“The Unorthodox Behavior of Great Teachers”

“The Unorthodox Behavior of Great Teachers”

What qualities go into a great teacher? What behaviors make them up? I imagine a teacher like a painting. I see a blank page filling with paint and color and every teacher having different splashes on their canvas that make them different and unique. Each stroke added and giving texture to a beautiful form of art. I see students going in and out of the rooms and looking at these paintings and seeing and receiving different impressions and feelings. There is a quote that sticks with me about people who leave an impact.

"They May Forget What You Said, But They Will Never Forget How You Made Them Feel." 

-unknown

I agree with this quote because I forget words. I struggle to remember a lot of events from my childhood. Personally, I don't know why I can't recall some of middle school years like some of my other friends. I do know how teachers made me feel. I see there colors and I see their splashes of paint that I have taken with me in my own life.

I have had many favorite teachers but one that sticks out to me is my choir teacher Garrett Lathe. One of the reasons why this person stood out to me was because he was good to the core. A human being that always gave and was honest and truthful. He made me understand music and he also showed me new perspectives on life. I gained new understandings of the world from him. He modeled hard work and effort to care for students. He was real and down to earth and that made him unorthodox.

He made me feel important. One of his strengths in my opinion would be communication. He can communicate in a way that makes people listen. He can command a room. I look up to that. 

As I reflect on what makes a great teacher great I realize now I want to speak to people in a way that commands and communicates new perspectives. I want to paint that image for myself. As I think about what makes me unorthodox or unique I think about my heart. I give outrageous love to my students. I give my students support, patience, and my ear. 

How Project Runway showed Me Adaption

Exercise in Adaption

Recently I have been obsessed with old seasons of Project Runway. Each episode is crafted in the same manner. Each week these designers and models get a special assignment. They then have to take this concept and idea and put together an outfit that is runway worthy encapsulating the idea. It is adaption! It is learning! IT IS THE ENTIRE PROCESS.

They are showing the full range of learning. They are understanding an assignment, designing/processing, creating/reconstructing, fitting models, and then pushing out their final product for assessment by Heidi Klum.

Thankfully we are not being judged on our teaching by Heidi Klum but all the elements of are there! The adaption. The changes. The starting, the stopping, the redesigning!

I thought to myself what ways am I adapting and becoming the designer in my own life with school and family?

It all stems for my love for learning. I loved being a student so I can be a better teacher. I think by always being a life long learner it has made me a more organized and an energized being. Adapting to other people and their needs makes me compassionate and caring. When you adapt you can really create something beautiful just like in Project Runway. There are times when what you are doing is not about you and what you want. That is when a designer gets in trouble because they aren't willing to grow or change. I adapt by learning to differentiate and tailor to others needs.

When I think about it some people have to adapt to me and my personality. In the classroom students have to adapt to each new teacher.

As you know one day in education you are in and the next day you are out. Learn the trends and adapt!

auf wiedersehen