beyond the classroom

going farther than the physical space, we spend seven hours a day training + guiding emotions, social situations, and character development.

exhausting at times, actually most times, yet completely exhilarating.

my students ask many ‘why’ questions + i love that more than any other aspect of joining them in their learning journey.

my vision is to encourage curiosity in their young minds that will continue to set them up for success so they become human beings that won’t just settle for a flat answer.

i came into school yesterday incredibly excited.

you see, my second-grade students are studying a science unit on weather around the world, including how the moon and space affect these unique patterns.

what intrigues them the most is extreme weather conditions like hurricanes, blizzards, tornadoes, and thunderstorms that cause destruction in their paths.

here in tropical Florida, we are somewhat sheltered in our experiences of extreme weather. we can visit the beach all twelve months of the year + enjoy the glorious sunshine as we slather on copious amounts of sunscreen daily.

we see hurricanes and the occasional relentless thunderstorm, but in no way can even imagine the devastation of northern blizzards + snowstorms.

which leads me to share an amazing connection that was made with my students.

a northern teacher friend from British Columbia had some free time this week due to post-blizzard-related school cancellations. i invited him to zoom with our class and come visit to participate in our science discussion.

he enthusiastically agreed + my students were beyond eager to see someone who lives in the snow. i know, i know…honestly, most of them had never SEEN snow.

what my friend, tim stephenson (@astrostephenson), did was build a connection.

he contributed greatly to the village that is raising young humans to grow beyond their own comfort and examine + investigate the world around them.

tim spent 45 minutes with my students. 45 uninterrupted minutes.

answering their questions.

tolerating them making faces in the camera.

encouraging them to think for themselves and to be uniquely inquisitive and never settle for the simple answers.

he ended our session by taking a walk outside to show us the deep accumulations of snow that had fallen. he was silly + fun. they watched him eat snow, throw snowballs, and toss handfuls up into the air with laughter.

guess what?

the connection was made.

growth happened.

can i share how all of this came about?

tim and i met on social media. we learned from each other. we leaned into each other’s passions and educational visions for students.

when i say that i have friends all over the world, y’all — i DO have friends all over the world. we may have never met face to face, but that fact does not discredit the impact that we have on each other’s hearts + lives.

there is nothing in this life that will replace the importance of human community + fellowship. if we could just realize that when we invest our time + efforts into finding ways to nurture a love of learning, there are no limits.

take the risk. reach out.

explore your strategies, practices, pedagogy, and skills that will allow you the freedom to cultivate significance in the learning adventure. don’t believe for a moment that it has to be boring.

we are all on this big blue marble to exist together. it’s the greatest partnership we can be a part of. and watch it expand + reach far beyond the classroom…and your wildest dreams.