Linda Markley

The Teacher SPIRIT

calling to make a difference, Can do's, creating community, Essential questions, i am enough, Intention, Introspection, Intuition, Joy, Learning Lessons, making connections, Maslow before Blooms, Passion, Purpose, Resources, Sincerity, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Strategies, teacher hero, teacher self-care, teacher vulnerability, Wholehearted teaching

Like so many educators today, I left the educational profession because my school “SPIRIT” was suffering.

I didn’t know what that meant at the time or exactly how to describe it because really I was focused on my poor health and inability to walk very far without my legs giving out on me.

I left the profession “broken” both physically and mentally.

I literally had “fallen”, and I could’t get up.

I was lost with no sense or real direction(s).

So, when I walked across Spain on the Camino Francés, with each step I took and each person I met and each experience I had, I learned a lesson.

And these lessons eventually led me back to my true teaching SPIRIT.

I wanted to share the lessons from my journey with others, especially teachers, to somehow help them find their way back to their true SPIRIT.

I founded The Spirit of Teaching, created a website of resources and started a podcast called Teacher Tales in which teachers can tell their stories of teaching and what makes up a true teaching SPIRIT.

Of course being a teacher and in the field of education, I developed an acronym to help remember the qualities and aspirations of a true teaching SPIRIT (which is why it is capitalized and really should have periods in between each letter).

They can be found on this website and shared with others.

Check them out here.  

Print them out and put them in your plan book.

Journal about them.

Post the mantras and “yellow arrow” guides around your classroom, home, office, car, etc.

There are even more resources that can help guide you and keep you on your intended path.

Check them out here.

You also might want to purchase my book Learning Lessons which is a real treasure trove of insight, resources, guidance and activities that you can use to help inspire and guide you back to your own True Self and the teaching SPIRIT in all of us!

Link to purchase Learning Lessons.

 

Photo credit:

created by Linda Markley in Canva

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Linda Markley

Learning Lessons

calling to make a difference, Can do's, Essential questions, i am enough, making connections, Maslow before Blooms, Resources, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Strategies

I have witnessed so many changes in education, especially in the past few years and most definitely since the pandemic.

More and more teachers are leaving the classroom.

Teacher burnout, anxiety and health related issues are at an all time high.

As well, fewer and fewer people are choosing to enter the teaching profession.

You can check out some of the stats and data here:

Reluctantly, I left the teaching profession due to a serious illness brought on by the stress I was experiencing in my position.

It took me a few years to recover physically, however, I still needed to heal mentally and in my teacher spirit.

So, I decided to walk across Spain on the Camino Francés, alone!
It was a pilgrimage of the body, mind and spirit with each step I took (usually 15-20 miles per day!)
Time for reflection, soul-searching, self-discovery, interpersonal connections and many, MANY lessons that would heal the deep wounds I had experienced on my life’s journey, both in and out of the classroom.

How do we learn lessons in life?
What are the best ways for students to learn lessons in the classroom?
And finally, how do the lessons we learn create our path in life?

I discovered the answers to these questions (and so many more!) during my walk across Spain, and I would like to share the lessons I learned with all of you.  Please read on… (more…)

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Linda Markley

Modeling

calling to make a difference, communication, creating community, Intention, Purpose, Sincerity, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Wholehearted teaching

As a Spanish teacher, I often told my students that I was going to be their “modelo” and then, I would jokingly “strike a pose” as in Madonna’s song, Vogue.

They got a kick out of that, but honestly and truly, I felt that I was a model for them in everything that I said and did every day.

The word “model” can mean many things today, but mostly we use it to refer to someone in the fashion industry or when we refer to cars/appliances/ technology.

One of the definitions of “model” is “a system or thing used as an example to follow or imitate”.

The etymology of the word is from Latin, modulus, meaning “a standard for imitation or comparison.”  (etymonline.com)

So, as teachers, we are setting a “standard for imitation” for our students to follow. 

Our words, our actions, our tone, our body language, our choices, our everything.

So, this could go either way.

If we yell, disrespect and dismiss our students, we are modeling and setting a standard for them to imitate and do the same to us and others.

If we speak kindly, thoughtfully and see and hear our students, we are modeling and setting a standard for them to imitate and do the same to us and others.

