Can you believe this year?! 2020 has been a whirlwind. I keep seeing throwback posts to previous years; my classroom decorated, my new teacher shoes, the excitement of a new year, etc. I've been thinking about what I can do and want to do this upcoming school year to make it a positive one. We know it's going to be memorable, so I want to make it a good one! My BIG focus for the 2020-21 school year is being intentional. I want to be more intentional about my relationships with students and families. I want to be as intentional as possible with our remote and hybrid learning plans. I want to be an intentional and active listener to others' concerns and ideas. I'm hosting a student teacher this fall, so that will make this even crazier, but I want to be the guidance that she needs. What are your plans for the school year? What is one word you want to focus on?
Second picture: Right leg balance was much steadier.
I'd like to invest in some foam blocks to help with some of the harder moves. If you have any tips of sizes or brands, please drop them in the comments below!
Bolded below are the instructions from my professor for the course forum, blue is my game plan, progress, and thoughts.
Happy stretching and happy learning. This week's mantra has been "progress over perfection".
Zones of Regulation
"Self-regulation is something everyone continually works on whether or not we are cognizant of it. We all encounter trying circumstances that test our limits from time to time. If we are able to recognize when we are becoming less regulated, we are able to do something about it to manage our feelings and get ourselves to a healthy place. This comes naturally for some, but for others, it is a skill that needs to be taught and practiced. This is the goal of The Zones of Regulation." (from The Zones of Regulation website.)
WHO: Zones were designed to help children better understand their emotions, sensory needs, and thinking patterns.
WHAT: The Zones of Regulation uses four colors to help children self-identify how they’re feeling and categorize it based on color. Additionally, the Zones of Regulation helps kids recognize their own triggers, learn to read facial expressions, develop problem-solving skills, and become more attuned to how their actions affect other people.
WHERE: In the classroom, hall, recess, or even at home. Anywhere and everywhere!
WHY: Self-regulation is something everyone continually works on whether or not we are cognizant of it. When kids fully understand what they’re feeling, they can make sense of, and regulate their emotions much better.
HOW: Take time for the student to assess and reflect on their choices, actions, feelings, and next steps.
The Green Zone
The green zone is used to describe when you’re in a calm state of alertness.
Being in the green zone means you are calm, focused, happy, or ready to learn. This is predominantly the state you want your child to be in.
It’s also the state most needed in the classroom in order to learn.
The Yellow Zone
The yellow zone describes when you have a heightened sense of alertness. This isn’t always a bad thing, and you typically still have some control when you’re in the yellow zone.
Being in the yellow means you may feel frustrated, anxious or nervous. But, it could also mean you’re feeling excited, silly, or hyper – which is okay in the right situations.
The Red Zone
The red zone describes an extremely heightened state of intense emotions. When a person reaches the red zone, they’re no longer about to control their emotions or reactions.
This is the zone kids are in during meltdowns.
Being in the red zone means you’re feeling anger, rage, terror, or complete devastation and feel out of control.
The Blue Zone
The blue zone, on the other hand, is used when a person is feeling low states of alertness or arousal.
When you’re in the blue zone you may be feeling down – sad, sick, tired, or bored. You’re still in control, as you are in the yellow zone, but with low energy emotions.
Here is a book I'm going to use to start the year off with my second graders.
Here are some helpful links you might want to look more into...
The Zones of Regulation Official Website
He's Extrordinary - Zones Explanations
This website is phenomenal, the color break down explanations above came from this site.
Amazon Link to purchase the bookIf you'd like to follow The Zones on Twitter : ZonesOfReg
“What do you want to be when you grow up?!” I'm personally guilty of asking that question far too many times. I've asked it at morning meetings, I've asked it in a writing prompt, I've even asked my own child at home. We need to create a philosophy of problem solving, not one of a career stated endpoint.
Obsess over the learner, not the process, not the prescribed program, not the data, and not the failures. Katie Martin is the author of Learner Centered Innovation, she encourages teachers to be obsessively learner-focused in our schools. We can have all the best and newest resources at our fingertips and still not meet the needs of our students if we don’t know who they are. We could also be poorly funded, under-supported, and have overly large class sizes; but if we know our students as individuals with potential we can still make a difference. Martin touches on ensuring that teachers have what they need to be student obsessed, “time, support, and trust to do what’s best”.
