MISCELLANY
EndNotes
You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be —
I had a mother who read to me.
— STRICKLAND GILLILAN
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“In matters of style,
swim with the current;
in matters of principle,
stand like a rock.”
— THOMAS JEFFERSON
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“When I was your age I had to carry a back pack that weighed a ton.
You only have to carry a flash drive!”
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Changing the
World: One Story at a Time
Anna Unkovich
It was a teacher’s nightmare—five minutes left in the class period, with
a rowdy group of seventh graders. As a veteran educator, I always
over-planned my lessons by 15-20 minutes, but something had gone wrong
that morning. It was the first day back to school following a two-week
Christmas break, and none of us were back in the classroom “groove” yet.
My personal mission as a teacher was “to change the world, one student
at a time.” Ironically, it was in this desperate teaching moment that I
found a tool that would have the greatest impact on my students’ lives.
I looked at the clock, looked at my students, looked at the clock, and
looked at my desk for anything that might magically fill the minutes.
Sitting there was a Christmas present—Chicken Soup for the Soul. I
grabbed it, randomly opened it to page 259 and began reading a true
story of determination.
I finished the story moments before the dismissal bell, breathed a sigh
of relief, and thought nothing more of the matter. The next day, several
of my students walked into class requesting more of that “Chicken Soup
thing…" By this time, I had read several of the stories, and found them
all to have wonderful messages of hope, determination, kindness,
laughter, love, and life. Since each story took only two or three
minutes to read, I felt it was not significantly taking time away from
content. Plus even my most disruptive students settled down for this
story routine that ended each class period.
Thus began a classroom journey that had some very surprising side
effects. In hindsight, I think it was what Jack Canfield calls
“emotional literacy.” Without realizing it, by reading these stories
each day, I was creating a classroom environment where it was safe to
access and express feelings. And, even more importantly, I was modeling
this behavior for my students. If I read a sad story, I cried. At first,
my students were mortified to see a teacher crying. Later, they would
sometimes request a “cry story.” With other stories, we might laugh so
hard we would almost pee our pants!
Without ever talking about it, we were sharing our feelings on a daily
basis, much as a family would do. And, slowly, we became a family. Each
of my five classes developed its own unique classroom bond.
Weeks passed, and I saw that my students were treating each other more
respectfully. Within months, I noticed changes in the hallways
throughout the school. Following a story about a potential suicide, I
saw students help to pick up dropped books, rather than to kick them
down the hallway, laughing. The mother of a learning disabled student
almost ran me over in a parking lot. “What have you done to my daughter?
She has never read a book in her life, and now she wants me to buy her
this Chicken Soup thing… What is it?” Non-readers were becoming readers
because they couldn’t wait till the next day for a story.
I came to realize that my students were happiest when experiencing the
full range of emotions that these stories brought forth. So,
occasionally I would have them write about these feelings as classroom
warm-ups. Sometimes I would choose longer stories, or make the story the
focus of the lesson plan, rather than ending the class with this thought
for the day. I didn’t want this to become work for them, or something to
dread. It was important that my students welcome these stories, and,
ultimately, the messages they contained. And, the frequency was crucial
in creating the behavioral changes.
Understanding the power of this daily story process planted a seed for
reaching more students. I approached Jack Canfield at a book signing to
suggest that we co-author a book, Chicken Soup for the Soul in the
Classroom—a book of stories, lesson plans, and activities for teachers.
Exactly four years later, to the day, I had my first book signing in the
same store. Together, we are now “changing the world, one student at a
time, and one story at a time.”
http://yesmagazine.org/for-teachers/teacher-stories/changing-the-world-one-story-at-a-time
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“It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still
differentiate between a time for learning and a time for play without
seeing the vital connection between them.”
— LEO BUSCAGLIA
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The true men of action in
our time, those who transform the world, are not the politicians and
statesmen, but the scientists. Unfortunately poetry cannot celebrate
them because their deeds are concerned with things, not persons, and
are, therefore, speechless....When I find myself in the company of
scientists, I feel like a shabby curate who has strayed by mistake into
a drawing room full of dukes.
— W. H. AUDEN
In his youth, the born poet often wavers between science and literature;
and his choice is determined by the chance attraction of one or other of
the alternative modes of expressing his imaginative joy in nature. It is
essential to keep in mind that science and poetry have the same root in
human nature.
— ALFRED NORTH WHITEHEAD
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Anyone can become angry. That is easy. But to be angry with
the right person to the right degree at the right time for the right
purpose and in the right way — that is not easy.
— ARISTOTLE
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To doubt everything or to believe everything
are two equally convenient solutions;
both dispense with the necessity of reflection.
— ALBERT EINSTEIN
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“I don't remember all the details, I was fast
asleep
at the time — but my stomach was wide awake!”