Getting Unstuck: Letter to my Future Self

One thing I have come to realize about life is it just keeps us going our merry way. Right now as I prep for testing in my little classroom and all the other that is the hustle and bustle of life, I was reminded by Ali that I need to stop for myself and just savor the moment. So this is me getting unstuck...

Dear Lynnelle,

Here is it February! 2010 has started off with a big bang! Another big snow storm, Gracie cutting ALL of her hair off. You should be laughing now, but just as a reminder you only smirked in 2010! You were quite disappointed that she wouldn't have pictures made. Hopefully, you decided to put chopped bangs aside and get the pics anyway because it could make for some good blackmail when she's 16. :-)

As you read this in 2011, I remind you this year was the year of PASSION. I am very proud of you for pursuing your National Board Certification and I hope you are spending that extra money you earned when you found out you passed in Nov. 2010. I pray that you were able to transition from your core classroom to the special education classroom. I believe that is where your heart and passion lie. When Emma was born you changed. Changed from a new mommy even. You changed into a whole different kind of momma. A mother of a daughter who lives with in Down syndrome. Now every time you look into the classroom you wish you were the teacher to the child with a disability. I hope you were able to earn the position that would put you into the passionate position of special education at your school.

Another PASSION you pursued was advocacy. Whether it was local or even teaching your students how to be self-advocates I am sure you learned many truths on this journey.

And last, PASSION with your girls. You are crazy about them. They are all you think about. I know often times you question yourself: Are you a good single mom? Are you teaching them what it means to be a good person?--I know you are because each day you live for them. To help them. To give to them.

Remember you are loved and you are one passionate girl!

Lynnelle

One Little Word 2010

As I began to make my choice of one little word to live by for 2010, a few things came to mind. *The love of my children burns in my sould. *My desire to help my students achieve their full potential is my reason for going to work each day. *Searching for my dreams and realizing not all of them have been achieved. One word comes to mind in order to ensure all these things occur. PASSION

P A S S I O N-INTENSELY STIRRING EMTION COMPELLING ENERGETIC ACTION TO THAT WHICH YOU ARE DEVOTED.

Dec. Daily D12

One Little Word...the year 2009 was a year of transition. My major goal for the year was "create." I found myself in 2008 with feelings of not desiring to create things for my family and myself anymore which left me with new feelings: sadness and missing out on that side of my life. So last year I really focused on creating. Creating a collaborative teaching atmosphere in my classroom, creating a new home for my children, creating scrapbooks again for my family. I am happy to say all were accomplished.

Classroom: This year literacy workshop started without a hitch. It seemed my writers had very few hiccups getting started and we have written 3 published pieces this year. I am so proud of my readers and writers. They work hard each day to grow.

Home: Home is where my kids are. Home is a safe quiet place. New furniture, new paint amazingly have made it feel like it's mine again. Love all the colors of my personality coming out through the rooms.

Scrapbooking: One thing to say: Over 50 layouts completed!!

Now to think about what my new word will be for 2010. I am leaning toward simplify, passion, advocate. My life is changing in my heart. I am really trying to think about what I want to "be" when I grow up. I am not the same person, teacher that I was when I started my job. I absolutely love teaching, but each day a little piece of me keeps asking what else is out there and it is leaning toward advocacy. I don't know what the future holds, but only time will tell.

She must have liked them--she made them shiny!

Okay, I don't always laminate their work, but I thought they would want these after they left my classroom in May, but their reaction at seeing the work published and laminated was not what I expected. As my students walked out of the classroom and were able to look at everyone's words one student exclaimed to her friend, "Wow! I guess Ms. Snow really liked our words, she made them shiny!" I giggled and said, "Actually, I think they are wonderful, beautiful and well thought out." They grinned and went on to music. Sometimes it is the little things in life that we appreciate the most.

One Little Word-Class Reaction

It was a great success!!! Not only did my students participate, but several other teachers joined after I sent the idea via email to our site. The responses from my students were amazing, "Thanks Ms. Snow for this project it really made me think about what I want to do for the year." Another student chose to do a phrase-"Be cool; stay cool"-his definition-stay calm in all situations. Oh, I wish you could have seen how proud he was of this statement. This was the first time he has ever shared with the whole class!

Another student chose-"active." His reason was to be an active person in all places of his life.

Wow! I was so amazed and impressed with their ability to think outside of the box. As soon as I have their finished projects laminated I will post a few.

One Little Word

As I have begun my writing journey with my students. I have begun expanding from reading published text to reading other teacher's blogs. I was reading from an excerpt on the Two Writing Teachers blog about "One Little Word." They got the idea from Ali Edwards, but I really began to think about what I could do with this idea on my own and in my own life. As I lay awake thinking last night (it seems all my "great" thinking happens right before bedtime), I couldn't decide on which word to choose. Should I choose inspire? This is such a driving force in my classroom. I want my students to be inspired. What about believe? This year I have really had to take a leap of faith and believe in myself in ways I never thought possible. Or strength? It seems just when I thought I had nothing left there was this resilient oak tree standing within me that helped me make it through. What about create? I had put all of my creativity aside..thinking I had let my family go in the divorce when really it was just looking at things in a different light. So I decided....drumroll..."create."

In 2009, I want to focus on creating. Creating a transformation in my home and finish the transformation of my classroom.

Create-use of imaginative skill; design

I have chosen the word create as my one little word to live by for 2009. I hope that my life will begin to embody this word. That I will use the techniques of thinking outside the box in all aspects of my life: personal and professional.