I am new to your posts and greatly admire your courage and perseverance for the good of your students. Do you have a post done previously you can recommend to help me catch up with you. I am a bit slow being 85 and having gone to public school K - 12 in the late 1940s and 50s, graduated in 1957. I am plugging away here at my classic film study project and my goal at this stage in my life is to share with the kids that are underserved with films like 12 Angry Men and It's a Wonderful Life. I found your substack and see that you are a realist who is also an idealist. You believe in the capacity of your kids to see what is good, hard as it can be. Interested in learning more. Thank you. Onalee McGraw, Ph.D, Director Educational Guidance Institute.
Onalee, love to hear you're still engaging in education and passing great knowledge along to the next generation. This fires me up. Also, "realist who is an idealist..." thank you for that compliment. I've never thought of myself that way, but it has a feel of truth to me. Can't wait to steal it and use it in another article.
As for catching you up...man. I've written a lot of stuff over the past two years.
Here's two of my favorite pieces I've ever written.
Also, no idea how much time you have on your hands...but in the early days of the substack I wrote a three post bio of my life so far, so readers could get to know the author behind the posts...be forewarned there's an enormous amount of potty mouth cursing in these (believe it or not I've tried to tone it back some) The writing isn't quite as good...but if you want to get to know me, it's a decent place to start.
Kia ora. I am new to your Substack. It was a brilliant article and you are a brilliant story teller. I was simultaneously rooting for you and your student, and laughing out loud! Some people have the ability to tell stories and you are one of them. Kia kaha from Aotearoa NZ.
OK, dude I am a 35 year veteran (no inner city experience, though I did work on the Reservation for awhile), and your stories give me the best kind of goosebumps.
Keep up the great work AND the chronicling of it all.
Mah man. Turning 34 myself this July. As long as I work in public education I think I'm going to do my damndest to chronicle the ride. Thanks for the shout out, and thank you for your service.
What a great piece!! You’ve quickly become one of my favorite substack reads. You’re a fantastic storyteller - and I love how you view teaching both in terms of your relationships with kids and challenges that spur your own skill development.
I hope you will write a book - you have the potential to raise the bar and inspire the entire profession.
"Fantastic Storyteller" Lapwai, I view myself first and foremost as a knuckle dragging gym bro, so thank for the high praise towards the writing. It still surprises me every time someone does so. As for a book...man, I think I could do it, but its a long way out. Appreciate the support.
The conversation that you had with Kyle where you said: "Bro, you would never respect me if I let that shit slide. In fact, the reason you respect me is exactly because I don’t let that shit slide". Exactly this!
More often than not, kids know when they are taking advantage of something or taking the piss, and if they see you letting things slide, then this sends such a strong message to them and other students that you are push-over. It's about respect, but it's also about them testing boundaries that they see reflected in the world outside of school. Early in my teaching career, I didn't have the confidence to push back in certain situations and with certain students, so they walked all over me! Now, I am older and don't let shit slide as much as possible, and it makes such a difference to the relationships that you build with students in a positive way.
Ps - We never did the pacer test at school. I did go school in the UK, so that could be the reason why but it sounds hellish!
It's an awesome test =), but it really is only as painful as the kid decides to make it.
And right on, Sarah. I think the most important lesson I've learned in teaching thus far is this: the standard you see is the standard you allow.
The moment kids see you allowing another student to react in a certain way, thats the moment where they make the connection that they can act that way to. There is of course nuance to this, but this is classroom management in a nutshell.
Damn, dude, this one gave me long-lasting chills. You’re on fire this year. (And loved the nonlinear storytelling structure.)
I knew you’d love this one after our conversation on Saturday 🙂. Appreciate it!
I am new to your posts and greatly admire your courage and perseverance for the good of your students. Do you have a post done previously you can recommend to help me catch up with you. I am a bit slow being 85 and having gone to public school K - 12 in the late 1940s and 50s, graduated in 1957. I am plugging away here at my classic film study project and my goal at this stage in my life is to share with the kids that are underserved with films like 12 Angry Men and It's a Wonderful Life. I found your substack and see that you are a realist who is also an idealist. You believe in the capacity of your kids to see what is good, hard as it can be. Interested in learning more. Thank you. Onalee McGraw, Ph.D, Director Educational Guidance Institute.
Onalee, love to hear you're still engaging in education and passing great knowledge along to the next generation. This fires me up. Also, "realist who is an idealist..." thank you for that compliment. I've never thought of myself that way, but it has a feel of truth to me. Can't wait to steal it and use it in another article.
