Opening the Door Through Pictures

Mom: "How was your day?"

Lovely but not very talkative child: "Fine."

Mom: "What did you do today?"

Child: "I don't know, stuff"


Sound like a conversation at your house? Mine too. It is a conversation that happens in many households.

As an educator, I am trying to shake this up. I want moms and dads to know what happened at school. I cannot communicate verbally with every family each day, but I can open a window to the school through pictures.

http://cliparts.co/camera-clip-art-free

At the beginning of each school year, and as new students enroll, they are given a photo opt out form. This form lets families know that I love to share the great things that are happening at our school through the newspaper and also through social media. If parents do not want their child's picture included, they just need to sign the opt-out form.

I have a Twitter account @mrs_schwartz where I try to tweet pictures throughout the week. Videos are shared through our district's Facebook and YouTube accounts. In addition, I have teachers and a wonderful PTO that share pictures through Twitter and Facebook. We used to share pictures only on our district website, but we realized that was not always effective. In order for parents to see the pictures, they had to make a conscience decision to visit the website periodically. Just what busy families need, another thing on the to do list. Instead we went to where moms and dads already were - Facebook and Twitter.

In my other role as mom, I have seen just how wonderful this can be for parents. My daughter is a Girl Scout and her troop has a Facebook page. Recently they did one of those over night trips to the zoo. This Nervous-Nellie of a mother kissed my daughter good-bye and hoped she would not be eaten by a lion. Okay, I know the lions have not eaten a Girl Scout in a long time, if ever, but still this mom worries. Her troop leaders were awesome though. Not only did they protect my daughter from the lions, they took pictures throughout the trip and posted them to the troop's Facebook page. I could see that my daughter was not missing any limbs courtesy of those hungry lions and sure enough she had a big smile on her face throughout the night! Also, when she came home I had tons of conversation starters. "Hey, tell me about that food you were making for the polar bears." and "What did you think of that night hike through the zoo?" Would she have talked about these things without me seeing the pictures? Maybe, but it sure was nice to have that starting point. In addition, my daughter loves to go back and look at the pictures now that the trip is over. It is like her own little scrap book. 

http://www.clipartpanda.com/categories/lion-clipart-for-kids

That's what I want for the families in my school. I want them to see what is happening in the building. I know that moms and dads are busy and cannot always come in, so let me open the door through pictures.

We have good stuff happening and I want you to see it!

Baby Teeth and Constant Change

Do you know how much time my husband and I spent waiting for those little teeth to pop through on our baby girls?  I remember being so excited when the first tooth appeared.  Afterwards, we spent years helping to teach our oldest daughter to care for those teeth.  Brushing, flossing, healthy snacks.  And now what's happening? Those teeth are falling out and the tooth fairy is taking care of business.  I wasn't ready for that, or was I?

Often I think we don't realize that we are more ready for change than we think.  Whether it be my role as mom or educator, change is a constant.  No day is like the last, but as long as I face each day with a positive outlook, I can meet those changes.  As educators we continue to learn and grow.  As a result, we are often much more prepared to face a change than we would have thought.

As a mom, I prepare for changes by reading parenting articles, talking to other parents, and picking the brain of my own mother.  As an educator, I prepare for changes by reading about education initiatives (many of which I first hear about on Twitter), talking to other educators, and picking the brain of my colleagues.  Different resources for my different roles, but the same result... preparing me for what lies ahead.  Preparing me for those inevitable changes.