Rhymes with Orange

This morning, over our oatmeal with blueberries, my eight-year-old son announced that he wished someone would invent a word that rhymed with orange.  “You know, like norange, dorange or hippopotorange.”  “Really?” thought the proud parent.  I know that this kid is pretty bright, and he loves to learn.  I wondered what amazing and creative connections were happening in his brain that led him to this thought.  What innovative things will he do if someone actually invents this word?

Wow, this was getting deep, so I did what any good teacher would do:  I threw it back at him, and asked why he wanted someone else to invent a word that rhymes with orange?   I sat back, smugly, waiting for that amazing learning connection and life lesson that my son was going to share with me.  His answer came, and it was clear.  It stunned me at first, and it took me some time and reflection to really grasp, for within its simplicity was a meaning far more profound than I expected.

He said...wait for it...“Because then there would be a word that rhymes with orange”, and he followed that statement with that look we parents get when an eight-year-old has to explain something so obviously obvious.

Why is it that as we “grow up” we need to mine for meaning in everything that we do, and that the older we get the deeper that meaning has to be? 

This was a good lesson for me today, and it is about “being serious” all of the time.  I mean, being a principal is serious business, isn’t it?  People want me to be in charge, to have a plan and to demonstrate direction.  But, what about having fun?  What about forgetting about deep meaning, and digging down instead for that creative little boy inside of me? He is still there, somewhere, and he pops up every now and then.  He laughs because it feels good, and uses humour to try and cheer other people up.  He loves to learn, and can get lost in this thoughts whilst obsessively following creatively divergent thought tangents.  He often finds great meaning in the smallest of things, loves it when his senses tingle, and finds making connections between something learned and something new absolutely irresistible.  He stops to smell the roses.

 Maybe, I need to start explaining more things in my day with “because...”.  Not “because I said so”, not “because that’s how we do things”, not “because that’s the most logical thing to do”, and not “because that is what experience has taught me”.  Nope, just because that’s the way it is.

I think that am going to have some fun and play soccer with the grades 3s today at lunch. 

Why you ask? 

Just because.

What Fly Fishing Has Taught Me About Leadership

Lesson 1: When you can’t see your way, stop and eat a sandwich

Mentors are funny;  they don’t always appear to play the leading roles in your life as your life is happening.  That is to say, sometimes it takes considerable time and reflection to realize who your most significant role models are.  In a younger life, I lived and taught in Calgary while my wife completed medical school.  There, through a colleague, I met a wonderful life mentor who at first seemed to be only playing the role of my fly fishing coach.  He taught me so much about the world of fly fishing, all of which was steeped in ethics, morals and values, and because of this his lessons keep creeping back into my life in ways that are very different from how (I thought that) they were delivered.  One memorable day, he was teaching me how to read water on a small spring creek.  He graciously offered me a very productive section of the creek to fish, and asked me to tell him what my plan of attack would be.  I looked at the stream—not seeing much—and pointed out a small rock where a fish had splashed as the place that I would cast to.  He thought about this for a minute and then announced that we needed to have lunch.  “Have lunch?” I thought, “But this was supposed to be the great water that we had hiked all day to get to”.  I was confused.  So, we sat down and pulled out our sandwiches, and while we ate an amazing thing happened.  That quiet, bubbling creek suddenly came to life.  That little fish by the rock was still bringing a lot of attention to itself, but I also started to see insects emerging, individual current streams twisting just underneath the surface, and then quick flash of some very large fish rising to take insects off the surface.  Their rises were almost undetectable.  “You see that one”, he said, “that one is a big fish.  There was no splash, but you can see how much more water he moved than the little one that you had been watching earlier”.  I caught a lot of big fish that afternoon, most of which I would have walked right past without noticing had I not stopped to have that sandwich.

What I Learned:  When you can’t see your way, stop, slow down and pay attention to the little things.  Sometimes, all of the chaos in front of you will transform into a clear direction.  I also learned that while little fish made the big, splashy rises, the bigger fish made small—almost un-noticeable—dimples in the water.  How do you think they got so big in the first place?  Sometimes, the biggest fish, the biggest issues, challenges and successes, and even the biggest allies need that extra bit of care and attention to uncover.

