5 Word GPS challenge

Last summer our principal invited a guest speaker to our building to encourage us to step out in creativity.

Perhaps you've heard of him?  Dave Burgess.

If you've ever been on Twitter on Mondays at 8 CST, you've probably seen the #tlap craze.  Honestly?  It helped me shift my perceptions just enough to have experienced the best year I've ever had . . . I felt empowered to make choices that were not always traditional.  Kids were invited to the experience -- and they learned.  They grew. 


I love learning from the best, so when his challenge passed across my Twitter feed this summer, I knew I had to participate.


http://www.daveburgess.com/new/the-5-word-gps-challenge/


Since kids start coming this week, this is the time to do it.


Where do I want to go with my class?


1. To renew -- I want to renew a love and passion for reading.  "Non-fiction helps us learn more; fiction helps us be more." (Noticer and Note) Many times students come to my class telling me that they don't like reading. It's boring. Then we start talking about books, and they tell me that they like suspense, or dystopian fiction, or zombies . . . Wait?  Zombies?  Yes.  It's a starting place.  Novels have the potential to change lives through allowing our brain new experiences.

2. To challenge -- Too often kids have learned to "play school."  I want to challenge them to grow.  That means that learning may look different across the classroom.  It also means I need to forge a strong relationship with each student to really dig and find the areas that will benefit them as a human.  I especially want to challenge in the area of writing.

3. To care -- If every child feels like a favorite of mine, it has been a good day.  I want each child sitting in the room to know that he/she is cherished.  Every single person matters.  Every single person will leave unique fingerprints upon the class, the school, the lives of others. 

4. To instill -- To instill the ability to see from a new perspective is a passion of mine.  What happens if we change the setting?  What happens if we add music? Why did the author use this word?  A shift in perspective can honestly change the world.  Looking outside of our own set of circumstances builds empathy, excites innovation, and changes us as humans.

5.  To excite -- What is more important than exciting a child to the point where he wants to become a life-long learner?  I want each child to embrace his future, to see potential, to be whatever he wants to be.

So that sets my GPS for the 2014-2015 school year.  I look forward to the roads and maps we will forge together.