I remember...

Post Holiday Fog...have to find the passage back to the place I was before....

How do I get back in the flow after a nice, long winter nap?  Between snow days and the winter holiday, I got quite relaxed. I cleaned, organized, entertained, shopped, wrapped, celebrated, put back and then realized I felt like an etch a sketch that had been erased.  I spent New Years Day pondering...how do I start a new year?  What do I do?  Oh yeah, I remember.....

I start the beginning of every day on the floor with my third graders in our morning meeting.  I try to tap into what is going on with them as a group, where I want and need to lead them academically and how I can nurture their spirits while integrating necessary skills and testing requirements.  This is my "BIG WEAVE" time every day.  Most of the time it is really good and sometimes I hit it out of the park...the flow.  How do I know when I get to flow?  I know when I feel it in my gut, when I see it on their faces and when I witness it in their words and actions.  I know when I see it transfer to their learning, the way they treat each other and how they respond to me.

 I thought about what do my students need to know on this first day back?  How do I engage them?  How do I get them back into the flow (and myself) for that matter.  I know self talk is a powerful tool.  It is one of the tools in our people "toolbox"  (more on that later...)  That is when the phrase, "I remember..." came to me.

*I remember I need to have good systems in place in order to meet all my expectations and job requirements.
*I remember I need to be kind to myself and others.
*I remember things get crazy when I get too self critical or allow the outside hum to take over my inner vibe.
*I remember the flow...and I aspire to make it my home as much as I can.
* I remember I have amazing people in my life, a job I love and much to be grateful for.
* I remember I am positively powerful when I am in my flow and I must trust it.

This led me into the next flow of  thinking about how to get my kids to their "flow" from whatever happened over the holidays, back to a place where they can be present, be productive and be empowered.  We started the day with chatter...".talk to your partner about something fun you did, a favorite memory over the break, something you will miss about being on vacation."  I showed them a couple apps I used to record my memories.  I shared my thoughts about my goals for the new year and how a new year marks a new beginning for many people.  We explored the idea of resolutions or themes and the future using some video clips from Wonderopolis.

Then I launched into the "action steps" but I didn't call them that...I simply said...."I remember a game I used to play about remembering stuff..who wants to play?"  We moved to the carpet where I explained the rules to the classic dinner party game where you put things on the tray and see who can remember the most.  Even my reluctant writers wrote and concentrated and tried.  We tallied our points of who remembered the most and shared our strategies for remembering.   And they wrote and discussed...and brainstormed...and empowered themselves with all the things we need to remember about school and coming back and why we are here and how we are with each other.  And it was flow and it was beautiful...and all day long we "remembered" our procedures and the phrase carried us through the next two days even as our high school senior volunteers came and shared their goals, dreams, schedules, procedures...we remembered and set the ground work for remembering how we work at school.

Now, we will see if we remember how to get back to a full week of routines tomorrow...."I remember how to scaffold myself for a full week of school, meetings, lessons, paperwork and fun."  Yes, I do....time to work on those systems for success now....food packing, paper grading, outfit picking, family meeting....Lets do this thing!