Welcome aboard everyone! Our ship will be pulling out to sea on a voyage to enhance our passion for teaching. I hope you look to join us on this journey.
Why a pirate?"Pirates are daring, adventurous, and willing to set forth into uncharted territories with no guarantee of success. They reject the status quo and refuse to conform to any society that stifles their creativity and independence. ...Pirates don't much care about public perception; they proudly fly their flags in defiance." (Burgess p.xii)
The first section of the book reviews the essential components of becoming a true PIRATE!
P - Passion
I- Immersion
R - Rapport
A - Ask & Analyze
T - Transformation
E - Enthusiasm
Follow the Map.
To attain full credit and Act 48 Hours for completing the course, you must leave a comment for each post as an answer to the question at the end of the post. You must also respond to at least one other comment left by one of your shipmates.
To answer the question, start your response with ANSWER.
To respond to a shipmate, start your response with Response to __________.
Finish with an explanation of how you can use the topic in your classroom.
Our course will take us to the following weekly stops:
WEEK 1: June 19th (6/19 - 6/25) PART I - TEACH LIKE A PIRATE
Burgess breaks passion for teaching into 3 categories:
Content Passion
Professional Passion
Personal Passion
Content Passion
Content passion is that piece of our curriculum that we love to teach. What is it about elementary ELA and/or Math that you enjoy the most? You might even have particular PA Core standard that you enjoy to teach.
Professional Passion
Professional passion is the reason you became a teacher.
"Too often, as we manage the day-to-day stresses of the job, we fail to reconnect with the reasons we felt called to this sacred and invaluable profession in the first place." (5)
Even on the days we can't feel passion for what we're teaching, we must always try to remember why we're teaching and keep that in front of us.
Personal Passion
This is what you care about most, completely outside of your profession. Think of the saying "if you do what you love, you'll never have to work a day in your life."
"To keep your passion for teaching alive, find as many ways as possible to incorporate your personal passions into your work." (9)
Burgess notes how he will try to use magic whenever he can to make a connection to the content that he is teaching. Show your students how you relate what your most passionate about "allows your students to see how their unique skill sets and passions" can be used to meet their life goals.
Discussion Questions
How do the three areas of Passion relate to the grade level you teach?
How can you find ways to allow your students to bring their personal passion to the classroom?
Don't forget to respond to at least one one other person's comment.
We've all had that experience where someone is talking to us but our mind is somewhere else. you might spend the whole conversation saying "what" and asking them to repeat. This is a great non-example of Immersion. To not be immersed in a conversation or in an activity sends the message "that this moment is somehow less important and not significant enough to be worth undivided attention."
Being Focused vs. Being Immersed
Burgess discusses the difference between being "Focused" and being truly "Immersed." He does this by comparing a lifeguard and a swimmer/swim instructor. Yes they both are around water, but which one is truly immersed?
vs.
A swimmer/swim instructor is completely immersed in the water. The lifeguard is out of the water watching the water. The lifeguard is "Focused" on the action, but the swimmer is "Immersed" in the action.
"It's far more powerful to 'swim' with your students." (15)
They need the benefit of your complete immersion in the class.
Discussion Questions
Think of your interactions with your students. How can you ensure that you are fully immersed in a whole group lesson and also a small group lesson? What would that look like in your classroom?
Don't forget to respond to at least one one other person's comment.
Burgess connects Sun Tzu to the best strategies in behavior management by stating "we don't want to develop techniques to win behavior management battles, we want to develop techniques that allow us to avoid the battle altogether." (19) So what is the secret to being able to "positively" be able to avoid the battle?
Burgess identifies engagement as one piece to positive classroom management, but also notes developing rapport is "equally important to your success in avoiding battles with students." (20)
Burgess notes that we need to not try to get students engaged in what we're trying to teach as much as we should try to figure out how to connect what you're teaching to what students "are already interested in." (21)
We need to create classrooms where students know that they are loved unconditionally. Burgess recommends that we use whatever time we can to get to know our students and also take time to determine their interests, learning styles and multiple intelligences.
