Agency

As connected educators who wish to make a difference in the lives of our students, we must become guides on the side and facilitators of learning and lean in to model and promote effective classroom learning by:

• Establishing a tone of positivity from the start of the school year
• Designing student-friendly norms and protocols to create a culture of trust in our learning spaces
• Gradually releasing responsibility for learning to our students
• Embracing change that will effectively impact teaching and learning

But we cannot stand alone. 

It takes momentum and support from a community of educators and parents working together to assist students in becoming meaning makers of their own learning. 

It is our calling as educators to empower our learners to take risks, see failure as a steppingstone to success, collaborate openly, explore inquiry paths, and understand that choice leads to amplified voice. 

So what is it that we need to do immediately to transform the landscape of learning? How do we bring about positive change in a world of flux?

What road will you take to be a difference maker this year?

How will you comfortably create a culture of trust to influence students to become agents of their own learning?

As Eric Sheninger says, "Student agency is about empowering kids to own their learning (and school) through greater autonomy. It is driven by choice, voice, and advocacy." 

I have been playing with the septercet form of poetry (a poem consisting of any number of three-line stanzas, each with seven syllables) that Michelle H. Barnes encouraged writers to post at Today's Little Ditty Challenge last month. I decided to compose my thoughts on agency using the septercet form. Margaret Simon asked the #DigiLitSunday blogging community to write on this topic two weeks ago. You can access others thoughts here.

Slice of Life (#sol16) is featured at Two Writing Teachers each Tuesday. Since I am finishing the design of my Summerscapes Gallery, I will offer this piece as my thought for the week.

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Teachers skillfully hone craft

empowering students on,

closer toward independence.

Children journey with teachers

on inquiry paths of choice

as agents of their learning.

So stamina is needed 

by learners who seek knowledge

to become meaning makers.

Charge for difference makers:

Create a culture of trust.

Positivity spreads fast.

Charge for owners of learning:

Step beyond your comfort zone

take risks and own your learning.

©CV, 2016

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Slicing from #ILA16

This summer, Boston hosted #ILA16. I eagerly traveled with my husband and son to the first "big" city I lived near during my early years of college. I looked forward to walking the cobble-stoned streets and seeing the beautiful old structures once again. 

In between being inspired by literary luminaries, meeting authors, presenting at #EdCampLiteracy and #ILA16, and having "aha" moments with Twitter pals, I found time to meet-up with slicer friends from the Two Writing Teachers' Writing Community. 

Opening Ceremony

Meet-up with Catherine Flynn, slicer, and Georgia Heard, poet

A wonderful face-to-face meet-up with Lynne Dorfman, slicer and author

Author moment with Stacey Shubitz, Chief of Operations and Lead Writer for Two Writing Teachers

As, Aileen Hower, slicer, and I walked the beautiful streets of Beacon Hill an unexpected happening occurred. Just as we were speaking of authors who could present at our literacy associations along came Paul Griffin, author and fellow New Yorker. This was a serendipitous happening that clearly made us all smile. 

Then, Aileen and I continued walking to greet the other slicers who were meeting for breakfast in an independent book store restaurant. This was a wonderful start to another great day at the International Literacy Conference where I mixed professional learning with fun and enjoyment.

Slicers enjoy time together.

Please visit the Two Writing Teachers here where the slicers above and many more 

share their slices of life at #SOL16.

Rocking to a Positive Beat

Last night as the 8:00 hour for #NYEDChat neared, a huge band of positivity champions rallied for a well-advertised Twitter chat. Voices were predicted to rise as high in the skies as the New York City skyscrapers. All were primed and ready to let positivity prevail, dissipating any notion that negativity exists in the world (if only for one hour) and so the dream unfolded. What transpired was a feat of unparallelled magnitude in #NYEDChat history. 

Nineteen positivity champions were scheduled to join the #NYEDChat conversation. Within a week's time, our usual moderating team (Bill Brennan, Victoria Day, Blanca Duarte, Dan McCabe, Lisa Meade, Starr Sackstein, Dennis Schug, Tony Sinanis, and me) plus a special band of #EduFriends (Bobby Dodd, Sean Gaillard, Reed Gillespie, Phil Griffin, Neil Gupta, Jon Harper, Jennifer Hogan, Eoin Lenihan, Craig Vroom, Jennifer Williams) prepared a celebratory event that was sure to rock the Twittersphere. With the true spirit of connected colleagues, the positivity team engaged in backchannel conversations and twitter messages leading up to last night's chat. #vachat and #OHedchat friends were called in and tweets sent across the world to our German colleague. We were ready.