As for catching you up...man. I've written a lot of stuff over the past two years.
Here's two of my favorite pieces I've ever written.
An epic tournament between the staff and the kids: https://fittoteach.substack.com/p/never-let-the-kids-win?utm_source=publication-search
And this one highlights one of the greatest teachers I ever had the pleasure to learn from.
https://fittoteach.substack.com/p/to-mr-smith?utm_source=publication-search
Also, no idea how much time you have on your hands...but in the early days of the substack I wrote a three post bio of my life so far, so readers could get to know the author behind the posts...be forewarned there's an enormous amount of potty mouth cursing in these (believe it or not I've tried to tone it back some) The writing isn't quite as good...but if you want to get to know me, it's a decent place to start.
Part 1:
https://fittoteach.substack.com/p/fuck-off-and-dont-trust-this-blog?utm_source=publication-search
Part 2:
https://fittoteach.substack.com/p/fuck-off-and-dont-trust-this-blog-f9c?utm_source=publication-search
Part 3:
https://fittoteach.substack.com/p/fuck-off-and-dont-trust-this-blog-930?utm_source=publication-search
There's plenty more piece I've written that I like...but imagine that is more than enough to start with. Hope you enjoy!
This is soooooo good. This is the type of support kids neeeeeed. Thank you for your efforts.
Appreciate it!
Banger brownie recipe, thanks for sharing! ❤️
Just made some. They really are bitchin.
Kia ora. I am new to your Substack. It was a brilliant article and you are a brilliant story teller. I was simultaneously rooting for you and your student, and laughing out loud! Some people have the ability to tell stories and you are one of them. Kia kaha from Aotearoa NZ.
As a P.E. Teacher its always surprising and fun to hear people tell me I can write and tell stories. The compliment is much appreciated!
OK, dude I am a 35 year veteran (no inner city experience, though I did work on the Reservation for awhile), and your stories give me the best kind of goosebumps.
Keep up the great work AND the chronicling of it all.
Mah man. Turning 34 myself this July. As long as I work in public education I think I'm going to do my damndest to chronicle the ride. Thanks for the shout out, and thank you for your service.
What a great piece!! You’ve quickly become one of my favorite substack reads. You’re a fantastic storyteller - and I love how you view teaching both in terms of your relationships with kids and challenges that spur your own skill development.
I hope you will write a book - you have the potential to raise the bar and inspire the entire profession.
"Fantastic Storyteller" Lapwai, I view myself first and foremost as a knuckle dragging gym bro, so thank for the high praise towards the writing. It still surprises me every time someone does so. As for a book...man, I think I could do it, but its a long way out. Appreciate the support.
Tell me why this post made me cry, because right now I'm sobbing
*hug*
The conversation that you had with Kyle where you said: "Bro, you would never respect me if I let that shit slide. In fact, the reason you respect me is exactly because I don’t let that shit slide". Exactly this!
More often than not, kids know when they are taking advantage of something or taking the piss, and if they see you letting things slide, then this sends such a strong message to them and other students that you are push-over. It's about respect, but it's also about them testing boundaries that they see reflected in the world outside of school. Early in my teaching career, I didn't have the confidence to push back in certain situations and with certain students, so they walked all over me! Now, I am older and don't let shit slide as much as possible, and it makes such a difference to the relationships that you build with students in a positive way.
Ps - We never did the pacer test at school. I did go school in the UK, so that could be the reason why but it sounds hellish!
It's an awesome test =), but it really is only as painful as the kid decides to make it.
And right on, Sarah. I think the most important lesson I've learned in teaching thus far is this: the standard you see is the standard you allow.
The moment kids see you allowing another student to react in a certain way, thats the moment where they make the connection that they can act that way to. There is of course nuance to this, but this is classroom management in a nutshell.
Thank you for being the gym teacher that was absent in my life. For real- that’s just awesome teaching.
Appreciate it Jess! I have plenty of conversations that don't go my way... but this was a good one to share.
I love reading your posts. This one was awesome.
I define myself as gym rat with a low amount of intelligence, so it's always great to hear people are enjoying the writing. Appreciate the compliment.
So, did Kyle (or is it Ryan?) get an even later brownie? Maybe after a public apology?
🤦♂️, I’ve already fixed the name change on the site, but the emails are already out… sigh.
In any case, I gave him one brownie at the end of the day when the rest of his teammates had their fill. He was surprised to get it, lol.
Thank god for this comment. Man, this story is absolute poetry. Thank you so much for sharing it.
Thanks Jeff. Appreciate it!