Always More to Learn

Welcome!  Thank you for joining me in my new blogging adventure!  I'd like to begin by thanking my family, friends, and all of the wonderful educators who have inspired me. This includes those I work with in my building, our special education department, and those in my #PLN!  Their support gives me the motivation to continue doing the work that I do!
I've recently been inspired, by some of my friends who blog, to step out of my comfort zone and give blogging a try.  I'd like to give them special thanks as well.
My principal, Diane MacKinnon, has been a huge inspiration for my professional learning.  She's the one who gave me my ruby slippers (Thank you, Diane!) click here to visit her blog!
I'd also like to thank Heather Mastracchio, one of our outstanding kindergarten teachers.  Spending quite a bit of time in her classroom this year, and seeing her new blog have both been boosts of inspiration for me!  Click here to visit Heather's blog!
I also owe a big thank you to my friend, Barbara Gruener, who gave me my very first taste of the joy of blogging.  She has given me the honor of guest posting on her wonderful blog, The Corner on Character.  To visit her blog, click here!
As an elementary school psychologist of 23 years, it never ceases to amaze me how much my work has changed since the day I started.  Over the years, it has shifted from being primarily testing and pull-out services to that of teaching, push-in services, testing, crisis intervention, clerical work, as well as some leadership opportunities.
It amazes me how, no matter how long you've been in this field, there is always so much more to learn.  So many things arise that make me say, "I never learned about this in school psychologist school."  We really never stop learning.  Isn't that the way it should be?
I'm currently reading Kids Deserve It (by Todd Nesloney and Adam Welcome) and Lead Like a Pirate (by Shelley Burgess and Beth Houf), and have been learning so much from these game-changing reads.  I often find myself reflecting on the idea of taking charge of my own professional learning.  It is emphasized in these readings that if we expect our students to be empowered and motivated to take charge of their own learning, then we need to live and model this same philosophy ourselves.
Taking charge of my own professional development has enabled me build even better relationships with my students and to become a better team member.  It has encouraged me to explore my passions and utilize my creativity.  This has not only helped me to create value in the work that I do, but has also brought joy to my work with students.  My students deserve to have awesomeness and fun infused into every lesson!
This year, we've done some professional exploration as a staff as well.  We were given a "Twitter Challenge" by our principal, which encouraged all of us to start tweeting, build our PLN's and share our knowledge with the world.  We were also challenged to have "Worksheet free Wednesdays."  This has encouraged me to explore more hands-on (...and creative! Hooray!) ways of designing my SEL (social emotional learning) lessons.  Not only has this jump-started my motivation and enthusiasm, but it has increased my students' excitement too!  When I arrived to a classroom for a lesson earlier this week, I was greeted with hugs and a room full of excited students who asked, "What are we going to do today...and what are we going to MAKE!?"  Then they added, "You always have fun things for us to do."  I am so excited to be expanding my SEL initiatives this coming week!  I can't wait!
I'd like to wrap up by sharing one of my favorite quotes from Glinda, "You've always had the power my dear, you just had to learn it for yourself."  This quote inspires me to step out of my comfort zone, and believe in myself.  I hope that all of you will feel empowered to step outside of your comfort zone, always keep learning, and know that "you've always had the power" within.

Julie 👠