[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] L is for the Law of Unintended Consequences

Okay tootsies... it's time to get down with some philosophy up in the blogosphere. 

As I reach the almost halfway mark of the Abecedary of Cape-Wearing with the letter L.

L is for the Law of Unintended Consequences

Here are some quick definitions:

--events and/or actions that result from the implementation of a law of rule that the makers of the law did not expect (link here)

--unintended consequences (sometimes unanticipated consequences or unforeseen consequences) are outcomes that are not the ones intended by a purposeful action (link here)

--actions, particularly those taken on a large scale as by governments, may have unexpected consequences. These “reactions,” may be positive, negative or merely neutral, but they veer off from the intent of the initial action (link here)

How does this apply to the Abecedary of Cape-Wearing? Here is my thinking (and the thinking of these folks that wrote this cool and totally geeky book)...  Superheroes dwell exactly in the middle of a world of large-scale, high impact, life-altering change. They save lives, lasso meteors, thwart world domination. Even the smallest action in the world of a superhero is... well... super. It is a super action that leads to a super consequence. 

When my kidlets and I were in the throes of discussing what makes a superhero, they noticed that all of the truly heroic superfolks wrestled with their own powers at one time or another. At first they scoffed at this idea--why would Superman even pause for thought if he could do all of those super things?  Why didn't Batman just stop with the tortured-soul act and get on with it? What could possibly have possessed Hal Jordan to even consider NOT becoming a Green Lantern?

One of the kidlets had a big thinking thought, "Because sometimes people died."

Big thinking silence ensued. What if your heroism killed people?  Is it worth it? 

"Yes, if it saves other people."

"What if it kills the wrong people?"

"Is it ever worth it if someone dies?"

"I bet you still feel bad even if you didn't mean it."

"It doesn't matter if you meant it or not--it killed people."

And they looked at me for the answer--hoping I could wrap it up in a nice package that would feel better than the abyss of uncertainty that was, at that moment, staring them in the face.  They waited... I waited...  realization dawned on their spongy brains. There is no right answer to this question. Large-scale actions lead to large scale results--a spider web of consequences that can't be planned or controlled. 

After this conversation the lovies were subdued for a few days. They noticed unintended consequences for their decisions more and more. The learning on this one was deep and personal. I wasn't sure if they would make the connection, but I didn't want to make it for them--this was deep learning and not to be rushed.

About a week later the light shined down--they were reading about Martin Luther King Jr in their social studies class. I heard them arguing as they walked in to my room,

"He was a pacifist. He was peaceful."

"But people got hurt and maybe died."

"He didn't mean for them to do that though. It wasn't his fault."

"He gave speeches and told them to take action--he should have known."

"How could he know what would they would do?"

“That’s what you have to do when you make big decisions. You have to decide if it’s worth the consequence.”

And lo' the light shined down as they made the connection.

"Hey Boss, this is that law of the consequences thing!”

Why yes my dears... yes it is.

In education we must be aware of the Law of Unintended Consequences. Our words and actions have power. We may not be able to control each resulting ripple, but it is our responsibility to think it through, consider it, be intentional in our work.

What are your thoughts about the Law of Unintended Consequences?  Where does it apply to your work, your planning, your best hopes?

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] K is for Kal-El

http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Kal-El_%28Earth-One%29

Back in the day, my wee little students wrestled with a big question. 

What is a superhero?

Their conversations during the various phases of this discussion were awe-inspiring. They thought deeply about heroism, super-heroism, humanity, the forces of good and evil, and their own belief systems.

Each time they thought they had a clear answer to the question; another facet would rise up creating more layers of questions and fewer answers.  One of my favorite unanswerable questions that came from this ongoing discussion was:

Is Kal-El a superhero?

Kal-El was a boy on the planet Krypton without special powers. Due to a brief ride through space, and  a shift in gravity, he was graced with incredible strength and some laser vision and became what we know as Superman. But as Kal-El—is he a superhero?  If one characteristic of a superhero is that she or he have super powers, can we count Kal-El? If we can’t count Kal-El until he lands on Earth and becomes Superman, can we say he is a superhero?

The beauty of this question for my students at the time was the possibility of either answer.

If Kal-El was superhero because of his potential on another planet—then aren’t we all superheroes just waiting for a new planet?

If Kal-El is not a superhero and Superman is—then doesn’t that mean we can all be come a superhero if the right things happen to us? Are we all just waiting for the right circumstance to reveal our powers?

If Kal-El isn’t a superhero and Superman is likewise NOT a superhero—then what does that mean for the definition of superheroes? Can we honestly say that Superman is not super-heroic? If we cannot, then what is super-heroism exactly?

