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Today is Labor Day, most often referred to as the unofficial end of summer. On Friday morning when I asked my students what they knew about our upcoming holiday, they were stumped. I even heard a comment or two saying, “My mom said she doesn’t know what Labor Day is.” I did a bit of double-checking my own understanding of Labor Day and its history and we revisited the concept of Labor Day before the students left for the day. We talked about labor and the ways other people’s labor helps us and how our labor helps others. We also talked about the fact that not everyone gets the day off from work on Labor Day.

Today was not an official work day for me, and while I enjoyed my Labor Day holiday I was also thinking about labor and what that means in my work as a Writing Project director and educator. Teachers often get a bad rap about their summers off and short work days based on the hours that students are physically present. And yet, outside of those hours spent directly with students there is a lot of labor going on. This invisible labor–the work of planning, preparation, communicating, collaborating, researching–frequently is not seen as work at all. I understand that this work is not physical, backbreaking labor and yet without it the quality and effectiveness of our profession is diminished.

And I’m often reminded that I make a choice to work beyond my official work hours, and I admit that much of the work I do is a labor of love. I love creating spaces for learning and working out ways to support the learners that walk through my doors. But I also spend time doing things that are expected that I don’t love–preparing for standardized testing, attending meeting after meeting after meeting, writing and preparing report cards–but I do those things too.

I’m interested in the role that invisible labor plays in our society. I am also wondering how labor is viewed depending on your point of view. Here’s an example that comes to mind: some people in my neighborhood pay a gardener to mow their lawns and keep their yards trimmed and healthy, other people do their own yard work–often less frequently than the gardeners. Clearly the paid gardeners’ labor is acknowledged–they charge a fee and make their living doing yard maintenance. What about those who do their own yard work? Is their labor considered a hobby? A chore? What role does it play in our economy? Does the fact that some people do their own yard work somehow diminish the importance or skill required of professional gardeners?

What invisible labor do you take for granted? Whose labor is diminished because it seems like work anyone can do? What invisible labor do you provide? What do you wish others knew about your work?

Hope you all had a happy Labor Day, especially if you had to work today!

Lessons Repetition Taught

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This week’s focus on repetition for #sdawpphotovoices took me in some unexpected directions. For four days this week I took a picture of a mushroom growing in my yard. I noticed it first on Tuesday when I got home from the first day of school. On Wednesday when I got home it seemed significantly larger and rounder, so I had to take another picture. On Thursday I was looking forward to seeing the change when I got home…and no disappointment…I was wondering if it would pop! But Friday morning it was evident that someone had kicked the mushroom. I found it across the yard, upside down–which presented yet another photo opportunity and learning opportunity! I could see that what looked like a round mushroom was actually more like a rounded umbrella covering the stem from view. Here’s a few views of my mushroom.

Mushroom three days in a row

Mushroom through a macro lens

The #scaly inside of a mushroom.

The repetition of taking a photo of the same thing day after day had me paying close attention and asking myself questions to expand what I already knew. I love that photos help me learn!

The focus on repetition also provoked me to drive to work using a variety of routes. (More about that here) I didn’t want to take pictures that I had already taken, so I varied my route and looked for interesting photo options. I rediscovered the value of exploring, even when it is as simple as taking an extra five minutes on the way to work to stop and take a photo or two.

So…among the lessons learned this week through my photography are both to look again and again and again–there is value in repetition–and to change things up, look for variety, and be sure to take a few minutes each day to do something you enjoy simply because you enjoy it.

What does photography teach you?

Noticing Texture: September’s Photo-a-Day Invitation

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September arrives on our doorstep tomorrow and announces the unofficial end of summer. There’s something about the way Sssss roll off the tongue that suggests a texture that you can feel if you pay enough attention. This month, for the September photo-a-day challenge, you are invited to notice texture in your world and capture it in photographs. There are no rules–you are in charge in determining whether your photo fits the category!

The #scaly inside of a mushroom.

Take a picture each day that captures the spirit and feeling of the texture and post it to Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or Flickr using the hashtag #sdawpphotovoices. (You can post anywhere—if you want others to be able to follow your photos, Instagram and Twitter are best!) For more information about posting click here. At the end of each week let’s add an additional challenge: curate your pictures from the week and select one to highlight. You might post it on your blog along with some musings about why you selected it. If you don’t have a blog of your own, you have a couple of choices—you can create a blog (be sure to share it with us by including your blog address in the comments here—or better yet, tweet it using the hashtag #sdawpphotovoices) or you can post to the SDAWP Voices blog.

September 1-8: smooth

September 8 or 9: reflect on your week and share your thinking and picture (or collage) on the link up

September 9-15: scratchy

September 15 or 16: reflect on your week and share your thinking and picture (or collage) on the link up

September 16-22: scaly

September 22 or 23: reflect on your week and share your thinking and picture (or collage) on the link up

September 23-30: silky

September 30: reflect on your week and share your thinking and picture (or collage) on the link up

As an extra invitation, at the end of the month, pick your five favorites to inspire a bit of writing or art or something else you want to make. Be sure to share your creativity and what you discover through the process.

What will you find to photograph as you explore the texture in your world? Join us…for a day, a week, or the entire month!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Sea

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Today was one of those rare hot, sultry days in our coastal community…and it’s the first week of school. I love our old fashioned school with high ceilings, big windows…and no air conditioning! By the time I left work today I felt hot and soggy–and home was also hot and un-airconditioned.

