"a little of bit of summer is what the whole year's all about."
While 12 weeks of sunshine, grilling, beach days and blue skies sure help us New Englanders forget about our six months of winter, as teachers, do we go a bit too far? Are July and August the months we live for? Even worse - do we teach our students to do the same thing? What message does that send to them?
I really like this teacher's post about why she stopped counting down to summer. She explains 5 reasons and the last is the most powerful for me: counting down to a certain day assumes that today cannot be as good as the future.
Believe you me, I've counted down in my day. My wedding, for example. Every trip to Disney World (yes, more than 1, or 5, or 13...). The Paleo diet I did for the 28 days of last February. Sometimes counting down helps me realize that the present order of things is only temporary. It builds anticipation and expectation, which for a trip or other event can heighten the actual experience.
When we really think about counting down with our students to the end of school, I think we can all agree it creates a subtle atmosphere of discontent. As a student, I start to think: If even the teachers can't wait to get out of here, why should I like school? Why should I put effort into my last book report, because in 11 days it won't matter anyway? If I'm the student that has an unhappy (or unsafe) home life, and school is my relief, how does this attitude affect me? Now I feel even more out of place because I'm happy to be here when no one else is, not even the adults.
As a teacher it can be difficult to keep your motivation and energy when the windows are open, birds are singing, and you know you'll be having drinks on the deck in T minus two hours. But we are being paid to do a job and I believe if it's worth doing, it's worth doing well.
Let's be happy about the weather and the activities, but let's embrace what we do with our kids. Class outside? Nature scavenger hunt? Quiz review relay races? Plant a garden? Field trips! Fresh air! Resist the urge to coast through the last few weeks of school. Try something new. Keep looking for exciting ways to present your curriculum. Make your students feel like you want them there. And maybe at home we'll countdown, but let's make those final days count.
Believe you me, I've counted down in my day. My wedding, for example. Every trip to Disney World (yes, more than 1, or 5, or 13...). The Paleo diet I did for the 28 days of last February. Sometimes counting down helps me realize that the present order of things is only temporary. It builds anticipation and expectation, which for a trip or other event can heighten the actual experience.
When we really think about counting down with our students to the end of school, I think we can all agree it creates a subtle atmosphere of discontent. As a student, I start to think: If even the teachers can't wait to get out of here, why should I like school? Why should I put effort into my last book report, because in 11 days it won't matter anyway? If I'm the student that has an unhappy (or unsafe) home life, and school is my relief, how does this attitude affect me? Now I feel even more out of place because I'm happy to be here when no one else is, not even the adults.
As a teacher it can be difficult to keep your motivation and energy when the windows are open, birds are singing, and you know you'll be having drinks on the deck in T minus two hours. But we are being paid to do a job and I believe if it's worth doing, it's worth doing well.
Let's be happy about the weather and the activities, but let's embrace what we do with our kids. Class outside? Nature scavenger hunt? Quiz review relay races? Plant a garden? Field trips! Fresh air! Resist the urge to coast through the last few weeks of school. Try something new. Keep looking for exciting ways to present your curriculum. Make your students feel like you want them there. And maybe at home we'll countdown, but let's make those final days count.
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