The number of demands on teachers continues to grow, especially considering the pandemic we’re currently facing and what some districts and states could be asking of their teachers. On the extreme side of things, teachers have been known to physically place themselves between students and bullets, they’ve been known to cover students with their bodies during tornados, and now we could be expected to face groups of children each day and put ourselves and our families at risk for exposure. Teachers obsess over their learners because they are drawn to their profession and want to make a difference. Our obsession is to help kids, but we need to be valued in order to stay.
What can a teacher do to become more learner-focused? RELATIONSHIPS! Know your students!
Addressing the overload of materials and interventions tried on students that don't work, Katie Martin shares with the readers of her book that “It’s costly and wasteful for (districts to buy) expensive programs and resources to go largely unused and then be shelved as ineffective”. This part resonated with me because I’m just finishing reading Visible Learning by John Hatti. That book has really made me question the use and sometimes overuse of intervention programs when at times we as teachers need to reflect on our practices. What piece of the puzzle is the student missing, have we tried to teach it in multiple ways, or are we using a few lazy data points to guide our thinking blindly? It’s a pain in the butt to track all of the progress monitoring details of a reading intervention, so before diving headfirst let’s do what we know how to do; get to know students as people and work with them in a way that works for them!
. 
Stretch and Breathe
(...that breathing part is extra important!)
This week I continued on my yoga journey and learned more about myself in the process. This journey was born from an assignment to learn something new from a master's course I am currently enrolled in with Baker University. (WOW, that was a long sentence...)
For the past few weeks, I've been working on becoming fluent in a yoga flow. There have been some moments where I am surprised by what my body can do, and also annoyed at what it can not yet do. Me Learning Goal: I will know I have achieved this when I can successfully complete by memory a ten-minute yoga flow without stopping, falling over, losing balance, or laughing. Bolded below are the instructions from my professor for the course forum, blue is my game plan, progress, and thoughts.
**Identify resources to support your learning process. Resources could be people, organizations, websites, books, etc.
I've continued using Maggie Binkley's workouts from Amazon Prime Video. And I've also been using a variety of video/TikTok/Instagram video clips to learn different moves and stretches.
**Begin learning your target activity or skill. As you learn, monitor your progress in our weekly Personal Learning Challenge Forums.
I'm continuing to monitor my progress in three ways; duration of plank hold (endurance), headstand without assistance (balance), and yoga flow memorization (breathing and focus).
This week's stats are
Plank Time: 1 minute 32 seconds (All about the breathing!! And not watching the clock.)
Headstand: Unsuccessful, but I've gained some strength and learned that it is more about focus than actual muscle. I focus on making all of my muscles work at the same time.
Yoga Flow: This has improved. I've decided to write down the flow and keep it on the floor in front of me as a sort of cheat sheet.
**Use our Forums, AND any social media you would like to connect with a network, share progress, and get both feedback and support from your friends and colleagues. Please share what (if any) additional social media you are using, and any feedback or support you have gained from using the additional resource.
I posted my progress for last week on my blog, Instagram, and linked my blog to my Facebook. It was fun to let the Facebook world in on my yoga journey. I had a distant cousin comment, "When you are doing yoga exercises, mentally concentrate on strengthening your core. Visualize having a six-pack, and having crazy strong core muscles. When your core gets stronger the handstand will be easy. You will also become accustomed to the blood rushing to your head. I have always been able to stand on my head, since I was a little kid. I could walk on my hands, and got free beers betting people I could drink a beer, standing on my head (after I've already had several beers). Love your blog!".
I mentioned in a previous post that I was going to solicit help from my friends Cate and Marilyn who are both yoga instructors, their advice is below.
Cate/@studioyyoga (instagram)
"The term yoga means ‘to yolk’ or to pair together in balance. Do this always with breath and movement. Yoga is skill in action modified for each and every individual body. Learn to breathe (not kidding) and then pair it with movement, when the breath gives, then you have found your area of focus. Come back to your breath and ‘begin again’."