Surprise, surprise, I am applying this teaching and learning. My students loved the idea of superheroes. They loved the idea that they could be a Kal-El  waiting for a new planet, or a Bruce Wayne waiting for the right technology, or a Peter Parker in need of a mere spider bite to unleash their amazingness.  Superheroes show us our potential to be amazing. Just add enough strength, enough flexibility, enough learning, and KaBlam!  Superheorism all around.

This speaks to the eternal hope of possibility we need to have for ourselves as teachers and for our students as learners.

Why not believe that it is possible?  Why not believe in the possibility of what we could be rather than focus on the limitations of what we’ve been told we are?

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] J is for The Justice Society of America

Thanks to @shelley-burgess, @drjolly and the #satchatwc Saturday morning Twitter chat, I am determined to finish the Abecedary of Cape-Wearing within a year of having the brilliantly foolish idea of starting it. That means I have 17 letters to finish in 24 days. That's... (4 plus... 7… carry the 2...) a gabillion times more letters than I did previously. So wish me cape-wearing luck! Click here for letters A-I.

J is for the Justice Society of America. The JSA is referenced as the first team of superheroes in DC comic books—introduced in World War II alongside the All-Star Squadron.  In case you’re curious about the history and the subsequent link to the currently-known JAL, the video below is pretty interesting:

http://youtu.be/hos9zt7m-Lk

I’m especially fascinated by superhero teams. I love watching strong characters with vastly different skill-sets work together to beat the baddies. There is always some sort of struggle—struggles about leadership, struggles about membership in the team, struggles about which baddies to fight and how—that’s the nature of a team. They always prevail in the end, though. And end up caring about the team as a whole more than their individual needs (almost always anyway—click here for a video of Batman going rogue with the JAL).

Teams of cape-wearing teachers have the same struggles and the same successes. Incredibly talented adults come together for a common purpose—to prepare children for success. The methods for achieving that purpose are varied and each path is full of pitfalls, but teams of teachers always prevail. While it is sometimes difficult to work within a team of such intensely caring, radically different, super-powered colleagues, the success achieved by a team of cape-wearing educators far out-weigh the successes of one individual.

Who is in your superhero team? How do you combine your powers to beat the baddies?

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] I is for Incredible

For more of the Abecedary of Cape-Wearing click here.

I struggled with this one. I didn't want to go for the obvious. I wanted to pick something witty, pithy, or surprising. I even started writing a different post. 

But here's the deal. The Hulk deserves a post. The Hulk with the incredible-ness, I mean. 

A few years ago, while my hotten-tots were deciding what characteristics make a superhero, we got stuck on the Incredible Hulk for a good while. We'd made our own list of characteristics at the time, but even if you make your own lists, or look at the lists available online, Hulk is an outlier. 

He's strong, true. He can beat baddies, absolutely, He hangs with other superheroes, and that's always good.  But the kiddos were concerned that in reality, the most heroic thing about Hulk is how hard Bruce Banner works to NOT lose control and hurt innocent people. They felt that the Hulk himself was not as heroic as Bruce Banner, but they had a hard time coming to terms with that.  Hulk is part of Bruce Banner that he has to control in order to be heroic. Hulk is the power and strength, but can also be the dangerous side.

They compared him to Clark Kent and Superman, Hal Jordan and Green Lantern, Oliver Queen and Green Arrow, Peter Parker and Spiderman. In each of these cases the alter ego has control over the powers to some degree. In the case of Bruce and the Hulk the need control becomes the story. His anger, the fear he might hurt someone, the need to control his strength—that is Hulk’s story.

And really, that is heroic. We all have a side to us that is not heroic. Sometimes that side starts to win. Sometimes it does win. As caped crusaders, we need to accept our inner Hulk, allow him to come out only when truly necessary, and strive to control it the rest of the time. So Hulk gets a slot in the Abecedary of Cape-Wearing for working so hard to NOT lose it. 

Thank you Hulk, for showing us how.

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] H is for Helping

Superheroes are helpful. It’s sort of their job. They help ladies in distress on a regular basis. They help save bus-fulls of innocent victims from certain death. They save folks who inadvertently fall off tall buildings. And they save cities and planets from evil-doers and imminent destruction.

Some superheroes wage an internal battle with their superhero status, but are convinced as they are continually called in to help and generally save the day.

brainknowsbetter.com

Some superheroes wage a similar and equally internal battle to stay away from polite society in order to save folks from themselves. The Hulk for example. His main role as a superhero is to keep himself from hurting the wrong people--to try to be in the right place with the right amount of control to unleash fury on the baddies, but keep it away from the nice folks.

Either way, the nice folks get used to it. Metropolis, Gotham City, New York City, Smallville, Earth…the buildings collapse, the subway goes off the rails, the bridges break and the people call for their hero to help. At first they are there without a hitch and the crowd cheers. Later, they are waylaid by multiple and simultaneous disasters or nefarious evil-doers and the crowd questions their loyalty. Why aren’t they there right away?  Why are they allowing this to happen? Why do the bridges keep falling down (okay, they don’t ask that last one, but I totally would)?

