Shelly Moses: The Mean Evil Step-Teacher
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Teacher Skills Come in Handy Outside of the Classroom

11/11/2013

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     So last week I had the dreaded four hours of first aid and CPR recertification.  I can hear your commiserating groan now!  Not always what you want to spend four hours on when you have lessons to plan, mystery Skype calls to organize, iPads to update...  But here's the kicker... Not two hours later I was putting much of my teacher training to work OUTSIDE of the classroom.
     On the way to meet a fellow teacher for dinner before seeing the theatre production Potted Potter my daughter and I were witnesses, and luckily not victims, to a pretty nasty traffic accident.  While I had her remain in the car I ran to the scene which was a confusion of drivers, witnesses, and bystanders.  After checking that the windshield of the first driver was broken by a gate and not her head I noticed that everyone was in a state of agitated confusion.
     If you're a teacher this is nothing new for you and you know how to handle it.  Which I did.  Let's face it, we both know I was already in teacher mode.  As soon as I started directing people to call 911, keep watch over the drivers and directing them to stay in their cars until paramedics arrived, I could see that everyone was feeling much more calm and secure.  This was the same for victims, bystanders, and witnesses.  Nothing had changed except that I had assumed control of the situation and started giving directions.
     It's truly amazing what a sense of security that can give to people.  Now, this was a traumatic incident for a bunch of adults, and I was bale to make it quite a bit less so rather quickly.  This is why teachers are so important in the lives of students, we give them the sense of order and control that they need on order to be successful in the classroom.  Whether or not they have the same sense of order and control at home, they still need it at school in order to feel safe.  So teachers everywhere, don't limit the use of your teacher skills to just your classroom, there are others out there waiting for you and your super powers.
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You DO Have Time for PD!

11/11/2013

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     For those teachers who say they don't have time for professional development I say "Phooey!"  Since most teachers I know exercise and have smart phones I wonder why more don't combine the two in a more productive manner.  The pictures you see at the side of this post are of where a great deal of my professional development takes place.  Yes!  Outside.  I live in San Diego and we have a lot of open space here, canyons and mountains/hills great for running, hiking, and biking.  And of course there are the beaches and the bay.
     But my point here is that as you are listening to your iPhone while working out (even if you are unfortunate enough to have to do it at the gym) why not slip in a podcast now and again?  Most of my SMART Board training took place while I walked my dog.  How to deploy iPads in the classroom... hiking.  Flipping my classroom... weekly runs.  Now I get it, some of you may be couch potatoes.  But not to worry, you too can cash in.  While you are watching the next episode of Dancing With the Stars, pop open your computer and lurk in a Twitter chat.  You don't even have to tweet, just click on a link or two.  You'd be surprised at what you'll learn.  Last excuse, you play team sports...  Well, you should be running to improve your stamina and the podcast will only make the run go by faster.
     As for me, my mind, body, students, and my dog are all happier when I exercise.  ...and my administration is pretty happy as well!  And to those of you who still have excuses I'll tell you the same thing I tell my students.  "No excuses!  You have a job to do, so go get it done."
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