This happens everywhere, not only in the classroom. 

As teachers, we are not just role models to children, but also as humans, we are role models to other humans.

Let me give a few real world examples I have experienced. (more…)

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Linda Markley

I Beg to Differ

calling to make a difference, Can do's, communication, Maslow before Blooms, Passion, Purpose, Resources, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Strategies, Wholehearted teaching

Happy New Year 2024!

As we move into a new calendar year and the second half of another school year, I wanted to reflect a little with you about our differences.

The great Fred Rogers once said:

“Something else children need is the understanding that 

every person is 

DIFFERENT.

With that understanding can come children’s appreciation

of their own differences and the courage to 

be who they are – 

each one different from everybody else.”

Sometimes variations of this word DIFFERENT can get confusing in education and in how it is implemented into a school’s best practices.

There is an enormous focus and demand for DIFFERENTiation in the classroom as a result of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act).

We need to meet a student where they are. Then, we can figure out and accommodate all the different ways that child learns and succeeds. We don’t want to leave any child behind, and we do want them to succeed. 

However, I feel that what is said and what is practiced in education sometimes are very far apart. In fact, they are usually quite opposite.

I am a like a broken record now with voicing my perspective that we are preaching out of the box, differentiated and accommodating strategies for learning, YET…we are standardizing everything and expecting every child to jump into the same box WE have created for them.

AND, there is now a current trend to allow for fewer and fewer differences among children. 

There is even legislation being passed to not allow children to see something or someone different from themselves because of fear of indoctrinating them to a different way of thinking or being.

It is a fact that our brain is wired to see differences first before similarities. Perhaps that is so that we can be curious to learn more about those differences rather than be afraid of them?

Or is it for survival – what is different is a threat to my safety, well being, etc.?

As Fred Rogers says, it takes COURAGE, and as we know, there is a lot of fear permeating the walls of the classroom today.

So, how can we differentiate as well as allow for differences in the classroom 

in order to create a more nurturing, supportive learning environment 

for children (and teachers, for that matter!) and therefore,

MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

(more…)

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Linda Markley

Happy Endings

calling to make a difference, Can do's, creating community, Essential questions, i am enough, Intention, Introspection, Intuition, Joy, making connections, Maslow before Blooms, Passion, Purpose, Resources, Sincerity, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Strategies, teacher hero, Wholehearted teaching

The end of the first semester of classes is upon us.

We have all been working hard for almost 18 weeks now trying to teach, learn and achieve goals.

We have had good days.

We have had bad days.

We have had ups.

We have had downs.

We have had fun.

We have had drama.

We have been sad, happy, angry, frustrated and all around the emotional block many times…in one day even!

Just like a story playing out in a movie.

The classroom is a reflection of life and the world we live in.

The question is…will we make our story this semester into a horror story, a drama, a comedy, a tale of super-human powers or will we choose to make it a love story with a happy ending?

It IS the season of Hallmark movies, you know!

There is a lot of push-back about toxic positivity in education.

There is also a lot of push-back about calling teachers heroes.

Nonetheless, I will always be in the positive charge for energy in the classroom.

AND, I also know a lot about the Hero’s Journey as described by Joseph Campbell, and I will always believe that each and every one of us is the hero of our own story and journey in life.

So, how can we have a happy ending to this first semester, even though it may not have met all our expectations or we haven’t met all our goals or the students have not measured up to our standards? (more…)

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Linda Markley

C.A.R.E. Packages

calling to make a difference, Can do's, creating community, i am enough, Introspection, Intuition, Joy, Maslow before Blooms, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, teacher self-care

As teachers, we know what this time of year means.

The end of the semester race, crunch and sprint.

We kind of get into our flow by October, but by the time November rolls around, we face many hurdles ahead.

  1. Thanksgiving 
  2. Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanza
  3. Semester exams 
  4. Semester grades
  5. New Year and Admin visits/evaluations

WHEW! Did I just ramp up your stress level by a million percent?

Not intended, but just a list of the reality teachers face in the months of November and December.

AS IF their plates were not already full or even overflowing with “all the things” teachers have to do, but THEN, to add all the extra things that the holidays bring with them.

