The Right Device

I often hear people talking about picking the perfect device and I have come to realize that this device does not exist. I use multiple devices: Mac Book,  Dell desktop, iPad and an Android phone. Each device has a purpose and it's own set of positives and negatives.

In my opinion we need to teach our students to use multiple devices because we never know which one they may use in the future. Plus each device allows students to create or use it in different ways. If we give our students a solid foundation they will be able to transition these skills to other areas.

What devices do you use and what are the positives/negatives you see?

Thank you for reading.

A Year Of Blogging

Today is the official end of my year of blogging challenge. I was not able to keep up with a blog a day so I am going to keep writing until I catch up. I may not have been successful with this challenge but I still learned a lot.

I learned that it is vital to be intentional in order to achieve what I set out to do.  Without being intentional, days will slip by without accomplishing my daily goal of blogging.  Blogging has helped me reflect and process situations.

Blogging helps me be more positive and to think about challenges in logical way.

Why do you blog?

Thank you for reading.

What Do You Need?

I am a strong believer that we all need certain things (aside from food, water and air). These needs do not need to be met by every person, but we need them from someone.

In my opinion these needs are...

To be accepted
To be cared for
To be understood
To be respected
To be loved
To be thought of
To be supported
To be helped

What do you need?

Thank you for reading.

How Was Your Day?

How was your day?

I realized my requirements for a good or bad day were pretty simple. A good day was one that went me way, my students listened to me and things went well. A bad day was one where students didn't listen the first time or things did not go my way.

Why are challenges bad?  I just started reading "Mindset" and it is eye opening.

Thank you for reading.

Day 363: Smile

Daily Blog Challenge Day 363/365

My daughter just turned two months old and she recently learned how to smile. Smiles are great in general, but there is somehing special about a baby smile. It is almost impossible to not smile back.

We all have the capabilities to smile and even though we may not be as cute as babies, our smiles still hold power.

A smile can make someone's day brighter. Smiles share happiness and they spread positivity.

Life is challenging at times and we all go thru rough moments, but we can each be a positive light for those around us.

Smile, it will make the day easier.

Thank you for reading.

Day 362: Why?

Daily Blog Challenge Day 362/365

Why are you upset?

Seems like a simple question, but often times it is more complicated than a simple explanation. 

I am in the midst of my first full with of maternity leave. I love the extra time with my daughter, but this whole stay at home mom thing is an adjustment. I have found myself more irritated with my husband and jealous of him (he gets to go to bed when he wants, gets to sleep thru the night and does not have to worry about our daughter). Now I am not saying this to complain about my husband or to say he is a bad father. I use this story to illustrate my point.

I have found myself irritated with my husband and feeling like I have to take care of everything. On the surface it seems that I am upset because he didn't put his clothes away or do the dishes, but after spending time thinking about the situation I realized the main problem is that I feel unappreciated. I hope this does not make me sound like a little kid, but I am being honest.

This situation reminded me that our behavior and feelings do not always clearly identify what is truly wrong. A student may act out in class because of many reasons that have little to do with their actual behavior. It may seem like one things, but it could be for another reason all together.

The only way we can truly understand why a student (or person) acted the way they did is to talk to them. I am trying to use the Love and Logic philosophy in my classroom and the main thing I like about it is that it allows students to create their own solutions. Students need to realize their are many options but that each has its own consequence.

We need to help students realize there are many ways to deal with a situation.  Childhood is a perfect time to practice different solutions and to learn how they react to different situations.  Childhood enables children to practice making choices while the overall consequences are fairly cheap.

It is not always what it seems.

Thank you for reading.

Day 361: Hope

Daily Blog Challenge Day 361/365

I believe one of the greatest gifts my parents gave me was the gift of hope.

I was taught from an early age that I could be whatever I wanted to be, but that my choices would impact my life and I would have to work hard. I had hope that even on a bad day, the next day could be better.

There are many people in our world that live without hope. Life seems like too much of an uphill battle and there seems to be no hope that it will ever get better.

This makes me extremely sad. Without hope why should I get up in the morning? Why should I try my best?  Why should I work hard?

We all could use an extra dose of hope every now and again. How do you help your students/friends/family feel hopeful for the future? 

Thank you for reading. My prayer for you and all people is that you will feel hopeful today and always.