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From a Distance

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If you are a hedreich.com regular AND a music fan, you may have noticed that the blog article titles are song titles. Music is my thing. I can regularly be seen embarrassing my bio and school kids by breaking into song at unexpected times. Music weaves it’s way into articles, posts, lessons, on guest vlogs and even in PDs. My upcoming webinar is no different. From A Distance was a part of my original webinar title but I thought it was a bit unclear. It remains, however, the theme. From a distance ≠ at a distance. During this time of Covid19 social distancing, we have to lean in.

Leaning in means realizing that not only is from a distance ≠ at a distance, but similarly, distance learning is not the same as distance teaching:

  1. The person who is talking is the person who is learning.
  2. If you are lecturing for your 80 percent of your online sessions you are not building the communication skills of your students, you’re building your own.
  3. If teacher-student connection is the primary socialization in your class, your students are missing critical skill-building opportunities.

The good news is, you can correct that easily. Here are a couple of ideas that you can easily integrate. Assign students to:

  • “host” the class and be responsible for letting students in and greeting them in the chat while you host 5 minutes of Zoom unmuted chaos.
  • use the whiteboard or screen sharing functions to teach a part of the lesson.
  • pull up “guess the gibberish” on Instagram and play with the class (older students, of course).
  • host a Kahoot for the class.
  • have group discussions in breakout rooms.
  • have student led discussions after group work.
  • Have show and tell.
  • invite mom, dad, grandparents, siblings, animals, stuffed animals etc to be a part of the final 5 minutes of class. Take a group pic and send it to parents thanking them for all their help.

The point is that drilling information into your kids because you have fewer instructional minutes is not probably going to make them any smarter. The research tells us that making sure they feel connected will, however. So lean in. teaching them from a distance does not mean that you all remain separated by distance. Give them opportunities to interact. Let them do most of the talking. Set up your instructional nuggets as questions as much as possible so they are thinking and making connections– with the content, with you, with each other.

If you want to learn more about it, join me on Wednesday at 11AM (Texas time) for 7 Strategies for Better Online Student Engagement where we’ll talk about learning, engagement and connecting from a distance.

From a Distance Read More »

My Students Are Not All Okay

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I am fortunate to work with a diverse group of really great educators. Some of them have backgrounds similar to my own. Others come from very diverse backgrounds which heightens our ability to tackle problems from all angles. Sometimes, those same differences are food for thought, providing impetus to greater action. When talking to one of my favorite colleagues recently about the equity issues involved in moving learning online, I felt the difference in our backgrounds like a punch in the gut and it brought me here.

I was raised in a single-parent-ish, multi-generational home, one generation out of Houston’s Third Ward public housing. My mom used every extra penny to give me upper middle class exposure. I traded on those experiences to travel the world, even living and teaching in Switzerland for a decade and a half. My circle is a colorful community of friends who sometimes live in very different socio-economic worlds. Although I am in the Venn diagram middle of those worlds, folks on the high earning end don’t always know what life on the other side looks like. I find myself regularly in a room in which people do not know that living paycheck to paycheck is a real thing, without label and latte habits. I have friends who are shocked when I say that 1 in 4 Americans makes less than 40K. Even my friends who work in the trenches to get their students everything they need sometimes don’t know what it’s like to not make rent or eat 2 corndogs a day until your paycheck comes in. My early career as an artist taught me some real lessons about hunger and the gig economy and I have not forgotten them. I ache for people who are about to sacrifice everything so that we can flatten the curve and I fear that we don’t see the urgency of those needs.

I am glad to be a voice that helps uncover equity and access issues that we may not be aware of, especially now, as we push to get our lessons online. I am glad that my background has taught me how to ask questions and get help, for myself, for others. I am glad that I can raise awareness about the precipice that some of our families live on the edge of. I am also afraid that being a voice is not enough.

Now that we are in an economy that is doing a nose dive for many who were already barely making ends meet, what does equity look like? As we work on connecting kids to learning, have we built strong enough relationships so that we can connect kids to resources that will meet their basic needs? Are we making sure that mental health resources, food pantries, rental assistance and community outreach resources are on our Reminds, campus email blasts and even Google Classroom feeds, where appropriate? Do our kids know how to access a suicide or abuse hotline? Can their parents read well enough to fill out complicated forms necessary to access resources that we do send? Do we have basic needs crisis teams on every campus to provide help and additional services?