Discussion Questions
How do you currently try to connect and build rapport with your students?
After reading this chapter, how will you attempt to build rapport and engage students in the future?
Don't forget to respond to at least one one other person's comment.
While this chapter is titled "Ask and Analyze," it is really about taking a close look at being creative and engaging in the classroom. We have all seen those teachers who make everything look easy, but what we don't see is all of the work that goes into making it look easy. We just see the tip of the iceberg.
Burgess compares this to what he calls "the myth of the blinding flash of light." This is the belief that creative people are simply walking around and "bang" the creative idea presents itself. Those who "aren't creative" become more and more frustrated because they never see the flash of light. So, if the flash of light is a myth, then "what is this creative process? To a large extent, it is the process of consistently asking the right questions." (34)
Being Creative is Hard Work
Burgess quotes Michelangelo to make that point that being creative is hard work.
We need to give our brain permission to think outside of the box. You need to be able to ask yourself "what is the most creative way I can teach this lesson?" and not be limited by what you think you can and cannot do. Use quality "outside of the box" questions to ask questions.
"Don't ask, 'How can I make this lesson bearable for my students today and keep them awake?' unless you want an answer that requires the bare minimum. Instead ask, 'How can I make this lesson outrageously entertaining, engaging, and powerful so that my students will never forget it...?'" (43)
If you give your brain permission to think and ask "outside of the box" questions, it will, and you will begin to only settle for critical questions and answers to create engaging lessons.
Capture Your Ideas
Finally, make sure to find a way to capture your ideas wherever you are because once you give your brain the permission, you will find ideas popping up everywhere you look. You want to have something to keep track of those great ideas!
Discussion Questions
What barriers to you come across that prevent you from opening up your creativity?
How will you try to eliminate those barriers, or push through them, in the future?
Don't forget to respond to at least one one other person's comment.
"Provide an uncommon experience for your students and they will reward you with an uncommon effort and attitude." (Dave Burgess)
Burgess writes this chapter as a way to show us that too often students and teachers fall into a day to day rut..."we've got to get through the content" type of day. You can hear that one teacher you had saying "c'mon you guys, I know this is not exciting but you need to stay with me."
Burgess references Seth Godin's Purple Cow principle to paint the picture of why you want to not fall into that day in and day out rut.
"Students are hit with so much information and stimuli every day that to stand out in their minds, you must be remarkable." (56)
"Standing out from the crowd is the only way to guarantee your message is received in a culture that is increasingly distracted and where attention spans are plummeting. If you feel your message is important, and I do, it is worth the effort to go to any lengths to make sure it is successfully delivered." (56)
The two above quotes make one think of the work that has to be put into make a memorable lesson. You want your students to leave after a day know what they learned and understanding why and how the content they learned is important to them.
Burgess poses two questions for you to ask yourself to determine if your lessons are truly remarkable.
If your students didn't have to be there, would you be teaching in an empty room? If your students didn't have to come to school, would your lessons and how you teach them, drive your students to come to school on their own or would you just be alone in an empty room.
Do you have any lessons you could sell tickets for? Are there lessons or teaching strategies that you use that really engage students to the point where you walk out that night floating on cloud nine.
Reality says that we will not be able to answer yes to each of those questions every day, however striving to get there will push you to design more engaging lessons. Set your vision and ask yourself every day if you're reaching that vision.
Positioning and Reframing:
Burgess ends this chapter focusing on Positioning and Reframing.
Positioning is how you put your class out there for all to see. "Why should students bother to learn what we are teaching? Why should they bother to give us their attention and active engagement in the first place?" (61) As noted earlier in the chapter, students have so much stimuli in a day, you have to find a way to keep your message positioned in front of your students. Why is it important for students to listen to what you have to say.
Reframing focuses directly on the content you're teaching. What we're teaching may not seem important to our students, so how do we reframe it so that our students think that they cannot live without knowing the content. "Our job is to create a mental paradigm shift by reframing the content and its value and relevancy to their lives." (62) How can you connect the content to the students...again, why is it important to them? If we can't, we'll never have their full attention.
