Melodies without Lyrics

Update for Feb 29-Mar 4

Ideas are like melodies looking for lyrics.  

When we have ideas, we have a clear picture of it in our mind, even if it's just for the flash of a moment.  Trying to explain your idea to someone for the first time often leads the person with the idea to frustration and leads the person who is listening to the idea to confusion.  The melody is there, but no one knows what the song is about.

Paul McCartney has talked about getting the melody to "Yesterday".  He had a piano is his bedroom and one morning, he woke up with the melody in his head and started plugging away at the piano.  He knew he was onto something, but he had no lyrics.

Instead of singing "Yesterday", he just sang "Scrambled eggs, oh my baby how I love your legs..." since he hadn't landed on the lyrics yet.  However, McCartney shaped his idea and eventually found the lyrics to go with the melody.  Fast forward to today and "Yesterday" holds the Guinness World Record for being the most covered song at over 3,000 cover versions.

This story makes me think about how challenging it can be to develop an idea.  Many times we say no to ourselves before we share with others, but that's a whole other topic.  

Most times, we aren't committed enough to our idea and the first "No" becomes the end of the road.  We toss the idea aside instead of reworking it until we are able to help others see the same thing we do in our mind's eye.

Flushing out an idea is challenging, but the challenge is what it's really all about - The process.  That's where we do the most growth; where we have the fondest memories when we look back.  

Ideas are beautiful opportunities to discover what life is really about -- It's up to us to commit to the good ones.

Have a GREAT week!

-Herb


Articles Worth Reading

Instead http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2016/02/instead.html

The New Dream Jobs http://nyti.ms/1TAKneD

How to Teach the Standards Without Becoming Standardized http://ww2.kqed.org/mindshift/2014/03/12/how-to-teach-the-standards-without-becoming-standardized/

8 Requisites of A Great Teacher http://bit.ly/1WR0dRM

Upcoming Dates

Mar 1 -- BIT Meeting, 8am at DCR

Mar 1 -- Connection Time w/ Herb -- Schedule is wide open! Stop by for a chat!  

Mar 1 -- Steering Committee Meeting, 3:45 at DCR

Mar 2 -- ADE Staff Meeting: Terri to give us the essentials before next week's concert.

Mar 7 -- ADE PTO Meeting, 7pm

Mar 7-11 -- OLSAT (Gifted), Grades 1 to 5 by recommendation
Mar 9 -- Special Ed Team Meeting, 12pm

Mar 9 -- Spring Concert, 7pm, Bradley HS

Mar 10 -- PD Series w/ Dr. Donna: "Discovery Approach", 3:45 at DCR

Mar 15 -- Professional Development Day -- No SCHOOL (Students)

Mar 18 -- Elementary Student Transfer Request Forms Due

Mar 18-24 -- Spring Break -- NO SCHOOL

Mar 25 -- Holiday -- NO SCHOOL

Being Comfortable with "Stuck"

Update for Oct 5-9

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Doh.jpg

When I started writing this update, I was stuck.  I didn't know what to write or what the focus would be this week.  I thought about the topics I had written about already - culture, learning, shared vision - but was still stuck.

So I just went with it.

We go through each day at school as prepared as possible and ready to make decisions on the fly.  A website called busyteacher.org claims teachers make 1,500 decisions each day.  I think that's a low estimate -- 27 to 30 students, a litany standards, and schedules all demand fast decision-making. Thankfully, it's a skill that is strong with most teachers.

But there are times when we are just stuck. 

We don't know what to do yet and we have that uncomfortable feeling of ineptitude.

That feeling of not being able to do something is just part of being stuck - It comes with the process of learning.

The good thing about being stuck is that we get the opportunity to grow and get stronger through the process of getting unstuck. 

Figuring out how to proceed often leads to collaboration, reflection, investigation and seeking clarity. Those are pretty remarkable outcomes from not knowing what to do next.

So the next time I am stuck, I am going to remember that it's part of learning.  We don't have all the answers (I doubt we ever will).  But accepting that getting "stuck" is part of learning will help us be more comfortable when we don't know what to do next.

Have a great week!

-Herb


Articles that pushed my thinking --

Leadership is a Choice http://esheninger.blogspot.com/2015/09/leadership-is-choice.html?spref=tw

Three Things We Need To Remember When We All Hit "The Dark Side" http://www.inc.com/betty-liu/three-things-to-remember-when-we-all-hit-the-dark-side-.html

Learner-Centered Vision Will Frame Next Generation Learning http://gettingsmart.com/2015/09/learner-centered-vision-will-frame-next-generation-learning/

Innovation... Just like your mama used to make: http://eepurl.com/bAfcR1


Video that made me chuckle --

http://abc7news.com/society/baseball-announcers-poke-fun-at-group-of-sorority-girls-taking-selfies/1013853/

Upcoming Dates

Oct 5-9 -- Fall Conference Week, Conference Night is Oct 7.

Oct 5 -- PTO General Meeting, 7pm

Oct 6 -- Building Improvement Team meeting, 8am; I-Time Begins!

Oct 9 -- Fire Prevention assemblies (See email); Interims due if no P/T Conference

Oct 10 -- Community Cardboard Challenge, Heritage Middle School, 9-12pm

Oct 14 -- IAT Team meeting, 3:30

Oct 16 -- COI Day, No School for Students

Oct 23 -- Staff Meeting w/ Dr. John

Oct 26 -- Yearbook Cover Contest begins / State of the Schools @ Bradley H.S.

Oct 28 -- IAT Team meeting, 3:30

Nov 2 -- PTO Meeting, 7pm

Nov 3 -- Hilliard U Day, No School for Students

Nov 5 -- Steering Committee Meeting in PM at CO

Nov 6 -- Board Building Tour, AM before school

Not knowing

Update for May 4-8

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tomsaint/2987926396

I struggled to get something down for this week's update.  I drafted and rejected a handful of thoughts and then the right thought surfaced when I was in the checkout line at the grocery:  There is freedom in not knowing.

Not knowing the answer means you get to find a way to the answer.

Not knowing what's next means you get to keep your mind open to the possibilities.

Not knowing how means you get to learn something new.

Not knowing why means you get to discover the reason.

As professionals who are in the knowledge business, I think that sometimes we put too much pressure on ourselves to "know".  Shouldn't we be more focused on the process and the methods of learning rather than what the answer is?  If we shift our thinking to discovery, open mindedness, and being comfortable with not knowing, we may find ourselves doing more learning.

Have a GREAT week!

--Herb


Articles worth reading

"Your Classroom Environment Checklist for Student Engagement"

"Leading Innovative Change Series: Embrace an Open Culture"

"The ‘most powerful’ classroom innovation"

"The Joy in “Break it, Fix it” Schools

"40 Quotes that Will Quiet Your Mind"

"Standing Desks Keep Kids Better Tuned In"

Something to make you smile

Upcoming Dates