At this point the iniquitous, the vile, the power-hungry, the vengeful, the diabolical--the baddies figure it out. Make the people believe the hero doesn’t want to help, won’t help, can’t help, and they will turn on him. Hold him prisoner so that he can’t, threaten him with the death of his tortured love interest, convince her she is out of control, blow up his mansion--make it so they can’t help and let disappointment to their dirty work.

cnn.com

At this point you may be wondering where I’ve hidden the silver lining, and you are right to believe it is here. Each time this happens (and it happens so often you’d think they’d figure it out more quickly), our heroes come to a similar conclusion. One person can’t be the only helper. One person alone can’t save the city. The hero has to start helping the city help themselves. Rebuild the building, shore up the dam, support the good guys. That’s how to truly save the city.

There will always be political rhetoric in education. We have made the grand and important statement that all children have a right to a free and appropriate public education. That is no small feat. We as a whole have embarked on a project that will continually require every bit of our strength, stamina, and heroism to achieve. It can’t be done by one person, one agency, one program. Each of us has some level of experience in education--as a learner, as a parent, as a teacher, and we are all stakeholders.Education and education reform require a daily promise from all stakeholder to do well by our children. We are each superheroes in this commitment and we are equally responsible for saving the day.

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] G is for Great Power

G is for Great Power

"With great power comes great responsibility."
--Stan Lee (or Voltaire or the Torah)

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." -- Lord Acton

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.” 

― Abraham Lincoln

“The day the power of love overrules the love of power, the world will know peace.” 

― Mahatma Gandhi

“Patience is power. Patience is not an absence of action;rather it is timing. It waits on the right time to act,for the right principles and in the right way.” 

― Fulton J. Sheen

“Recognizing power in another does not diminish your own.” 

― Joss Whedon

“Power changes everything till it is difficult to say who are the heroes and who the villains.” 

― Libba Bray, The Sweet Far Thing

“Power does not corrupt. Fear corrupts... perhaps the fear of a loss of power.” 

― John Steinbeck

“Knowledge is power. Power to do evil...or power to do good. Power itself is not evil. So knowledge itself is not evil.” 

― Veronica Roth, Allegiant

That is all.

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] F is for Force

This may be one of the slowest renditions of an abecedary you'd ever heard.

A very brief history.... This is my Abecedary of Cape-Wearing. The topic is less about superheroes and more about the cape-wearing qualities of people who champion learning. Educational cape-wearing is why I started the blog. We wear capes, you and I. They may not be visible (though I'm not averse to wearing an actual cape when necessary), but they are there and ought to be pointed out, highlighted, celebrated. And so here I am. In the midst of working with cape-wearers on a daily basis, I am slowly writing this abecedary to... to prove myself right. Or, less cheeky-sounding, to further support my mission. Though I am just now fixin' to extol the virtues of the letter F, you may want a reminder of the previous letters since they've been spread out over...almost 6 months (yikes):

Why I love a good abecedary...
A is for Caveat
B is for Beat the Baddies like Batman
C is for the Captain
D is for Donatello--one smart turtle
E is for Evil (the fighting of)

and now...

F is for Force

When you type force into a Creative Commons* Google search you get a snapshot of exactly why this is a cape-wearing word:

You've got physics, rockets, the solar system, math, roller coasters, the power of water in nature, gravity-defying hair styles, groups of people doing challenging work, and some superheroish-villainish characters. Each of these adds a level to the conversation about force as a cape-wearing characteristic.

In education we need to keep our momentum, our force, as we shoulder our way through a school year. There are days that the sheer magnitude of what we are trying to do, the physics of trying to keep a forward motion in spite of obstacles, the mechanics needed to force our way up the long climb on the roller coaster, the fuel needed to launch the rocket--they seem like too much. On those days, we need to use the less scientific forces to make it happen. We need to rally with our leadership and our peers to remember what fuels us. 

And here we can take a lesson from our superhero friends. The X-Men, the Avengers, the Justice League, the Teen Titans, even the Watchmen. They're superheroes (or mutants if you're a purist), for goodness sakes! Why do they keep teaming up? In the movies, they do it to build a force strong enough to battle a powerful threat. They find that they are better together than they are on their own. If you watch the slow parts of the movies, you also see that they simply want the company. The battle is easier to handle next to someone. Even Batman and Wolverine keep coming back to the group. They are the quintessential loners, but they come back and support the effort. They are looking for that reminder of why we are here, why we are working so hard, why it's worth being this tired. 

