Everyone Has Their Challenges (Your Kids Are Not alone) International Stuttering Awareness Day (October 22)

My Article from The 2012 International Stuttering Awareness Day Conference (October 22)

Dedicated to all my students past and present - That my story should be inspiration to you that there is no challenge to great to keep you from realizing your goals and dreams.

Breaking the Chains of Silence

by Michael Lefko
from North Carolina, USA

Breaking the Chains of Silence I have aspired to many things in my life, one to be a writer, and another to be a songwriter. I write about things of which I am passionate. To date I have written a pretty good song entitled "Breaking the Chains of Silence", expressing the pain that only one who stutters would know. I have yet to write the book but certainly haven't crossed it off my list, at least until I actually do it. This short autobiography will have to suffice for now.
Living as a person who stutters hasn't really squelched any of my hopes and dreams though at times it has made attaining them a bit more challenging. As a kid, my elementary school years consisted of being teased about my stuttering, getting frustrated, punching the offending party in the stomach and earning a chair with my name on it in the principal's office. I was eventually able to find a more suitable space among a group of friends who accepted me for who I was, stutter or not. From 5th grade on, I had friends.

Throughout junior high and high school, I had friends, girlfriends, was involved in sports, music and theatre. I was ok with my stuttering, because then people who cared about me were ok with it.

When it came time to think about college, there wasn't much question that I wanted to pursue teaching, not because I loved school, or had an special fondness for academia, my reason was much more cliche', I loved working with kids. Additionally, I had a few special teachers who inspired me to do for others as they had done for me. I was met with a degree of skepticism from my grandfather. For a Jew, he certainly used Jesus's name an awful lot.

"Jesus Christ, Michael, be sensible! How do you expect to teach when you can't even talk?" Use of anyone's Lord's name in vain aside, you must know my grandfather said what he said out of love. This was his sensitive side coming through. I realize now, that he was trying to spare me from what he perceived would be a lifetime of pain and frustration. "Why don't you get a nice desk job, something in computers perhaps, that doesn't rely so much on verbal communication?"

Despite my grandfather's career counseling, I pursued a degree in special education and taught successfully for 12 years in the first phase of my career. Did I stutter? You bet I did, and there were times during those 12 years that were so painful, I believe only someone who stutters could understand. I did pretty well talking to and teaching the kids. Talking to my colleagues, supervisors, and student's parents was another story altogether. There were moments that seemed like hours facilitating parent- teacher conferences where I struggled to get every word out. During this phase of my life, starting at around year 3 of my teaching career, I lived what I referred to as a self- fulfilling prophecy. I thought I would fail therefore I did . . . just about every time. So I would be pushing the words out, substituting all over the place, rushing to get my thoughts out before the next block, sweating profusely, sensing others extreme discomfort, wishing the nightmare would end or that I could just run out of the room and not come back. You can't run away from your life when you are a grown up. I certainly didn't feel like a grown up. I was 23.

During those years, I feared the phone. I feared answering the phone. I feared ordering a pizza, and I feared the drive-through. I feared meeting new people who would ask me my name, or God forbid ask me what I did for a living. During these years, I was often paralyzed by fear and anxiety about failing. It was so much easier not to even try. Fortunately, I had a loving wife, who in retrospect, may have enabled me, but helped me to survive what were some of the toughest years in the history of my speech. Things I aspired to during these years that I achieved: Becoming a husband, and a father of two beautiful girls, and maintaining a career requiring quite a bit of verbal communication, in spite of my stuttering.

Around the mid to late 90's, after a short stint at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro speech clinic, I aspired to become a speech-language pathologist. During my time working at that clinic with the clinicians, and participating in a few studies, we touched upon the subject of my returning to graduate school to become a speech therapist. One of the therapists commented to me that she didn't know how parents would respond to a therapist who stuttered working with their children. Though that didn't completely crush my dreams of working in a field I was passionate about, the rejection letter from the university did. Apparently my GRE scores weren't high enough. One aspiration postponed perhaps if not crushed. I rule nothing out.

