Like this:

There are those who are socially adept. Then there are those like me, those who just a bit socially awkward. I admit, I have come a long way, but at times, I still envy those who so quickly and easily connect with others.

But what does this mean for me as a teacher? The three R’s. Yeah, those, but the new ones. Rigor, Relevance, and Relationships. Relationships. This is a big idea where I teach. And I agree it’s an important one. Now, if only I was better at it.

A few months ago, I attended a workshop called Capturing Kid’s Hearts. Awesome ideas on how to connect, but sometimes the presenter was so quick. She had a response for anything that a student might say, it seemed. I’m not that quick.

But today, I actually saw an improvement in myself. You know those little side-talks you have with students when they want to cause trouble? Four years of teaching and I’ve never really felt I’ve had any real success with those. But I guess I finally said or did something different that worked today, because I didn’t just achieve compliance (as most little talks do), but the student took the role of an active learner. I must be a slow learner, because I’m already in my 5th year of teaching, and I’m still figuring stuff like this out. And I’m not even sure what I did differently.

Greeting students at the door. I’ve done this before, but something about this year seems different. Students actually talk back to me as they walk in, and they smile, rather than just shake my hand because they feel obligated to…well most of them at least.

Is it safe to say I’m getting better at this? Who knows. It’s still only the second week of school.

Next week. Let me see if I can get this “social contract” to work now.

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