Greatest Set of Education Slides

Infowhelmed

This is one of those reasons why I can't keep up.

Getting Back in Gear

So I have created my fall running schedule. This always feels good. It is a new set of goals and a new reason to run. I will be headed to Columbia for the half marathon in October as it links with the fall principals' conference, and then I am hoping to take a couple of the MRH principals to Tulsa to run the marathon in November. Having the schedule set also brings some routine to my exercise schedule, and it restarts my good habits. The summer is a tough time for me. I should be in peak shape, but it seems that my time biking doesn't hold my weight down like running, and the biking actually runs my eating through the roof. As for the principal side of things, I have a lot of work to do. There is an opening retreat to finish planning, an opening parent event to stress over the details about, and there is so many old documents to review in my office. For today though, I get the opportunity to interview some assistant principal candidates for the high school. In a place that has very few people, each selection is so important. I also just finished the Donald Miller book, "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years". What a great read about making a quality story of your life.

Enjoying the Beauty of Change

Change will be hard. There will be moments when you feel like the outsiders, the one without any of the answers, and the guy missing all of the inside jokes. Those days are ahead for me, but for now, I have really enjoyed my last two weeks. It has been great to arrive with the welcome of a great staff of hard working teachers. I have been amazed by their commitment to growth in the summer. I have enjoyed the new bounce in my step as my actions feel meaningful again. I'm gaining a rhythm in my actions more quickly than I imagined. I have walked to school and enjoyed each step. The rocks of change are coming, but I am rolling for now.

Refinding the Joy of Writing

I remember the red notebook. It was my first writing journal. It was an old spiral notebook. There is even a chance that I could find it buried in some of the treasures from my past that I have held onto. I can only imagine the clarity and purity of the middle school words untainted by realities of life. It was the beginning of my intimate relationship with writing. Yesterday, we started the Writing Project at MRH, and it was like meeting an old friend. Writing was pushed back into the things that bring me joy. Though the venom of words has tamed from my time of writing in college, there is now a greater joy from the internal reaction that I can get instead of the external reaction that I relied upon to drive my writing forward. Welcome back, and I hope this can last.

Writing Project

My first full week at the the principal at MRH middle school has landed me in the middle of a two-week professional development segment on writing. It feels good to start my work at MRH where I started me teaching career, learning how to teach writing. I am hopeful that the stress of starting a new job can be held at bay for me to see the big the picture of learning is the work. This group is a partnership between MRH and Clayton. I have a few things that have been sitting in the hopper for completion for some time including a story about food allergies, transitions, and hitting the target with middle school instruction. Most importantly, I hope that this is moment for reflection and core strengthening.