five years and this was the most unprepared I’ve been for school to begin…even
compared to my first year of teaching. We had 1 week of professional
development before school started instead of the standard two weeks, and I think that was the issue.
With all that being said, I love my class and my new students. I'm ready to take on my first year teaching third grade! My class is called the Learners, so our mascot is a light bulb. On the first day of school, I put a pair of sunglass on each student's desk with a note:
Then we had a class meeting about problems and issues that are going on in the world. Have you ever asked your students that? Their answers are seriously mind-blowing. Then I asked them, what problem do you want to solve in the world? That really made them stop and think. We can talk about problems all day long, but by asking them which one of the problems they want to solve one day, I'm putting the future in their hands. They now take ownership of that particular problem. And that right there is the reason why I don't ask kids what they want to be when they grow up. I ask them instead: What problem do you want to solve? I remember being asked what I want to be when I grew up, and I felt so much pressure in that question. I just don't think it's fair that I should have to decide what I want to be for the rest of my life. Talk about pressure! Y'all I am 29 years old, and I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up...and that is okay! I am an unfinished human being, and I'm fine with my "unfinishedness."
I think Daria puts it best. Wait...do you guys know who Daria is??? It might be one of the greatest American cartoons of all time:
Anyway, as Daria stated, "My goal is to not wake up at 40 with the bitter realization that I've wasted my life in a job I hate because I was forced to decide on a career in my teens." I mean, if you haven't seen an episode of Daria, I highly recommend it.
After I asked my kids to identify their problem, I had them write it down. Then I took pictures of all of them in shades because their future is so bright...get it? They loved the activity, and the parents loved them even more. It's a great way to get kids to start thinking about their role in society and thinking about what motivates them.
You can grab the "My Future is So Bright" writing activity for FREE by clicking the picture below!
Then we had a class meeting about problems and issues that are going on in the world. Have you ever asked your students that? Their answers are seriously mind-blowing. Then I asked them, what problem do you want to solve in the world? That really made them stop and think. We can talk about problems all day long, but by asking them which one of the problems they want to solve one day, I'm putting the future in their hands. They now take ownership of that particular problem. And that right there is the reason why I don't ask kids what they want to be when they grow up. I ask them instead: What problem do you want to solve? I remember being asked what I want to be when I grew up, and I felt so much pressure in that question. I just don't think it's fair that I should have to decide what I want to be for the rest of my life. Talk about pressure! Y'all I am 29 years old, and I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up...and that is okay! I am an unfinished human being, and I'm fine with my "unfinishedness."
I think Daria puts it best. Wait...do you guys know who Daria is??? It might be one of the greatest American cartoons of all time:
Anyway, as Daria stated, "My goal is to not wake up at 40 with the bitter realization that I've wasted my life in a job I hate because I was forced to decide on a career in my teens." I mean, if you haven't seen an episode of Daria, I highly recommend it.
After I asked my kids to identify their problem, I had them write it down. Then I took pictures of all of them in shades because their future is so bright...get it? They loved the activity, and the parents loved them even more. It's a great way to get kids to start thinking about their role in society and thinking about what motivates them.
You can grab the "My Future is So Bright" writing activity for FREE by clicking the picture below!
