Stop Clinging to Your Leaves

​While the weather still feels like summer, this past Monday signified the first day of the fall season. The quote above is a reminder for me of the opportunities that this season brings. It is an opportunity for us to let go....to try new things.....to be willing for the "newness" of the school year to take hold and make way for exciting things for our students.

Unfortunately, it is easy to fall into routines that we are used to.  It's easy to look back at your old lesson plans and say, "yeah, I think I'll do that one on Monday." The hustle and bustle of life gets in the way and that assessment you gave last year "will work" on Friday. Is that what is best for students?

Over the next few weeks take a look at your lesson plans and perhaps release some of the "old" and make way for something new. Challenge yourself with "how can I engage my students with this essential question?" Challenge your students to ask questions that move beyond recall and into application and extension. Is there a lesson this coming week that you can't wait to teach because it is something that you haven't done before? Is there something that you can't wait to grade because you want to see how students were able to demonstrate their mastery in different ways?

​When I look out into my backyard, I see the work that is ahead of me as the leaves begin to cover the ground. The trees are making way for the new. It is our time to do the same. It is our time to ask the question, "Do I have a lesson this week that I would sell tickets for? A lesson where students are curious about what will be next? Where the "newness" of their energy pushes me beyond what I think is possible?" October is on the horizon, a "new" month is starting. Don't cling to your leaves......