From the first gif, NYEDChat flowed with positivity and a new sense of camaraderie was established. Positive thoughts were shot out in rapid succession by tweeters from across the states. Both newbie and veteran connected educators and friends chimed in. As the sounds of positivity were shouted loud and clear across the Twittersphere, the news of #NYEDChat trending on Twitter was a front page headline for us. 

Like the NYC skyscrapers only 30 miles away, connected colleagues' voices rose high in a collective chorus of positivity while posters and high fives were shared. Many interesting statements, such as those below, flowed from the topic, Positive People Do More. 

•  casehighprinc So thrilled to be a part of this evening!! Rock-star-a-palooza!!! 
•  MrsVandeborne positivity looks like engaged excitement, deeper learning, & real/visible progress, collaborative efforts & LOTS of high fives!
•  ERobbPrincipal #NYEDchat Wow a real convergence of Ed Leaders-- Great to be here!!!
•  MentorTextCentr Positivity is definitely a good-feeling energy making the workplace filled with a 'positive flow' of ideas/ collaboration.
•  iChrisLehman positivity often starts by watching and listening to kids at work. They do wonders to raise our spirits.
•  karenvaites Positivity is often a matter of mind over matter!
•  smgaillard #NowPlaying What A Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong #NYEdchat #CelebrateMonday ♫https://t.co/mzNiM5hW5C
•  rggillespie As educators, we've been entrusted by parents with most precious possession, their children. How can we not be positive?
•  danieldmccabe Positive people do more because they don't waste their energy complaining, making excuses or pointing fingers. Own it.

Sampling of Positivity Posters:

@mgrosstaylor

MRHS_Principal

OrganicLeaderVB 

ShannonMStark

Sample Call To Action Statements:

• Jennifer Hogan: Call to action: I'm COMPELLED to be a positive force & advocate for educators! Who's with me?!!!
• Greg Richards I'll continue to show #positivity because I'm richly blessed to do the work daily-inspired by & inspiring young people daily. 
• Melanie Meehan I will substitute "get to" for "have to" every chance I get! Such a different spin! 
• The Teaching Factor 
  I will always be positive, share the love, & hang up posters/images from 2 night's chat around my classroom 2 promote positivity.
• Danny Steele 
  "Awesomeness" is not accidental. We will be awesome on purpose!!!

Positivity poems can be read here.

You can review the amazing conversation captured by Participate Learning here.

Debby Call

As a band of positivity champs, participants and the team of nineteen joined together to see new possibilities as we celebrated positivity. 

@lauriemeston 

To round off the amazing experience of being in the company of positivity champions, I found this tweet from Jasper Fox Sr. in my notifications today: "Feeling super positive this AM after the great chat last night on that topic on #NYEDChat." I have to agree with Jasper. Rocking to a positive beat is a high-energy type of feeling. As part of my call to action statement, I spread positivity today and will continue because there is joy in being a positive connected educator. 

Two Writing Teachers
#sol16

The Force Within

As I sit to compose a post for Day 16 of Laura Shovan's Found Object Poem Project, I recall a steamy hot day in St. Louis last summer. It was one of those days when the heat envelops one's entire being. While dragging a heavy luggage from the Metro to the hotel prior to the ILA 15 Conference, I came upon an amazing piece of street art, a sculpture of great magnitude. The sleek, steel edifice was perfectly poised just sitting there for all to gap at. It reflected the light and spoke of power. To me it was a force upon the street. 

When Laura called for unusual objects, I sent her the photo of the sculpture along with others. I did not know which photo she would choose for her project so I was pleasantly surprised when she announced the objects of the week. Although I know what this one is, I am stumped at how to begin a poem for Laura's Day 16 #foundobjectpoem. 

Image for Laura Shovan's
Day 16 #foundobjectpoem

My initial thought was "May the force be with you!" Coupling that statement with the questions that were offered tonight on the NYEDChat Twitter conversation made me turn my thoughts to the force that all educators would like to have shine from each student.

This poem evolved as words were spinning in my head. While it is more of an inspirational statement than a poem, it is my starting point-a statement of power that I would like each child to claim and each teacher to foster. 

You can access information about Laura Shovan's Found Object Poem Project here. 

I am also offering this post to Two Writing Teachers for Tuesdays' Slice of Life.