Try Something New

Our first semester ended in December. As teachers, we have a clear beginning and ending to things. In August—or for some, September—we plan. We purchase. We create. We decide to do some things the same as we have done before, and we decide to scrap other things and start over. There is always a feeling of excitement in the air during those weeks before school begins, when teachers set up their classrooms for the year ahead. Then, we fall into our routines and do our day-to-day work, until Winter Break occurs. And we all breathe a collective sigh, hoping for a bit of rest and rejuvenation so that we can hit the ground running in January. Because in January, our school year continues.

The school year does not mesh with the calendar year. As everyone else is setting goals, making resolutions, and feeling a fresh start, we continue. But we don’t need to simply continue. We can take this opportunity to begin again. We can try to find the energy to start over, or at least start something.

What if each of us decided to try something different, something new, in the new calendar year? What if we made a conscious decision to actually have a new year?

In some earlier blog posts, I have mentioned things that have worked for me. Perhaps one of these things can be your something new this calendar year.

1. Use paper notebooks and pens, maybe colored pens.

2. Incorporate some healthy competition into review or fact checks.

3. Create some text sets.

4. Read aloud – books and stories.

5. Read aloud – your writing and theirs.

6. Give feedback in the form of questions only.

7. Use toys – rubber chickens?

8. Use objects – as inspiration for writing.

9. Grade writing in pencil.

or

10. Get rid of something you no longer wish to do.

I hope that something on this list speaks to you. I hope you feel energized enough to begin again. I hope you can have some fun in what you do this second semester. A new beginning awaits you and your students very soon. A new one awaits me in about one week.

Happy new year!