I was referred to a therapist in Durham, North Carolina who was convinced that I had been looking at my stuttering all wrong. His approach, his theory was that traditional speech therapy focused too much on the avoidance of stuttering, rather than learning how to speak well. His contention was that because of my stuttering, I had never learned how to speak properly. Stuttering rather severely at the time, I was hard-pressed to argue with that point. Through relaxation and hypnosis, combined with what he coined "performance speaking" and using natural gestures to "drive" my speech mechanism, I was able to achieve fluency and some measure of comfort and success. The problem was, like all the other therapies I had experienced in my life, there was little successful transfer outside of the therapy session.
Still battling with stuttering both personally, and professionally, I continued to pursue new challenges career-wise and was successful in my endeavors, in the face of my stuttering. My career moves and decisions soon let me to the pursuit of a graduate degree in school leadership as a North Carolina Principal Fellow. School leadership, or leadership of any kind was never anything I had remotely considered previously. For years, my grandmother would say to me in her New York accent,

"Michael deeya. It's wondaful that you want to teach, but if you're going to make any money in education, you've got to pursue administration."

For years, I had no interest. For one, I didn't see the power of what a great and effective leader could do, having worked with so few great and effective leaders. Second, I simply had no desire to lead. To pursue leadership as a person who stuttered was putting yourself out there for the whole world to see. It was not first on my list of aspirations. My career eventually evolved to the point where I did become a school leader, a support and advocate for teachers, in their endeavors to reach and teach children.

Fast forward about 9 years. I completed my Master's degree, and had worked as a successful school leader for about 5 years. Even though I've had some twists and turns in my career path, I'd never lost sight of my goals and what I wanted to accomplish, and not once did my stuttering get in the way of my career aspirations.

By the summer of 2011, my career was going great, and my life was pretty good, but my speech was in the toilet. The stresses of everyday life, combined with a long-standing diagnosis of generalized anxiety, which I believe is directly correlated with my stuttering had left me again speechless. There were moments that summer that I struggled to get a word out. I knew it was time for a speech tune-up.

I did my research. Having tried a very early version of the SpeechEasy years ago, that was the first thing I turned to. Delayed Auditory Feedback had been around in the speech pathology circles since the beginnings of those circles. I figured perhaps they had perfected it, and it was what I was looking for. I never got to that point. Once I got over the sticker shock of the cost of the device, and the fact that most insurances won't even look at it, I did some research, that was less than inspiring. I decided the Speecheasy wasn't for me, though it was the closest thing to a "magic pill" that I had ever seen, if it worked long term.

So I started searching on the internet. Working in the mountains of North Carolina, I found the name of a professor and therapist at one of the local universities. Aside from his credentials, this guy was a stutterer himself, something I had never experienced in a speech therapist. What most impressed me about this therapist initially, the perception that we shared a life's experience, while significant, in the end, was one of the least important things about working with him.

I would be leaving this tale as a cliff-hanger if I didn't at least try to describe to you some of the things that have worked for me in my work with this speech pathologist. We are trying to identify, together, what specifically it is about his therapy that has made it so effective, both in the therapy session and outside in the real world, when others have failed to do so.
This therapist wasn't interested in what type of insurance I had, and he wasn't anxious to sign me up to work with one or more of his graduate students. This therapist and professor was legitimately interested in me, getting to know me, and learning what he could do for me.
He asked me what my goals were, and what my definition of success was as a person who stuttered. He made no assumptions that he understood what it was I hoped to accomplish in therapy. Nor did he try to push any ideas or methodologies on me. Though we didn't know each other, I felt as though I was sitting down with an old friend, as opposed to being sized up or evaluated.

