“What They Imagine They Do”
I was talking with a friend recently–two different friends actually–who each said something that struck me. Over coffee, @chadsansing was talking about a school he had visited where he had some conversation with the teachers about the specifics of how they were teaching in their classrooms. In describing that conversation and his observations, he said, “What they imagine they do is…..”
Then, @beckyfisher73 told me about a blog post she had read recently by a teacher who was being introspective about her own behavior. As Becky described it, the teacher had always considered herself to be a good teacher and had always had the best intentions in working with her kids. Then she became pregnant and delivered a child with special needs. Now everything she does in her classroom is seen through a different lens. She is very deliberate in her decisions about kids, thinking of the differences between them and how every decision she makes about kid placement, furniture placement, set up of a learning activity, materials she uses, etc. impacts how a child can complete (or not) a task. Because she is living with a very different kind of child, she is living a very different kind of reflective teaching now.
I wonder how close the reality of our classrooms is to “what we imagine we do.” That’s one of the things I am trying to explore in this blog by sharing the learning activities and situations I set up for my students. In describing them, I see and understand nuances I might have subconsciously seen, but not consciously noted. As I explain my own thinking, I grow in my understanding of myself, and why I do what I do. As I reflect on the class, I learn new things about my students and not only how they behave, but how they think, what they like and don’t like, and how much I have to learn about them. I understand how short the school day is to help the kids become more.
More thought-filled…
More thoughtful…
More questioning…
More loving…
More loved…
More seeking…
More wondering…
More sharing…
More reflective…
More relaxed…
More collaborative…
More introspective…
More critical and yet, more accepting…
More creative…
More appreciative…
More considerate…
More helpful…
More wonderful than they already are.
I don’t want to “imagine” I do things that help kids grow towards those things. I want to support learners of all kinds–adults or kids– to be more, and to be more myself. So question me, push me, criticize me, challenge me, feel free to share with me as I journey on this blog wherever it will take me.
Thank you for visiting and reading and thinking with me.
Amplifying Minds 