Lesson 2:  There are three stages to fly fishing

In the first stage, the fly fisher is usually young, energetic and ready to take on any challenge.  He puts tonnes of time into his craft, always works hard, and tries to catch as many fish as possible—every time.

In the second stage, the fly fisher still pushes hard every time, but doesn’t worry about the small fish.  In fact, they begin to annoy him.  This guy wants to catch big fish—every time—and will often sacrifice an entire day just to hook into that big photo-worthy lunker.

In the third stage, the fly fisher begins to look around and realize that it is the experience that counts most.  Fish are great, but it is the beautiful surroundings, the company (or the quiet), and the overall experience that is most meaningful.  Catching a fish is a not only a bonus, but a moment to savour.  This guy always comes home happy. 

What I learned:  It can’t be a competition forever, even if you are in competition with yourself.  There has to be hard work, and it must be balanced with fun for anything to be sustainable.  Also, when you focus in too much on specific, defined and minute goals, you can lose sight of the big picture and the reason why you are doing this job in the first place.

Lesson 3:  Always wade with caution

There is a saying in fishing circles that slow waters run deep, and I guess the reverse is true about faster, shallow water.  It doesn’t matter how circumstances appear to your eyes when it is your feet that have to shuffle along the bottom feeling for a secure foot hold, all-the-while looking three steps ahead for your next move.  A steadied, thought-out approach is always best, as an impulsive and reckless approach often leads to trouble.

What I learned:  Even though things look smooth on the surface, strong currents and hazards frequently lurk down below.  You always need to be planned and organized enough to have the confidence to deal with a surprise from underneath, and when in doubt ask for help from someone who has traveled this route before.

Lesson 4:  Some days, the fish don’t bite

Back in grade 6, my class read My Side of the Mountain, by Jean Craighead George.  When we were tested on the book, we were asked “When is the best time to go fishing”, and the answer was “when they are hungry”.  I have never forgotten that the answer to that question.  It does not matter how prepared I am tying all the right flies, having all the right gear, getting to the right spot first, and—even—having the right sandwich;  if the fish aren’t hungry, they won’t look up and bite.

What I learned:  There has to be a plan, and it has to be well-thought out.  However, even the best plans don’t work if you present them to an audience that doesn’t want them.  Sometimes, you really have to work hard to develop a relationship with that fish to really understand them before they will rise up and take what you are offering.

What I have learned most:  Enjoy the moment

It can be overwhelming trying to lead an elementary school all by yourself, but things get so much easier when you stop to look around and remember what a wonderful and exciting place that you are in.  Where else can you find so many people happy to be there every day, and so excited to learn?  Where else do you get to learn so much every day?

20x20

I came across something intriguing on Chris Kennedy’s blog,”The Culture of Yes”, and it really got me thinking.  PechaKucha is a presentation style where the presenter shows 20 slides, each for only 20 seconds.  The slides are set to automatically forward and the presenter simply talks along to the images.  Hmmm, imaging all of those boring, drawn-out presentations that you have subjected to re-booted, edited and condensed to the more salient 20 nuggets.  Gone would be all of the data-packed slides, gone would be the presenter reading the text to you, and in their places would be images, brief quotes and simple text, spoken to for 20 seconds, and then replaced by the next image or text, and so on.

I see real potential for using this style of presentation in the classroom.  The 20x20 format forces a tonne of reflection through the editing and condensing, and then reinforces content mastery through the careful selection of images needed to represent those condensed ideas.  I would even consider a 10x20 format; it would double the amount of presentations that could happen in a class, and simplify the process even further.

Check it out.  I would be very interested to hear how PechaKucha worked in your classroom.