And what makes it worth it? Our learners. Take a minute and picture your learners. Are they our smallest humans learning how to grow into strong healthy humans? Are they our preschool and primary grade students counting on us to prepare them for their next steps in school? Are they almost-adult learners that think they know it already, but secretly count on you to make sure they actually do? Is your learner a particular person that needs your leadership right now? Whoever you are picturing, that is your fuel.

If we each add our fuel to the team, we become a force to be reckoned with. A force that can make change, affect lives, and even tempt Batman and Wolverine to join in. We all need that extra boost from time to time. And if you are in a school setting this time of year you are making that final climb on the roller coaster--creaking up the hill, straining against gravity, hoping the laws of physics apply to you to help you all the way to they top. Take a minute today and rally your team, take stock of your situation, and remind yourselves why you are there. Find your force and reharness it. It's there, I promise.

*Note--I use Creative Commons searches for this blog in an attempt to not "steal" images or videos from an unsuspecting author. Let's all make sure we give credit where credit is due!

[Slice of Life] Ashrams and Baseball

It's Slice of Life Tuesday!

It's time!  It's for me to share the #1 person I would follow to an ashram anywhere.  Click here and here to see what the heck I'm talking about.

So, super duper, a-number one, longest standing person I would follow to an ashram anywhere is...

Edgar Martinez--retired designated hitter for the Seattle Mariners

Yup. An interesting departure to be sure. I have great reasons though.

He's nice.
He's genuine.
He signs autographs for crowds of kids--or plays catch with them.
He plays along. 

He thanks his fans and appreciates getting paid.

He is good to his family.He was humble even though he was, arguably, the best designated hitter of his time and since.

During a time of poor role-modeling from professional athletes, Edgar was always above it.

And for this, I would follow him to an ashram. Because he is the model of what I think professional athletes should be. Maybe it doesn't have to be an ashram. Maybe just some bleachers at MLB Spring Training in Peoria. That would be fine.

Your turn!

[SOLSC] The Three People I Would Follow to an Ashram

It's SOLSC Tuesday!

photo by Raveesh Vyas on Flickr

Back in the day (okay, last month), I mentioned that Sir Ken Robinson was one of the three people I would follow to an ashram anywhere.  I was asked who the other two might be.

I didn't answer.

And this is why.

There are only two left. All of my blustery statements about following three people to an ashram, are, embarrassingly, only bluster. As I sift through my favorite gurus, I can think of a mighty series of folks with whom I'd enjoy a picnic, endure a day-long car ride, or even attend a yoga retreat.
Katie Wood Ray... Jeff Anderson... Kelley Gallagher... Eddie Izzard... Terry Pratchett... Sharon Creech... Lucy Calkins.

I can also remember that when I was a wee gal, I wanted to be Abe Lincoln when I grew up. I had some serious hero worship there and parent that encouraged all dreams of the future--even nigh impossible ones such as becoming the 16th President of the United States.

But follow? To an ashram?  That's serious business. There used to be three, but one has fallen a step. I'd have tea with him, certainly, but no more following for that guy.

This leaves me with TWO people I would follow to an ashram. Not the same ring to it, but I'll take it for now.

You already know of the aforementioned Sir Ken Robinson. When he speaks, I listen. Lots of people do. He makes sense and he's funny. Ashram, here we come.

The second is rather obscure (surprised?), but a long-standing hero of mine. The second person I would follow to an ashram anywhere is...

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] E is for Evil (the fighting of)

powered by Fotopedia

Wait a minute?
What? Evil?

Yes.

At the heart of all cape-wearers is the passion for protecting someone or something from a perceived evil. It is true, I prefer to not grant these perceived evils airtime on Wear the Cape. While I am not a... (what's that bird with the head in the sand?  Stork? Pigeon? Flamingo? Ostrich?) an ostrich, I do know about the evils and feel the need to know them well, to understand them, to see all sides of them, I don't give them airtime here. They get their own airtime. Their supporters can see to that responsibility. I don't need to help them out with that.

Sometimes, though, I like to remind myself why I am I here. Why the cape-wearers do what we do. We are defending our most precious resource--learners. We are protecting them, their growth, and their rights as learners. We teach them to wield the powers of knowledge, skill, effort, creativity and resilience with grace and integrity. We work within a system that includes challenges, villains, and evils. We understand the reality of that and choose to do the work anyway. We see the challenges, we strive to understand them, but we do not waste our time in bemoaning them, engaging them in fruitless conversation, succumbing to them. We continue to do our work, to strengthen our resolve, and to improve at each opportunity.

That is what cape-wearers do. Are you a cape-wearer? What cape-wearing have you done lately?

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] D is for Donatello--One Smart Turtle

I am taking part in the Slice of Life Story Challenge with Two Writing Teachers. For this challenge I will be attempting to write a "Slice of Life" post each day in the month of March and each Tuesday after that.

