Five Days of Positivity

After the 5th week of school, I'm convinced that this whole positive outlook is really working.  Case in point, I left school today feeling more positive and happier than I have the four previous weeks (and those weren't too bad either!)  Now, I'll admit, I am usually feeling quite happy on most Fridays (no explanation needed here), but I truly believe that the degree of positivity/happiness I am experiencing is higher and apparently climbing by the week.  
I'm riding the wave.

So, let's recap the week and all the positive things that transpired.

As you know if you have read previous blogs, on Monday a fellow teacher gave me a gift to welcome in the new month!  A complete surprise that made me smile.  Kicked my week off to a positive start.

At our staff meeting on Tuesday, I received Rufus (picture a small stuffed dog) which is given to someone who has taken a risk or tried something new.  How exciting! It's so exhilarating to have your peers and collegues recognize your efforts. The only other time I received recognition was when I baked cupcakes for the custodian. This seemed a bit more worthy!  I left the meeting feeling elated and positive.  

Wednesday brought the first official test of 3rd grade.  The Unit 1 Math test (cue dramatic  music...) Although I reminded the students to work carefully and read the directions, as I always do, I added in a little positivity and told them that they were all terrific math students and they were going to do well on this test.  Try your very best!     And guess what?  When I checked the tests that evening, I was anticipating some not so great results.  The students had seemed to struggle with a lot of the material and during most math lessons looked like they weren't hearing a thing.  They surprised me.  Even the student I was most worried about ended up doing pretty well.   Way to go 3rd graders!

Thursday was probably the toughest day of the week.  It was McDonalds day for lunch and my kids were in music until noon.  That means that the normally long line was long X 10 and that's enough to make any teacher grumpy.  Standing in line watching children try to stand in line doesn't do much for your mood.  The noise level is comparable to a 747 taking off outside your house.  But some teachers in line were telling me they liked my blog and it made them laugh and feel better. I reminded them we could all help one another stay positive.  As soon as lunch was over.   We passed the time by catching up, sharing classroom stories, and controlling the crowd.  

Enter Friday and the annual Fun Run!   I started off the morning meeting some fellow teachers for breakfast.  This is something we do throughout the year and it always adds a positive start to the day.  It's great to laugh, eat, and catch up with teacher friends without having to simultaneously keep an eye on your students.  An email from our principal reminded us of the positive in any weather report.  A 30% chance of rain meant that there was a 70% chance of NO rain!  And the rain did hold off.  So, 400+ students and many parents, grandparents, and teachers walked or ran the two mile route this morning. What a great way to start the day.  

In previous years, I can remember most times arriving home on Friday evenings, exhausted, tired, and too often, complaining about the week's events.  Today I came home happy, optimistic, and only a little tired (hey -- it was the Fun Run today). 

Thanks to a teacher friend who posted this TED video about positive thinking on my wall.  If you have 12 minutes, it's well worth the time.  I truly believe it's working for me. 

Happiness Advantage TED

 As I ride the wave, I hope some of you are feeling it too.

Along Came A Spider....

There we were, intently watching a BrainPop video clip on amphibians when suddenly someone noticed a spider propelling down from the ceiling on its web.  Right over a student's desk.  So, said student jumped from her seat and screamed, "Eekkk!" just like they do in cartoons.  Which instantly caused several others to screech out. Suddenly, twenty-two students and the teacher (me) were fascinated by this little spider.  The students had cleared a wide space around the 'spider drop' area so I did what teachers do.  I took charge of the situation.  

"Oh, it's just a little spider.  We don't need to be afraid," I explained as I inched closer.  Let the truth be told, spiders are not my "thing" and I was putting on a brave front for the children.  I edged closer.  It was rather small, as I had guessed, but it was very black and really hairy.  Ewwwww!  The kids closed in assuming all was safe since I was standing there.  The spider was moving slowing down the web towards the desk.  We watched quietly.  I heard the end of the BrainPop movie which was now playing to an empty audience.  Something more riveting than technology was happening in the classroom.  

Just as the busy spider came within 5 inches of the desk it stopped.  You could hear a few of the students gasp.  "Why is it stopping?" one asked.  "Does it see us?" said another. "I think it's going to jump to my desk," predicted a third.  

And just as quickly, the spider began quickly climbing back up to the ceiling. 