Bucket Fillers

Yesterday, at our welcome assembly, I had two of our leadership students read the book:  Have You Filled Your Bucket Today? A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids by Carol McCloud and illustrated by David Messing.  The point of the story is that we all have imaginary buckets that get filled when we do kind things for other people.  The opposite is also true:  our buckets empty when unkind things are done.  I sent everyone home yesterday with a challenge:  to think about a way that you can help fill someone else’s bucket.  I arrived at school today, with my bucket in hand, and collected as many of those positive thoughts that I could and my bucket began to over flow.  I had many parents ask why I was carrying a bucket around labelled “Fill My Bucket”, and I then called their child over to explain bucketfilling to their parents.  The best moments came, however, when the parents told me about the bucketfilling discussions that their children brought home last night.  How cool is that?

So, are you a bucket filler?

Welcome Back To School!



School is officially back in session!

The students are excited to be back at school and visit with their friends and teachers and to share all of the fun that they had this summer.

The teachers have their rooms primed and ready, and are excited about a fresh start with a new bunch of eager minds to work with.

And the parents?  Well, the ones that I spoke to on the playground this morning are just happy that school is back in session.

Welcome back everyone!

Re-Post #2: Using My Super Powers

This is the last re-post of something that was never posted.  It was supposed to hit the Internet on October 29.  I love the bit about my kids and their enthusiasm towards the world around them.  I also like the reminders of the Provincial Student Leadership Conference;  two years later, and they still inspire me.  School start up is tomorrow morning, and I can't wait until the playground starts to fill with young minds, ready to learn.

When I told my kids that I had found my Inner Superhero, my 6-year-old son was amazed.  He actually stepped back an eyed me top to bottom--out of the corner of his eye--trying to figure out where my superpowers were hiding.  How do we lose that enthusiasm?  That acceptance of what could be, not because we know it’s true, but because we want to believe--so bad-- that it could be.  His imagination is still too pure because it hasn’t had to sit in a stale, musty old box yet.  He doesn’t have to worry about thinking outside of the box;  his whole world is outside the box.  Boxes are things that your mom puts your old junk in, the stuff you don’t want or use anymore, and they get crammed into those dark forgotten places.  He knows that adults don’t really have superpowers, but that corner of his eye still wanted to believe that anything could be possible.  Sometimes, just because it would be so cool.  Isn’t this leading?

His younger brother bounces.  Bounces back when he falls.  Picks himself up when he is down.  Smiles when he thinks you are mad, because he knows it will make me laugh and everybody feels better when they are happy.  Why do we stop doing this?  Isn’t this loving?

Their older sister wants to learn.  She wants to learn about everything.  Her last three questions tonight were:  What is a financial account?  Why do we stop asking questions?  Why do we plod along, frustrated, and not stop to ask for directions?  She thinks it is easier to ask.  Too stop and find out the answer so that she can start up again and move forward--with confidence.  Isn’t this living?  Isn’t this learning?

What an amazing weekend.  My school district just wrapped up hosting the provincial Student Leadership Conference, and here are my top points...

Crayons are for colouring (Mark Scharenbroich)  Share, don’t compare.  We need to share our talents and not compare them;  when we compare, we add numbers, and when we add numbers we begin to differentiate.  We need to be happy for out friends, for their gifts and talents, and share our telants with them.  Instead of worrying about who has the best pack of crayons, let’s just plop them down on the desktop and colour.

On finding your inner superhero... (David Garibaldi) A superhero is an ordinary person who does extraordinary things. Everyone has a passion in side of them.  The real question is:  are you putting purpose to that passion, and using it to benefit and inspire others?

On building, then sharing, school spirit (Ian Tyson)  People won’t cheer until they feel connected.  But, when connected, they will do amazing things together.

Everyone is beautiful (Hannah Taylor)  It  doesn’t matter what people smell like or look like, it matters what is inside of them.

...now go out and inspire.

Eating Life in Big Bites

Following my motto of living life in big bites, I squeezed a few last drops out of summer today.  I took a friend fishing, and today this friend caught his first ever salmon and did it on a fly rod--quite an accomplishment for someone who had had never fly fished before.  The sky was blue all day, the sun was shining and we had the river all to ourselves.  Ahhh, it was heaven.

Here's to all of you squeezing a few more drops out of your summers.  Cheers!