Marilyn/Children's Yoga KC - https://www.facebook.com/Childrens-Yoga-Kansas-City-249305695110987
"So many great classes online now. Find an instructor you love...
"Here are a few other things I came across this week that resonated with me.
"Many people think that yoga is just a physical practice, it is a mental practice also. No one is perfect, and no matter how confident they may seem, they are probably fighting a battle that they don't want people to know." - @yogiwithdari"True yoga is not about the shape of your body, but about the shape of your life. Yoga is not to be performed, it is to be lived. Yoga doesn't care what you HAVE been, yoga cares about the person you are becoming." Aadil Palkhivala - via @keytoyoga
Currently is a monthly update on what I'm reading, following, working on, listening to, etc...
If you'd like this template for your own use open it here make your own copy and get to typin' !
Books:
I'm currently reading Learner-Centered Innovation: Spark Curiosity, Ignite Passion, and Unleash Genius by Katie Martin, this book has been really enjoyable, and feels less like a mandatory read, and more like a fun reflective read. I'm reading it as part of my master's course, and I also know some teachers that have read it with their staff as a book study.I'm also reading The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins, this is a long overdue (in my opinion) follow up of The Hunger Games trilogy. I'm only a few chapters in, but so far so good. I wish I'd reread the Hunger Games, as I am having to stretch my brain a bit to remember some people and details, but overall it's been really good so far.
I just wrapped up Visible Learning for Teachers by John Hattie This book gave me a lot to think about. The key focus I took from this book was ownership. Students owning their learning, even when mistakes are made. Teachers owning their teaching, even when we make mistakes. Administrators owning their choices and being able to explain to their staff in a purposeful way "why". I learned after the fact that there was a book 1 called Visible Learning, so maybe I should have read that one first... whoops...
Blogs:
Once upon a time I had a blog of my own, that was kind of a hodgepodge of ideas. I'm trying to find new teacher blogs to follow for some inspiration and ideas on how to keep this blog focused on education. If I'm not able to fully focus the blog in an educational way, I'd like to have it organized in a way that still supports teachers both in the classroom and at home.
http://sparklinginsecondgrade.com/
https://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/
https://www.learninginwonderland.com/
Twitter:
Read my thoughts here --> Mrs.Ramsey's Twitter Diary
This list is who I've started following lately and have gained some great insight from:
Leaving the Village - @LeavingVillage
The Concious Kid - @conciouskidlib
Kansas NEA - @kneanews
Goals:
Mrs. Ramsey is giving yoga a try. It’s been a fun experience so far! I’m following a few sites on Instagram and using Amazon Video for instruction at home. Here is the link if you'd like to try! https://www.amazon.com/15-Minute-Yoga-Flow-1-0-Workout/dp/B079PCFXBG
Instagram:
In conjunction with my goals above I've started following these two yoga sites for inspiration and tips: @yoga_girl and @sumitsyogaspringfield My teacher gram, if you'd like to follow, is @mrs.ramsey.eats.and.teaches
Listening:
I’m currently listening to Gabe explain Pokemon to Annie. I’ve been really into The Judds lately. Something about their twangy harmony makes me happy. Also, pretty excited about The (Dixie) Chicks newest album coming out! Here's what I am stuck in my head right now:
YOU 👏 SHOULD 👏 NEVER 👏 STOP 👏 LEARNING 👏
People of the internet, I present to you... Mrs. Ramsey turns Yogi
Forums for the next few weeks will be dedicated to our own Personal Learning Challenge that Katie Martin describes our text [Learner-Centered Innovation: Spark Curiosity, Ignite Passion and Unleash Genius, link to book: https://www.amazon.com/Learner-Centered-Innovation-Curiosity-Passion-Unleash/dp/1948334003]. Just like Katie’s students, we will need to identify a skill, talent, or activity that you would like to learn.
The guidelines are the same as Katie laid out for her learners:
My personal learning goal for the next few weeks is to become fluent in a yoga flow. I will know I have achieved this when I can successfully complete by memory a ten-minute yoga flow without stopping, falling over, losing balance, or laughing.
