When I started this site, I thought I would read a book and write my thoughts on it and it would be a piece of cake.  I was wrong on so many levels.  It is hard for me to write when I think about somebody reading my thoughts.  Let’s be honest, who cares what I think in general, let alone my thoughts on a book that somebody else wrote?  I recently saw something that changed my perspective….write for myself.  As I am writing this I know that nobody has even stumbled across this page, so I will remind myself that I am doing this for me…not for anybody else.  Shortly after I created this website my mom passed away unexpectedly.  I was not prepared for losing my mom….how can anybody really prepare for that.  My mom was only 65 and eventhough she wasn’t in the best of health, she was still too young.  I am too young to be without my mom.  I am only 40 so I think about if I live a long and healthy life, I could very well live more of my life without my mom than with her.   That thought alone has been very overwhelming.

When my mom passed I sort of lost focus for a while and stopped reading the “Innovator’s Mindset.”  It wasn’t anything deliberate, it just happened and I didn’t even realize it.  It wasn’t until I attended iPadpalooza in Austin that I was re-invigorated.  It also didn’t hurt that George Couros was there.  So here I am, hopefully able to pick up where I left off.  I need to get going though because I have added some other books to my reading list.  It is summer right now so I have some time, but in just a few short weeks life will get crazy again.

I make no promises, but I am trying to commit to myself that I wll make this blog a focus.  We will see what happens….

What Innovation Is and Isn’t:

From the very beginning of the book George does a fabulous job of capturing what I believe is happening in most schools today.  Schools  are dictated by test scores and have lost focus of develeping the individual child.  Does testing make the lives of our studens better?  When my third graders are 40 years old will anyone care how they performed on their 3rd grade standardized test?  No, but do I believe that these tests can negatively impact future performance…Absolutely!

I am fortunate to have 20 iPads in my classroom for my students to use.  Most teachers on my campus have at least 5-10 iPads in their classrooms.  We all have different ways of using them and I think that is okay.  Are we being innovative because we have the iPads?  No, having iPads doesn’t make us innovative.  It is how the iPads are being used that is innovative.  George defines innovation as “a way of thinking that creates something new and better.”  A lot of teachers are still doing things the “old way” or the way that they were taught when they were in school.  To continue to do things the way that they have been done in the past is a disservice to our students.

I was in my classroom yesterday (working on a Saturday) in order to clean up some of the clutter that has been building up.  I ended up tossing so many worksheets into the recycle bin.  I am one of 3 ELA teachers on my grade level and we all plan together.  So if one of my co-teacher makes worksheets, they make them for the entire grade level.  I believe that yes there is a time and a place for worksheets but I do not like for that to be the bulk of what my studens do in the classroom.  I try to take the content that they would get from the worksheet and turn it into something where they can create.  For example, this year when we were studying procedural text I decided to not have them write the steps for making one of their favorite recipes.  Instead, my students created their own video game and then wrote a “how to” manual for how to play.

After the manuals were published students then tried playing each others games using the manuals.  They were able to provide feedback as to how helpful the manual was and offer suggestions on how to change or improve the manual.  Did that make my lesson better?  Maybe not, but it definitely got my students engaged and they took ownership of their learning.  Just because the lesson worked in my classroom doesn’t mean it is “right” for everyone.  Lessons should be created with the “learner” in mind.  Far too oftenwe are thinking of test scores first and not our students.

I have had the opportunity to hear George Couros speak on two occasions.  Both times left me inspired and wanting to move forward professionally.  I have been a classroom teacher for 11 years and to be perfectly honest, most days I feel frustrated.  How can I be the kind of teacher that I want to be yet put emphasis on a state test that I feel is not developmentally appropriate for the students that I teach?  As a 3rd grade teacher (and I am sure this is true in all grades) I have students with a wide range of needs.  Some students are reading on a 5th grade level and beyond while some are struggling to read on a first grade level.  Somehow how I have to meet everyone on their individual level and make sure that they can pass this test.  Whether it is true or not, testing season is upon us and it feels like all administrators care about is the data and getting as many students to pass as possible.

My intention is not to complain about what I feel to be the shortcomings in the education system but to talk about The Innovator’s Mindset and voice my thoughts and feelings as I read through the book.  If I go off on a rant sometimes, I apologize now!  If you haven’t read the book, I encourage everyone in education to read it.  As soon as I began reading I found myself relating to many of the things George was discussing.

So, here we go…..Chapter 1 reflection coming soon!