He told me that if I decided to work with him, that it would be hard work, and that I would have to be committed to doing what it takes to speak well, but that I already had a lot of the right stuff. He saw that in me. He told me to do some research, and read up on him, and decide if he was the right guy for me. He said, "Don't take my word on anything."

As we began working together, I felt more and more that this man was interested not in simply "treating" me, but invested in knowing me, and I him. As we conversed, he would suggest that I try speaking a certain way, and introduced me to what he referred to as "controls". He would help me to develop imagery or metaphors to visualize fluent speech, but it was never simply about fixing the stuttering. He was dedicated to knowing me. The therapy and conversation was so integrated into our evolving relationship that it didn't really feel like therapy at all. The best part about it was I didn't feel as though I was "on the clock". I never felt that at the end of my session I was shoved out of the door of a contrived atmosphere of fluency and success, only to be left on my own back in the real world. Because we were forming a relationship, I felt that my therapist was with me all the way.

In my life, I have aspired to, and aspire to be and accomplish many things, but none comes close to the desire I have, working with this therapist, to one day be a person who "once stuttered". I feel I have never been more close to that goal than I am today.

It was not merely in a day that I went from acceptance of stuttering, to a determination that while it has been a part of me, it doesn't have to be a part of my everyday existence anymore. It was actually about 6 or 7 months, plus or minus the 42 years prior to meeting this therapist that prepared me for this experience.

We're still working together to both improve my speaking, and collectively figure out what it is about his therapy that has not only worked, but has allowed me to transfer my "in therapy" successes to the real world. Finally, I am in control of my speech rather than it controlling me. Freedom, liberation and empowerment are just a few words that come to mind.

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You can post Questions/comments about the above paper to the author before October 22, 2012.

What To Expect When You're Expecting (Results) From The Academy at SOAR and Your Child: Expecations Part II

Inspiration is... where you find it...

Learning How to Learn: I learned consciously, anyway late in life, that learning is an ongoing process. It is infinite, with no set starting point, and no fixed ending point. Learning is growth. Learning is life. Most of us, in fact, need to learn how to learn, in order that our journey is a successful one.

"That's all well and good, Mike," you might say, " but my child came to SOAR because we were in crisis of sorts. We really don't have any time to waste. As a matter of fact, as entertaining as you are Mike, I really don't have time to be reading this, and... and... don't you have some preparations to make for my child?"

We are a world that feeds on results. In schools we feed on grades, and evaluations, and progress shown. Outside of school, as Americans, as humans we have become accustomed to instant gratification, and getting what we want ( or what we think we want it), when we want it, or sooner.

When you are away from your kids for an extended period of time, you need to know now, and rightfully so, how your child is doing, and what progress your child is making. You want news, and you want it now. You want it to be great news. Hey, I am a parent too, as are the other teachers. We want the best for our kids as well, and nothing less will do.

"But Mike," you say, " We're paying bucks to send our child to SOAR. The results should be different than the traditional school that didn't 'cut the mustard' for my kid."

Sometimes I sit back at the end of a long day where I and the other teachers have finished pouring our heart and souls into your kids, and I want to say, to anyone who would question or criticize our process or results,  "Whaddya want from me?" though I know the answer.

So I felt it was time I laid it on the line, and was frank with you. But you can still call me Mike. :)

We're good but we ain't miracle workers... or are we? (I've actually seen Gene and Aaron perform some magic in the classroom with your kids. )  So, I guess it just depends on your definition of a miracle, and your definition of learning for that matter.

What You Can Expect When You're Expecting (results) from The Academy at SOAR

1) No one child is defined by a fixed set of standards. We differentiate instruction for your child, so you can expect the strategies may look different for each child in the program, as might the results.

2) Initially, you may not see polished product like you might expect at a traditional school. Polished work products, along with test scores, are often the measures of success in a traditional school. We are not traditional. There are days, when "total success" for your child might simply be persevering through a task that they ordinarily wouldn't have. We realize that all you know is what you see and hear. So we'll continue to strive to let you see and allow you to hear all that is possible from across the miles. You can expect that if what you see " isn't polished" that we know that it isn't polished, and we are working at successive approximations toward a finished product. You can expect that the finished product might actually be within your child and may not be evident in a traditional school sense.

