It's Not How You Planned It... But What Are the Possibilities?

I have to give credit for the quote above to our guidance counselor, Anne Collins.  She emailed it to me over the weekend to post in the hallways of Moore (alongside our other positive quotes), and it has been on my mind since I opened the email...

Hi, my name is Jessie Peele, and I am a planner.  A planner of EVERYTHING.  I live by a checklist and become overjoyed at checking off the little square boxes down the side of my To-Do list.  You name it, I plan it.  Upon becoming a teacher and now a Curriculum Coordinator, I have quickly learned that while you may plan every detail, things don't always go according to that plan.  And as the quote above suggests, rather than wallowing in the disappointment and stress of things going a little off track, why not look for possibilities?

As I reflect on my past five years of teaching, I realize some of the best teaching moments came when I wasn't necessarily doing something written word-for-word in my plan book.  It goes back to being PRESENT and living in the moment.  Now, I'm not suggesting plans aren't important in the world of education... But what's equally important is knowing when you need to veer off of the plan.

Life has a funny way of working out.  Sometimes things go just as we'd hoped, imagined, dreamed of, planned for... Sometimes they don't.  And a lot of times, in retrospect, we understand why the plan didn't carry out the way we'd envisioned.  By being PRESENT, we can continuously be aware of the possibilities surrounding us, making the most out of each and every moment - planned or not.

 Don't Forget!
-October 19th:  6:00-6:30 Parents Supporting Learning in the Upper Grades
-October 26th:  1st Quarter Testing - Reading
-October 27th:  Fluency Training at Staff Meeting
-October 27th:  1st Quarter Testing - Math (with a Calculator)
-October 28th:  1st Quarter Testing - Math (without a Calculator)
-November 3rd-5th:  CogAt Testing
-November 15th-17th:  ITBS Testing