To support my Math-Love theme (click here and here), I have picked a fellow math-lover to continue my Abecedary of Cape-Wearing. 

I remember when the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles made their appearance. My brothers were just the right age to think they were amazing. As a freshman in high school, I decided that they were silly (of course), but that their creator was either an idiot or a marketing genius. It turns out his idea was way more genius than silly. 

And the smartest turtle?  Donatello. Donatello is considered a technological genius and inventor. Some of his best work, in my opinion, is the Turtle Blimp. Donatello is the plan-maker, the risk-taker, and consequently the main mistake-maker.  He is constantly working on the next best solution to whatever predicament the other TMNTs dig up. Of course his solutions don't always work--not all solutions do!

And here we are... circling the valuable life-lesson I've assigned to this super turtle. Here it is.


Are you ready?


How about now?


Wait for it....


Wait


for


it....

Make mistakes! Lots of them!

That's it. Go out and try it on. Struggle through a possible solution. Throw it in the garbage when it doesn't work. Try something else. Iterate and reiterate.Model this process for your students and provide them a place to feel safe in doing so. Celebrate the Turtle Blimp--or something equally fabulous.

And, just saying... Donatello has an awesome shell--which is like a cape. 

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] C is for the Captain

In my continued effort to provide y'all with a complete abecedary of cape-wearing amazingness (click here for letters A and B), I've chosen this next one carefully.  So carefully in fact, that it took me two months to get to it. That is precision work if I ever did see it.

Here is what happened. I didn't want to pick Catwoman, because other than being slick, cool, and a tough lady with a cool ride I couldn't find a link to teaching. I didn't want to pick Captain America because... well. I find him boring. I apologize now to any Captain A fans. I'm open-minded about it, he's just so... straight-laced!

And then my super hero trainer (you know who you are) told me about Captain Marvel. Neither of us could believe I didn't already know about him, I was promptly assigned to watch this show, and I did.

And I LOVE Captain Marvel! LOVE!  How did I know know there was a superhero who says (as Billy Batson):

"My parents told me that if you do good, good will come."

A young boy who shows resilience and character even when he is handed the power of the whole. entire. universe.

A kiddo who, before he was given the power of Shazam (more on that amazingness in a minute), was told:

"No protector, you say? And yet despite enduring countless tragedies and hardships, you've somehow managed to protect your perfect heart."

And best yet? A superhero who, in order to access his super powers (have I mentioned that this is the power of the entire bleeping universe?), need only say the word "Shazaam." Really? I LOVE it. 

In education we work to "protect our perfect hearts" while sharing our whole selves each day for our students, fellow teachers, and coworkers. We have the "power of the universe" up in front of those kiddos each day and we wield that power gently and with utmost care. 

Thank you to Billy Batson for becoming Captain Marvel so I could be reminded of that lesson. 

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] Beat the Baddies like Batman

for Beating the Baddies like Batman

Batman is one of my favorite heroic characters. It's true, it is possible that Batman is not, technically, a superhero (wha-what???  Read here or here if you want to edify yourself), but I have decided I'm okay with his questionable status. I have decided to love him anway.

Let me be clear, this has nothing to do with the relative attractiveness or unattractiveness of the actors that have taken on the role. Trust me. I can only name one or two, and one of my favorites is the cartoon Justice Leage version. He has a kind of Wolverine-esque quality to him.

I love him because he has to work very hard to beat the baddies. He has to be knowledgable about global issues, he has to learn the newest technology, and he has to train to hone his super-secret ninja skills, he has to take care of his outfit and redesign his cape for ultimate effectiveness.  I mean no offense to the heroes who get their powers from planets, or spiders, or lanterns, or large hammers (okay, I judge the use of a hammer)--I like them all well enough. But Batman. He has to do it himself. He has to use the resources available in Gotham City and make them super (yes, with unimited wealth and jaw-dropping technology).

As teachers and teacher-leaders, we can hope for Superman's powers, Wonder Woman's jet, and Thor's Hammer (I don't really want Thor's hammer, but I'd take a jet.), but we won't get them. What we can do though is use the skills and tools we do have to do our work and beat the educational baddies we encounter

I won't spend your valuable time rehashing all of the educational baddies we encounter in our quest to educate our nation's children. We all have our own fight.  Each day we rise to continue the battle because we know it's the right thing to do.  We each have an aresenal of skills and tools that we can use to fight the good fight each day:

• professional development opportunities
• humor
• respected collegues
• content knowledge 
• technology
• inspiring leaders 
• deserving students
• dedication to the cause
• personal health
• professional connectedness
• the knowledge that we are doing the right thing

Take a minute and think about some tools and skills you have already, resources you may have forgotten you have, or items from this list you'd like to explore. Batman has his batcave full of fast cars, faster computers, and, of course, Alfred. Do you have a bat cave?  What do you keep there to help you beat the baddies?  Do you need to remind yourself to Be Like Batman?