3) You can expect that no one can "make" your child do anything. As Joe Geier says, " We can guide and we can influence," but ultimately you can expect that your child will still make their own choices. You can expect that whatever they are, they are informed decisions, if not always the best decisions.

4) You can expect that staff and instructors at The Academy at SOAR are trained, experienced professionals with the ability, the desire, and the passion to make certain that we are working in your best interests, for your child.

5) You can expect, as I have learned to expect, that, as mentioned in #2 success, learning, and growth initially, may not be measurable and observable in traditional ways, such as work products and grades. Sometimes the true measure of success is internal for your child, in how they are beginning to feel about school, and about themselves, that they have never felt before.

sidebar:  I overheard feedback from the latest round of parent phone calls. The overwhelming theme was that students loved school, and enjoyed their teachers. That is something that perhaps your child has never experienced before. It's not measurable but it is significant. Something as simple as this could be the difference between a graduate and a drop-out.

(disclaimer: He is an actor, not an Actual SOAR Student)

6) You can expect that we, as an academic staff, are open to your communication always, as well as your thoughts, feelings and opinions. If there is an instance in which we disagree as to the best course of action for a given academic situation you can expect we will discuss it, and we can either come to a compromise, or we can agree to disagree. You can expect though, that we, as instructors who have many years of experience working with children, with students, as well as advanced training and education, will always do our very best to make the decision(s) that are in the best interest of your child, our student.

7) You can expect that your child will gain at SOAR & the Academy at SOAR skills and tools that they may not necessarily gain elsewhere, because our focus is, as well as academics,  teaching the life skills necessary to become and to be life- long successful learners.

8) That being said, you can expect that we will take nothing for granted. If "focusing" on the teacher requires practice, we will practice that. If discussing the processes required for the successful completion of homework is the issue, we will practice that, until it becomes habit. Successful adults have formed successful consistent habits and life skills.

9) You can expect that we understand that the reason students come to SOAR is that for one reason or an other, they have been unsuccessful in the traditional academic environment.

10) You can expect that if we, as educators, do anything less than preparing students with the skills and tools they need to be successful once they leave SOAR and go elsewhere, we feel we have failed.

11) You can expect that "WE" will not fail.

"Wait just a minute, Mike. That's a pretty bold statement, "   you say. "You will not fail. Does that come with a money back guarantee?" 

Unfortunately the powers vested in me do not include issuing refunds. That being said, we will pursue success for your child, "by any means necessary," and for as long as it takes. We will persevere.

All that said, you can expect that your child will experience both successes and failures while at SOAR. As Joe tells the kids, " We expect you to make mistakes, just not the SAME mistakes." Finally, each student will get to where they need to be in their own time, as is true for every one of us.

So you can expect that the staff at SOAR and the Academy at SOAR will guide you along the way when we feel your child would benefit from more time at SOAR in order to get to where they need to be, or whether it is time, and they are ready to move on to the next step in their journeys.

What Do You Expect From The Academy AT SOAR?

SOAR has a school? I thought they were a summer camp? Students really come to you for multiple semesters of school? For multiple years? Do your course credits transfer? These are just some of the comments/ questions that have come my way through the grapevine as this new school year begins. Once new and perspective parents realize SOAR is just as much a school as it is an adventure program, they have many many questions; questions I am more than happy to answer for each and every parent that graces our phone lines. For SOAR, and the Academy at SOAR is something that I believe in. It is a passion of mine. Yet I wonder why so many people know so little about what we do for students academically.