Discussion Questions:
Have you had to Re-Position a lesson or Reframe the content you were going to teach to make sure it would engage your students? If you have not, can you think of a lesson/content that you will try to Re-Position/Reframe?
Don't forget to respond to at least one one other person's comment.
"If you apply nothing else from this book, but you consistently ramp up your enthusiasm level in the classroom, you will be far ahead of the game and a dramatically better teacher." (65)
Burgess notes that there is good reason as to why he made Passion and Enthusiasm the cornerstones of Teach Like a Pirate. If you love what you do, how can you not be passionate and enthusiastic to do it each and every day. I think that sometimes we get bogged down into believing that teaching is just a job. But...it's not a job. It's a calling.
There is no doubt about it...there are some days when it is hard to roll out of bed, deal with all of the things in our personal lives, and then be able to "bring it" at school, but we have to "bring it." If we can't be excited to see our kids every day, see each other every day, and teach our subjects, how on earth can we expect our kids to be enthusiastic about learning from us.
"I refuse to cheat a student by delivering a subpar performance just because he has me later in the day, or early in the day when I'm not quite awake." (67)
How do we maintain enthusiasm without burning out?
The first way that Burgess suggests to increase your every day enthusiasm is to simply start by "faking enthusiasm" every day. "Even if you are only acting at first, an amazing thing happens along the way. You actually start to really feel and become enthusiastic because of your breath pattern and the way you are holding and moving your body." (69)
The second way to increase your every day enthusiasm is "to change what you focus on." (70). You've been in that situation before where you were tired and run down and then someone comes to you and tells you some great news. You're mood immediately changes because you're no longer focused on how tired you are...you're focused on the great news.
"As a teacher, your days comprise enough positive and negative experiences to either make you feel energized and amazing or beat down and depressed. What you choose to attend to creates your reality. Some teachers look out over a ninety-nine percent engaged classroom with kids on fire about learning and feel successful. Others choose to focus on the one percent and feel like failures. Make a conscious decision to focus on what empowers you." (70)
Discussion Questions:
What do you do to maintain high levels of enthusiasm? If it's not something you think you currently do, what can you do moving forward?
Don't forget to respond to at least one one other person's comment.
Welcome to Part 2 of our journey. We now know the "Why" behind the importance of teaching like a pirate (passion, immersion, ask/analyze, transformation, enthusiasm), now we'll look at the How, and then will get into the "Whats" (The Hooks).
The Third Circle
Burgess believes that we need to focus on the third circle because we most teachers are pretty strong in their content areas and receive PD on technique and methods. The third circle, presentation, is the area that makes or breaks the lesson and it is the most likely not to be reviewed during a seminar or professional development day.
Welcome to the BBQ
Burgess makes a great analogy that teaching can be like going to a BBQ. He notes that you can't just serve your guests a raw piece of meat and hope that they have a good time. There's a great deal of preparation that must go into creating a memorable day. All of the choices that go into hosting a successful BBQ can be brought into creating a passionate and enthusiastic lesson.
The Meat is your content standards and learning targets. You must make sure that you pick the right piece of meat for the lesson.
The Seasoning and Marinade are the presentation strategies (The Hooks) that will be described later. Just like a good marinade will draw you into a steak, good hooks will bring your students into the lesson and keep them there.
Fire Up the Grill! The grill is the enthusiasm and showmanship you bring to the lesson. Let that enthusiasm simmer, don't just bring the heat in the beginning. "Just like meat has to be turned and basted, you have to continually add engaging twists, turns, and changes of pace throughout the lesson." (78)
Side Dishes and Desserts are the engaging activities you will act on based on the hooks you choose to apply to your lessons. The activities are that final meaningful strategies that will help students retain the information you've presented.
Discussion Questions
You are hosting the Educational BBQ. What items would you be able to bring with no problem? What are the items you think are most important to bring?
