I stopped making New Year’s Resolutions years ago simply because I never follow through. I’ve also learned that reflection, change, and improvement can and should happen all year long.  Nevertheless, Januarys do signal a new beginning, and so are worth some reflection and inquiry.  So here are some questions for us to consider as we ruminate over our growth as educators in 2015:

–What is the essence of my lesson?

–How can I streamline my curriculum to emphasize the important stuff?

–What is the important stuff?

–Where do I want to be by June?

–What do I need to get rid of to make room for my passion?  What needs to go?

–What do my students need?

–How can I reach that unreachable kid?

–How can I be more present in the lesson?

–Where is the negativity and how can I get rid of it?

–How can I develop more gratitude and compassion in the classroom?

–What do I need to do to take care of me?

–What steps do I need to take to involve (or ignore) the administration?

–Do I need to create physical space in my classroom or spend time decluttering?

–What personal or professional development do I need?

–What steps should I take to take care of my health, as it relates to teaching?

–How will I cope with the stressors thrown at me by The Education Machine?

–Which teachers, leaders, or programs do I want to align myself with, interact with, or follow?

–And will there be cookies?

I’m excited about how much more effective I will be in the classroom if I am able to answer even a handful of these questions, and can put those answers into play.*  The alternative means doing things the way I’ve always done them–and that’s just so 2014. TZT 

*If these questions are helpful to you, I would love to hear how you put them into play.