Oh yeah, and Batman wears a cape. A really rockin' cape.

[An Abecedary of Cape-Wearing] A is for Caveat

Let's start off 2014 with an ABC book!  Let's call it the... Abecedary of Cape-Wearing! Let's start right now!

is for Caveat

Wait... what? Did I mean to do that?  Yes, and it's making me giggle. While that doesn't gurantee that it's actually funny, it does prove I did it on purpose and like it.  How, in the name of education, can I start an abecedary with the word Caveat?  How do I dare take a standardized structure like the ABCs and then start with the letter C?  For many reasons actually, but let me explain in a meandering sort of way.

Along with Mentor Text Mondays, Amy (of aforementioned powerhouse and does-what-she-says-she-does fame), and I agreed to try to post an abecedary to get ourselves blogging again. Click here to follow Amy's Abecedary of Reflection.

I ran through a variety of topic ideas over the last weeks of 2013 and eventually decided to go back to the roots of Wear the Cape--my belief in the empirical super powers of teachers. I have many (too many) opinions about super heroes and their application to education. I talk about it often enough that some folks might think I'm just a childhood superhero fan trying to thread my hobby into my work. Truthfully, I had to learn about superheros from scratch a few years ago. Click here to read about my Aha! moment while watching the Green Lantern movie. While I won't pretend it is laborious to watch movies and read comic books, this is still a learning curve for me. As I learn, I'm continually reminded that I'm right (hee). The history and mythology of superheroes has a depth to it that is often misunderstood. I recently started reading this book that relates intense philosophical ideas to superhero lore. It's a complex read!  Fascinating, to be sure, but not fluffy.

Why start the Abecedary of Cape-wearing with a caveat then? Well, it comes down to the capes. See here for a quick context-setting video:

So you see how a blog called Wear the Cape getting ready to post an Abecedary of Cape-Wearing might need to start with a caveat.

ca·ve·at

ˈkavēˌät,ˈkäv-/

noun

1. 1.

   a warning or proviso of specific stipulations, conditions, or limitations.

   synonyms:

   warning, caution, admonition; More

My caveat is this. As a super teacher you  may or may not choose to have a cape--literal or figurative. While I am a fan of capes as a fashion statement, when I refer to capes I am actually referring to any symbol that reminds you (and the world) that you do indeed have super powers as a teacher of children or leader of teachers. With this caveat an Abecedary on Cape-Wearing can be applied to all super teachers--cape or not.As the Wear the Cape Purpose Statement reads:

It may be that teachers need a dose of super powers in order to truly commit to the education of children. Without this magic the daily grind can be too much. At times we may forget we are, indeed, super, and might need to don our capes as a reminder. Sometimes, it isn't enough to be the super teacher in our hearts. Sometimes you gotta wear the cape.

Teaching is a deeply personal profession. Education professionals care so deeply and for so many hours a day, that we just sort of assume they will keep on caring so deeply and so consistently for ever and ever--no matter how hard it is, no matter what the news says about us, no matter what the current political tide. And we will--it's what we do. But it's hard work to maintain such a high level of vigilance and expectation of work, of ourselves. We need to pat ourselves on the back, refresh, renew, and giggle sometimes. My solution is to wear a cape. On a daily basis, my cape is only in my head. When absolutely necessary I am not averse to putting an actual cape on to make my point--either to myself or to others, but I usually mean the one in my imagination.

So, tuck my caveat in your cape pocket and join me as I work my way through an Abecedary of Cape-wearing. If you are reading this (and even if you aren't, it's just harder to prove) you have a cape. Let's celebrate it!

Things to think about as we go along:

Who is your favorite superhero? Do you have a cape?  Do you want one?

[CCW] Times Twenty-One

I haven't posted a Caped Crusader of the Week in...  oh...  a gabillion weeks .  But that's okay because I just spent a month with twenty-one of the most amazing teachers ever to sit in one room at the San Diego Writing Project Summer Institute.  I've met amazing teachers before (Lincoln Middle School--you rock for having so many in one place!), but I have not had the opportunity to sit in a room and talk, learn, read, write, and truly see a group of educators that are this amazing.  The passion, hope, dedication, intelligence, heart and humor of this group struck me silent today.  Today was the last day of our four weeks together. We will continue working together throughout the year, to be sure, but this event--this four weeks--had to end today.

I had no words today to tell them how much it meant.  I cracked a couple of jokes, and even called them cheesy at one point.  What I was trying to say to them though, is this:

You all wear capes.  Every single one of you is a Super Teacher.  You are on a journey for kids and learning and writing, and you put it all out there this Summer.  You truly humble me with your hearts and your minds.  There is no way to thank you for what you have given me.  I am renewed, maybe not refreshed yet since I'm still reeling from the last month, but I can feel it.  I'm ready to square my shoulders and try this thing called teaching for another year.  Not only am I ready to try it, but I am ready to kick it right square in the behind. Thank you for that.  Truly Truly Truly.