Don't forget to respond to at least one one other person's comment.
Burgess asks the readers to use the hooks as a resource...to keep them in mind as you reflect on a unit you have to teach or are reviewing upcoming content. He also suggests to work with a partner or team when going though this section of the book. Remember, if you are not used to thinking like this, it will be difficult at first. The more you do it the easier it will be to think outside of the box. Finally, he wants everyone to simply have fun with the process and remember that the flash of light has to be worked for.
I Like to Move It, Move It
These hooks bring in movement to the lesson. "The brain and body work best when receiving the flow of oxygen and blood; that doesn't happen when students spend their days sitting at a desk." (87)
The Kinesthetic Hook
How can I incorporate movement into this lesson?
Can we throw something, roll something, or catch something inside or outside of class?
Can we get up and act something out?
Can I change the structure of the lesson from a seated activity to a walk around activity?
Can we incorporate gestures and motions that students could do from their desks?
Can I use a game that incorporates movement and action to enhance this lesson?
How can I guarantee that every student is up and out of their desk at least once during the lesson?
People Prop Hook
Can I use my students as props, inanimate objects, or concepts?
Can we create a human graph, chart, map, or equation?
Can students be assigned a specific step in a process or an event and then have to order themselves sequentially?
Can some students be props and others prop movers?
Safari Hook
How can I get my class outside of my four walls?
Where would be the best places on campus to deliver this content?
Is there an area of the school that serves as the perfect backdrop for this lesson?
Can I plant key items outside for us to "discover"?
Long Live the Arts
Music and the arts are another way to engage our students in our lessons. I think back to seeing Messiah on the stage at the end of the year with the band from Curtin and how talented he was on the drums. Could that have been a "hook" for him at Stevens?
Picasso Hook
How can I incorporate art into this lesson?
What can my students draw or make that would help them understand and retain the information?
Can they make some kind of non-linguistic representation of the material?
Can they create visuals of key information as a way to review for the upcoming test?
Can they design word pictures in which the way the word it written reveals its definition?
Can I create an art-based option that students could choose instead of another assignment?
The Mozart Hook
How can I use music to aid my presentation?
What would be the perfect song or type of music to create the right mood and proper atmosphere?
What songs have lyrics that relate to this lesson?
If I don't know, can I ask my students to find examples of music that relate to this topic?
Can I use music to transition from one activity to another?
How can I most effectively use music as they enter the room?
What should we listen to while students are working independently or collaboratively?
How can I use music to wrap up my lesson and send them out into the world in a positive and upbeat mood?
Can students change the lyrics of a song to better reflect the content they are learning?
Can students create raps/songs that demonstrate their understanding of the content or standard?
Can I offer an alternative project that would allow my students with musical talents to be creative?
Dance and Drama Hook
Can I provide the opportunity for my students to do skits or appear in videos related to what we are learning?
Can they learn and perform a relevant dance?
Can some students teach a dance to the class?
Can they impersonate key people from history in a panel discussion or interview format?
Can the reenact historical events?
Can they write a script and create a video to play for the class?
The Craft Store Hook
How can I incorporate a craft into this lesson?
What can my students make that relates to this material?
Can I provide some basic supplies such as craft sticks, pipe cleaners, and duct tape, give them an open-ended creative project, and turn them loose?
Could there be craft skills my students already possess that could enhance my curriculum and simultaneously allow them the chance to be an expert for a day?
What's In It for Me?
This goes back to that super important question "Why." Why are we learning this? What am I going to get out of this lesson/topic? How will learning this material make me better?
The Student Hobby Hook
How can I incorporate the hobbies and outside interests of my students into this material?
Do I even know the hobbies and outside interests of my students and, if not, how can I find out?
How can I harness the power of connecting my content to what students are already interested in?
The Real World Application Hook
How can I show my students why learning this content is important in the real world?
How will they possible apply this in their life?
Can we increase motivation and engagement by offering reasons to learn that go beyond - because it's on the test?
