Cherie's Random Thoughts

8 Wake-Up Calls You Need to Receive The above article reminds me of the importance of wake-up calls. As I continue to reflect on my transition into my 40's I am finding that I am thinking about those that were lost during the past four decades of my life.  Over my life I have had learn lesson 1 repeatedly. During the past for decades I have had seen many die YOUNG. When I was a child, I lost two friends, Robert and Milton. Both deaths affected me greatly. They taught me that death will come and no one is immune. Fast-forward a decade; I learned what it meant to lose a pet, our family dog. His death too was tragic for he was very sick and there was nothing we could do to comfort him.  Fast forward a decade and a half, I lost my mother at age 57, my director died a month and half earlier, and my friend, Dawn's mother died as well that year (2007). At this point, I thought I was becoming an expert in death.  Five years later, my friend Colin at age 38 lost hi...

Tears on this one!  Cancer is robbing and has robbed many people of their quality of life and/or life itself.  It sucks to watch a love one succumb to this dreadful disease, yet it is bittersweet to see a friend overcome its wrath and somehow su rvive.  As I approach 40 I know either myself or one of many beloved friends will have to face this dreadful disease personally and/or through a love one.  It is difficult to see unwanted illness as a gift but Stacey is right they are.  For they forever change your make-up permanently.  I learned that through my mother's battles over my entire life with her and my father's PD as it progresses full steam head.  Cancer is trying take away the joy people have in their hearts, but CANCER we have you beat.  Although we may lose our love ones and may succumb to your wrath ourselves, we will always win.  Whether it is when we beat you here on earth or leave this world for a better place CANCER FREE! ...

Don't Ever...   Don't ever be reluctant to show your feelings When you're happy, give in to it... When you're not, live with it Don't ever be afraid to try to make things better You might be surprised at the results. Don't ever take the weight of the world on your shoulders. Don't ever feel threatened by the future Take life one day at a time. Don't ever feel guilty about the past What's done is done. Learn from any mistakes you might have made. Don't ever feel that you are alone There is always somebody there For you to reach out to. Don't ever forget that you can achieve So many of the things you can imagine. It's not as hard as it seems. Don't ever stop loving Don't ever stop believing, Don't ever stop dreaming your Dreams. ---   Author Unknown

In an article entitled, 10 Little Habits that Steal Your Happiness, the author describes 10 habits we have that prevent us from being happy. I would like focus on three that resonate for me.  1: Waiting for the perfect moment. There are no perfect moments in life. Opportunities often come when we least expect them and are not always wrapped in a neat bow. Meaning: Holding onto "If I only had...." statements will prevent you from achieving your goals and will always lead you to be disappointed in life.  2: Working for nothing more than a paycheck. If you only work for a paycheck, you might as well contact AMC and apply for a position as one of the WALKING DEAD. Happiness is often found when we pursue our passions and share them with others. Paychecks are quickly spent and do not fill the void of happiness.  3: Dwelling on difficulties. Difficulties in life are often the fuel for great change and can lead to renewed happiness. When we focus on what we do not have a...

"Optimists believe that good events are frequent and long-lasting and that bad events are limited and temporary." Hughes, Marcia; Terrell, James Bradford (2011-12-29). Emotional Intelligence in Action: Training and Coaching Activities for Leaders, Managers, and Teams (Kindle Locations 2153-2154). John Wiley and Sons. Kindle Edition. 

Thank You For Giving Me This Day I may never see tomorrow There's no written guarantee And things that happened yesterday, Belong to history. I cannot change the future, I cannot change the past, I have just the present moment, I must treat it as my last. I must use this moment wisely, For it soon will pass away And be lost to me forever, As part of yesterday. I must exercise compassion, Help the fallen to their feet, Be a friend unto the friendless, Make an empty life complete. The unkind things I do today May never be undone, And friendships that I fail to win, May never more be won. I may not have another chance. On bended knee to pray. And thank God with humble heart For giving me this day. ---  Author Unknown    

"It is so easy to exist instead of live." Quindlen, Anna (2001-04-01). A Short Guide to a Happy Life (Kindle Locations 111-112). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.   A thought provoking quote! Which one do you prefer? Do you know the difference?  I say living always trumps existing. Those that live persevere and move through life challenges. Those that exist lead a life of disappointment, one in which they become too afraid to move beyond their comfort and receive the blessings they truly deserve. 

Rest in Peace: September 11, 2001 By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat REST IN PEACE by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat I am a World Trade Center tower, standing tall in the clear blue sky, feeling a violent blow in my side, and I am a towering inferno of pain and suffering imploding upon myself and collapsing to the ground. May I rest in peace. I am a terrified passenger on a hijacked airplane not knowing where we are going or that I am riding on fuel tanks that will be instruments of death, and I am a worker arriving at my office not knowing that in just a moment my future will be obliterated. May I rest in peace. I am a pigeon in the plaza between the two towers eating crumbs from someone's breakfast when fire rains down on me from the skies, and I am a bed of flowers admired daily by thousands of tourists now buried under five stories of rubble. May I rest in peace. I am a firefighter sent into dark corridors of smoke and debris on a mission of mercy only to have i...

http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2012/05/09/30elder.h31.html I would have never thought that the concept of recess would become an afterthought in education. As a adult whose formative years were between 1978 (Kindergarten)- 1991 (High School), I was blessed to have had both recess and physical education classes. I can imagine that if they were not present in my childhood my life would be much different. Recess has life time ramifications and as a society we should protest when it is cut out of students lives-whether permanently or partially.  Recess allows students to have a break. Students can release tremendous amounts of energy during recess. Doing so helps students stay on task in school, ultimately helping them to be successful in school. Having recess outside exposes students to nature, something that is necessary for our well-being. Try staying indoors with no access to natural light for extended periods of time and see how you feel.  Recess serves a...

via  childandfamilyopp.org What interesting about this is that it is these five facts that matter most when it comes to childhood. We as society often struggle to learn and implement them. Number one refers to giving children the best, which we do not do until a problem arises. Number two can be seen in the shift of the students who now are attending college. Students today are less prepared, more stressed out, and lack the problem solving skills that natural old-fashion play experiences foster. Number three refers to lack of funding and research that support the prevention of toxic stress. Number four refers to the fact that many children's childhoods have disappeared which is resulting in increased physical and mental problems in early adulthood. Number five refers how most politicians claim they understand but fail to set aside financial funds for ECE.

The following is taken from Reboot Your Life: 20 Mental Barriers You Should Let Go Of http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2w6t4l/:1yds_IQaY:DZD1M223/soulhiker.com/2009/10/reboot-your-life-20-mental-barriers-you-should-let-go-off/ From the list, 5 stood out as most important for me:  Let go of Negative thinking:  Pessimistic thoughts and negative attitudes keep you locked in a dark aura that permeates in everything you do. It’s a dangerous line to follow. Know that thoughts influence the world around us. Enough said!   Let go of self-criticism:  Many times we are our biggest pain in the neck. We criticize ourselves with the best of intentions but then go over the acceptable limit. Criticism then turns to disempowering messages. Let go of it and be kind and gentle to yourself. Let go of the need for others’ approval:   We often tend to seek approval by others. This is an attention-seeking behaviour and one which threatens our self-confidence and authenticity...

Thoughts On Criticism   The galleries are full of critics. They play no ball. They make no mistakes because they attempt nothing. Down in the arena are the doers. They make mistakes because they try many things. The person who makes no mistakes lacks boldness And the spirit of adventure. They are the ones who never try anything. They are the brake on the wheel of progress. And yet it cannot be truly said they make no mistakes, Because their biggest mistake is the very fact they try nothing, And do nothing, Except criticize those who do things.      Moral of the Story:  Life cannot be lived without making mistakes. Growth as human being can only develop when we allow people to make mistakes, learn from their mistakes, and dare to try something beyond what is expected. 

