She Wants to Pursue It
perseverance
Monkeying Around
This painting is highly imperfect. The face seems to be floating around, detached. The fur is stiff and square. Painting it was not as fun as painting the hedgehog and it shows. The process reminded me of this quote:
Take chances, make mistakes. That’s how you grow. Pain nourishes your courage. You have to fail in order to practice being brave.
Mary Tyler Moore
Some pieces will be better than others. I love watching August Wren (Creativebug.com) paint because she talks out loud and often laughs at her mistakes.
Self-Advocate
Listening to Oprah’s podcast with will.i.am, I was profoundly impressed with him not only as a musician, but as an education proponent. His i.am.angel foundation brings STEAM (science, technology, engineering and math) programs to under-served communities. This foundation has also awarded over $800k in scholarships and 97% of these students are the first in their families to go to college.
Will echoes Milton Berle’s sage advice:
If a door closes, build a new door.
This reminds me of something that happened a few weeks ago, when I was reading the Red4Ed message board. A school bus driver wrote: “Are you guys (teachers) demanding a raise and better benefits for us classified staff?”
I see way too much self-medicating and not enough self-advocating these days. Don’t ever assume someone is looking out for you. You’ve got to do the heavy lifting yourself. Exercise your rights. Vote. Do something with what you have.
If you go by the usual quote, “When one door closes, another opens,” it assumes you will just wait for another one to open. When you build your own, it won’t ever close.
will.i.am
5,000 Hours
Malcolm Gladwell estimates it takes 10,000 hours of deliberate practice to be world class at a skill.
But a new study destroys that rule.
In any case, we’ve estimated that with regular practice, rehearsals, competitions and school orchestra, the girls have at least 5,000 of deliberate practice under their belt.
In nearly nine years of playing, the girls have not once said they want to quit. I attribute that to the fact that they only play violin – they do not do any other extracurriculars. The upsides of “being good” at something are: self-confidence, self-discipline and optimism!
Slow and Sure
Tonight, our school will hold an Awards Night to recognize students for exceptional GPAs, Service Work and other academic accomplishments.
Not one student will receive recognition for work achieved in a day or a week. These kind of successes require dedication throughout the school year.
A Force to be Reckoned With
John Force is an NHRA drag driver. He has over 144 victories and is a major player in his field.
As a child, he overcame childhood polio. As a young adult, he raced for twenty years and failed so miserably that he became the butt of jokes.
But he never gave up.
Most of us attempt something a few times and throw in the towel after a few failures.
What are you passionate about? Can you endure hundreds of fails? Public mockery? If you enjoy the process, (the learning and growth) instead of focusing on the end game, it takes care of itself.
“How Children Succeed” (Con’t)
Here is a continuation of my notes on Paul Tough’s research regarding “grit, curiosity, and the hidden power of character” as it pertains to children:
- Grit p. 74
“Duckworth realized self-control has limitations. She believed that a passionate commitment to a single mission and an unswerving dedication to achieve that mission are more relevant when it comes to inventing something new or creating an award-winning (movie)/project. She called this characteristic grit.”
She created a 12 (now 10) question survey that turned out to be a remarkably accurate predictor of success.
It was more accurate a predictor of graduation rates for West Point than their own assessments.
- Quantifying Character
Levin, Randolph, Seligman and Peterson narrowed a set of strengths that were indicators of life success and happiness:
- Grit
- Self-control
- Zest
- Social intelligence
- Gratitude
- Optimism
- Curiosity
They then created a “character report card”
Much confusion among educators regarding “character” – is it moral? Is it “performance character?”
- Affluence
Wealthy families may have “helicopter” parents (parents who hover over their kids as they do homework, sports, etc) but that does NOT mean they are spending quality family time together. In fact, many high-achieving, wealthy families are not closely bonded.
- Madeline Levine, psychologist in Marin County, says that wealthy parents are more emotionally distant than any other parent from their children
- Intense feelings of shame and hopelessness in their kids
- Levine was inspired by Suniya Luthar, psychology professor at Columbia Univ who did a comparison study between low-income and high-income households.
- Found 22% of wealthy kids suffered elevated rates of depression and clinically significant symptoms
- 35% of affluent kids tried all four substances (alcohol, cigarettes, marijuana and harder illegal drugs
- 15% of poor kids tried all four
- Dan Kindlon, assistant professor of child psychology at Harvard, also found an emotional disconnect between wealthy kids and their parents
- These parents were overly indulgent in their children’s bad behavior
- Parents making more than $1 million said that they were far less strict than their own parents
- A little hardship – discomfort – is good for children!
- This is an issue in private schools – telling parents they are not parenting properly means you are criticizing your employers (clients)
- A school like Riverdale (expensive, private – graduates include Chevy Chase, Carly Simon, etc) is not meant to help raise the ceiling, but to raise the floor = give kids a high probability of nonfailure.
- They do not develop grit
- Discipline p. 86
KIPP used to practice a lot of disciplinary action (some of which Levin regretted)
SLANT – stand up, listen, ask questions, nod, and track – taught at KIPP 5th grade
Code-switching – you must learn and practice proper behavior for the museum, college interview and nice restaurants
Rich kids at Riverdale wear casual clothes and slouch
Kids at KIPP are taught to have good posture and track teachers…formal speech
The administrators of both schools disagree on this point – what should students be taught?
Hustle
You want it. You work for it. You fail to secure it.
You still want it. You work again. No go.
You’re persevering! You’re trying! What’s wrong?
Perhaps it’s time to create it yourself?
Persevere!
As a teacher, I have many different types of students:
talented, but not diligent,
talented and diligent, and
not naturally so talented, but diligent
I do not have any untalented and non-diligent students.
It is the diligent students who meet the most success. There really is no substitute for hard work, self-discipline and care. With facts and “knowledge” readily available at our fingertips (Internet), it is not “knowing data” that will lead to success, but knowing how to use that data and knowing how to interact with people that will lead to achievement.
Grit is proven day by day, hour by hour, and on a consistent basis.
What will you be dedicated to – every day – in 2018?
Faith
When it seems hopeless, envision this:
A man in his forties, dressed in his best gray suit, sits alone at the table. His eyes are on the door. Gorgeous flowers wrapped in cellophane stand stiffly in a vase of water. He’s anxiously waiting for her.
Does she show up?
We hope she does…
And if she doesn’t? Imagine him crestfallen. Imagine his disappointment. What would you want to say to him?
***
Next, a young teenage boy is at a fast food restaurant. He orders a #4 (cheeseburger, fries, and a drink) and a #6 (chicken nuggets, fries, and a drink). He takes them to a booth and spreads them out, neatly. He waits, nervously looking at the door every time it opens. People come and go. He checks his watch four times. Thirty minutes later, he realizes she (or he) is not coming. He throws it all in a bag and heads home, dejected.
Wouldn’t you tell him he will find that special someone someday? Wouldn’t you urge him to not give up on the good in life?
Well, we’re all rooting for you, too.
Kismet 