JumpStart is Baaack! (9/11/23)

I'm sure you're off to a great start! By this point, I’m hoping you’ve learned the kids’ names, they know(ish) your procedures, and this email won’t automatically get archived.  For those of you who were teaching on 9/11/01, tell your students about that day - keep the story alive.  If you don’t remember that day, ask a veteran teacher what it was like.  I’ll bet they remember EXACTLY what they were doing when they heard the news (I do!).  Also take a moment to reflect on how your community came together after that time. How can we bring that back in our own small way?

Quote:  "Avoiding mistakes is an underrated way to improve.  It's easier to fend off a bad day than acheive a perfect day.  Rather than do you best, avoid your worst."  -James Clear

This past summer was super busy for me.  In addition to fitting in some travel, we have been working with the people at Mindful Practices in developing a new framework and toolkit for schools to use as they work toward Collective Well-being. Our hope is that this framework will one day be as famous as the CASEL Wheel!  :)

Of the hours of conversations we’ve had as a design team, one of the biggest shifts that will need to happen (in my opinion) in order for organizations to be well, is to move from ‘Whatever it takes!’ to ‘Give today’s best.’

Just the idea that not striving for 100% everyday is OK makes my stomach flip.

Yet everyone is worn out, fragile, and not coping well. What if we backed of just a bit?  Everything would still get done, and we will be able to be more present in the moment and actually take an easy breath at the end of the day rather than feeling out of breath when we finally climb into bed for less than 7 hours of sleep (but that’s another week!).

This week, try this: Pick a day this week.  Maybe it’s on a weekend for starters, or perhaps it’s today.  Follow James Clear’s advice and avoid your worst for one day.  At the end of the day, reflect on your expectations, your emotions (and how they are in your body), and how it affected your interactions with other people.  Just notice those things, name them, and set them aside to think about later.
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Educator Resource:  First Five by EdTomorrow.  I shared this last year, but if you’re new or didn’t jump on last year, it’s a biggie and worth getting in with at the beginning of the school year. You receive an email every day that has links to a PRIMARY and a SECONDARY webpage. On each page, there is a whole list of quick resources to use in your classroom under these headings:  Connect (Meme, Questions, At the Door, Quick Connect); Care (Check-In, Mindfulness, Positivity); Character (Quote, Video).  That’s 8 resources for one day. Every day.  Oh, and it’s free.

Dad Joke:  Why is a pirate a pirate?  Because they ARRRR.