Here are some of my favorite quotes from  Hannah Brecher's Manifesto for Living :  "Here’s the ones who say, “I’ve moved on” and “I’m stronger now” and “You never completed me. No, that never happened.”  Who believe in their wholeness even after breaking.  Who believe in Better Than Ever even when the Better Half of them has eyes towards the neon EXIT sign." Here’s to the ones who wear “joy” like a sweater.  Like a wedding dress you wish to wear while eating pancakes and Nutella. Your bare feet on the counter. The train of white hanging down on the tiles. Laughing, always laughing, as they have another short stack of blueberry. Here’s to the ones who know their calling and that it’s greater than a cubicle or a paycheck will ever be.  A calling to be a light. To be a lantern.  To be a match in the darkness.  A flashlight in the power outage. A bright star in the sky of a night that lost hope. Here’s to the ones who believe.  In...

T his is a great quote! It reminds of us the importance of making sure our dance through life is one of purpose and joy. All too often we fail to understand the importance of the process and how impacts our life and the lives of others. Those who chose to live life dancing ultimately will be healthier, happier, and will inspire others do do the same. Even in anger and frustration we can dance.  Reference:  MotivatesUS.com-Quote of the Day: The Purpose of Dancing, October 22, 2012 

There’s no mystery, there’s no avoiding it, and no one born has ever, or will ever, be immune. Failing is as certain as sunsets and detours. So why exert energy avoiding the unavoidable? Shift your energy from protecting yourself from failure to squeezing the life out of life.-Danielle LaPorte  The above quote by Dainelle LaPorte of Positively Positive sums up why it is important for failure to exist in our lives. The question is why we do not look at it as a sunset or detour. She is definitely right the amount of energy spent on definitely will lead to a life of misery!  Source:   http://www.positivelypositive.com/2012/10/18/this-is-your-guarantee-of-failure-proceed-anyway/

In a Mark and Angel post entitled: 10 Life Lessons People Learn To Late the following is listed as number two:  " A lifetime isn’t very long.  – This is your life, and you’ve got to fight for it.  Fight for what’s right.  Fight for what you believe in.  Fight for what’s important to you.  Fight for the people you love, and never forget to tell them how much they mean to you.  Realize that right now you’re lucky because you still have a chance.  So stop for a moment and think.  Whatever you still need to do, start doing it today.  There are only so many tomorrows."  All too often we live like we know we are going to wake up the next day, when we really must LIVE like today is our last. Anyone wanting to live a life of purpose must "fight for it". They must be committed to living each day fully and with passion. A life can progress with a "blink of the eye", so being living your dreams now and accept that the statement that ...

One morning I listen to an NPR article called, "A Recess Coach for Kids?"  http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125624125   As I listen to this and reflected on my own blessed childhood, I continue to ponder when and where did children forget how to play? As a child was able to have unstructured recess and engage in play creatively. Over the past 20 years, we have created a whole group of children who no longer need to play. They possibly do need someone to intervene, a play coach, to re-teach them how to play during recess and play in general. The question I have is does using a play coach solve the problems that led to children not being able to know how to play during recess or is it simply a Band-Aid on a larger issue? Either way, we need to DO SOMETHING! We cannot allow students to grow into adulthood without learning how to play. Play allows a person to be creative, work through life problems, and relieve stress.  If you are int...

Play the role required. Prepare to switch hats rapidly: coach, diplomat, storyteller, artist…. Teaching is a metajob, the most all-encompassing of professions. Hendricks, S. (2011). Notes on Teaching : A Short Guide to an Essential Skill.  Retrieved from  http://site.ebrary.com/lib/capella/Doc?id=10497469&ppg=33. A teacher is give the task of playing many roles on a stage. The roles consists of the ways we reach our students to ensure that they have a deep understanding of the topics we are trying to teach and the stage is the platform and/or environment in which the information is disseminated. This could be in a traditional classrom, on the playground, or virtually.  If we truly want to all call ourselves an educator, we must be willing to wear many hats! 

