Reflection

Reflection...

This time of the year many of us take time to stop and reflect on the past year and what we want to change in the upcoming year.  The great thing about teaching is that the New Year lands right in the middle of our school year and we have a little time off to stop and think long and hard about how the first part of the school year went.   It's great to have time to think about what is working, what is not working well, and we can come back in January with a fresh start and make the adjustments necessary to finish the year great for our students.  This year I spent more time than usual reflecting and pondering goals.  One of my goals for this year is to spend time reflecting at the end of every teaching day.   So today as I was teaching away a thought came to me. Did I truly have my students reflect on their third-grade year to this point?  No, not really.  I had my students come back and set new goals for this half of the school year, however, I didn't have them reflect on the last half of the year. Also, what would happen if I had them spend time every day reflecting on their learning?  I am confident that this time would be time well invested.  So that is what we stopped and did today.  I had each student reflect on what has gone well this year, what has been a struggle in the first half of the year, and what do I want to learn this half of the year.  We pondered what we would like to continue, what we need to change to make our learning better and how are we going to finish this year strong.  Each student recorded a video so that I can see their reflections and also I can remind them periodically of their goals and how far they have come this year.  I plan to make this a new regular part of our day.   I can't wait to see the wonderful results of this!  As you finish up this week, take time to reflect.  Did you accomplish all you wanted to?  Are people better because they are around you?  Do you love your job today?  The only way to change the outcome is to reflect on the current and adjust to make the future better.  

Have a great weekend!