My kids are not all ok. I’m pretty sure that most of them are, but I am not content with most. Still, I am lucky. I work with an incredible team of caring educators who go the extra mile. I know that, while I don’t know every name and every need, I can call 3 people right now and they can let me know where help is still needed. For that I am thankful.

My challenge this week is for you to slow down on your Zooms and Flipgrids. Talk about Maslow and mental health in your PDs. Make it a priority to check in with your students. Find out who’s alone all day, who is taking care of younger siblings, who is hiding in his room because he’s stressed or afraid. Find out who can’t do meal pick up because their mama’s car broke down. Find out who is not ok and then do something about it. And if your students are all ok, maybe your students or family can donate to a local food pantry or even #stayhome and volunteer online to help those who aren’t.

Here is a list of resources for families in crisis:

  1. COVID-19 Response for Youth Who Are Homeless or in Foster Care
  2. Find Your Local Food Bank
  3.  Disaster Distress Helpline
  4. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-8255
  5. National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-7233
  6. Evictions and Foreclosure Moratoriums
  7. Salvation Army
  8. Pausing bills like mortgage, utilities and student loans
  9. E-filing back taxes quickly to get a stimulus check (more straightforward than the IRS site, but from the company Turbotax)

We won’t save every child in our classroom. We couldn’t when we were face to face and that hasn’t changed. But we can make sure that connecting with kids and helping the most vulnerable among us is a priority. For additional resources, see these earlier blog posts and to read up on equity strategies in general, consult my guest blog article on Jennifer Gonzalez’ Cult of Pedagogy.

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Everything’s Gonna Be Alright II

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It’s so easy to be grateful when life is chugging along smoothly, less so when even the lemons you’re squeezing to make lemonade seem to be bitter and moldy.

I know. My brick house of gratitude is mortared with tears and I’m sorrys. “I’m sorry, your husband has cancer”. “I’m sorry, he didn’t make it”. “I’m sorry, we can’t find the baby’s heartbeat”. “I’m sorry your mom collapsed and died in therapy”. I know pain and loss intimately and still, I can write, with confidence, that everything is going to be alright. In addition to a deep and abiding faith that grounds me in the belief that there’s an ultimate OK coming, I have lived through losses and tragedies that should have stripped me of my sunny disposition long ago. I have trudged through bad weeks and months and sometimes years at a time but I’ve come out on the other end. While being dragged, kicking and screaming, up the steep hill of personal growth, I learned the two things that I wouldn’t trade for an easier path; resilience and gratitude. I learned to cling, sometimes desperately, to the belief that by simply putting one foot in front of the other I would arrive somewhere better. I learned to remind myself of even the smallest things to be thankful for. Those reminders kept a glimmer of hope burning. That glimmer of hope was fanned by doggedness and molded by alternating fits and starts of steps forward and leaps back. My “everything will be alright” is not the platitude of a charmed soul, proverbial spoiled rich girl or even someone who is unfailingly optimistic, although I do tend to find the upside. The fact is, once you pull yourself up a few times with “Nobody Here But Jesus” playing over and over as your soundtrack, you find out that you can pull it together and that life will not beat you, it’ll just teach you more than you’d ever planned on learning.

So while you’re reading this, in whatever state of mind you find yourself as we go through this unique, difficult Covid-19 adventure, I would like to remind you that everything will be alright. There will be loss, in some cases, unimaginable tragedy. But there will be rebuilding, recovery and somehow, a new and different alright-ness. In the mean time, hunker down, wash your hands, watch some Tiktok videos and help someone if you can.

My help this week comes from Action For Healthy Kids. Many thanks to the bloggers for collecting such a comprehensive list of resources for everything from online learning to fitness and immune boosting nutrition.