The quote is a reminder how life often has a boomerang effect when it comes to positive and negative emotions. We often set the tone for our days for ourselves and others. Once we understand this we can truly live and work in environment which uplift versus destroy the human spirit.

"Your opinion of YOU is what’s important."  Mark and Angel Hack Life  There is one one opinion that matters most: your inner voice. Many people suffer undue stress because they are trying to live up another person's expectations. Intrinsic motivation and a positive self-image go hand-in-hand. Every human being needs to develop both in order to truly succeed in life. 

"Strong lives are motivated by dynamic purposes."-Kenneth Hidebrand  A life motivated by a purpose that extends beyond their four corners is one will help a person strongly  move through life  regardless of what circumstances they face. They are people who are grateful for both the positive and negative things in their life. A person motivated by purpose understands that the greatest thing we can do in our life is to positively affect many lives.

Super teachers are teachers who understand their responsibility to children by making sure they take care of themselves emotional, physically, mentally, and spiritually. They are the teachers who have mastered the "Art of Teaching" while still taking care of themselves. It's all about developing resilience to move gracefully through the hard, good, and great days of teaching.  Here is a link to a great video about this topic: http://vimeo.com/43565010

There seems to be something wrong with the new USDA requirements for caloric intake for students. It does not make sense. To decrease obesity it is going to take more than reducing caloric intake. Obesity is prevalent for one reason: students are more sedatory than they were twenty or thirty years ago.  Yes, students need to eat healthy but we do not provide them with lunches that will leave them hungry and would mostly lead them towards eating unhealthy snacks.  Telling parents to pack snacks is not the answer. If we want to decrease obesity in this country we need to bring back recess, gym, let and require students to ACTIVELY play outdoors.  This is not enough food for anyone:  For an average high school student, that means two baked fish nuggets, a cup of vegetables, half a cup of mashed potatoes, one whole grain roll and 8 ounces of fat free milk . . . It definitely would leave any active student hungry and for those that are not so active i...

This is an interesting guide/infographic that provides students and job seekers guidelines for using social media effectively.  In the 21st Century it clear that social media is here to stay and has a tremendous impact on our lives.  Using social media incorrectly can lead to many losses and the damage done is often not reversable.  The best way to use social media effectively is to understand your audience and your impact on them; be social responsible, and use social media to promote the development of knowledge. 

Seth Godin has an excellent TED Talk called "Stealing Dreams". It is all about what is school is for and how many of us are currently preventing learning through our lack of ability to update our teaching style to the times and needs of our students. Dream stealers live and work in all types of communities and schools in this country.  A dream stealer is one who only sees one perspective and unconsciously (sometimes consciously) stuffing their students into "box" that does not fit their needs.  A dream stealer spends more time pointing out what is wrong than inspiring.  A dream stealer values product over process.  A dream stealer cannot see beyond the four walls of their classroom.  A dream stealer fails to understand that we must continually educate ourselves if we want to provide our students with the best education possible.  A dream stealer fears the unknown and is not willing to take a chance, let alone allow their studen...

In a SmartBlog on Education post entitled, "What is a 21st Century Teacher?" the author Josh Stumpenhorst provides four key ways to make sure that you have what it takes what to be a teacher in the 21st Century. Below is what the author suggest:  Be a connected educator.  The idea of being a connected educator is not necessarily new, but it is certainly transformative through the technology of social media. Teachers can connect with other teachers, administrators, parents, students and other education-minded people worldwide with the click of a button. There are many tools out there that allow teachers to connect. Regardless of what you use, a good 21st-century teacher must be connected. There is no right way to do this. For me, I use Twitter and my blog to connect and learn from and with educators around the globe. Be a master of technology.  I am not saying that good 21st-century teachers need to have an interactive whiteboard hanging on their walls, a tablet in e...