The teachers and I were meeting with one of our great parents yesterday, and it occurred to my teachers as well as myself that people really don't know what to expect from The Academy At SOAR. When I joined SOAR almost two years ago, I was told that historically parents and families have not chosen SOAR for the strength of its academics. SOAR has been around since the 70's and its forte up to recent day has been its adventure- based programming, and its emphasis on life skills, and for good reason, they are superb in this area. I understood that when parents get to the point where the traditional schools aren't cutting it, generally speaking, their concerns go much deeper than merely academics. As a parent myself, I want my children to be happy, well- adjusted, confident people, in all aspects of their lives, academics just being one. So I can understand that if a family is in crisis with their child, academics does, and should take a back seat to the child's overall well-being.

However, in my almost two years at SOAR, I have not spoken to one parent, past or present, that hasn't indicated that strong academics are a huge part of what they are looking for in a program for their child. All parents want their children to learn and grow, and not only not fall farther behind, but they want their children to excel. It's what I want for my kids. It's logical.

And why shouldn't you expect rigor and the highest quality differentiated academic education for your child here at SOAR? That would make it the complete package. Anything less would sort of be like only giving you... well how can I put this?...

A little less than the real deal?

Do I really need to say it?

For once I feel I don't have just the words to express it, so you know how they say what a picture is worth? We don't want to give you anything close to the photo depictions above. If we do, we are really doing something like this:

Aren't we?

So we are working on our marketing, and with the help of Aaron, our math and science guy, who has also been in business for years. We are revamping our Academy at SOAR website to more accurately reflect who we are and what we do, and can do for your kids. We haven't been guilty of any false advertising, but rather simply not advertising enough of who we are and what we do.

So you are still saying at this point, " Ok, Mike.I like the metaphors, and the "half-assed" picture did make me chuckle, but what can I really expect from The Academy at SOAR?" Well I am sure there is a clever way for me to say it, but I know, you want the goods. I know, "Just tell me what is behind academic door # 2." So I will lay it down for you:

This summer, I was trying to state as clearly and concisely as I could, what our mission as a school is, and this is what I came up with:

Academy at SOAR Academic Constitution

·         We, as an academic staff will maintain positive and frequent communication with our major stakeholders, the parents. 

·         We, as an academic staff will generate quality curricula/ lessons which address the needs of our students individually via differentiation, as well as address the standards from  the North Carolina Standard Course of study and the National Core Curriculum. This way, no matter where you come from in the United States or the world, you will get what you need at SOAR.

·         We, as an academic staff at SOAR will be certified in the areas in which we teach, and do whatever is necessary to retain certification/ licensure. 

      We , as an academic staff, will seek and participate in professional development to improve teaching practices as well as to retain certification.

·         We, the academic staff, will set up a schedule to conference individually with each student during every base phase to review and set benchmarks for attaining established academic goals. 

·         We, the academic staff, will design assessments for our instruction ( tests, quizzes, assignments with rubrics, work samples) to closely monitor, and adjust the effectiveness of our instruction.

·         We, the academic staff, will keep a grade book record of student grades, and strengths and weaknesses for the purpose of mid- semester, and end of semester reports, and to be able to converse with parents and other stakeholders as necessary.

·         We, the academic staff, will participate in a new teacher evaluation process to ensure continuous growth and development, and an openness to grow through collaboration.

·         We, the academic staff will meet with field instructors regularly and base instructors as needed to make sure that we are all working together toward the common goal of student growth and achievement.

·         We, the academic staff, will meet weekly for at least an hour, to discuss  needs, celebrate successes, and share/ disseminate information, so that we are working together as a team, in the best interest of students. 

·         We, the academic staff will seek to plan and implement instruction that is experiential, hands on and engaging to every extent possible.

·         We will begin to embrace the philosophy of Project Based Learning, as it is a hands on way for us to begin to truly have an integrated curriculum.

·         We, the academic staff will save our lessons via the electronic drop box, so that lessons can be re-utilized and modified, so that we can continue to develop a physical curriculum.

·         We, the academic staff, will emphasize the executive functioning skills that allow students to be successful in school, in addition to just core academics.

