Respect {A partnership}

I've heard a few teachers say "The children just don't respect me."  They shrug their shoulders and reply that the call on colleagues to do the redirecting because "the children just don't listen."

I'm going to have to stop you right there, my fine teaching friends, and ask you this ...

Do you respect the children?

Children are people.  They have feelings, worries, excitements, etc. that we need to be receptive to and help them understand the world around them and how they fit into it.  The classroom is theirs.  Not yours.  It's a mutual space where children are meant to explore the world and figure out who they are and how they belong in their community.  Your approach to teaching can dramatically change the climate of that community.  We set the tone, we help to create the culture within the community.

I'm ranting today because I discovered a classroom covered in crayon marks.  I watched a teacher change a child's diaper while the child held on to a baby doll and a black crayon and proceeded to scribble all over that baby doll's feet while the teacher asked (and I kid you not), "What color crayon do you have?"

I'm all about a teachable moment.  Wrong moment.  Wrong topic.  Rather than quizzing this child on the color of the crayon she's using to deface the property of the classroom, why not try something more along the lines of "Do we use crayons on toys?  Crayons are for paper!  Let's finish changing this diaper and find you some paper!"

What color do you have?
"Black.  I drew on this doll's feet with black Ms Teacher.  And you let me!"

 I don't care what color crayon you're using to destroy a toy.  I care that you learn how to treat our classroom and the materials within it.  I want you to be successful.

As adults, we don't assume people are going to respect us.  We earn trust, we earn respect.  Why would children respect or trust you when you are not setting limits? And when something does happen, you have to call someone else to help the child?  "I'm going to tell your Dad when he picks you up that you were not listening."  Really?  By the time that child's father walks in the door, you'll be so tired from chasing children that you won't remember to tell him anything and better yet, two minutes after the incident, the child has already forgotten -- but surely remembers that you couldn't handle it.  Those moments simply undermine your authority  (role? I hate the word authority as it is often misconstrued) as a teacher.

As educators, we need to know and be secure in our roles as teachers.  We need to be able to redirect or help children when they are not making the "right choices."  Had the teacher asked "Do we write on on our babies?" I imagine there would have been a different end result.

Keeping Momentum

Let me tell you-- it is not easy in a system where burnout and turnover are high to keep your motivations high and/or focused.  It sometimes seems as though the squeaky wheel will get the oil and the rest, who are kind of getting by independently, will just kind of be left in limbo.

Those of you who know me know that I love a challenge.  I also need to be busy.  Like crazy busy.  It forces time management while pushing negative stagnant thoughts & attitudes right out of my brain.  For example, I planned our wedding while working full time and going to grad school.  And loved it.  Sure, it was kind of a haze at times, but that's because I procrastinated like crazy when it came to deadlines.  I work well under pressure.

Did you just hear the opening beats to Under Pressure?  If we were together, I'd sing it to you.

My point, though very much buried under that rant, is that sometimes I just need someone to recharge my batteries and remind me why I do the work I do!  Most times, I can be that person.  I can usually see that I'm sliding and I have a few quick fixes:

1. Get into the classroom.  When I spend time with the children at our site, my batteries are quickly charged and my fire is fanned.  I usually leave the classrooms feeling inspired and ready to take on the afternoon.  Those tiny humans are the reason I have a job & they deserve the best educare experience possible.  (Isn't that a great word!? I'm smitten.)

2. Find a colleague -- coworker or not.  I have a few people whom I can share my lack of motivation with and others will just see it as I'm lazy or not doing my job.  While those are perfectly acceptable conclusions, they're just that.  I am so thankful for my network of support.  Coffee dates have honestly kept me from quitting and working at a coffee shop on numerous occasions.

I am incredibly fortunate to supervise a small site. I offer 24 Early Head Start slots for children birth to three. I have a great teaching staff who (for the most part) get the children they serve; they understand why their work is important and they strive to be the best.

Child care is a rough business to be in, much less to manage.  No one goes into this career with visions of money or glory; I think, for the most part, people do it to be the change they wish to see.  And if they're doing it for reasons like money, they really need to move along because those are the people who are causing the burnout.

I pour myself into my work; I spent most of my waking hours thinking about work either consciously or subconsciously.  My kids, families, and teachers are always on my mind and I refuse to give them anything less than I would expect from a director.  I wont ask them to do things I wouldn't do myself.  Giving so much of myself occasionally leads to exhaustion and I step back and recharge.

And then I move forward.  No matter what.
(Baby steps count)

Why Slip Slowly?

Why slip slowly into madness when you can simply jump in head first?!

Things can be crazy; both in a good, productive way and in a not-so-great-feeling way.  We have bursts in time when things seem to be convoluted and nonsensical.  We kind of stop what we're doing, look around and (usually in an exaggerated tone) let out a great big "Seriously?!"

Seriously.

This is happening.

What are you going to do about it?

Are you going to do something about it or are you planning on waiting for someone else to solve the problem?  Have you given a voice to the problem?  Or are you letting it interrupt your good work?

We work hard to provide the best experience possible to our children & their families so I try to give a voice to the issue, address it head on and then solve it.

The saying going around our workplace now is that we have a "quality train" and "either you're on it with us or you can get off at the next stop."

I want to continue to do amazing work and that means I hold people to that same standard -- for them.  Start where you are and get better, do more, love more, be the best you can possibly be.  If you aren't willing to learn and grow, I don't really trust you to help our children learn & grow.  Be fabulous and resist the negativity that others try to bring into your life -- professionally & personally.  Haters gonna hate! ;)

seriously?  i am in love with imgfave.com

Motivational Monday: Office Space

image via imgfave.com

Why not me?!

