Written by What is it about September?
Anticipation comes with a new year, a new class, new friends, and new beginnings. September is about Promise and Possibility. Teachers, parents, and students all have a light in their eyes in September. As teachers, we are full of new ideas, good wishes and intentions for the start of another school year. We are ready to try new things, invent, create, discover and wonder alongside our students.
But if we are not careful, by the end the month, as we creep up on the doorstep of Thanksgiving, the light we carried into September can begin to pale. The plans we had to innovate and create can get lost amid the immediate demands and rapid pace of our schools. And for many teachers, the month of Promise and Possibility wanes and is replaced by a school year that waxes routine.
No doubt that, if you work in the field of education, September has enveloped you in a sea surge of activity, the tides tossing us up on the shore only to pull us out deeper into the sea with each wave. It’s an exciting time. The first three weeks of school have already seen some of us bunking at camps, unpacking dorm rooms, rolling out laptops to faculty and students, welcoming new students and their families, coaching and travelling with competitive sports teams, hosting school pep rallies, and preparing for Homecomings. And somewhere in there, three weeks worth of rigorous academic courses have been delivered. School startup has submerged us in the ever-evolving, rich ecosystems of our schools. If we are not careful, our plans to innovate, create, and take risks in our classrooms may succumb to the lure of efficiency and ease of routine. By October, our intentions to experiment and explore drift away like flotsam, as focus shifts to the immediate need to tread the waters of another busy school year.
Treading water is exhausting. Swimming in place will not show you or your students the world.
So, how do you prevent yourself from going under? How do you keep and carry the Promise and Possibility that comes with September throughout the school year? How do you make good on your intentions to try new things, invent, explore, discover and wonder alongside your students?
Join a crew. Be a pirate.
At first it may seem counterintuitive to take on yet another new challenge, to commit to another community, when you are already feeling bogged down with your present school commitments and white water schedule. But, what if this new challenge could help you navigate the waters, harness the waves, help turn the tide of routine back to possibility and promise? What if joining a crew could help you nurture the adventurer in you, and in turn help you nurture the explorer in your students? Expeditions and explorations are often most successful when they involve a team, a group of people committed to a common goal and sharing a common language. If you want to stretch your thinking, experiment and play with new technology, discover a treasure trove of best practice, and be part of a potent and progressive community of educators, look no further. Cohort 21 is taking recruits and we want you.
Cohort 21 will take you to an infinite shoreline, a place where you can catch your breath, regroup, reflect, and learn new things. And with every shoreline, there are treasures to be found. Apps and best practices, strategies and communities are like gold coins and gemstones, shells and sea glass, all sunning themselves along the shoreline waiting to be plucked.
Cohort 21 is about divergent thinking, transformation, and process. It reminds us that real learning has always been about discovery and reflection. Both require uninterrupted protected time. You will be part of an emerging and dynamic community of fellow treasure hunters, people with diverse backgrounds, interests, expertise, and expectations. This motley crew is comprised of various grade and subject teachers, librarians, tech integrators, administrators from across the CIS Ontario community all wanting to extend and stretch their craft through face-to-face sessions, Google Hangouts, regular blogging, tweeting, and sharing of resources via multiple platforms.
It’s a year-long commitment, but the rewards will be yours for the remainder of your career.
This September, join the Cohort 21 crew. There’s no need to tread the waters alone.
For more information about Cohort 21 and the kind of work and community that awaits, please visit the official website and have a look at the promo video below.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BgOkvPLrz4[/youtube]