Everything’s Gonna Be Alright II Read More »

Every Little Thing’s Gonna Be Alright

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Yesterday as I got to the 5th store on the third shopping day only to find shelves devoid of toilet paper, I decided to buy some emergency toilet Kleenex, get some pasta and call it a day. Once in line, I spontaneously started singing to a crying baby as the mom of 3 in front of me frantically searched for his binky. Baby Shark turned tears to smiles. People around looked up and relaxed their furrowed brows just briefly. A conversation started between the cashier and I; how the silliest songs work magic, how she hadn’t had a break all day, how I’d come in for toilet paper and found none. Again. Then more magic, she produced three packages confiscated from people trying to flout the “limit 2” rule. I took 2, Charmin, my favorite! I had come in, seven rolls between me and dry leaves and I had been spiraling. What if I really couldn’t find any? Would my neighbors share? What if we got the runs?! What if I never found toilet paper, even the cheap kind?! Fear was rising and then, *POOF*, I somehow had exactly what I needed. That taught me something.

Things are rarely as perilous as they seem, “no soup is eaten as hot as it’s served”. We paint worst case scenarios to protect ourselves from worst case scenarios, and that preparation is not bad, let’s just not live there. Let’s take control of the things we can. For teachers, one thing we can control is how we stay connected with our students. If you are converting to distance learning, here are my top five resources, with tutorials and app alternates for non US users:

  1. Screencastify, K-12. Here is the tutorial for recording your voice and integrating Google Slides. Screencastify will record your screen with a voiceover so it’s a great gateway app if you want to make your own tutorials for parents or students. Before you do, check YouTube. There are many great tutorials already out there and many lessons that you may be just about to re-create. While littles won’t need Screencastify lessons, depending on what you’re having them do, it could be helpful for the parents helping them.
  2. Flipgrid, K-12+. Here’s a tutorial in which Ann will get you started and put you in a good mood. She is super upbeat! Once you get set up, you can use it for read-alouds, discussions, video journals and for various peer to peer exchanges during this time of relative isolation. It’s also a great alternative to TikTok for younger kids, if you want to do dance challenges together.
  3. Pixton, grades 3-12+. Here’s a tutorial that gets you started. Pixton is great for ELA, tech, humanities and even math, if you want to really get into word problems. It’s a comic strip creator that allows for a lot of creativity. It would be great to have kids write about how they feel about Covid19 and about how they feel the adults in their lives are handling it. I bet we could learn a few things from their stories.
  4. CS First, grades 5-8, which has interactive, interdisciplinary lessons on various topics, from basic coding and digital storytelling to music and fashion. There are lessons in both English and Spanish. Here are tutorials to get you started. If you are outside of the US, let me recommend Hour of Code, which has lessons in over 45 languages for students in pre-k through high school!
  5. Interland, grades 4-7. No tutorial here, just click and play to learn digital citizenship principles. This is Google based, so if you are out of the country, try Common Sense Education for K-12 digital literacy curriculum and games for grades 3-5. These lessons are especially useful as reminders, since many students will have more screen time than usual.

All of these are good options, and there are many more. My advice? Keep it simple. Send something out using your email or remind system if you don’t have an online classroom set up. Or, set one up. Google Classroom and Schoology are user friendly, free options. With them, share links to any resources in one place and even have students turn in their work by a certain time like in a real classroom. Also, really consider Flipgrid, YouTube, TikTok or a social media platform, as policies allow. Human contact is necessary and being a live, talking, steadying influence for your students will be the most important thing you can do for them.

Finally for some, no matter how great your virtual teaching is, this time will be a nightmare. Consider using your resources to help those who may need more than just an internet connection. Here are some national links that connect you to resources in local communities, I’m sure there are many others.

You may be the first person to sense that something is wrong and that’s a big responsibility. But I think most of us signed up because we genuinely care so let’s move from empathy to action when we see students in need.

Will things get worse before they get better? Maybe. Will people we know get the Coronavirus? Maybe. Will they recover? Maybe. There are a lot of maybes and a lot of factors that are beyond our control. But here’s a spin: as chaotic as things are, we are also alive and living through something unique and unprecedented. That ain’t all bad, is it? You can teach in your jammies and send YouTube videos to your students of you and your dog explaining math. How cool is that? You can try your best to do a TikTok dance, give your kids a Cheerio tower challenge on Flipgrid, or send snail mail notes to ss who are not connected filled with love and message in a bottle challenges. Help your students to see adventure and the chance to problem solve in everything that’s happening. It won’t always be possible, but your calming voice can be the one to remind them that everything will indeed be alright.

