'Twas the Week Before Winter Break

 

‘Twas the week before Winter Break, when all through the school

Every teacher was stressed, even those who usually stay cool;

The backpacks were filled with holiday work with care,

In hopes that students soon would take it home and do it there;

The children each day struggled to come to school, they wanted to stay all snug in their beds;

There visions of two weeks of break danced in their heads;

And Mrs. Patton in her lighted necklace, and Mr. Waddle in his Santa cap,

Likes others were starting to settle their brains for a long winter break nap,

When out in the hall there arose lots of clatter,

The behavior team sprang out of their chairs to see what was the matter.

Away out their doors they flew like a flash,

Tore down the hall and up the ramp in a dash.

The sun shinning bright on the new-fallen snow,

Gave teachers false hope as they checked and saw the temperature was too low,

When what to Ms. Zoe’s keen eyes did appear’

But a cart like a sleigh and glee-filled admin in Christmas gear,

With a bright leader so lively and quick,

Ms. Sarah knew in a moment that it must be Mrs. Dixon, much better than St. Nick.

More rapid than falcons Mrs. Dixon’s deans they came,

And she whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:

“Now Shackelford! And Bock! On Swetz and Powers!

To the front of the school! To the side door, don’t fall!

Now dash out of the building; dash out; dash out all!”

As teachers on Friday at 3:45 fly,

When met with an activity they help and don’t ask why;

So up and down the halls the admin they flew

With a cart full of treats and Mrs. Dixon too-

And then, in a twinkling, Ms. Richardson heard in the hall

The dancing and cheering of admin one and all.

As Mx. Wray drew in their head, and was turning around,

Down the hall Mrs. Dixon and the deans came with a bound.

She dressed in red and green from her head to her toes,

And her clothes were all shinny with tinsel and Rodolph’s red nose;

A basket of goodies she had lining her cart,

And she looked as an elf, or maybe was just playing the part.

Her eyes- how they sparkled! Her smiles, how merry!

Knowing break was coming soon she was as sweet as a cherry!

The deans all helped deliver treats with a smile and a bow,

Getting all of the staff a chocolate treat to keep warm from the snow;

The teachers they all dressed in red, white, and green,

And this week while weary was the happiest this year they’ve been seen;

The staff were all smiles and energized for the day with pizza in the belly

Some teachers had a contest to see who could eat the most, most say it was Mr. Kelley.

The teachers had students convinced they were all watched by an elf,

And Ms. Hiller laughed when she saw them, in spite of herself;

A wink of Mrs. Dixon’s eye and a twist of her head

Soon gave Ms. Sentz to know she had nothing to dread;

She spoke words of cheer as she went about her work,

And told teachers to fill their bellies with treats; then turned with a jerk,

And packing up quick Mrs. Liskiewicz arose,

And giving a nod, out of the building she goes;

Ms. Hill sprang to her car, to her team gave a wave,

And away she flew like a bat from a cave.

But Mrs. Dixon heard all her staff exclaim, ere they drove our of sight-

“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a great break and good night!”

All Emotions Are Acceptable

 

Helping others through their emotions is an invaluable skills, especially if you are the one who helped bring on the emotion.

As I walked in the other morning I noticed a young lady at the 1-4 bathroom taking time to read the Mood Meter. She was looking it over and in the end touched an emotion and then walked on. It was a simple moment to watch but profound for the girl. She was taking time to identify her feelings. This is a strength that will help her handle her emotions and help her support others with their own.

Reflecting on the events of last week this is a great opportunity for us as adults and educators to take time and work to support our students through their emotions.

I recently had a student tell me that they "shouldn't be sad." I explored this with them and learned that somewhere along the way an adult told them to "cheer up and not be sad." Sad is an emotion we all feel at one time or another. Instead of saying "cheer up", "Stop being sad", let's move toward, "I see you're sad, that's ok, we all get sad, how can I help you work through your sadness?" 

Sadness is not the only emotion we can accept from ourselves and students. Anger is acceptable. The way anger is handled is what matters. 

There are no "right" or "wrong" emotions only helpful/healthy ways to express them and unhelpful/unhealthy or hurtful ways to express emotions.

Who are some students you have previously not allowed to feel an emotion because you feared how they would express it?

How can you help a student work through a feeling?

Take a few minutes to read the link below. We can all find a way to help ourselves and students work with and through their emotions. Avoiding doesn't make something go away.

Helping students with emotions

Mindfulness for Self-Control

 Have you ever had a day derailed and you realize it has changed some of your plans for the week?

That was the start of the week for me. I had a student acting out in my office and being very unkind to myself and another staff. 

The same day when I picked up my daughter from school I learned that her preschool would be opening late for the next week and half due to a staff injury and staff illness. 

A calm typical Tuesday was thrown out and chaos and confusion were front and center.

These events can become stress that can completely break us down, or we can choose to put into use all of our mindfulness practice.

Mindfulness has been shown to help with self-control. In a published article out of the University of Toronto, researcher Rimma Teper states; "Converging evidence suggests that the present-moment awareness and nonjudgmental acceptance intrinsic to mindfulness enhances one's sensitivity to the affective cues that direct self-control processes."

Mindfulness can and will help you and your students gain a better ability to feel and display self-control in the face of stress and frustration.

Mindfulness helps us understand, observe, accept, and control our emotions. These are all key components of self-control. The ability to accept and then control ones emotions will help with being in control of ones actions.

A fun and great self-control mindfulness practice I like to engage in with students is Self-Control Bubbles.

I start by explaining the rules to the "game." I share that I will use the bubble wand and blow the bubbles. The student will sit with a calm body and watch the bubbles. The bubbles are not allowed to be touched, only watched. As the student learns to sit and watch the bubbles, you then allow them a turn to use the bubble wand. This is a great slow in and out breathing practice. I encourage the student to watch the bubbles, follow their path with their eyes, notice colors and the way the light reflects in them. This a nice calm mindful way to practice self-control. Students will want to pop the bubbles. Talk to them about watching them and following them. 

You can use this mindfulness lesson to talk about each of us having our own bubble. We respect each other's bubbles and we do not pop them with our bodies.

You can talk about taking in deep breaths, blowing the bubbles and thinking about a wish to send to someone or a problem to send away with the bubble.

Take some time this week to find a self-control mindfulness or come barrow some bubbles.