My new Caped Friends, you are all Super Heroes...

N.B.--You impressed me the moment you walked up to give the first demo.  You nailed it!  It was so clear that your understanding of your work, and your willingness to go beyond the curriculum we are given makes a powerful impact on your students each year.

C.B.--Thank you for helping me find the words to talk about our kids. You inspire me to be more and do more for my little Turkey Butts. Your heart and soul are jaw-droppingly golden.

H.C.--Thank you for your perseverance in sending a message of peace and unity.  We all need to be reminded of that.

J.C.--Bless your friendly, open smile.  You are straight-up, but positive.  You are sharp as a whip, and funny to boot.  So glad you were in my WRG.

C.C.--You are beautiful inside and out.  Your heart and soul are wondrous and you have, without a doubt, changed the hearts and souls of those around you.

R.C.--Your gentle demeanor and underlying red-shoe-wearing-sassy-pants were a joy to get to know. You have so much depth and so much to share.  Please keep writing.  You touched my funny bone and my soul when you read.

K.D.--Thank you for leading us, listening to us, and sharing with us.  I so appreciate your ability to lead while also taking part in such a powerful experience.

C.F.--I love the way your brain works!  Your flexibility with your demo made me smile--our students need that flexibility and differentiation.  I loved seeing it.

H.F.--Your decision to enter education was courageous and SO the right thing to do.  You belong in the classroom, and students are lucky to learn from you. I can't wait to learn from you in our middle school study group!

K.F.--You were energetic and positive EVERY SINGLE DAY.  I'm in awe of that.  Your energy added to the energy of the room each day, and I am quite certain that energy has changed lives in your classroom.

J.J.--Today, when you talked about your family, I felt hope for my students.  Thank you for the full-on dedication you show in your teaching and for your family.  That is such a gift.

M.J.--You made a joke the other day that your "voice" is the same no matter what you write.  That voice is a voice of depth and intelligence.  Keep it, nurture it, and share it with your students.  I learned from it every single day.

C.K.--Where do you get your energy?  I think I should very much like to bottle it up and sell it.  You are changing the world.  I am so glad to be learning from you.

C.L.--Aw...  I loves ya.  I do.  You are a force of nature, my dear.  Keep fighting the good fight.  You'll win! And... let those reins loose a bit this year.  You'll love it!

S.M.--I thoroughly enjoyed your writer's brain and your flair.  I appreciate your honesty and your incredible intelligence.  What a gift you have been.

A.M.--I always wanted to hear from you in discussions.  Your thoughtful responses struck me each time.  I so enjoyed learning from you.

Z.M.--Z! My walking-to-the-car partner.  From the first day I knew you were a kindred spirit.  I looked forward to checking in with you each day.  Sixth grade is lucky to have you. Welcome to the middle school club. :)

A.R.--I think you are simply amazing.  I am quite certain your classroom rocks like crazy, and I hope to keep playing Scrabble with you for a good long time.  Your love of words makes me happy.

J.R.--There is no way you won't be with students next year.  The cosmos won't allow that to happen.  I am in awe of your teaching and your heart.  Truly in awe.  I'm so looking forward to our middle school study group.

D.S.--Keep rockin', baby.  Your willingness to share your own journey with us was inspiring. You have impacted my learning and my teaching.  So glad to have met you! 

This year holds so much promise.  I haven't had this feeling in a good long time.  Bless each one of you for your cape-wearing.  You have changed my life, my teaching, and my heart.

And, in case you were wondering, I did get that nap.  Love to you all.

[CCW] I May Have Copy-Catted Her

This Week's Caped Crusader of the Week is Mrs. R.  Sadly, I can't tell you much about her as I've never gotten to teach with her. She teaches at a nearby middle school, and sometimes I get students that were in her class before they were "asked" to leave her school. They have all liked her and speak fondly of her when they come to me. This sounds innocuous, but it isn't an easy feat with my little twinkle-tots. They're quite certain teachers are out to get them, and whichever school they've come from just didn't like them. Not so with Mrs. R. In fact, this mini-convo happened today:

Student A:  Remember Mrs. R?
Student B:  Who?
Student A:  Mrs. R--the cool one?
Student B:  Oh yeah!  I liked her!
Student A:  Yeah!


So there you have it, out of the mouths of... punk kids. She loves her kiddos, she loves to teach, and she treats them honestly and with dignity. She should have a cape--one of these days I'll get off my lazy bum and make her one. Or a hat. But not slippers.