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Salt Of The Earth

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While discussing the recent socio-emotional learning boom with a colleague, Kellie Bhari (@Kbhari5), she called to my attention the fact that SEL is indeed salt. In French. Salt is a preservative. Salt is the basis of most seasoning mixes. Salt is essential, regulatory, nutritive, healing, did I say essential?

I won’t bore you with facts and figures, but the research says that students who have a sense of belonging do better in school than students who don’t. When a school is a place students–and teachers–want to be, everyone is less stressed, more content and better able to achieve. Students learn better from teachers they like. So, as much as I hate bandwagons, the SEL one is a bandwagon we should all be on.

I am warm and fuzzy– in a strict, pragmatic kind of way, an emotional hybrid who has always believed that the world could be a better place if we were to be kinder to one another. As a child I would come in crying, not because I was hurt, but because the kids were being mean to one another. I’ve never been much for “roasting” (“the dozens” for Gen Xers), fail videos, boxing or brutal talk and reality TV shows. I’m the person who rescues puppies, helps sick people in parking lots and goes to fish funerals when invited. I am also the person who navigates the social media waters without stirring the pot for discussion’s sake. I am the teacher who has always built on kindness as the foundation of class management and collaborative learning.

Helping students learn to manage emotions and work collaboratively makes magic in a classroom. When students are taught explicitly to check attitudes, mean-spiritedness and cliquishness at the door, it makes a difference. Quiet students learn to speak out. “Smart kids” build alliances with the “popular kids”. Churlish students find their smile. And everybody can risk failing up.

Maybe you are more of a content nerd ( a good thing, btw) or maybe your school has a schedule that doesn’t leave much time for “extras”. Maybe this is the first you’ve heard about kindness being a part of SEL or maybe you’d just like to know more. Randomactsofkindness.org has a host of resources that are easily integrated into an already full school day. If you’re the bucket filler, challenge your students to do one nice thing for someone else today. And join them. And if you are a go big or go home type, introduce SDGs, the UN’s 17 sustainable global goals, where you and your kids can spread kindness on a global scale. Whatever you do, find a way to add SEL components to your lessons and watch the change.

Yes, salt flavors everything. SEL, likewise, so while the pressure is on and you are gearing up for STAAR, don’t put away your SEL shaker. Send a positive note home, tattle about something good your colleague did, do something nice for yourself, your spouse or your “personal” kids. Sprinkle each day with a little extra kindness. Your students will be better for it, and so will the world.

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Celebrate

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On January 15th, Martin Luther King Jr. would have been 91 years old, had he not been shot and killed over 50 years ago. The father and husband had yet to celebrate his 40th birthday. A black man, shot and killed, riots destroying communities. A weapon bought under an alias days before the murder, an investigation lacking in clarity and closure. A story that could be in the news cycle today. His untimely death left a hole in the soul of this country. Given his work for equity and access during his short tenure on earth, he could not have imagined that 50 years on, we would still see the black man shot-riot-murky investigation scene played over and over at regular intervals. He would be deeply saddened to know that although Alabama and many other places find black children and white children playing together, school segregation is on the rise and in integrated schools, black students, particularly males, have a 25% suspension rate although they make up only 8% of the school population. He would be outraged that the guns that leave people maimed, dead and traumatized in churches and schools across America can still be bought in many states with few restrictions. What would he be doing to celebrate his birthday if he were alive and able today? Would he be sadly siting on the sidelines penning social media rants, or would he find some way to continue the work he started decades ago, work we say we celebrate on the 3rd Monday in January?

How are we celebrating the birthday of this man who lost his life fighting for equity and access for all? Are we shopping the sales? Sleeping in? Watching the parades and eating barbecue? While a day of rest is not a bad thing and saving money is always good, let me give you a few alternatives that would honor the man and his vision:

  • Use your voice. Go to your local city council and school board meetings to speak out and vote on social justice issues.
  • Register to vote. Or if you’re already registered, pick up cards from the library and get 5 friends to register. And have them do the same.
  • Volunteer at a school, library or community tutoring center. You don’t have to be an algebra wiz to help a 2nd grader.
  • Organize a driving pool in your church or community to drive voters to and from the polls on election days. Local ones are coming up.
  • Support organizations like the ones on this list or scan the UN’s SDG Lazy Person’s Guide To Saving The World to see what you can do while shopping to make the world a better place and honor the King legacy.

