Permission to Play
On the rough days, we need to play, and knocking something down might be just what you need!
(Editorial note: an earlier edition of this reflection appeared 10 years ago on my now-defunct blog…but it feels like one worth putting out into the world again today.)
Teacher, do you ever have those days where everything feels overwhelming?
Students are challenging.
Colleagues are not being very collegial.
Administrators have unrealistic expectations.
Lessons fall flat.
The paperwork seems unending.
Technology didn't work out the way you had planned.
The sum total is a rough, rough day.
I'm sure you never have days like this...
Okay, you probably do. At least, I know I do.
And on those kinds of days, do you feel like knocking down a wall?
Some days—especially those rough, rough days—you just feel like you need to knock the blocks down. But better it's something you have built than knocking down someone else's wall. (That is just being mean.)
Some days you just need the catharsis of building and tearing down.
That's what the Teacher says in Ecclesiastes 3, right? "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens...a time to tear down, and a time to build..."
The playfulness of building and knocking down a stack of blocks might seem trivial, but I think it can help. Being playful, even creative, might be just what you need to lighten up and brighten your spirit.
So if you’re having that “gotta knock things down” day…direct that impulse to some part of your teaching practice. What’s something that needs to be torn down and replaced? Take a playful approach to it, kind of like knocking over that block wall. What might you build from the pieces you push over?
If you need the nudge, take this as your permission to play—either physically or metaphorically—and have the freedom to build up and tear down and rebuild. Play away!
Dave’s Faves: Oregon Edition
Last week I spent a few days in Salem and Portland, Oregon—I presented the keynote address and a couple of other sessions at a Christian educators’ conference at Corban University (“Teach Like a Warrior!”) and got the opportunity to do a few other things just for fun while I was there. So, consider this the dysentery-free edition of my “Oregon-Trail-inspired things I’m loving right now”…
Dave’s Fave #1: Waterfall hikes
I had the chance to hang out with my buddy, Aaron, for a few days, and knowing how I love the outdoors, he planned ahead for us to take a hike at Silver Falls State Park. There are ten waterfalls along a trail there, and while we didn’t have time to see them all, we did hike our way around to four of them. I got to see some absolutely stunning fall colors and a fantastic place to enjoy Creation for an afternoon adventure!
Dave’s Fave #2: Literary pilgrimages
I was a super-reader as a child. (And, seriously…I still love to read…) But since I was in Portland, I took a sort of literary pilgrimage to find a place that has been in my imagination ever since reading the Ramona books by Beverly Cleary about 40 years ago now. If you know, you know.
Dave’s Fave #3: Epic bookstores
Ever since reading Donald Miller’s Blue Like Jazz almost 20 years ago, Powell’s Bookstore in downtown Portland has loomed large in my imagination. So of course I made time to visit…who wouldn’t visit a massive bookstore?? I wandered and wandered, and I did not have nearly enough time to browse, and I was so conflicted, I had to take off to catch my flight before I even was able to decide on any purchases! I guess that just means I’ll have to come back sometime. :-)
Dave’s Fave #4: Above the Golden State
While I was driving around in Oregon of course I listened to the album Above the Golden State by the band Above the Golden State. (If you didn’t get their punny band name…California’s nickname is “the Golden State”…and this band is from Portland, yeah?) Check ‘em out…
Some Other (Scholarly) Fun
I’ve had a couple of you reach out asking about the status of my book. Thanks much for your interest, friends! Copyediting is done…I think(?)…and I think we might have a cover now, which is pretty cool! This is my first adventure in publishing, and I’m just taking it step-by-step. We are getting closer to the book actually being out in the world, but we will see what the next steps are. :-)
In the meantime, two other fun things I can report!
Hallway Conversations is back! After taking over 5 months off, Matt, Abby, and I are back in front of the microphones and new episodes of the podcast should be coming out every other Wednesday throughout the fall. (On the opposite weeks of this newsletter’s releases.) Our first episode of the new season is all about “connections”—and what makes students (and staff) feel connected/disconnected at school and in their communities. You can find us on your favorite podcast app by searching for “hallway conversations.” We’re also on YouTube, and you can always find us on the web at hallwayconvos.podbean.com.
I had a chapter published in the latest book from the Association of Christian Schools International, Leading Insights: Artificial Intelligence. Over the past couple of years I’ve been teaching a course in our Master of Education program ambitiously entitled “Emerging Technologies,” and—probably no surprise—artificial intelligence has been a major part of the course. So I’ve been doing research into the background and development of AI in education, and I’m pleased that I was able to contribute to this important book on the topic. If you’re interested, you can order a copy from ACSI’s online store.
The Last Word!
I recently found a bunch of graphics I had saved from Twitter once upon a time. I wish I could cite the source for all of them…but that ship has long since sailed. But this particular graphic caught my imagination today, and I offer it to you as a word of encouragement to be whimsical, joyful, playful, and creative in your work today!
