It is good to feel excited at the end of the first week; you have a new group of students, you are trying out some new strategies, you have promise for the next weeks and month for you and your students. Sometimes you may feel like you want to bottle all of this up and save it for the time when your energy is low, your feel challenged by strategies not being as effective, and students are restless. How do we stay where we are at now? How do we keep the momentum?
In short, we keep the momentum by making small moves. We are excited when things are new, so keep trying new ideas and strategies. If your school has a Pineapple Chart, set a goal to visit someone else's room and ask one follow up question. (If you do not know what Pineapple chart is; your challenge is to find out what a Pineapple chart is). If your school has a Model Classroom, visit with a colleague, observe one aspect of the lesson, and ask one follow up question.
If the spotlights are the brightest on stage, then who do you want to be on stage? In your classroom, find opportunities for your students to demonstrate their learning in different ways. Do not be overly worried if something you try with students does not work the way you planned. It is an educational opportunity to model for your students that we all make mistakes and we will try something different tomorrow.
So how do we keep our momentum going? (Listen to the tortoise below)
Have a good weekend!
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