Crowded stores, tightening budget, lack of sleep, very limited time/money/sanity/energy…

Overflow of stress from kids and their parents dealing with their own holiday stressors.

All the food, sweets and holiday parties tempting us around every corner.

YIKES!

Sounds like teachers really could use a C.A.R.E. package to rescue them during Nov. and Dec.

So, what can we do to care for teachers during this time?

AND more importantly, what can teachers do to C.A.R.E. for themselves as things crank up during Nov. and Dec.? (more…)

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Linda Markley

Overwhelmed?

calling to make a difference, Can do's, i am enough, Maslow before Blooms, Resources, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Strategies

Most of us know the definition of overwhelm.

Most of us, who will admit it, have experienced the feelings of overwhelm.

This word, OVERWHELMED, is probably one of the most common words teachers use to describe teaching today.

Teachers are overwhelmed.

Students are overwhelmed.

Administrators are overwhelmed.

Parents are overwhelmed.

The etymology of the word overwhelmed is from Old English overwhelmen

     over = to turn upside down +  whelmen = to submerge completely

Yep, that pretty much describes life in the classroom today.

Everyone and everything seems turned upside down, and life as we know it in the classroom will never be the same, especially since the pandemic.

AND, everyone feels like they are submerged and drowning and not even treading water anymore.

etymonline.com states that “perhaps the connecting notion of being overwhelmed is a boat, etc., washed over, and overset, by a big wave. In a figurative sense of ‘to bring to ruin’ is attested from 1520s.” 

I’m getting a visual…stormy, rough seas, small boat, alone and adrift with little to no crew to help keep the boat upright, a big wave of walking the plank-jumping ship-betrayal-mutiny, the feeling of being in the doldrums with no breath of inspiration or compass of hope to guide us safely and surely to our destination.

How do we keep from getting overwhelmed by everything going on outside of the classroom and outside of ourselves?

How do we navigate the stormy seas of teaching (and life)?

What can we do about the tsunami that keeps us submerged with feelings of drowning and gasping for air or the feelings of abandoning ship or the feelings of mutiny and betrayal that can come up in our daily interactions with students, colleagues, admin and especially with parents? (more…)

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Linda Markley

Educational Civility and Citizenship

calling to make a difference, creating community, Maslow before Blooms, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices

The etymology of civility is from the Latin civilis “relating to a citizen, relating to public life, befitting a citizen; popular, affable, courteous”

I’ve done many blog posts on creating a more positive, nurturing, courteous, friendly, civil classroom or school culture.

I am going to take another pass at it again, but this time, through the lens of a classroom or school culture as it relates to a civilization.

The famous anthropologist, Margaret Mead, was once asked by a student what she thought were the first signs of a civilization in an ancient culture.

One would expect her to answer with things like pottery, tools or everyday objects like statues or jewelry or utensils.

Well, much to everyone’s surprise, Margaret Mead replied that the first sign of a civilization in an ancient culture is actually found in a broken human femur bone that has healed. 

What? Quoi? Huh?

AND how does this relate to this blog topic of “educational civility and citizenship”? (more…)

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Linda Markley

Classroom Behavior

calling to make a difference, Can do's, creating community, i am enough, Intention, Introspection, Intuition, Joy, making connections, Maslow before Blooms, Resources, Sincerity, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Strategies, Wholehearted teaching

There are many reasons teachers are leaving the profession.

One of those reasons is classroom behavior…BOTH teacher and student behavior.

The pressures, demands, excessive expectations, negative and hostile culture in which many teachers and students find themselves these days are causing behavior in the classroom to also get out of control.

In a school district in Florida, a large group of teachers quit stating that student behavior was out of control and unbearable. 

Since then, many prominent persons in the district, including the sheriff and local school board members have publicly stated their opinions about students in the district. These opinions have included many “childish” behaviors such as name calling and suggestions for “whipping students’ a****”.

As adults, we must be the role models for children, and this kind of behavior is just not acceptable.

Teaching is the hardest job there is nowadays!

So many critics and so little respect. Too many expectations and not enough support.

 And being a kid is hard too with all the pressures from social media, high stakes testing and socio-economic challenges at home.

All of these pressures are playing out in the classroom and manifesting in extreme human behaviors like violence, insolence, aggression, belligerence and defiance stemming from human emotions such as anger, frustration, anxiety, depression, sadness, grief, fear, jealousy, rejection and especially an overwhelming feeling of not being or doing enough.

What can we do as teachers, as parents, as ADULTS to help turn
this classroom behavior around from a negative to a positive?

And YES…IT STARTS WITH US!!!

(more…)

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Linda Markley

Teacher Professional Development

calling to make a difference, creating community, Introspection, professional development, Sincerity, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, teacher vulnerability

Attending professional development training is a requirement for teachers to renew their teaching certificates every five years.

Even though it is still summer break, teachers are already either attending professional development over the summer. Or they are already planning for their professional development in the upcoming year during pre-planning or during the designated district PD Days.

I have noticed a trend in social media posts that are lashing out about trainers or mentors for professional development who have not been in the classroom in recent years.

I can read the frustration and resentment between the lines of these posts and totally understand and respect them.

In fact, much of the overwhelming negativity that comes from teachers I can understand and respect. I get human nature and the life of teaching, no matter what decade we are talking about.

HOWEVER, as some teachers become more and more aggressive about voicing these frustrations, I am compelled to offer a different perspective.

For some teachers, their Ego tells them: “I already know everything I need to know and no one else is going to tell me how to teach.”

For some teachers, their anxiety tells them: “I have so much to do and am barely keeping up with what I already know how to do. I can’t take on another new trick or another new thing on my plate.”

For some teachers, their resentment tells them: “Not many professions require employees to spend their time seeking professional development in order to keep their license and/or credentials, so why should I?’ 

For some teachers, their anger tells them: “You don’t know me or the kids I teach, so you can’t offer anything that is going to help. You are just wasting my time.”

I could go on, but you get the picture.

So, what could possibly be a perspective that would help allay the negativity that is associated with attending a professional development day/session, especially one led by a teacher who has not been in the classroom in the last several years? (more…)

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Linda Markley

Teacher Evaluations

creating community, Essential questions, i am enough, Introspection, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, teacher evaluation, teacher vulnerability

The other day, my husband and I were talking about teacher evaluations and all the expectations and accountability that are placed on teachers.

His perspective is from the business world and being a manager/administrator who did annual “reviews” of his employees.

First of all, they called them “reviews”, which is perhaps more appealing than “evaluations”.

Evaluation = from the Latin valere meaning to be of value or worth.

Instead of reviewing or taking another view(point) or look at the person’s performance over the past year with the intention of deciding what went well and what needs to change (plus-delta approach)…

…it seems that what administrators are being asked to do is determine what “value” to place on a teacher or decide what that teacher is “worth”.

I prefer a different model for reviewing or evaluating people’s participation and performance in an event called the “plus-delta” approach.

Technically, the “plus-delta” model was designed and developed by the aviation and medical industries as a debriefing system for meetings, simulations and practices.

This approach uses more “improvement” oriented language rather than language that may be considered too negative, judgmental and discouraging. 

How could the delta-plus model be better implemented in education, 

especially for teacher evaluations?

(more…)

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Linda Markley

The 3? R’s of a Teacher’s Summer

Intention, Spirit practices

Ah, another school year coming to a close.

I know you all can’t wait for summer.

Time to rest, recharge, and reset for the next school year only a short three months away.

That’s what I call the 3 R’s of Summer:  REST, RECHARGE and RESET.

REST – let your body rest, relax and rejuvenate through self-care routines. Dial back your “go-go-go” mode and tune in to a “resting” heart rate free from stress and overexertion.

RELAX – chill out and let go of all those coulda, woulda, shoulda’s from your school year brain and mentality. Nothing is “on fire”, “urgent” or “needs immediate attention”.

RESET – do things that will bring on a general reset on your life in order to get back to equanimity, balance and a more leveled path to travel rather than riding the ups and downs of a roller-coaster of a school year.

Actually, I think there are a few other essential “R”s beside these obvious ones. 

What could those be?

(more…)

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Linda Markley

Permanent Records

Can do's, Essential questions, i am enough, Intention, Introspection, making connections, Purpose, Spirit of teaching

As educators, we are all familiar with permanent records in schools.