·         We, the academic staff will embody the acronym SOAR, which stands for Success Oriented Achievement Realized, in everything we do with and for our students.

S    So, you can expect that, and a whole lot more, as we are a work in progress seeking nothing less than excellence that rivals our competitors, and a program that is comparable in quality to our holistic adventure- based program.

      Look for our updated website at www.academyatsoar.org. It isn't up and live yet but we'll let you know when it is. It will be your one-stop source for all things having to do with the Academy.    

 

      In the meantime, as always, we are here for you just as much as we are here for your kids, and as I truly believe, the only stupid question is the one that remains unasked.

      Should you expect anything less from SOAR? I think not.

What I Learned in School Today: What Makes The Grade?- The Academy At SOAR

 

As I frequently say, inspiration is where you find it. It hit me today. I felt like a complete failure...for a moment.

We are well into the first week of school for all students at the Academy at SOAR, and already I can tell that my inclinations were correct. We have a knock out, kick butt team of educators on board this year.  Yes, I know that " kick butt" is not  a technical term but it is the only way I can describe what is happening here. No, we are not literally kicking anybody's butt, for that would be very "un-SOAR-like" The Academy at SOAR's academic program is now officially "on the map", up there with any other high quality educational program. It's too soon to describe to you in detail exactly what we are doing differently. We've just got some talent. Talent breeds creativity and innovation. That is a formula that simply equals " what's good for your kids" parents.

So, why then, might you ask, did I, for a brief moment today, feel like a complete failure? The beginning of the school year is typically filled with start of the year introductions to systems, procedures and requirements shared with students, and The Academy at SOAR is no exception. While the rest of my teaching team has been  busy doing what they do best, I have been acclimating students to school -wide expectations, setting norms for operation, and teaching students academic-specific expectations for certain assignments and classes. Things feel like they are truly coming together. Yet there is part of me that is stuck in the "traditional" school rut, looking for results, data, some sort of actual documentation that learning is taking place. There are no grades in the grade book yet, and no serious work products to speak of, and school has been in session for about a week. This is the way our traditional model of school measures success and failure. While I have always tried to work and think outside the box, " the system" of accountability has nonetheless become engrained in me, from my years working in the public schools with " No Child left Behind". Based upon that, and knowing that parents pay a lot of money to send their child to SOAR, for a moment, I felt like I was failing.

Then I took a closer look at what Gene, Aaron and I, were doing. We are in the process of shaping learners, building the framework within which students who have failed in the past can be successful in school and feel good about themselves.  I guess this is what truly sets SOAR academics apart from the crowd.Let me explain.

Today, my classes all went very well. We had a good time, I established rapport, and everybody felt good about the process, but is that enough? In a world that measures educational goodness in grades, and what you have to show for your efforts, perhaps it isn't enough.

I did away with what was referred to as reading logs this year, in favor of an expedition log, where students aren't merely summarizing sections of books read in book report format, but are creating a diary of their learning, and expedition adventures, thoughts and feelings. (Gene's Idea) Writing that has a purpose and a personal meaning, rather than simply going through the process of writing something in order to achieve a grade. I have implemented "book sharing" the last two days, where part of a  student's  homework is to read their personal novels for "enjoyment" for 20 to 30 minutes a night, and come back to school prepared to orally share experiences they have had with their book, so that others might become inspired to read a book they've never considered previously. I do the homework as well. The students love sharing about what they have read. There is a certain pride students exhibit when telling others about a book that they think is really cool and why they think it is cool. Some of the students, I can't get to stop talking and have to cut them off to prevent them from spoiling the "whole" story for those that might wish to read the book themselves.

So students are engaged in dialogue, sharing thoughts, feelings, and opinions about books read and books shared, making additional recommendations to each other, and reading genuinely for the purpose for which it was intended, for learning and for enjoyment. So what's problem, you may ask?
It's not measurable in a way that I can easily report to parents or anyone else. It is not fabricated, it is not forced. Students are legitimately interested in taking part in the process. Isn't that what real learning is all about?