The perfect answer to almost anything in my world is a walk on the beach. Mostly I walk at the beach on weekend mornings or afternoons. But today, a Friday evening sunset walk was the perfect way to cool off and the perfect end to the week. I’d forgotten how the sun setting changes the light and creates softness and shimmers, reflections and incredible colors.

A feeling of peacefulness comes over me as I listen to the waves crash and smell the salty air. I managed to catch this seagull in flight as it headed over the breakers. There is nothing like the sea to sooth away the stresses of the week and help me feel centered and calm.

Where is your peaceful place? What soothes and calms you at the end of your work week?

A Lesson in Resilience

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Learning is what school is all about…and I’m lucky to learn with my students every day. Today’s lesson was all about resilience.

We have 1:1 iPads in our classroom–for the second year in a row. It’s one of those mixed blessings: a flexible tool that kids love to learn with, and a tool with a mind of its own that creates havoc with lessons from time to time. Last week, before the students arrived, Margit and I spent time sorting out our returning students’ iPads and assigning the newly “cleaned” iPads to our new students. We made sure to sync the entire batch to our “cart account” to ensure that all our apps were on all the iPads and we also charged the iPads so they would be ready to use.

We introduced (or reintroduced) the iPads on Tuesday (the first day of school) with our focus on care, basic operations, and getting the IPads out and putting them away. Students constructed rules for iPad use yesterday…and we had grand plans for a project involving the iPads today. Things began smoothly…we split the students this morning with returning students in one room “cleaning up” their iPads and new students in the other room personalizing theirs. Students were successful and engaged–helping one another and taking care of business. That wonderful “buzz” permeated the classroom as we all were reintroduced to our tools after a summer away from them.

We moved on to our project…working with personal “artifacts” to tell a story about ourselves. Each student photographed their artifact. They worked to ensure they captured the item in the photo, careful to keep fingers out of the way and not let the iPad cover block the lens.

After recess we moved on to the next step: using the Notability app to import the photo and then record their voice telling the story of the artifact. We walked through the basics of the directions confident that students would help each other through the steps. And then the rumbles began…

It quickly became clear that our new students did not have the Notability app on their iPads–in spite of our syncing last week–and it wasn’t a quick fix. Times like these doubly reinforce the benefits of co-teaching. Margit worked with the IT support as I encouraged students to rehearse for their eventual recording, even without the iPad.

As you might expect, there was some anxiety from those without iPads–wondering if they would get to work on their projects and the sense of frustration that comes with plans gone awry. But overall, resilience won out. Our projects did not get done today and students have been reassured that they will get to return to the work tomorrow…with Notability installed on all the iPads. As teachers, we once again learned the importance of resilience and flexibility and a sense of calm in the face of a potential storm.

I know that in spite of the frustration, our students will benefit from learning how to respond when technology complicates our best laid plans. We hear plenty about this generation’s need for immediate gratification and inability to wait…often attributed to new technologies. And sometimes I don’t think I am any more patient than they are! But what I know from experience is that the use of these digital tools in the classroom is the perfect venue for teaching delayed gratification, problem solving, cooperation, and resilience…important life lessons for all of us.

Morning Views

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Just to change things up I’ve been taking a different route to work this week. And remembering some of my lessons learned from last week, I’ve been trying to take a few minutes every day to stop and take pictures of things that catch my eye. This week’s #sdawpphotovoices theme is repetition…and my route this week has some quirky features that capture that theme.

Here’s a photo I took this morning of a row of palm trees planted along a road above Highway 101. This photo is in its original state taken with my iPhone.

You can see ocean with the marine layer off in the distance and the beautiful blue of the early morning sunshine.

Below this row of palms is a pumpkin patch that I notice when I drive on the road below. I walked down a ways to try to get close enough to capture the orange of the pumpkins. I wanted to capture the ocean as a backdrop, but my iphone just isn’t able to capture the detail and the distance. I did pull this photo in and cropped it a bit to emphasize the pumpkins. I also used the souvenir filter on the app tadaa to change the effect.

In some ways this filter makes this scene look like something from the past instead of one taken today. I love that pumpkins are growing along the side of this road in a suburban beach city…a relic of the agricultural history of the area.

I think I’ll try yet another route tomorrow…I wonder what I’ll notice!

What do you see on your way to work? How does it change your view of the community?

The First Day

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What do you remember about the first day of school?

As a teacher, I continue to experience the first day of school every year. And every year I have those same feelings of nerves and excitement. In my multiage class I get the best of all worlds–I get to loop with my students entering second and third grade and I get new first grade students every year.

Today was our first day of school and it began with hugs and smiles…from returning students and parents. We got to catch up a little and students easily said good-bye to their parents as the school day began. And we met our new students with the excitement of beginnings. Nervous energy–ours and theirs–reminded us of the important milestone of starting a new school year. Those first days are filled with establishing the routines that will mark our community all year long.

My highlight of the day was watching my students work in groups, returning students facilitating the activity for their younger classmates. After discussing the highlights of their summer (everything from watching TV to running through the sprinklers, trips to visit cousins and grandmas to plenty of beach time, camps of every type–have you ever gone to fishing camp?–to playing at the park near home), students selected four of them to draw and write on sticky notes. Then as a table group (teams of four), they sorted their summer favorites and created categories to describe them. Finally each group created a graph that we will come back to in the next few days to both learn more about graphing and about each other.

While we wrote and read, sorted and classified we also began to form ourselves as a learning community where everyone has something to offer and much to learn–teachers and students alike.

I was exhausted at the end of the school day…and I suspect the same was true of my students. But I can’t wait until tomorrow. The first day of school marks a milestone, but it the days that follow that are the reason I teach.

What do you remember about the first day of school?