According to a Poe.com, a permanent record is:

“a collection of student’s academic and personal information, such as grades, attendance, disciplinary actions and other details that are kept on file by the school. The purpose of these records is to provide a comprehensive history of the student’s educational experience, which can be used for a variety of purposes, such as college applications, job references or other academic opportunities.”

I have always been curious as to why we call these records “permanent” because don’t we want students to learn, grow, change, evolve and move forward on their path in life, academically and personally?

It also flies a little in the face of my linguistic and etymological sense of the word as well as my spiritual belief about nothing being permanent.

The word permanent is from the Latin word permanentem, meaning “enduring, unchanging, lasting indefinitely”.

The learning journey of a student seems to me like it should change, grow and continue throughout a lifetime. 

Learning is not a one-and-done thing. 

Don’t we talk about creating “lifelong learners” in education all the time?!

So, why, again, would we call these permanent records?

Let’s look at the word record.

For record (noun), I think of an LP album which is round and turns around and around in circles.

Is this like a learning cycle or like when content is spiraled throughout the learning journey?

When we look at the verb form to record (different pronunciation – ah, English!), it comes from the French word recorder, which means “to tell, repeat or recite”.

Well that seems about right in education!

Teachers do a lot of telling, students do a lot of repeating and reciting…not the best practices, for sure!

Words are powerful, and can be interpreted in many ways.

Again, one part of the lens through which I see the world and my place in it!

I strongly feel that we need to change the name of folder with a “student’s academic and personal information” throughout their K-12 learning journey to something that aligns more with what we are really envisioning for students…in other words, the true purpose of an education.

Some schools have come to call this a student’s “cumulative folder”. 

Basically, the same thing, just with a different name.

However, the word “cumulative” seems to be less harsh than being “permanent” and indicate that there has been change, growth and learning that has been accumulated over the years, like a collection of knowledge and accomplishments.

The word “folder” too brings forth a more positive and empowering image of a place to store knowledge, information and a history of research and findings driven by curiosity and discovery.  On the other hand, the word record can be associated with more negative contexts like criminal or bad driving…record.

Maybe I have given this way too much thought, energy and brain power, but it really has all stemmed from my heart (through the Vagus Nerve!)

Neither of these terms land well in my gut, so I have had many mental musings about what we should call this. 

What would align more with what the learning journey through school and even beyond into our lifelong learning be until the day we die (which is when the learning opportunities stop for all of us!)

Maybe “learning portfolio”?

The etymology of portfolio is from Italian portafoglio meaning “a movable receptacle or case for carrying detached papers”.

With every experience, both in and out of the classroom, we learn something that we carry with us throughout the rest of our journey in life.

The path, the life, the success or outcome of a student’s life cannot be determined solely by the academic or personal information or experiences that they have had.

Lives can be turned around.

Different choices can be made and different contexts pursued.

We always have the power to change the course of our path in life.

As Henry David Thoreau once said:

“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you have imagined”. 

Nothing is permanent.

Nothing is set in stone.

No-“thing” can stand in your way and block your path forward. 

There is no permanent record to our lives!

Only a learning portfolio that we can carry with us and that will help us to continue on our path through a lifetime of learning.

 

Photo credit:  https://unsplash.com/@craftedbygc 

 

 

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Linda Markley

Taking a Break

Essential questions, i am enough, Intention, Introspection, Maslow before Blooms, Spirit practices

The etymology of the word break is from Old English brecan meaning “to divide solid matter violently into parts or fragments” or “the act of forcible disruption or separation”.(etymonline.com)

Teachers look forward to Christmas break, Spring break, Summer break, Fall break, Winter break and so on. 

Some people feel that teachers get too many “breaks” and that they don’t deserve them or need them. They see these breaks really as an excess of “vacation” time that other professions unfairly don’t get.

The fact is that teachers keep working and working and working until they experience an “act of forcible disruption or separation.”

This could be in the form of a seasonal break like Spring Break. Many teachers do travel during this time in order to have a change of scenery and get out of their isolation in the classroom.

