I am trying this approach as I accept the situation I am in and being grateful for the time to finish my schooling before I try to make things the way I want them to be.
I found the story of the son and his family very interesting in this chapter. My son and I often have this dilemma. Not only does he not speak to me when I am talking but I do not really speak to him. At times I feel he has grown away from me. When he gets frustrated because I do not respond, I often say you did not require a response. You did not ask me a question. What did you want me to respond to? This chapter makes me look into myself and also see that I need to respond even if just a nod of the head. He is at a time in his life when he is angry with everyone and everything. I still don’t understand why boys go through this. I have seen it with my brothers and with both my sons. I really liked this chapter on how to deal with that anger. Accepting that this is the way things are, not saying it is right or wrong, but for the moment just accepting. Then asking you in a calm voice what next.
Chapter 8. Giving Way to Passion: Control says that the only way to avoid disappointment and frustration is to not care at all. No hits, no runs, but most importantly, no errors. What are you doing in your daily life that expresses your passion or the things you are passionate about?
I am very passionate about technology. I want every child to have a real pc or Mac to use their entire time at school. I want them to be able to cruise the Internet in a responsible manner without having to block sites. I am starting slowly with teachers, administrators to teach them that these dreams can come true.
I wish I could make everyone as passionate as what I see in the students of this class. I wish I could feed them my passion for integrating technology in the classroom. As Kierkegaard stated, “what so intoxicating as possibility?”, I believe that passion can be contagious if one believes in it without provocation. There have been many times I have given up on goals in my life, not anymore. I have matured to the BTFI stage. I keep striving, keep going because I am not the smartest, the bravest, or the most energetic. But I am the most persistent.
Chapter 9. Lighting a Spark. It’s not about us. It’s about them. What are you doing to pay-forward from your universe of possibility?
1. Imagine that people are an invitation for enrollment.
2. Stand ready to participate, willing to be moved and inspired.
3. Offer that which lights you up.
4. Have no doubt that others are eager to catch the spark.
Full Sail has lit my spark. They have shown me ways to engage students using technology that I did not even think of before. I have started to try and move and inspire others. Not to the extent that Ben did with the school in Eastlea but taking baby steps in Montana to get the ball rolling. We had our first Summer Institute this summer and got such praises from the attendees, presenters and sponsors that we will have a bigger and better one next summer. It is nice to see a small spark grow to a large fire in a good thing.
Regina,
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry that you are having some trouble communicating with your son. You right, the book does offer some insight into how the communication gap can be narrowed. It too reminds me of my brother, who just turned 27 and still acts angry at the world sometimes. I see this in my female students as well. My 5th grade girls were really awful sometimes and I see it worsen in the 7th graders. What gives?
Nyssa Arcos
I love your statement, "I am not the smartest, the bravest, or the most energetic, but I am going to keep going, keep striving."
ReplyDeleteWhat a profound, positive, self-description. If you adhere to this mantra, you'll surly be positively contagious to others.
I also like that you mention that you'd love to give your students a PC or Mac, have them surf the net responsibly, and that you're working on your staff and admins for support. This can be a daunting task, but with mantra in hand, and a good, solid game plan, you should be successful.
Best of luck.
Regina,
ReplyDeleteYour first paragraph about your struggles with your son was so open and honest. I appreciate your honesty and the fact that you opened yourself up to the world like that. In times like you are having I have to remind myself silently that this too shall pass. I am also glad that this chapter in the book has allowed you to take a look at the way you communicate with your son. I hope this is one step that will help both of you.
In your second section you mention that you want all the kids to be able to use the Internet responsibly without having to block sites. In a perfect world I agree with you that would be fantastic. Unfortunately the world in which we live today is so scary for kids I’m not sure this will ever be possible. Don’t you think it is not just a matter of teaching kids to search and explore responsibly but the fact that there are so many bad people out there to avoid? We can teach our kids the best ways to be safe and search responsibly but there are unfortunately always the people out there that ruin it for everyone. I’m not trying to be pessimistic I just believe that with all the creepy things out there we will always have to have some type of guidelines and protection available to protect the students. In an ideal world you are right though it would be nice to have that type of Internet freedom.
I love that you are “the most persistent!” Keep that spark alive and it will flow out of you and into those around you.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas with us.
Tracy