{"id":13189,"date":"2018-09-12T10:53:26","date_gmt":"2018-09-12T14:53:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/?p=13189"},"modified":"2018-09-11T11:57:04","modified_gmt":"2018-09-11T15:57:04","slug":"5-summer-mindsets-to-bring-into-this-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/5-summer-mindsets-to-bring-into-this-year\/","title":{"rendered":"5 summer mindsets to bring into this year"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"#1st5daysIt’s September. Your feet have probably not stopped moving for a few weeks, with the start of school, the meetings, getting to know your students, setting up all the systems and explaining all the procedures, learning about all the new changes in your schools.<\/p>\n

You might feel like your brain has too many tabs open<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Stop for a moment. Summer is not yet a disappearing memory. And while summer can be busy in different ways, with other work, professional development, family travel and childcare, it can also give us shiny jewels of ways of being that can last all year. I’m hoping you had a chance to stop — really stop — and enjoy some time with friends and family. That can be the fuel that helps guide the school year.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Here are 5 summer mindsets to bring into the new school year.<\/h1>\n

1. Playfulness<\/h2>\n

We can be so serious as educators, and that makes sense. We have so many balls in the air and things to do. The work is complex, changing, and emotionally draining.<\/p>\n

But remember a time that you played frisbee, threw a ball this summer? \u00a0Or spent hours in a kayak, on a trail, sitting on a dock, or exploring a new place? What did that feel like? Can you picture doing something just because it was fun?<\/p>\n

We can embrace playfulness with our students and colleagues whenever possible. I have a former colleague who embraced playfulness on most days. She would jump out of recycling bins, make a face across the room, and had a contagious, easy laugh.<\/p>\n

Her class even did spontaneous flash mobs to the neighboring class, sparking a year long flash mob contest. Why?<\/p>\n

Because learning and getting along with people can be hard. A fews minutes of joy and playfulness can promote belonging, relieve stress, and build community.<\/p>\n

What would it take for you and your colleagues or students to surprise your school with a back-to-school flash mob?<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=E19l1c-zisU<\/a><\/p>\n

2. Wonder and curiosity<\/h2>\n

Summer has many wonders — warmer temperatures, diving into cool water, the taste of fresh fruit and garden vegetables, hummingbirds, fireflies, going barefoot. When we can stop, and watch, and notice, we see a lot.<\/p>\n

Take a little moment to wonder: how does that monarch know when it is time to fly to Mexico? How do the hummingbirds’ wings beat so fast?<\/p>\n

What if you got curious about that student who keeps jumping up and out of his seat, or that colleague that often interrupts. What do you notice? Consider, what might that person need? If we pull ourselves into a space of curiosity instead of judgement, frustration, or anger, how might our day improve? How might that interaction, and the moment, change?<\/p>\n

And as for wonder, as busy teachers it is easy to overlook the simple, beautiful and profound<\/p>\n

    \n
  • Did an introverted student participate today for the first time?<\/li>\n
  • Did that student who was struggling to make eye contact with you give you even a fleeting look, or a small smile?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Take a moment, and wonder about it, like you might the hummingbird. Life moves fast, and these moments are fleeting, but they are what we have. They are worth a moment of wonder.<\/p>\n