Many teachers also do not travel during Spring break and are happy to cocoon at home and enjoy all the little things that bring them great joy, but that they do not have time to do while in school…like reading, taking long walks on the beach, catching up on their latest TV shows, slowly sipping on a HOT cup of tea and listening to the birds sing outside their window…

Why do we wait until there is an “act of forcible disruption or separation” before we take a break? 

And more importantly, why is there so much guilt around taking a break? (more…)

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Linda Markley

The Big Question

calling to make a difference, communication, Essential questions, Intention, Introspection, Intuition, Purpose, Spirit of teaching, Wholehearted teaching

Beside doing this blog, I also send out a weekly newsletter called the Sunday Spirit Spark as well as host a podcast called Teacher Tales.

You can check all of these out at Spirit of Teaching

I started this journey for the Spirit of Teaching during the pandemic when I witnessed my beloved friends and colleagues and profession struggling and suffering and losing their compass and direction.

The question that came up a lot was WHY?

Why should I keep doing this when kids don’t even show up for the Zoom meeting or keep their cameras on or do their work or ???

Why should I put my health and well-being on the line in a pandemic?

Why should I even care if no one else cares?

Why?  Why?  Why?  echoed through the hearts of teachers across the world more than ever before.  

In fact, post-pandemic, it is still simmering in the background of every teacher’s mind as more and more challenges come about.

Challenges like teachers being told that they can’t teach certain things or have certain books in their libraries or talk about certain topics or do certain activities in class o push back against excessively aggressive and bullying parents and students. The list goes on…

The big question in the classroom has always been and always will be WHY? 

So, today I was doing a podcast recording with a teacher who said that in order to keep his focus and stay in the profession, he had to always remind himself of his “WHY?”

Why did I become a teacher?

Why do I show up every day at school?

Why ___________?  fill in the blank (more…)

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Linda Markley

The Second Semester Slide

Can do's, creating community, Intention, Introspection, Joy, making connections, Passion, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Strategies, Wholehearted teaching

Teachers and students across the world are coming back to school from a winter break.

After a couple of weeks of festivities, taking a break and ending the first semester of school, teachers and students hopefully return refreshed, recharged and renewed.

Things are so calm and sleepy the first few days back as everyone is re-adjusting to being back in the routine of getting up early and immersing themselves in the everyday demands of being back in the classroom.

I used to think to myself “Oh my gosh! The kids matured and everything that I tried to teach them the first semester has finally magically sunk in! “

Or…”Oh my gosh! Somehow taking a break, recharging and contemplating all that stuff about Santa and coal in the stocking has finally had a positive affect on the students! They are so well behaved and matured since I last saw them two weeks ago!”

It didn’t take long to realize that it was just temporary as the kids were really just sleep deprived, off schedule, still buzzing on a holiday sugar high or in a lingering euphoria from all the gifts they had received for Christmas.

Was the second semester doomed? Were things hopeless? Should I just give up on them and myself and the whole educational thing?

As my years of teaching went by, I came to fondly name the beginning of the second half of the school year when we returned after the Winter holiday break as the “Second Semester Slide”.

So, what do I mean by this? (more…)

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Linda Markley

The Art of Teaching

calling to make a difference, Can do's, creating community, Essential questions, Introspection, making connections, Passion, Purpose, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Wholehearted teaching

Mark Van Doren, American poet, writer and professor at Columbia University said:

“The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery”.

Teaching truly is an art form.

Each teacher is a unique artist creating a masterpiece lesson plan into which they put their own carefully chosen objects, colors, shadings, meaning and a bit of themselves.

A masterful teacher creates this masterpiece lesson, and then, like any work of art, invites the viewer/recipient to explore, discover and learn at their own pace and in their own way.

A work of art is personal and sensory and contextual.

Yet it is also universal and appeals to the humanity in all of us.

Lessons need to be personal, sensory and contextual in order to become meaningful.

They also need to be universal and teach us the “greater understandings” of life.

When something is personally meaningful to us, we make a connection…literally brain and heart connections.

This is the magic of teaching, and what may be missing in some classrooms today because of various factors.

Why has this changed, and what can a teacher do 
to become a masterful artist at their craft? (more…)

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Linda Markley

Rules and Rulers

communication, creating community, Essential questions, Resources, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, teacher vulnerability, Wholehearted teaching

Words are powerful!

