From my very first methods course in my undergraduate program at Kent State University, I have had a vision of what I wanted my classroom to look like. I dreamed of having students that were self-motivated and engaged in the learning. I wanted every child that I called my student to walk out of my room feeling as awesome and accomplished as the ancient Greeks must have felt as they traced their work in the sand thousands of years ago. I wanted them to love math and do math for themselves first. I started my career as so many teachers do, to save the world. While I still have ways to go, I feel that 15 years into my teaching career, I am finally approaching the classroom environment I imagined, but never thought I would achieve.
As I begin this journey, I have to give credit to a few very influential people in my life. There are several people who I have found in the last few years that have become my Marigolds. If you are not familiar with this term in an educational setting, I highly recommend that you take a moment and read Find Your Marigold: The Essential Rule for New Teachers by Jennifer Gonzales. It doesn't matter if you have been teaching for 2 minutes or 20 years, we all need these people in our lives.
My first marigold is the Gifted Intervention Specialist in our school, Dr. Kim Given. I can go to her with any crazy idea and instead of shutting me down or giving the obligatory "wow! that's awesome!", she will give me support and encouragement to try my idea out while forcing me to consider all angles and possible roadblocks. She has become more than just a colleague, she is truly a trusted friend and sounding block for all of my trying times, and the greatest cheerleader for innovation in our school. (Also, she probably wouldn't agree that she is the cheerleader types, but as a former cheerleader, I know that encouragement comes in many forms and her particular brand is so inspiring!) As I am working through my own personal philosophical struggles, more to come as this blog progresses, Kim has encouraged me to take the leap and begin blogging in order to organize my thoughts. She is also encouraging me to write a book, on what I have no idea yet, so this is my first step in the writing process.
Another marigold in my circle is our 6th grade Intervention Specialist, Amy Smart. She is such a ray of sunshine in my classroom. She completely understands the importance of building relationships with students and they flock to her like a mama duck, in a good way. Amy loves and owns all kids, and I really mean ALL, particularly the ones that are difficult to appreciate. She has pointed out characteristics of my more challenging students that has completely changed the way I think about and interact with them. If there is a student giving me a hard time, I seek Amy out to gain a new perspective. She is in the trenches with me everyday. This can be quite challenging as I test out new ideas and methods for differentiation and delivery of content. She rolls with the punches everyday with a smile on her face. She is also one of my cheerleaders who recently encouraged me to begin writing. I couldn't do what I do without her.
I feel so blessed. A teacher is lucky to have one person who listens and gives advice, I have three in my building. My third marigold is Melanie Carr. She is a highly experienced and reflective teacher. Four years ago, I was asked to coordinate a pilot program at our school, STEM. In a huge leap of faith by our principal at the time, I was paired with Melanie, a science teacher, to teach a double blocked STEM class and virtually no restraints. In this class, we would have one group of students for math, science, and STEM. During this time, we would both be in the class co-teaching our content, compacting the curriculum where possible and engaging the students in an in-depth exploration of the Engineering Design Process. She accepted this challenge with a resounding YES! and has not stopped since. She is so flexible and open to new ideas and trying out my crazy plans. I have learned so much from being in a classroom with her for two hours a day. There is no greater PD in the world and if you ever have the opportunity to try this out, please do so with an open mind. You will not regret it. Melanie helps me to consider the pros and cons of an idea before putting it into actions. She asks the important questions that I often overlook in my excitement to try something new. What I love most about Melanie is that 30+ years in she is still evolving as a teacher. I have not seen her teach the same lesson the same way twice. Often, experienced teachers are not given the respect they deserve for their years of service and are dismissed as being "old school", but for the few teachers I have known to go the distance, I have found this to be completely untrue. We need to tap into their knowledge and learn as much as we can from these veteran teachers. Melanie is an invaluable resource.
My final marigold on this list is my husband, Jason. He encourages me daily to keep on doing what is best for kids. With two young kids (ages 6 and 4), I would not be able to engage in the extra curricular activities I so love. He rearranges his equally busy schedule to pick up the kids when I have to stay late for my Future City Club, Makerspace after school work sessions, Family STEM Nights, I-Team Meetings, and evening presentations to parents. He has also encouraged me to turn my thoughts into text to share with the world through this blog and begin my next chapter as a doctoral student. As I type, he is sitting next to me on the couch working silently in support of this blog. He actually spent about an hour trying to get me to type the first word. This is very terrifying for me.
It's often scary stepping out of your comfort zone to try something new, especially when you have state testing looming over your head all year, but I can promise you that it will be worth it, the good, the bad, and the ugly. A few years ago, I completely blew up the way I taught math and have created a system that allows for differentiation, self-paced learning, student choice, and student voice in my classroom. It has completely changed the way I think about teaching and learning. My system has allowed me to build relationships with my students and truly allows me to know where each student is on his or her own math journey. I took a risk and it payed off. My students know that when they come in my room I will not accept anything less than their best. We openly discuss the importance of a Growth Mindset and the benefits of making mistakes in math. Just last week, I was lovingly referred to as "Mrs. Yet" by one of my students. It was awesome!
I do hope you stay tuned as I embark on this new adventure. I can't wait to hear your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions. So without further delay, let the learning begin!
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