This holiday is about so much more than a birthday. It’s a reminder that the work Martin Luther King Jr. began is unfinished. In our classrooms, on our campuses, in our communities, there is work that needs to be done every day to ensure that all students have access to an equitable and culturally responsive educational experience. What and how we teach them will prepare them to then flood our communities with a deep and abiding sense of social justice and fairness.

Mommie and me

I remember my great-grandmother, Mommie, going proudly to eat lunch in the 70s at the Woolworth lunch counter, her cane tucked away, hatted head held even higher than usual. It would be years before I understood what this small privilege meant to a black woman born in Louisiana in the 1890s. I remember the 80s when Jessie Helms and other politicians tried to make sure that MLK’s birthday wouldn’t become a national holiday, and I remember the joyous celebrations when it finally did. Finally, I remember, only a couple of years ago, my son asking me if Obama had been the first black president. I remember being moved to tears, not because he had missed that fact, but because my son’s norm was having a black president. There has been progress. MLK forged a path in his short time as a civil rights leader that we have widened and fortified. But there is so much more to be done. I am moved to leave you with this poignant, action inspiring MLK Jr. quote;

“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there “is” such a thing as being too late. This is no time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous and positive action.”

–Martin Luther King Jr.

In honor of tomorrow’s holiday, how will you celebrate?

Celebrate Read More »

I See You

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One evening, some silliness with a couple of teacher friends prompted me to Google an old series, The Beverly Hillbillies. Watching an episode transported me immediately back to my beloved childhood spot on the living room floor in front the TV. Like Jethro and Ellie Mae Clampett from the series, I grew up in an unconventional multi-generational household. The matriarch of our family was my great-grandmother, Mommie (pronounced with the second syllable stressed, in the Creole way), born in 1892. The matriarch of the Beverly Hillbillies was “Granny”. Although the show was an ensemble piece, Mommie seemed to only have eyes for Granny. Granny’s grey hair, her quick movements and her feisty wit rated Mommie’s commentary and wonder. At the time it was curious to me, but now that I am seeing my own Gen-X Hollywood A-listers relinquish their roles to the next generations, I understand why Mommie was so enamored with Granny. She saw in Granny a peer at a time in her life when her own peer group was dwindling. Ageism wasn’t even a word before 1969. There was no Netflix to push quality diverse programming and Norman Lear had not yet shaken up the sitcom scene. There were no Gracie and Frankies, no steamy Richard and Catherine love scenes and certainly no Morgan Freemans who kept getting hired “in spite of” being a minority and a senior. Mommie liked seeing Granny because she saw herself; and in seeing herself reflected on the Curtis Mathis TV screen, she felt un-invisible.

Thinking of how important Granny was to Mommie made me think of how important it is to be seen. EDU has responded to the need for inclusion and, although there are still “bubbles”, many educational settings have made strides in celebrating diversity and ensuring that students see themselves reflected in the staffs, literature and lessons on their campuses. Still, my question is, how are we defining diversity? In Hollywood it’s race, gender and age. In the classroom, we subtract age and add religion and socio-economic status. While these four cover a lot of ground, I’d like to challenge us all to go beyond those labels. How well are we validating and supporting students when the divergence is not apparent? Is there a quiet space at lunch for students who have social anxiety? Are there books to empower and encourage homeless kids or the students who run households? Are there qr codes and easily accessible resources posted for students struggling with depression and self-harm? Are our classes safe spaces for the kids with the “weird” hair or clothes who march to a different beat? Are we ourselves authentic and accepting so that students see themselves reflected in real life role models?

