Written by When I first read this prompt, I sort of wanted to laugh. Going well? A more accurate question most days would be “What isn’t going terribly?”
That’s why it took me such a long time to decide how to write this post. I feel as though this school year has made me re-evaluate what ‘going well’ even means. I am teaching in new ways, in new spaces, with new resources, so the old ways of evaluating what is good simply don’t work anymore. I am exhausted, mind and body, and a lot of the time I feel as though I am failing. I feel beaten down.
Which is why the room in these pictures has been so important. One of the by-products of our new restrictions has been this office space that I now share with five or six other teachers. 
As you can see, it’s a bit of a mad storage space for all of the materials that we have nowhere else to keep right now. But it has also become a safe space for mutual care. The walls are covered in quotes that we’ve found to help each other get through our days. Can we hug each other? No. But walking into this room each day and discovering new, inspirational messages from people that I care about feels kind of like a word hug. Most days I am in this room alone, but it has become a place where I feel less alone.
So that’s what’s going well. Feeling like there are people who have my back is going well. Taking care of each other is going well. We all need support right now, and creating and existing in a physical space that reflects that support has helped immensely.
So glad you joined Cohort 21! Looking forward to your posts.
This is such an incredible space, and demonstrates the power words have to carry us on. You are doing better than you think you are, and I am incredibly grateful to have you as a friend and colleague.
Your students are lucky to have a teacher who cares as much as you do.
xo
Jenn
Dani,
I love your post! Congratulations on your first blog and for sharing your thoughts on “what’s going well”. Your workspace is proof that small positive actions can affect people so deeply right now. The act of writing a relatable and inspirational quote seems simple, but it’s an actionable way of “not letting the bad days win”. (Just like candy from @cohort21 @gnichols and @jmedved – thank you for that small joy!!) It sounds like you have a fantastic team around you! Also, the thought of a “word hug” is lovely. I feel like there’s some magic in the idea of sharing word hugs in our school communities. I’m sure we could all use one!
Hello,
I love that your team has found ways to support each other, and ways to give “word hugs”. I love sharing an office with others, I know not everyone will agree but there is something so awesome about real-time support. Support to bounce ideas off of, someone else who just put the coffee on, support for your bad days and celebration for the good days. I love that your team is working to make this space a safe space.
@dklein Thank you for sharing pictures of your space and snapshots of your “mindset”. The very act of opening up your thinking to others and “What isn’t going terribly” is so helpful at a time when we all feel so alone. There is an element of group therapy going on here that is so important if we are to make it to June. Keeping it real and not giving way to https://thepsychologygroup.com/toxic-positivity helps acknowledge what seasoned teachers like yourself are going through. You have an entire career of lesson and unit “homeruns” to compare each day to that only leave you feeling deflated and like you are under performing. If this community can do one thing well it is to help everyone process and acknowledge that and then try and find some glimmers of energy / opportunity in the grind. This post and the candy we sent you is the first step in that process 🙂
@gvogt @mbrims @amacrae @bblack @gnichols @ckirsh
Hi @dklein, congratulations on your first post! I’m right there with @swelbourn and @mwilcox in loving the phrase “word hugs.” It’s so wonderful that you and your colleagues have found small, but such impactful ways to support one another. Thanks for reminding us that it doesn’t have to take much to help one another get through the day.
Esther
@dklein, sometimes it’s those small moments of connection that can make all the difference as educators. I’m happy to hear that you and your colleagues are aiming to ‘take care’ of each other in this small but impactful way.
Agree, agree, agree with all of the comments above! Small acts of kindness in the form of words can help us cognitively reframe our day. There is so much of neuroscience that we can practice and are practicing – for example, the prompt itself 🙂
See you Saturday,
Garth.
Hi @dklein, this is a great post! A lot of teachers at our school feel isolated these days due to rotating schedules, our school being spread out across two campuses, and lastly the physical distancing restrictions in place that have resulted in more sparsely populated office spaces. It is wonderful that you have been able to focus succinctly and impactfully on the importance of community in this blog post.