Hey everyone! Are you looking for ways to amp up your instruction, rock out positive relationships with your students and colleagues or improve this education gig? Then you have come to the right blog!
I'm Amy Casey and I have been a die-hard public educator for nearly 25 years! I've also had a side hustle as a vocalist in the popular Kansas City cover band Cherry Bomb for nearly 17 years. Join me as I do a mash up of all things education and throw in a little bit of rock and roll!
Each time I blog for Education Rocks, I am going to tie my thinking with a hit song.
This is huge. If I don't like the way things are going, as a leader, I must take a look at myself. I am a mirror of those I lead. Are my teachers completely stressed out and overloaded? What have I done to cause that? Am I giving off stressful energy? Am I expecting them to be all zen when I am a mess? Then it is up to me to make that change in myself, first.
If I want others to be inspired, then I must be that inspiration. If I want others to be innovative, then I must be innovative. If I want others to be committed to our work, they must see my commitment. If I want our students to see adults who look like them at school, then I must be committed to diverse hiring practices. If I want staff to remain calm when students are dealing with trauma in their lives and are acting out, then I must remain calm and understanding.
This is my greatest responsibility as a leader. I must be the change.
If we can't live it, it is difficult to teach it ~
This feels a little bit like "Be the change you wish to see." But it is more than that. When I decided that I was going to pursue becoming a principal, I had been a music teacher for 12 years. The reason I wanted to become a principal was because there were things happening in education that I wanted to change. I was not able to to make those changes as a teacher. I needed to be in a position where I could make those changes possible.
I had experienced a successful career as a music teacher, but I realized I didn't truly understand what general education classroom teachers faced on a regular basis. How could I lead as a principal if I didn't truly understand the challenges of my staff? I was actually advised that it didn't matter. I was told I had strong leadership skills and that I would make a fine leader. That was not good enough for me. I felt that if I was going to be a good leader, I needed to understand what faced the people I was leading. I needed to walk in their shoes. So I became certified to teach elementary First through Sixth grade. I ended up teaching 5th grade for a year before I became an assistant principal. This was one of the best decisions I made as an educator. It gave me such insight that I never would have had, had I not pursued this!
This happened again when I was given my first principalship and had to oversee district special education self-contained programs in my building. I did not have a lot of experience with more intense special needs. I reached out to our special education director and asked him to send me to trainings and help me to be a better special education leader. Another great decision I have made as an educator.
This comes to play in our teaching as well. If we want to teach our students how to be better writers, we need to have a writing life. If we want them to be better readers, we need to share from our reading life. If we want to help them become better mathematicians, are we utilizing the 8 mathematical practices in our own lives? It feels hypocritical if we are not. How can we ask others to do something we are not willing to do? This is why doing our own assignments before asking students to do them is such a powerful practice. 1) We have walked down the road before them. 2) Our metacognition about our own experience will be helpful as we understand the mental path we took to understand the concept. 3) We can anticipate mistakes and misunderstandings that might occur with our students. This practice of "living it before we teach it" makes for powerful and authentic learning experiences for our students and staff alike.
Peace out! :)
Photo - Me singing and rocking out with a die hard educator! Miss Maddie Marx
I'm Amy Casey and I have been a die-hard public educator for nearly 25 years! I've also had a side hustle as a vocalist in the popular Kansas City cover band Cherry Bomb for nearly 17 years. Join me as I do a mash up of all things education and throw in a little bit of rock and roll!
Each time I blog for Education Rocks, I am going to tie my thinking with a hit song.
Next hit - Man in the Mirror
"If you want to make the world a better place, take a look in the mirror and make a change!" ~ Michael Jackson
Be the change you wish to see ~
This is huge. If I don't like the way things are going, as a leader, I must take a look at myself. I am a mirror of those I lead. Are my teachers completely stressed out and overloaded? What have I done to cause that? Am I giving off stressful energy? Am I expecting them to be all zen when I am a mess? Then it is up to me to make that change in myself, first.
If I want others to be inspired, then I must be that inspiration. If I want others to be innovative, then I must be innovative. If I want others to be committed to our work, they must see my commitment. If I want our students to see adults who look like them at school, then I must be committed to diverse hiring practices. If I want staff to remain calm when students are dealing with trauma in their lives and are acting out, then I must remain calm and understanding.
This is my greatest responsibility as a leader. I must be the change.
If we can't live it, it is difficult to teach it ~
This feels a little bit like "Be the change you wish to see." But it is more than that. When I decided that I was going to pursue becoming a principal, I had been a music teacher for 12 years. The reason I wanted to become a principal was because there were things happening in education that I wanted to change. I was not able to to make those changes as a teacher. I needed to be in a position where I could make those changes possible.
I had experienced a successful career as a music teacher, but I realized I didn't truly understand what general education classroom teachers faced on a regular basis. How could I lead as a principal if I didn't truly understand the challenges of my staff? I was actually advised that it didn't matter. I was told I had strong leadership skills and that I would make a fine leader. That was not good enough for me. I felt that if I was going to be a good leader, I needed to understand what faced the people I was leading. I needed to walk in their shoes. So I became certified to teach elementary First through Sixth grade. I ended up teaching 5th grade for a year before I became an assistant principal. This was one of the best decisions I made as an educator. It gave me such insight that I never would have had, had I not pursued this!
This happened again when I was given my first principalship and had to oversee district special education self-contained programs in my building. I did not have a lot of experience with more intense special needs. I reached out to our special education director and asked him to send me to trainings and help me to be a better special education leader. Another great decision I have made as an educator.
This comes to play in our teaching as well. If we want to teach our students how to be better writers, we need to have a writing life. If we want them to be better readers, we need to share from our reading life. If we want to help them become better mathematicians, are we utilizing the 8 mathematical practices in our own lives? It feels hypocritical if we are not. How can we ask others to do something we are not willing to do? This is why doing our own assignments before asking students to do them is such a powerful practice. 1) We have walked down the road before them. 2) Our metacognition about our own experience will be helpful as we understand the mental path we took to understand the concept. 3) We can anticipate mistakes and misunderstandings that might occur with our students. This practice of "living it before we teach it" makes for powerful and authentic learning experiences for our students and staff alike.
Peace out! :)
Photo - Me singing and rocking out with a die hard educator! Miss Maddie Marx
Just read something about this earlier this week! The universe is definitely dropping some hints! 😁
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