Traversing Lily Pads

Traversing Lily Pads 

By, Michael Earnshaw 

March 14, 2019 

@mearnshaw158 

Over Winter Break my family was fortunate enough to get away for a few nights at an indoor waterpark. The park was the perfect size, not too big where we had to follow our kids to each section, and not too small where they got bored after an hour or so. Our kids are at the perfect age where they’ll play together or with their cousins while my wife and I could relax at a table reading and just enjoying each other’s company.  

One of the attractions at the park was a row of green floating circles, basically lily pads, and a rope strung above them. This was my daughter’s jam! She has always loved physical challenges and obstacles. I’ve always said she’s going to be a future Crossfit champion. She spent 90% of our trip in this area, skipping over the lily pads faster each round, or hovering above, her feet just barely scraping the tops of them, while using the rope as a monkey bar.  

I got a kick out of watching her for a while, amazed at her strength and endurance to just keep going. My son came up and said he wanted to try. My son is the opposite of his younger sister. He has fine motor delays and cannot scale through obstacle courses like kids even half his age. My son also has trouble controlling his impulses. When things don’t go his way, or he doesn’t succeed, he can go from 0 to 150. When he said, “Dad, I’m going to go do that too,” I felt that feeling of freedom one has while on vacation leave my body like a spirit escaping a body after a final breath.  

I observed, wide-eyed, as he strolled over and got in line. As each kid darted across, I felt the sweat birthing on my brow as his turn approached. I kept asking myself, “Is he going to make it? Is there going to be a scene if he falls in? How is he going to respond to the other kids flying across with ease?” Before I could even formulate a prediction, he was up.  

Paralysis overtook as I watched him begin his run. But there was no run. There wasn’t even a walk. My son sat on the first lily pad, holding the rope above with his right hand, feet dangling in the water. He stretched his right leg to the next lily pad, then pulled it directly parallel to the one he was sitting on. Somehow, he scooted onto #2. Then, he did the same for #3, #4, and so on. After what was the longest lily pad traverse of the day, my son was on the other side of the pool, never once falling into the water. Blood flow returned to my body and I was able to sprout up, run over to my son, give him a hug and ask, “Do you want to do it again?” His response, “Nah, I’m going to go back on the slide.”

This got my wheels spinning. There is no one way to accomplish a goal. The end result is the same, but each individuals path to get there will differ. Does it truly matter how one reaches their goal?  

We need to remember this for our students. Our classrooms are filled with a variety of learners and learning styles. There is nothing wrong with Student A learning by sitting in a desk hearing a lecture while Student B gets the concepts standing up and working on a project hands-on. Does it matter that Student C masters a skill in 3 weeks while Student D takes 5?  

Knowing that our students are all working towards a goal, we must know, accept, and encourage all routes to get there. We can’t expect our students to reach the end with how we are most comfortable getting there. You never know, you may just find yourself down another avenue you never expected to be in!  

Surfing through the Storm: 3 Tips when Facing an Ever-growing "To Do" List

Surfing through the Storm: 3 Tips when Facing an Ever-growing “To Do” List 

By, Michael Earnshaw 

March 7, 2019 

@mearnshaw158 

Today I celebrated my 39th birthday. From the minute the alarm on my Garmin Vivoactive began vibrating, the weighted blanket of depression began to cover my body. I didn’t want to get out of bed and face the day. This had nothing to do with entering the last 365 days of my 30’s, but with the ever growing “To Do” list I've been facing the past 9 days.  

February is always an extremely busy month for me professionally. Basketball season, Family Peace & Kindness nights, Science Fairs, meetings, students and staff getting cabin fever. I’ve always been pretty good at finding that balance. This year was different. This year my scale was sitting balanced, but both sides were stacked.  

Personally, I've been juggling getting a side hustle going, getting blogs out consistently, training for a half marathon, being an amazing husband, and advocating for my son whose current ADHD medication seems to be having 0 positive effects.  

The scale is balanced, but how much weight can these plates hold? 

If I told you I had the answer and everything in my life is perfection now I’d be lying. But I can tell you 3 tips I've implemented to start to shake that weighted blanket off and begin chipping away at the items balancing like a carnival clown car on my scale.  

1. 1. Close your eyes and take 6 deep breaths. If you’re still feeling overwhelmed, close your eyes again and take 6 deep breaths.  
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2. 2. Write down all the items and tasks you need to complete. Now, write down the title of each day of the week and place no more than 5 items of that original list in each day. These are the 5 things you will need to complete. Just 5.   
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3. 3. Find at least 30 minutes each day to do something for you and only you. You may need to get up earlier, or go to bed later, but this will far outweigh the feeling of running all day for others and a multitude of “To Do’s”.  
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Are these 3 tips going to take away all the stress, frustration, and depression your rocky mountain of tasks you face every day bring? No, it’s not. But it will hopefully help you stay focused on what needs to be done, realize it doesn’t need to be completed all in one day, and stay focused on your overall goals.  

Don't Go Into an Obstacle Race with Your Hands Tied Behind Your Back

Don’t Go Into an Obstacle Race with Your Hands Tied Behind your Back  

By, Michael Earnshaw 

March 2, 2019

@mearnshaw158 

How we compose ourselves will greatly impact the outcome of situations we’re in.  

A good friend shared with me an honest reflection this morning of 2 situations they encountered this past week. This got me thinking of Wednesday, a very busy, stressful day from the moment I entered school. We cannot control the situations that the universe immerses us into, but we can control ourselves. We can control our reactions, our choices, our words. This control cannot change the situation in its entirety, but it will greatly influence the outcome.  

Tuesday evening, I was invited to dinner with friends whom we’ve never met face to face. All interactions have been through Twitter, Voxer, and texts. I was able to network and build new friendships and am very excited for what the future holds. We shared stories from our schools, had many laughs, and memories made. Dinner was about an hour away from my house and before I knew it I was pulling into my garage close to midnight. I had been up since 4 am so needless to say, I was going to be tired tomorrow.  

Wednesday morning came and I was ready for the day. The prior nights conversations had me fired up to make a difference in the lives of our staff and more importantly, students. I was looking forward to standing outside, in the car lane, opening doors, waiving to parents, and fist bumping our students. The minute my FOB beeped and acknowledged my access to enter the office, I could smell the smoke of the fires I needed to extinguish.  

Students fighting over a spot in line. Another group displaying disrespect towards our supervisors in the gym. Classrooms that where in need of a sub. A teacher frustrated with her classroom numbers multiplying like Gremlins after midnight. And my AP was out this morning at a seminar.  

I took 6 deep breaths, analyzed each scenario, and began working. Not once did I sigh in frustration. Not once did I utter any negative phrases under my breath. Not once did I let how I may be feeling or thinking on the inside show. Each obstacle was tackled head on, with confidence, and a smile.  

After getting through each roadblock, I poured a cup of coffee, got my morning motivational Tweet out, and headed into the heart of our school with my mobile desk to get in those fist bumps and connections I missed outside.  

I could have shown my tired frustration. I could have blown off a few of these cases as if they weren’t important. All that would have done is set a negative, frustrated pulse in our school for the day. I don’t want that. Our staff doesn’t deserve that. Our kids don’t deserve that.  

How we compose ourselves in undesirable situations will greatly influence the outcome. As educators we have eyes on us all the time. If you want to have a happy, productive day, it needs to start with how you handle each of these situations life throws at you. It’s your call and only yours. How do you want to be?