The etymology of words is so fascinating and fun and can give us great insight and inspiration to life’s challenges as well as rewards.

According to etymonline.com, the origin of the word rule is “ from Vulgar Latin *regula, from Latin regula “straight stick, bar, ruler;” figuratively “a pattern, a model,” related to regere “to rule, straighten, guide” (from PIE root *reg- “move in a straight line,” with derivatives meaning “to direct in a straight line,” thus “to lead, rule”).”

 Rules are a big part of the classroom culture and a teacher’s foundation for managing that culture. However, rules and the rulers who implement them can sometimes create an imbalance in power that controls and suppresses rather than “guides” or “directs in a straight line”.

Usually the teacher has their rules listed on a poster in the classroom, hands out a copy of the rules to the students and goes over them on the first day of class. 

Sometimes the rules are in the form of “Don’t” as in “don’t talk when the teacher is talking”. 

Sometimes they are in the form of “Be” –  “Be quiet and respectful”.

Sometimes they are in the form of “Do” – “Always do your best”.

Sometimes they include absolutes like “never” or “always”.

Whatever form they come in, rules are intended to regulate the culture of the classroom.

Culture, in terms of world languages instruction, is defined as the “products, practices and perspectives” of the people that make up a community.

Notice that the word for ruler also comes from regula as in a straight stick to measure/guide.

So, what can we glean from the etymology of these words, as teachers,

that can help us with our classroom culture? (more…)

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Linda Markley

Hocus-Pocus Teaching in Scary Times

calling to make a difference, Can do's, creating community, making connections, Purpose, Resources, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Strategies, teacher vulnerability, Wholehearted teaching

It is October, and things are heating up for teachers as the weather cools down.

FALL is in the air.

Teachers may feel like things are not “falling” into place or that they are “falling” down on the job because it is the end of the grading period, and they are having a hard time keeping up with…

…too many students trying to make up work they should have done weeks ago

…too many parents reacting negatively, and yes, even aggressively (bullying) because their    child does not have the grade they want them to have and, somehow, that’s the teacher’s fault

…too many emails, meetings, papers to grade, parent conferences, admin visits for evaluation

…too many things to JUGGLE

Teachers maybe need a little bit of HOCUS-POCUS.

Did you know that the origin of the phrase HOCUS-POCUS is from the Latin phrase hicce es doctus, which means here is the learned man. (etymonline.com). 

The phrase eventually became used by jugglers and magicians to refer to their craft/sleight of hand.

Nowadays, the phrase “hocus-pocus” conjures up the wildly popular Disney film of the same name, which has just released a part 2.

So, what do Fall, Hocus-Pocus, October, jugglers, magicians and teachers have in common?

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Linda Markley

Cherished Memories

calling to make a difference, Can do's, creating community, Intention, Joy, making connections, Maslow before Blooms, Passion, Purpose, Spirit of teaching, Spirit practices, Teacher Appreciation, teacher hero, Wholehearted teaching

There is no doubt that the impact a teacher has on the life of a student, and eventually on the world, is inestimable.

The impact can be positive or negative and last a lifetime…for better or for worse.

When children come to the classroom, teachers have the opportunity to create a bond and nurture a relationship with each and every child through the choices we make and the experiences we create through the lessons and activities in which we actively engage those children.

Teachers feel this in the heart and soul of their being. It can be quite a burden to carry, but it can also be the most uplifting, invigorating and everlasting joy they can experience in life!

When we decide to become a teacher, our hearts enter into a lifelong commitment…for better or for worse…to love each and every child, unconditionally. 

It is not always easy, loving or joyful, and many, MANY days our commitment may begin to wain and our hearts begin to shrink a little and have less capacity for joy, passion and love.

Nonetheless, it is ALWAYS there, just like our founding love that helped create a bond in any relationship or “marriage” of connection to another.

There are always cherished memories that we create with others through our bond and connection that will live in our hearts forever.

So, we need to keep reminders and mementos of them close by to help us come back to our heart center and remember the WHY in what we are doing and the choices were are making.

How do we do create and keep 
those cherished memories near and dear to our hearts?

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