"Wow!" exclaimed a student.  "I wish I could do that!"   

"I hope it doesn't come over by my desk," hoped another.  

And so it reached the top as we all watched and wondered. 

"Maybe it saw us and decided to get back to the ceiling," I suggested.  

"Hey!  Isn't it funny that the spider did this while we were watching a video about animals?  Maybe he knows we are learning about animals and wanted to learn too!" a student added.    

"But we are learning about vertebrates," countered a friend. "And spiders are INvertebrates."  (stress on the IN)

"How did it get in here?"      "How long has it been on the ceiling?"
"What does it eat?                "How long is its web?"
"Where does it live?"            "I used to think spiders were icky, but this one is cute."

I listened as the students asked their questions and thought out loud.  Fifteen minutes of valuable class time had passed and it wasn't planned.  A spider had dropped in to get us all to stop for a few minutes and just enjoy the moment.  To wonder.  To think.  To predict and guess and just plain watch and do nothing.  

As the students settled back into their seats, I watched as many continued to follow the spider with their eyes to the ceiling as it made its way across the room.   We got back to learning about amphibians.  

And when we all looked for it a short time later it was gone.
  
We're all hoping it comes back tomorrow.
Because a little, hairy spider put a  positive spin on our day.

1 to 10

I woke up today feeling very positive.  Was it due to a restful weekend?  Was it because it was the first day of a new month?  Could this conscious effort to look for the positive every day really, actually (gulp) be working?  Suffice it to say, I think a combination of all of the above had me feeling chipper and happy and ready for a great week ahead when I pulled out of my driveway for my short, but scenic drive to school.  On a scale of 1 to 10 I would rate myself this morning as a solid 8.  I admired the changing leaves in the trees as I sang offkey beautifully to Call Me Maybe,  a song that most times has me practically skidding off the road to change the station.  But, what the heck?  It's October and life is good.  Whatever the reasons,  I arrived at school ready for a wonderful first week of October.  

I didn't get irritated when I realized that I had forgotten to make a new seating chart.  I had promised the students Friday that they would have 'new seats for the new month'.  Sigh.  Quickly I drew up an arrangement that would move the talkers apart, get the easily distracted kids near the front, evenly split boys and girls, align the desks so I'd have a clear view of the kids that played with things in their desks, and make sure the new kids were by some of their recently acquired friends.  There were at least fifteen other things "to do" before the bell rang, so a quick refill of my coffee was in order.  The fact that Call Me Maybe was running over and over and over and over in my head was starting to wear on me.   But I didn't let that get to me.  Think positive I reminded myself.

Then, just as the positivity scale was beginning to slide down from an 8 to more of a 5, in walked a fellow teacher.  Now, this teacher is one who is never without a bright smile, a quick laugh, and a witty word.  The fact that she is a lower el teacher and I'm an upper el teacher and we don't usually venture to each others rooms/hallways too often was a surprise.  The even bigger surprise was she had a gift for me!  She beamed and handed me some Kettle Corn with a cutsie little note (remember, I said she was a lower el teacher!) wishing me a Happy October.  Really?  For me?   She relayed to me that she had caught up on all my blogs over the weekend and they made her smile.  She even said I'm a good writer!  Wow!  Now I guess I know a little bit how the kids feel when their teacher compliments them on their writing.   I realized that by her saying that, it made me want to write more (and better).  I decided I would compliment my own little classroom of writers more to inspire them and keep them writing.

My surprise gift!

 By the time the bell rang, I was up to a 9 with the  positive boost from my teacher friend.  Who cares if I didn't get all fifteen of my "to dos" done.  I would somehow finish them as I always did. I left the gift on my desk all day as a reminder.  That way, when the meter started to slide a bit, a quick glimpse at the package helped me catch myself.   I didn't want to open it; I wanted to save it and preserve it somehow.   And then, on the drive home tonight, I decided to 'pay it forward'.  Tomorrow I'll give the gift to a student.  Maybe it will make his/her day just as bright and positive as mine was today.  

I'll be honest with you, when I left school today, the positivity meter was hovering around a 7.  Let's just say "computer lab" and 15/22 students not able to remember the step-by-step directions given painstakingly in class right before lab.  But it's all good.  

What's your positivity meter number?