Here's another thing about Mrs. R--I'm pretty certain she had purple hair before I did. I didn't see it, and can honestly maintain that I did not copy her, but I'm pretty sure she was first. That's how cool she is.

So there you have it.  Another caped crusader, and this one actually teaches in my zip code!

[CCW] She's So Super She's a Little Scary

But she will appreciate the alliterative title.

Huzzah to my second Caped Crusader of the Week*, Annie!

I met Annie back in 1997.  We were both Teaching Team Leaders (or some such title) for a summer program. The first day of training kicked off with some touchy-feely-trusty blindfolded garbage that was NOT cool with me.  I cast my eyes around the room (keeping a cool, interested look just in case) looking for an escape hatch. What I found instead was the incredulous face of the teacher across the room.  She was clearly as unamused with the direction our training was taking as I was.   I don't remember exactly how it went after that, other than an overwhelming memory of cheesy training, very little actual information, and the realization that Annie was, indeed, a kindred teacher.  As the summer progressed our friendship grew exponentially (as did our dislike of the structure and leadership of the summer program).

 While I would gladly teach with her any time, I know I'd be a little scared, too.  She is one of the very best teachers I have ever met. She is crazy-smart, has incredible energy, and has amazing taste in music, food, and shoes.  Not only can Annie teach the socks off of most people in the world, she is also able to share that ability as a mentor teacher.  That last line sounds like a sentence from a cover letter, but the truth is, not many good teachers know how to help other teachers be good.  Annie knows how to do it, does it, AND runs a program for her district to help other mentors do it, too.

Did I mention that Annie has an amazing family, beautiful and intelligent kids, can knit, can cook, and know the lyrics to songs I've never heard of? It's true. I'm telling ya, she ROCKS!

I am quite certain our society, our schools are better places because of Annie.  I am even more certain that she was the best thing to come out of that Summer program so long ago.


*Note--While I did name this series "Caped Crusader of the Week," I hope I did not imply to any of you that this would be happening EVERY week.  It just means that it will happen periodically .  And when it does happen, it will be during a week. Kapish?

Calling All Caped Crusaders (and Caped Crusader of the Week #1)!

I have made a decision.  I would very much like to share the power of other caped crusaders out in the world.  One of my main goals with Wear the Cape (other than shameless self-promotion, of course) is to show that there are caped wonders out in the world that are making a difference every day.  I want those caped wonders to know that I recognize them, and I want other folks to know that they are out there.  If you know a caped crusader, or are one yourself,  (should that be capitalized?) please send me their name and important stats.

So.... drum roll please....

Announcing the FIRST Caped Crusader of the Week!

Heather (author of Write Turn)  is my teaching muse.  We worked together in Washington years ago and worked together to earn our National Teaching Certificates (yay us!).  From the moment we started to teach together we shared ideas, laughs, and commiserated.  I still call Heather when I need help with an idea.  She is the original Caped Crusader.  Her energy and passion for teaching is unmistakable and inspirational.  She is also an incredible writer with a gift for words.  And... she makes me laugh so hard I almost pee my pants.  Heather has recently entered the blog-o-sphere.  Please take a gander at her work and heckle her into more writing!

Write Turn

A million thanks to you Heather.  For all of the ideas and support.  You are the wind beneath my wings (Sooooo cheesy!  But I couldn't help it!).

Folk-a-licious

In our recent discussion of folktales, we listed the following components:

1.  A powerful person
2.  A not-so-powerful person
3. Twists and turns
4. A beautiful character
5. A problem or  riddle
6. A Moral
7. The End

After some practice the Sugar Pies were assigned the following task, and we created a rubric* for how it would be graded:

Write a folktale of any length that includes all seven components. Make sure to identify each component in your final draft. 

The following is my very favorite-ist folk tale. Of course I can't deny I like the role I play in the story, but mostly I am just tickled with his imagination.  The numbers correspond with the component numbers above. 

Once in school, there was a powerful teacher, Ms. M., who had asked the class to write a folk tale (1).  So there at that school there was a boy named J. (2).   The teacher had asked the boy to write a folk tale, but the boy didn't have any literature experience (3).  The boy had to ask many friends, family, and relatives to help him on how to write a folk tale.  The parents and friends couldn't help him, but they all knew he had a brain.  A brain is exactly what he had and he needed to put it to work (4).

He had three days to complete the assignment.  Each night he would read seven folk tale stories.  Until the final day, and he had only an hour left to complete the folk tale (5).  He had to put all of his brain skills to the top.  His brain had been fully loaded, ready, and already working.  When the boy finished, Ms. M was impressed and gave J. a passing grade.  Since that day, the boy knew that studying, listening, and leaning will get you any grade you want (6).


The End (7)

*Note--More on rubrics later.  These are wildly interesting creatures and should be discussed more thoroughly.