JumpStart Noodle Ring Day (12/11/23)

What’s a Noodle Ring?  I had to turn to Mr. Google for the answer.  I thought it was all about Spaghettios today, but no (sadly. #teammeatball).  A Noodle rings is basically mac n’ cheese put into a bundt pan, baked, and then dumped out into a new, delicious shape.  Various religions feature such dishes for holidays, including the Jewish holidays of Yom Tov and Shabbat, and the Catholics serve noodle rings with veggies or creamed fish in the center during lent.  

Clearly fish fries are so yesterday.  

Have you ever had a noodle ring?  Do you have a recipe?  Please share!

Big Idea:   ‘Tis the season for all the feels.

Hollywood would have you believe that December is all about snow, fires, and mistletoe.  For may people, however, this month brings cold, memories of loved ones, and the uncertainty of an imminent new year.

This week, I was listening to an episode of the 10% Happier podcast, and the guest was talking about uncertainty and change.  She recounted a study where people who were told they had a low probability of getting an electric shock were more stressed than the people who were told they had a high probability.  We like our predictable life.

Likewise, think about all the people in the world who give up their freedoms for a more predictability.  Making decisions takes work and involves messiness.  Ask the history teacher in your building about the civilizations that moved from democratic to autocratic.

The irony is that every second of our future is uncertain; we live with uncertainty ALL the time.  Yet humans REALLY dislike change and unpredictability.

To help out, I curated some strategies and developed a resource for this week’s Mindful Monday (see Educator Resource to register)  that includes 7 ways to help cope with uncertainty.

This week, try this: So much of our aversion to uncertainty comes about when the unpredictable future butts up against our identity.  When you are assigned a new teaching position, it comes into conflict with your identity as a science teacher (for example).  Maybe instead of having ‘science teacher’ as our identity marker, try having ‘helper’ or ‘enjoys kids’ as part of how you see yourself.  Instead of titles, add characteristics to your identity. Then, when uncertainty comes along, the new teaching position won’t come into conflict with who you are, and moving into the new role will be a whole lot easier.

Quote:  "Uncertainty is the only certainty there is, and knowing how to live with insecurity is the only security."  (John Allen Paulos)

Educator Resource:  Mindful Mondays for Winter/Spring 2024. This is the 3rd year of Mindful Mondays, and we’ve had 7 so far this semester.  Twice each month, we get together to practice intention, breathwork, mindfulness, yoga, and guided meditation.  Each week is a different theme, but the structure is the same.  3:30 - 4:30 pm.  Free.   1 PD Hour per event for Illinois educators.
“Matt is a very calming voice after a whirlwind of a day. It works well to “be forced” (due to me signing up) to take time to work on self-care. Then I wonder why I don’t do it more often.”  ~Kim B.
Dad Joke: