Be the Original

Echoes.

I am reading #edchat on Flipboard tonight on my iPad.
Read some Twitter.
Read Google Reader.

Echoes.

Mostly it sounds like echoes.

Who is going to be the original?
The contrarian?


Some people pride themselves for reading everything written in the edublogosphere.

Don't.

Sometimes it is good to unplug and write something different.
Be different.

Cyberbullying. The new Google notebook. Facebook in schools. Twitter.


In the grand scheme of things, if we encouraged every teacher to smile at their students and call them by name as they enter school tomorrow - that would do more to improve education than a campaign to get every teacher on Twitter.

My friend Angela Maiers tells me that her research has shown if a teacher rearranges their k-5th grade bookshelf with the covers facing out into the room that more students will read.

Change.

We need more complete, authentic original people. Be real.

Everything about improving the classroom isn't about technology. Tech is cool. Tech is useful. Tech is not the salvation of the world.

Paper wasn't.

Calculators weren't.

The xerox machine wasn't either.

Few things can beat hard work by a savvy teacher who loves her students.

Don't stress out. Keep the main thing the main thing.

Do your best. Love the kids.

And if you feel like writing about how taking kids outside to read or popping popcorn to eat as you talked about today's novel or that cool new app on your iPad. Write. Share.



Some times it is ok to echo, it happens accidentally sometimes. But if you only retweet, you only repeat. Quote yourself for a change.

Be your beautiful, magical wonderful self.



If you love your students, have a good plan for tomorrow and are heading into the classroom with a good attitude ready to teach - put a bow on your head.

You are a gift. Be noble. Be you.

Teachers, you are a gift to mankind and it is a joy to be among some of the most noble souls to inhabit this planet.

To heck with the few out there who besmirch the name of teachers. The overwhelming majority of you are gold.

Time will tell.
Students will tell.
But right now it is time for you to finish the school year well.

Let's go into the sunset of this school year with our faces to the breeze of a life well lived. :-)