Directors Need Lunch Too

Read:  Why an open door policy routinely kicks me in the butt.

I'm a chatty person; I love to hear about what's going on in the lives of the children, families, and teachers who pass through this building daily.  I ask questions and check in to see how everyone is doing, how that family vacation went, etc. When parents want to talk, I say things like, "I'm here all day, come stop in" and write in the newsletters (both parent and staff) that I'm available to chat.  I like to think that our entire site has a very open-door policy.  Parents and family members are routinely invited into the classrooms to participate in the communities their children are a part of... it's awesome.  I love when a mom or dad lingers in the morning and reads a story to the children.  What an amazing display of home & school connections!

Alas, my struggle is something different... whenever I stop moving long enough to eat, that's the exact moment when staff trickles into the office to ask a litany of questions -- great questions, I might add.  We're a burgeoning community of questioners and reflective thinkers.  I thought the solution to this might be to close my door for a quick moment while I inhale my food.  But it just never fails, someone will knock and I just can't help myself... I always answer.

Does that make me unprofessional?  To be mid-Ramen slurp when a teacher comes to chat about the NAEYC classroom portfolio?  It's nap time!  The teachers are capitalizing on this work time and can I really ignore these questions?  I worked so hard to get them to feel comfortable asking questions -- and to use rest time appropriately....

True, I could leave the site at this point, but I really don't want to be eating off-site daily ($$) and that would take me away from the team that has such wonderful questions.  I can't realistically eat lunch at 10 every day or at 3pm (which I have been known to do and then it's parents knockin' on the door, catching me mid-Ramen slurp)... what suggestions do you have?  How can I balance the needs of my teacher people & my stomachs demand to be fed?

The Sum

My natural instinct is to try to segregate and compartmentalize all the different parts of who I am professionally   I try to figure out where all of those parts belong and yet how they're related and what the heck I'm supposed to do with all of these pieces of myself.

Fun fact:  I am the sum of my parts.

I am an advocate for play.
I am an early childhood warrior.
I am a director of an early childhood center.
I enjoy making fun things for the classrooms.
I am passionate about equal high-quality care & education for all children.
I love silly memes that I find online.

All of those pieces make me who I am as a professional and I have got to stop trying to separate them.  I find myself wanting to keep my professional side separate from my passionate side and now as I'm writing this, reflecting on what that means, I am forced to realize that perhaps my passionate & professional sides need to have a "Come to Jesus" talk.  Why can't we all just get along?  There's a way to share my professional (career) reflections right along with my side projects.

So here it is.  The new ECE Acts of Love approach.  You're gettin' it all.  Pictures of projects at work and side projects and rants, raves, reviews, blah blah blah.

Happy New Year, indeed.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

It's a simple, quick, and honest question that I ask everyone.  Repeatedly.

I ask people during the interview process.
I ask staff during professional development.
I ask co-workers, particularly on a day when I feel like they need a boost.
I ask myself almost daily.
I ask my husband frequently.

It's an important question that we sometimes forget to ask ourselves.  When you were little, people probably asked your cute little 8-year-old self what you wanted to be when you grew up.  In my case, I always said teacher.  Then second grade teacher.  And when I got my first teaching job as a preschool teacher, I said preschool teacher.  Then quickly realized that I wanted something different.  I wanted to make a bigger ripple in the education pool, if you will.  I let myself dream of being an Education Coordinator and when I saw the need for stronger leadership, allowed myself to dream of being a Site Director.  Let's be honest, no kindergartner is ever going to say "When I grow up, I want to be a Site Director of an infant-toddler center."  Well, maybe, if their parent is in a similar position.  But unlikely.

Dreams change.  Goals change.  The field changes.  We change.  

We have to keep reassessing our goals and passion.  The more time I spend working with infants, toddlers, and twos as well as the adults in their lives (parents and teachers alike), the more passion I feel about ensuring that this age group has a strong foundation of support.  I also want to make an impact in the area of teacher preparation.  What I learned in college, though helpful, wasn't really enough to prepare me for the real world of early childhood education.  What I really needed was a course in Head Start, which someday I would LOVE to teach.  I'll tell you what's up.  Anyone who wants to hire me to teach about Head Start, seriously, give me a call.  I will make myself available.

When you set a goal for yourself, be realistic.  Break that big goal of being a lead teacher into smaller steps.  You have a CDA in preschool -- fabulous.  Now what?  Let's work on that associates degree in preschool so you can be in the preschool classroom as an assistant teacher, learning the ropes and systems within that culture.  After a while, maybe you pursue your bachelors degree and perhaps (!!!) a teaching license so that you can be the lead teacher.  Goals take planning and patience.  Don't forget the patience.  Insert "Rome wasn't built in a day" line here.  And be open.  It's possible that along your path to pursuing that bachelors or even your associates, you will change your mind.  Maybe you will have an epiphany and decide that infants are your life's passion and you want to focus on that grouping.  Go for it.

Setting goals will keep you moving and learning.  It's when we stop learning that mold starts to gather and we get stale and bored within our settings.  I truly believe that this is the root of teacher burnout.  Keep going!  Maybe you will be the kindergarten teacher who teaches for 40 years -- but maybe your goal will change.  Maybe you'll have side goals that support your role as a teacher.

Keep moving forward --- no matter what.

Stay thirsty my friends.
Get it?  Hahaha, clever, right?