On my hands...
https://youtu.be/xWPLkueqUYE
On my elbows...
https://youtu.be/Ugh748yPxeQ
Failure leads to learning.
https://youtu.be/zDuk2ViHOLA
I hope you can find something new to try, make it something just for you. I don't think teachers take enough time to do things just for themselves.
Stay Well,
A QUICK HISTORY OF INNOVATION
Innovation - It seems to be a trending word in education these days. People have been innovating since the beginning of time. Adam and Eve were ashamed of their nakedness, so they were innovative with some leaves and covered themselves. Alexander Graham Bell was an innovator with his forward-thinking and thus the telephone was born. Apple continues to change and adjust its products faster than we can update them at times, so what does it mean?Innovation? The teacher in me wants to break it down for you, so bear with me.
Innovate means making changes in something that already exists, especially by introducing new methods, ideas, or products. Look below at this diagram, it's pretty helpful in my opinion. Shout out to Google for the help!
So, we are innovators when we change or try a new idea to improve something that has already been done. "Innovation in its modern meaning is "a new idea, creative thoughts, new imaginations in form of device or method". Innovation is often also viewed as the application of better solutions that meet new requirements, unarticulated needs, or existing market needs."
INNOVATION in EDUCATION
Educators have always been innovative.
Imagine a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse with minimal supplies, students with ages ranging from 6 to 12 years old, students abilities ranging a span further than their ages, and being the ONLY adult in the room. Can you say innovative mindset! At the time working in small groups, center rotations, and scaffolded assignments were new ways of thinking. To teachers in the 21st century those are considered best practices, but at the time they were innovative. Looking towards this coming August, many teachers and school leaders are finding new ways to be innovative with our teaching, our parent communication, or ability to supply food to students in need, and even how to provide the internet for families that do not have reliable access. Innovative changes require thinking creativity, room for mistakes, and a willingness to try something new.
HOW TO START INNOVATIVE CHANGE IN YOUR CLASSROOM
1. Change your mindset.
Every day we have the ability to influence how our students feel about their learning. If we are able to change our mindset and be forward-thinking our students will see this and become forward thinkers as well. Students might see you collaborating with another teacher in the hall, although to you it's a quick conversation, they see you working and thinking. If we're thinking innovatively our students will see it. Be reflective and believe in yourself. It's hard to change lessons that we love, it's hard to embrace new curriculum, it's hard to change; but when we're reflective about why, we're able to move forward in an innovative way.
2. Make your classroom a place for innovation
Flexible seating, open seating, tables, groups, wobble stools, makerspace, bean bags, sit spots... the list can go on and on. What makes a classroom innovative is not your seating arrangement or your table toppers. It's the opportunity given to students to explore and fail and try again that make them innovative thinkers. Learning spaces should be fluid, students might need time to work with peers and collaborate, but they also need time to think alone and reflect.
3. Be problem finders and problem solvers.
Students often see the missing piece before the teacher because we already know what the answer is. When we find problems together we are able to innovate together. I challenge you to use problem finding as a strategy in your classroom. Problem finding might be easier for students because they have the imaginative thinking to see what might be missing or should be added. Adults tend to settle on "if it works, it works". Being problem finders and problem solvers promotes deep thinking and creative problem-solving. This ties in to changing your mindset and letting students see you as a problem finder and solver too.
Be a problem finder!
Best,
Mallory
Fast forward 8 years, and ask me that same question. Do I know what journey I'm embarking on? Nope, I sure don't. Every year, every child, every day is different. I don't know what the upcoming year will hold and I didn't know as a fresh college grad what was coming my way either.
In these uncertain times, there is one thing I am certain of; I am a teacher who will continue to be there with my hands and heart to help my students learn their value and their potential.
This blog is born from a course from Baker University. I'm mid masters program and have loved continuing my education. The homework, paper, reflections, readings, etc can be time-consuming, but how lucky am I to get to be studying and focusing on my passion as a teacher.
I hope you enjoy learning with me and are able to find a way to make somebody feel like a somebody.
Best,
Mallory
Hello, I am Mallory Ramsey
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