Five for Friday

Hi readers and friends! Today I am linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for the Five for Friday linky party! I enjoy seeing what everyone is up to on a daily basis. It's been such a busy week in many ways. But, I think that will be the name of the game for the remainder of this school year. 

On last Friday, I had a performance with my adult classes at DanceFX Athens. I danced in a contemporary number and a pointe piece. My sweet fiance supported me and came to see me dance! I'm so inspired by the amazing dancing that goes on at my studio, and it's a lot of fun to showcase the things we are learning! Click here to learn a little bit more about my journey as an adult learning to dance and how that has affected me as a teacher. 

My little nephew had a birthday in March, but between a family wedding and Easter, his birthday party had to be postponed a few weeks! So, we celebrated this Saturday and we all had a grand time! He decided to sharpen and show off his walking skills for everyone, but refused to eat his cake (he only wanted to feed it to his Daddy). He's just so cute I can hardly stand it!

This is my "Free To A Good Home" pile. It looks like I am retiring, but I'll just be moving. There are lots of changes going on right now in my life, and I have recently accepted a new 2nd grade teaching job in the Atlanta area. So this Monday and Tuesday afternoons, I set a timer for 30  minutes of clean out time after school and I've made quite a dent in my stuff so far. This is going to be an even more bittersweet end of the year time than it usually is. 

See my blog post here about how we have begun our study of life cycles this year! The kids are not only growing their own plants, but are engaging in some inquiry and changing up variables to examine how it will affect a growing plant. 

I'm the featured blogger over at Teaching Blog Addict this week! Check out the great freebies that teachers post there every Friday by clicking on the picture. Check out my blog post about using student bloggers by clicking here.

Teacher Ballerina

My third year of teaching was a tough year. By the time May arrived, I was simply exhausted both professionally and personally. So, one of my teaching buddies, Lisa, suggested I take the summer and become "someone else". She told me to be a runner, a dancer, a reader, a sunbather...anything to refresh and get my mind off of teaching. She told me not to open my laptop and not to do any work until preplanning. Did I think she was crazy? Sure. Did I know she was right? Definitely. Yes, teaching was my calling and an important part of who I was, but I needed a complete break to recharge.

So I signed up for ballet classes. I took some ballet growing up. I could remember feet positions, how to plie, how to point my foot, and that I shouldn't hang upside down on the barre. But that was about it. So, I threw myself into a few hours of beginning ballet work a week and I loved it. I haven't stopped since then. Now, for the last four years, on every Monday and Thursday night, I put on some tights, pin my hair into a bun, and head downtown to my dance studio. 

On Mondays, I often pack some papers to grade during a break in classes!

The truth is, I love being a ballerina, even if it's only for four hours a week. For me, ballet is just the right mental and physical challenge. I can work hard to improve, without the pressure of becoming a professional. I get to be an artist. I even study the art on my own time so that I can learn and be better. It's so exhilarating to be the student rather than the teacher. And for a few blissful hours a week, my usually racing mind is completely consumed by my body: the motions, the steps, and the art. 

Since you've become a teacher, have you been able to be a student? 

Although I know that most teachers do not have the precious hours in their week to become a student of something, I urge you to consider it. It's easier for me because I don't have a husband and children to care for yet, but even in the midst of working a part time job on top of teaching last year, this was one part of my life that I just knew I could not give up. 

So how has being a student in the studio impacted me as a teacher in the classroom?

• I've reminded myself of what it feels like to be a struggling student. I have never been very gifted in athletics, so ballet is something I have to work extremely hard at. It's given me more compassion with kids who feel frustrated that they can't get something "right". 
• I've reminded myself of what it feels like to have triumphs. This reminds me to make sure my students are triumphing in the classroom.
• I've learned more about giving effective feedback and I've learned about how it feels to receive feedback. 
• I am able to share an important part of my story, that has nothing to do with our classroom, with my students. Ballet gives me a starting point for simple relationship building moments. "You tripped and fell and now you feel embarrassed? Would you believe that I fell in ballet class last night? I feel ya, man! You alright?" "I know you don't want to do that again, but it's going to make you stronger and better. My ballet teacher often makes me repeat things over and over until I get it right. And it feels SO GOOD when I do!" (Now, I don't talk about ballet every day, but you can see how easy it is to connect with students through your own student experiences.)

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed reading my post. I'd love to hear if you have a similar experience!