Week 4 Response Drew

Drew Fulton talks about the last chapters of The Art Of Possibilites.  Here is his take.

The practice that really hit home for me in these last few chapters was “Creating Frameworks of Possibility.”  To me, one of the biggest things that holds each of us back is the assumptions we knowingly or unknowingly make about future decisions.  I feel like we often make choices and decisions based off a certain list of criteria that we are conscious of but we often are unaware that we have also taken other things into consideration.
For example, I can’t tell you how many projects I have dreamed up that have never seen the light of day because I assume that the timing would never work, the funding wouldn’t exist, or that it simply isn’t possible.  Then, a few months later, I see someone doing something similar where clearly all those things actually worked out.  They had the guts to throw out those assumptions and go for it by creating a framework for possibility.
The three steps that are outlined are a pretty good way to get started and I am doing just that now.  A close friend and I are in the process of forming a new production company and I am doing everything I can to rethink most of my assumptions on what a production company is, what they do, and what sort of projects we can take on.  That’s step one.  Step two is to get started and get into it.  We are working on that now, finding projects, talking with people that might be interested in engaging with the project by pulling out their wallet and finding ways to get our media in front of the public.  As we go through all of this, we will be careful to figure out what is helping us and what is hurting us and focus just on what is helping us.  I can’t say these are easy steps, but I think they will help us to create a company that fits us and helps us to choose projects that we are passionate about.

My Response. 

Drew,
There have been so many times that I should have pulled the trigger on an idea. Like yourself, I find that someone has done my idea and been successful with it. I guess it just boils down to being willing to take the chance and believing in yourself that it can happen. I look forward towards seeing your project come to fruition. Nice Post.

Week 4 The Art Of Possibilites

You know when I first started reading this book I was a little skeptical. Now that I have finished it. I must say, It was AWESOME. At the risk of sounding a little flaky I identified so much with what this author had to say.  There are many points that Ben made, but the one that jumped out at me the most is chapter nine. In that chapter Ben talked about lighting the spark.

This chapter brought me back to when I first started teaching. The nation wide accountability and assessment movement happened during my second year of teaching.   I remember it being one of the most exciting times of my entire career. During that year I took my fourth graders on an overnight campout, taught them how to pan for gold, learned how to teach effective word study, and presented a full production of James and the Giant Peach with my class.  It was exciting because I was excited about teaching everyday, and worked hard to make the most of it. I remember that my students were fully on board with what we were doing.  

Since then, I began to buy into the teaching culture. As I look back I can see how my spark began to go out.  I still love teaching, but can see my enthusiasm for the profession has greatly diminished. This happened mostly because I bought into the notion that I needed to teach in a specific way, rather than teach from the heart. I began to let the culture dictate how I did my job, rather than allow my desire for my students to me happy motivate what happened in my classroom.

In the book The Art of Possibilities, Benjamin Zander talked about how back in the day people would walk around with ember boxes so that their spark would not go out, and they would not lose the ability to have fire.  As I look my attitude towards teaching, and how it has been and what I have lost, I can safely say that my spark has almost gone out.

I remember taking real risks when I first started teaching. I haven't taken.   Those risks for a while. After reading this book, I feel it is time to start taking a few more risks in class again. For that I am thankful.

Leadership Project Week 3

Now that my EMDT program is coming to a close, I have been looking around at various conferences where I would like to present my findings.  My first thoughts were to try to present locally, however, there are a lot of great ideas happening around the country. I feel as if I would like to become plugged in.

Plan A

My first choice is to present at a fall 2012 CUE conference in Napa California. This is a conference sponsored by computer using educators and is attended by most many teachers throughout the region. The conference is accepting applications until May 4^th. Also, it is close to my home.

Plan B

My second choice to present my project is with the ITSE conference in San Diego on June 24^th through the 27^th, 2012. This would also be an ideal place for me to present because it is also within a day’s drive from my home.

I plan on also applying to present at next years ETC conference here in  Modesto. It is sponsored every year by my district and is always great.