Starting the school year, the teacher, as one person in a network of people has the true possibility of being a "high impact" positive influence on students. Beyond the layers and layers of knowledge and technique instruction teachers should look closely for simple common denominators in human experience to know how to effectively impact with one word and one action at a time.
Consider the following far reaching human priorities:
1. No judgement; show acceptance and compassion
2. Set clear parameters, give second chances
3. Clarify and reward learning benchmarks, give students every opportunity to succeed
4. Each day is brand new: it is a fresh start. Let go of mistakes and give grace instead of blame.
5. Each word has impact for good and/or bad. Better to have few words than many.
6. You won't know what your individual students are dealing with; be sensitive.
Helen Keller sums these ideals up beautifully in the following quote. "The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched, they must be felt with the heart." If we, as well-trained and learned educators, listen to our hearts and follow simple yet foundational wisdom, students will undoubtedly be impacted both powerfully and positively.
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