Beyond SEL and differentiation, how are you ensuring equity and access for all? Here is a challenge: have a weekly open door lunch and see who shows up. Get a couple of other teachers to do the same. A ‘lunch and hang’ will clue you in on who feels seen or who needs to be seen. It will give you a chance to learn about campus needs and trends you don’t know exist. You will find out about TikTok, games beyond Fortnite and Pubg, Creepypasta and who writes fan fiction. If your kiddos are younger, you will find out which cartoons are good, if wheelchair and ethnic hair Barbies really make the grade, and probably more about families than you want to know. You’ll find out who has lunch and who has hot Cheetos–or nothing at all. You will find out if your campus is a reflection of the students you serve and how you can serve better.

Mommie’s womance with Granny taught me the essence of what Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs taught me to name decades later; a sense of love, connection and belonging is essential. The questions I’ve asked here are the questions I ask myself daily. Am I really seeing my students? I can’t include what I don’t see so as an advocate for diversity and inclusion, I will be making sure to use my glasses more. Join me?

I See You Read More »

A Little Help From My Friends

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As an only child of an only child of two only children, my biological family can feel a bit smallish at times. That ain’t stopped me none, however! I am blessed to have a warm and supportive framily across two continents, to whom I could not be closer. I inherited some of those relationships from my mom as she taught me the value of a village so it isn’t surprising that I am raising my own only in the same way. What is wonderful and surprising is that I find same Hānai theme in my professional life.

#crazyPLN

Through a series of coincidences–if you believe in such–I have come across some amazing educators. We share many commonalities, and yet, are diverse in a way that would cause riots to break out on Facebook. Not only do we check in and support each other professionally, we have #squadgoals and find ourself spreading our brand of crazy, impactful HeartWork beyond our campuses to educators around the world.

So what’s the point of all this, you’re asking? First, to throw out some gratitude during this season. Having a group of understanding educators to vent to spares our families countless hours of listening to school-day tales while their eyes glaze over (yes, we notice)! Beyond the expression of gratitude and appreciation, I would like to encourage educators to seek out strong professional relationships. Too often we find ourselves alone in our classes, over-salting salted caramel lattes with our tears after some MeanParent email. Education can be brutal without a village, but it doesn’t have to be that way. You may have to put yourself out there and be the change. How about getting to know a teacher you hardly know, or writing someone on your campus a note of praise? You could also try to find groups of educators on other campuses in your district who you can share resources with. Or find educators across the world to Mystery Skype with! And find hashtags on social media that ring true with whatever your thing is, be it #SDGs, #SEL, #6thgrade or something else. I guarantee you’ll find your edumates, people you can double joy and halve pain with. And until you do, pop into our chats on Saturday mornings 9AM CET. You will find a group of extraordinary teachers, leaders, bloggers, authors, and mostly, wonderful human beings who are crazy about impacting the world through education!

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I Am What I AM

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Every year sees it’s academic superstars, those students who are focused, organized and gifted at the nuts and bolts of learning in a classroom setting. There must have been something in the water in 2008 because I am seeing some phenomenal 11 year olds. I appreciate all of my kids for their own unique strengths, but these kids have my admiration for a different reason. I want to be them when I grow up. Of course, in my 14th year in education, I should consider myself a grown-up. And I’m pretty sure I am, in all of the important ways. But while I am darn good at adulting, I have not yet stopped aspiring to be more grown-up. I am the teacher who turns in lesson plans on time, keeps a (mostly) neat desk, and I could pass a gradebook check on any given day. But I was not born this way. Third grade me spent many minutes nose-in-corner for having forgotten something—again. Or for having a messy backpack—again. Or for losing a paper—again. Of course third grade me in today’s school system would have been given “paperwork”, an IEP, or a 504, and a cool nickname like 2e. But it was a different time. I was a gifted student but “absent-minded” and would have “lost my head if it wasn’t attached”, as I so often heard. Since we are always really just bigger, (hopefully) more capable versions of our 3rd grade selves, I look at my superstars in the room and see my own growth potential. When Amerie was asked how she managed to write in her planner and complete her warm-up consistently every day before most kids had even pulled out their pencils, her answer was simple. “I don’t entertain foolishness”. Drop mic. GEEZ, I want that focus!

My computer lab,
my student’s shiny backpack and edge gel!