In English class, students are creating blog entries to share with friends and family online about their adventures, experiences, thoughts and feelings compiled from their expedition logs. The me from a couple of years ago might have explained to them the assignment, the process, and modeled it for them, explained how they would be graded, and then tell them to begin.

Today, we didn't even talk about grading. I showed the students Blogger, and a blog I had written, and talked about the content and style in which I wrote. I then showed them, with student permission, examples of blog posts students had done last year, so they could envision what blogging at SOAR is really all about. Then I fielded questions.

One student expressed concern that I had said the blog entry had to be "approved by the teacher". He was concerned that "approved" meant censored, and he asked me about the types of content that would be allowed versus what would be prohibited. Rather than dismissing the question, in favor of staying on schedule and getting a move- on with the assignment, we discussed his question. I told him that as long as the things that he was saying weren't hurtful toward another person, I wasn't going to censor his thoughts in writing. I told him that as an author, he owned those thoughts. He then asked me, "Mike", he said, " What if  "J" (student)is really annoying the heck out of me, and I want to include that as part of my blog writing?" This led to a brief discussion on slander, libel, and defamation, and in layman's terms about being a teammate, and a friend, and being cautious not to hurt people with our words. So I turned to student " J" and asked him, " If the student wrote this about you, would you be ok with it, as long  as he wasn't referring to you in a derogatory way?" He said, "sure."  What was the value of taking valuable class time to have a discussion such as this? Students are validated for their thoughts and feelings and it is made known that what they think and feel with regard to school work is important. At this point I still have no grades, no proof whatsoever that learning and teachable moments are occurring in my classroom, at least in the traditional sense. Another student says to me, " Mike, I can't write about anything from my expedition log. What I want to write about has nothing to do with the expedition." I suppose she was expecting me to hold a hard line with her. Instead I said to her, " You are the author. What you want to write about has value, regardless of the topic. I'd like to see what you come up with."  Non-traditional and unexpected as my response was, this student with little confidence in her abilities to achieve in school and meet a teacher's expectations, drafted a plan for a writing, that, in fact, had " nothing" to do with her expedition or her SOAR experience. She wrote about what she wanted to write about, and was not told she was wrong. This student gained self- confidence through my confirmation that her ideas were ok. How do you put a grade on that?

The day ended for me with the Appalachian Trail team two for Literature Circles. We were reading a novel that is both funny and educational, as it deals with real life issues of a teenager growing up on a Native American reservation, and the trials and tribulations of this teen, from a different culture, yet dealing with some of the same issues that our students face. The story is told through humor, and a little profanity ( which students love for some odd reason. I've told them that when it is used within the context of literature for effect it is different than throwing around the words casually). The adventures and mischief the main character gets involved in, in the story lead to higher level discussions on Marzano and Blooms taxonomy, where students are relating events in the story to stories that have occurred in their own lives. Students are reading a book, and devouring it, and discussing the book, themes and issues in the book at a higher level of thinking. We are having a fun, natural, not forced conversation related to the novel. Sure I grade their participation using a rubric, but how can you really grade really good dialogue? I ask you.

So there-in lies  my dilemma. We're doing all these great things, your kids are having positive, affirming experiences in school, but I don't have a grade in the grade book to show for it. ( Well maybe a few) I know that as we settle into our year, that will change, and I will find ways to evaluate students in ways that are both informative, and ways that enrich them and help them grow. So if you ask me what we did in school today, I can tell you, but I can't show it to you or prove it to you yet. Is that so bad?

Stay tuned for the next installment of The View from the Teacher's Desk where I take a look at some of the great things our SOAR directors have done, to make this program a reality, and some of the terrific things our new teachers Aaron and Gene are doing, to make your child's educational experience here at the Academy at SOAR second to none. - Mike