Lessons of a Broken Window

The other day, my 11 year-old son, who was home for Spring Break, called me at school and said "Mom, I was playing outside, practicing my throwing, and I broke one of the garage door windows." I've been down this road before with my son. We had a broken insulated, double pane window on the front of the house last spring, and we still have a broken window on the back side of the garage from the fall. You might wonder about my son's ability to throw a baseball, but believe me, if I ever wanted to learn how to throw a curveball or a slider, he'd be my man. In spite of his 11 years and his occasional misses, I consider him an expert in many respects when it comes to throwing a baseball. I think his team from last year, who referred to him as "The Closer", would agree. Is he an expert because he never misses? Of course not, and frankly, to call an 11 year old an expert probably seems pretty strange. But compared to me, he is an expert. He would be my go-to guy when and if I wanted to learn. He already knows a tremendous amount about the form and techniques of being a pitcher. More importantly, he is always working on his skills. In spite of the occasional broken window, he has a strong, accurate throw.

Similarly, the other day, I was part of a discussion about the word "expert". Is it okay to refer to someone as an expert even if he or she doesn't know everything there is to know about a given topic or tool? For example, one of my colleagues, likes to use the word to describe teachers in our community who have a special expertise or knowledge, and by this I mean beyond their content area (for example, someone who has learned to use a cool, new tool or technology that might be of interest to others in the community). But what if that teacher "expert" doesn't know all the ins and outs of that cool, new tool? Is it still okay to call her an "expert"? Is it okay for an expert to still be learning and making mistakes? Can an expert and a newbie learn alongside one another? I like to think the answer to these questions is yes. I like to think that by saying yes, you demonstrate that it's okay to not always have the answers, while at the same time feel confident about what you do know. And it's okay to share what you know even if you are still learning. In fact, I would say it is vital to the survival of your expert status to be an expert who is continually learning.

Classroom Facebook?

At a recent faculty meeting in my preschool, many of the teachers were complaining that parents never read the bi-weekly class letters. The letters, which are posted to our school’s Moodle site, contain information about the current classroom themes and recent events and projects, as well as upcoming events for parents' calendars. Teachers often include wonderful photos of the students engaged in learning or exploring something new. What parent wouldn't want to check this out, right? Well, the problem is that they aren't. We don't have any great answers as to why not, other than Moodle is cumbersome/impossible to check on a handheld device, which is how many of our parents stay connected.

This got me thinking. Why not use Facebook as a way to communicate with parents? After all, most of our parents are already on Facebook. Half jokingly, I suggested this idea at that same faculty meeting. I say "half jokingly" because I knew that it would not go over easily. Like all schools, our administration and faculty are greatly concerned about internet safety and privacy, especially for our youngest students. But is the idea of Facebook as a means for a classroom teacher to communicate with families such a far-fetched idea? Many of the teachers at the meeting immediately began discussing the "how-to’s" of such an endeavor. They immediately recognized that "yes, in fact, parents would read a Facebook page". But almost immediately, the concerns too came up. How would we make it secure, how would we limit access to just our parents, how would we ensure that our parents used proper etiquette while on the classroom page?

So, I’ve recently been given the task of figuring this all out. Is it possible for our preschool to set up Facebook pages for each of our classes? I would love to hear from any of you who have ideas or suggestions that might help me along in this process. If you are a teacher, how do you currently communicate with your parents? Or if you are a parent, what would you think of a Facebook page for your child's class?

You might also check out one of Christopher Dawson's recent blogs, "Will it ever be time for Facebook?" It is an interesting read, but the comments that follow are where the real discussion takes place. Let me know what you think.

Feeding our Curiosity

I don't have any official leadership titles at my school, but I have taken on a leadership role of sorts. For the past few weeks, I have been collaborating with a fellow teacher (and member of my PLP cohort), Dana, on a weekly professional development for our Lower Division teachers (3's through 5th grade). We borrowed the idea from our Middle School colleagues, one of whom is also a member of my PLP cohort. Like the Middle School, our PD is called Breakfast Boosters, and the idea is that once a week for a half hour in the morning, we meet with half the teachers in the Lower Division and present a topic for discussion or exploration or just a "show and share" of something cool going on in one of our classrooms. Then the next week, we present the same topic to the other half of the faculty. Sometimes the topic is technology-based and sometimes it isn't. For the first few weeks, Dana and I will facilitate the discussion, but our hope is that after a few weeks, we will have other teachers volunteer to present topics. Our goal is to create an atmosphere in our division where teachers share ideas, teach one another, and try new things. And it's called Breakfast Boosters because, of course, there is always yummy food.

I would love to know what great ideas you have presented to colleagues and co-workers. What topics do you think would make for a great discussion among teachers hoping to learn and grow together? I welcome your comments!