The below infographic is stark reminder of how many adult Americans cannot read and/or have limited reading capabilities. These statistics are scary and have huge ramifications for the US. How can we expect to fill future jobs that required advance skills if a over a quarter of our adult populations struggles with reading. How we can expect children learn how to read if they are not being read in the home. What impact will these numbers have decades from now? 

There is an interesting debate going on in the US surrounding whether we need to teach keyboarding in traditional ways. It still astonishes me the number of computer users who cannot type very well. You would think that a person would naturally pick up keyboarding skills and eventually become proficient over time. As an adult who had both keyboarding (typing) and computer training as a child and a teenager I say it is a combination of three things: knowing the basic elements of a keyboard, understanding basic computer skills needed, and practice, practice, practice. I believe practice should occur in natural ways, and students should be given opportunities to engage activities that will building their keyboarding skills. It can be the difference between, taking 1 hour to type something versus 3 hour hours.

The educational landscape must change to meet the needs of our students to prepare them for the future. No longer can we make students do things just because. All learning should be presented in real and relevant ways. We must allow students time to explore and play with materials in meaningful ways. Lastly we need all parties involved to ensure that students learn in a balance environment. One which is based in play and exploration, provides daily exposure to nature, and teaches students to use technology in responsible and meaningful ways. 

As I reflect upon the tragedy at Sandy Hook, I am reminded of the power of one human being has on another. A child, teen, and adult needs at least one person to truly care about their well being. This person needs to not only fill them up, but also tell them when we are wrong.  The "Power of One" is something that has been here since the beginning of time. Teachers often serve this role either in a positive and/or negative light. The same could be said for everyone else. The point is we all must understand our responsibility for being that "One" for a person who is struggling with life. It can be the difference between someone getting help or harming themselves and/or others.  The above video is a great reminder of this power and shows us that even the most difficult situations can be overcome with the support of one person.  *Originally posted on my Posterous account. 

It is clear that distracted students are HERE TO STAY! As educators we must find creative ways to help get our distracted students back on track. It begins with modeling on track behaviors ourselves. Nothing is worse when you see a teacher who chastises a students for using their cell phone in school, when they themselves are constantly checking their facebook status.  Secondly, we must use some of the suggestions listed above. I am a personal fan of teachers adjusting their teaching styles to their students needs. Students should not have to readjust their thinking everytime they encounter a teacher, it is up to the teacher to change their way of thinking.  http://edudemic.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/reach-students.jpg

A wise old owl once said "a person should read daily". Reading is the power behind all creative thought and success.  Here is link to a Thinglink that includes additional You Tube videos on the importance of reading.  http://www.thinglink.com/scene/345383443720306689?buttonSource=userPage Enjoy! 

Ken Robinson is right-"Fostering creativity in education is not an option.”  In the era of testing, we have allowed creativity to be pushed out of education.  Doing this has lead to students having a decrease in their ability to problem solve, whether in school and/or life.  At the heart of problem solving is Piaget's concepts of accommodation and assimilation.  Both lead to problem solving well, which leads to students doing well on exams.  We must create a system that values activities that support creativity.  A system where thinking out of the box is encouraged and conformity is loathed! 

As a lover of history, I am hopeful when a world leader understands that our students of today are not those of yesterday. The spoken word, whether done through song, poetry, and/or rhyme serves a powerful vehicle for making history of yesterday relevant for today! 

"But please remember, especially in these times of group-think and the right-on chorus, that no person is your friend (or kin) who demands your silence, or denies your right to grow and be perceived as fully blossomed as you were intended.  Or who belittles in any fashion the gifts you labour so to bring into the world." —  Alice Walker ,  In Search of our Mother's Gardens: Womanist Prose The above quote is one of the most POWERFUL quotes I have ever read.  I stumbled upon it while reading a book on teacher leadership.  In today's climate, there is struggle that lies within every individual who strives to become and life out their true calling.  This struggle involves resisting the temptation to engage in groupthink and embracing your God given right of being a person who is able to form their own opinions and be receptive to change.  As you break from the chains of groupthink, you emerge from the fog that has prevented you from seeing your...