Fore!

A metaphor for student teaching came to mind the other day after I declined to join my husband for a game of golf while on vacation.  Primarily, my reason was that I could not justify the cost to golf at a resort given my lack of skill (though I guess it could possibly be considered a good deal if examined on a cost per swing basis).  I have taken several golf lessons over the years that, more often than not, have left me feeling more uncoordinated and more frustrated than when I started.  I think the reason lies with the fact that the golf pros I have had lessons from have swamped me with a long list of requirements to keep in mind every time I swing the club – feet hip distance apart, toes forward, knees slightly bent, head down, arms straight . . . and that’s just getting set up to start the swing!  The number of details to which I am asked to attend before, during and after each swing overwhelms me and takes the joy out of trying.  You may now be wondering where I am going with this.  Let me be clear that I am not saying there is no joy in student teaching.  On the contrary, I find it extremely satisfying and full of joy each day.  What I am noticing, however, is that during the lessons when I am trying to attend to too many new things – using talk moves, asking only open-ended questions, assessing on-the-fly, trying to differentiate for 25 different individual needs and learning styles – my teaching becomes awkward, mechanical, frustrating, joyless and, most likely, less than optimally effective.  We are learning so many wonderful things about teaching every week from our professors, readings and blogs -- from small details to overarching principles -- but the list of things to attend to (including this week’s Top 10 list on "What Does It Mean to be a Great Teacher? (Ten Ideas)," a blog post by John Spencer) becomes like the laundry list of tips from the golf pro.  The advice is all terrific, but I become so focused on micromanaging what I am supposed to be doing that I am unable to “macro-manage” the lesson and attend to the needs of the children effectively.  What I need to do is focus on only a few new skills at a time and practice, practice, practice.  (A lesson I should apply to my golfing as well!)  Luckily, we are being given a lot of opportunities to practice this school year and I know that one at a time, these important new skills will come to feel natural until eventually we will practice them all without even thinking about them.   This is clearly happening already as I find myself unconsciously “channeling” Allison as I say “Who can repeat what Rafael said a different way?,”  “Who can add to what Sadie just said?,” or “Arya, tell me more about how you got that answer?”  Just as I need to relax in practicing my golf swing, not trying to get every single detail right on every swing, I also need to give myself some grace in my student teaching.  I need to relax and enjoy every moment of this safe practice time and trust that all the wonderful details we are being taught are sinking in and will become second-nature in due time.