Every morning, forty minutes before class begins, I park and say hello to the librarian as she and her daughter pull in. I can tell she was Amie when she was a kid. She moves towards the school while I wish the back of her head a nice day and rummage through the back seat to pick one of 5 pairs of shoes that will match my outfit AND not have me limping out of school today. I walk toward campus, stopping briefly to mention the climate action my 7th graders are working on to the campus officer who leaves his motor running the whole 45 minutes he’s there. Shaking my head, I start off again towards the school building. In the distance I see the librarian already entering the building as I hug my kid goodbye before he goes off to his side of campus. Then I stop to ask Ms. Willis something about Fall Festival because, well, sometimes a conversation is so much better than an email. On my way to the MS building once again, I stop quickly to remind a student that he needs to come to tutoring. Finally inside the building, with 25 minutes to go, I say hello to the Spanish teacher in my new Duo Lingo Spanish, and beam at her compliments about my current ability to use lifesaving phrases like El Español es muy divertido. While I’m there we share a concern about a student because, as you know, a conversation is so much better than an email. Once again I head toward my room but remember to stop in to the Special Education department to set up a meeting about something. It’ll only take a sec. While I’m there, I say hi to Dobby, the pet bearded dragon who smiles at me when he hears my voice. No really, he does. I head to my room while greeting another two teachers, but this time I keep it moving. Class starts in 18 minutes and I still have fairy lights, lamps and a slow computer-projector combo to boot up. I finally make it to my class, get everything turned on and wonder why I don’t have time to run to the powder room before class. And why my coffee is cold. And why I didn’t get to change the date on the board. I got here 40 minutes early, after all. I am obviously not Amerie. Or Ollie, Figgy or Denny or any of the 11 year old superstars I am privileged to teach. I remind myself, however, that who I am is who I’m meant to be, in all my imperfection. We teachers sometimes forget that our schools don’t need perfect teachers, just teachers perfectly willing and ready to inspire learning.

If you know teachers who have forgotten this important truth, tag them and remind them.

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Dance With My Father

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An open letter peppered with football metaphors

Single motherhood is the only game I know in which you get booed for running someone else’s fumble into the end zone. Ball recovery is usually the stuff that makes MVPs, wins full rides and goes viral in compilation videos. So where is our cheering crowd?

Chris In Earl Campbell’s Number

As I walked out on this morning’s sermon that began with that old familiar tune about single mothers being unfit to raise boys, I realized that, had a preacher begun with “only a white man can govern society”, there would have been folks walking out right along with me. Sadly, I think I was the only person who noticed something was horribly wrong.

Basically if “only a man can raise a man”, then only a ball carrier can carry a ball, right? New England’s Kyle van Noy should have been lambasted for last season’s scoop and score against the Jets, right? Instead, the crowd went wild, as it should be with a fumble recovery. 

I want to be a Single Mother Head of Household Raising Children Alone…said almost no one ever. And men probably don’t start out to leave women to raise their children alone–but they do. In African-American households like mine, almost half of us are quarterbacking our boys to manhood, often with the defensive line sitting the bench. According to Pew and the Census Bureau, dads (and occasionally moms too) owed a whopping 33.7 billion in child support. That puts many single moms at our own 10-yard-line with poverty, dropping out, unemployment and drug use threatening to tackle us before we even hit the 50. Still, even deep in enemy territory, we play hard. And, despite what the old research says, recent data says we are making our way toward the goal line (insert crowd-goes-wild cheering here).

For folks not quite getting this, it’s all good. We don’t always get the home game crowd. But do me one favor? Next time you flag a single mom for picking up a fumble and running with it, check your jersey. If it ain’t black and white striped, be a fan and just cheer, because when the ball is fumbled, you pick it up and run. That’s what you do. And in spite of archaic, nay-saying rhetoric, women are winning the game, raising successful men every day.

Bobby D. Porché
My BFFs dad, prior to his death in 2017

While I have not had the luxury of an earthly father, I have known great men who have loved and protected their families, me included. I honor them and am thankful for the vision of fatherhood they have given me. Today, I also want to give a crowd-goes-wild cheer to women raising men on their own. Mommas, let that roar be the background music of every successful play that you end-zone-dance to. Finally, if you happen to know one of those single mother MVPs, give her a shout-out. Like #metoo, it helps to know someone else gets it. #SingleMomsRock

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