Can they create something real that will be more than a classroom project but actually allow them to interact with the world in an authentic way?
The Life Changing Lesson Hook
How can I use this lesson to deliver an inspirational message?
What type of life-changing lesson can be incorporated into the content?
What type of essential questions can I ask that allow students the opportunity for personal reflection and growth?
The Student Directed Hook
How can I provide opportunities for autonomy and choice in this unit/lesson?
Can I allow students interest to dictate our direction and learning while still covering what we need to address?
How can I release some of my control and provide students the chance to be the experts and directors of this subject?
The Opportunistic Hook
What current events are related to this lesson?
Is there a hot topic in the news or on campus that I can use to capture student interest?
What aspect of current pop culture can I tie into this material?
In what ways can I incorporate currently popular trends, fads, TV shows, and movies in order to make this relevant and engaging for my class?
Can I put intriguing images of current events on the walls with QR codes underneath that link to more information?
Discussion Questions
Choose two hooks that you have put in place or have seen put in place. If you can't identify two, think about two that you would want to put into your lessons.
Don't forget to respond to at least one one other person's comment.
I hope you've enjoyed reviewing and discussing some of the Hooks from Hooks Part 1. Now it's time to walk the plank and jump right into some more hooks.
All The World is a Stage
Your classroom is your stage and a stage for your students. How can you and your students use what's in there to create the ideal learning environment?
The Interior Design Hook
How can I transform my room to create the ultimate atmosphere for this lesson?
Can I change the lighting for mood?
Can I block out all light and just use accent lights to emphasize certain things?
Can I cover or decorate the walls, the ceiling, or the floor?
Can I change the entrance?
How can I rearrange the desks for this lesson to be most effective?
Can I create more space by removing desks?
Can I add partitions to break the room into areas or to create maze-like corridors?
If I were throwing a theme party at my house for this subject, what would I do?
If a theme park were opening up a new attraction based on my lesson, what would it include?
The Board Message Hook
What can I write on my board or have projected on my screen that will immediately spark curiosity and interest as the students enter my room?
What type of message will create a buzz and provoke students to point it out and begin to talk to each other about it before the bell even rings?
What can I write that will be intriguing and mysterious and compel students to approach me and ask questions before we get started?
Can I just put a QR code on the board or screen and see what happens?
Can I have an intriguing image projected that will eventually tie into my content?
The Costume Hook
What can I wear as an outfit or costume for this lesson?
Is there an existing character that I can impersonate?
Can I create a character that is relevant to this lesson
Can I invent a superhero or super villain for this subject?
What accessory (something as small as a hat or glasses) can I wear to enhance my presentation?
The Props Hook
What physical item can I bring in to add to my presentation?
What image can I show?
Instead of just talking about a book, can I bring it?
Instead of just mentioning a person, can I show a picture?
What can I bring that students could actually hold in their hands and pass up and down the aisles?
The Involved Audience Hook
How can I consistently keep the audience feeling involved?
Can I cue them to make certain motions or sounds at key points?
Can I incorporate call and response into this lesson?
Can I, unknown to their classmates, cue certain students to play a pre-arranged role?
Can I bring students to the front of the room as volunteers?
The Mystery Bag Hook
How can I gain engagement by openly hiding something from the class?
Can I have a closed box or a package on the front stand?
How can I build up the suspense of the unveiling?
Can I cut a hole into a box so that students reach inside and feel the contents but not see?
Can I give hints and open the floor for guesses?
What can I put into the mystery box or bag that would tie to my lesson?
After displaying the item, how can I get students to try to figure out the relationship between it and the lesson?
Stand and Deliver
The Storytelling Hook
What captivating story can I tell that would draw students into this lesson?
Can I create a high-interest story to fit the lesson?
What techniques of the master storytellers, such as dramatic build, can I use to enhance this presentation?
How would speaking in character, using accents, changing intonations, and varying volume for effect (even whispering) have an impact on the class?
How can I use facial expressions, dramatic pauses, and gestures to improve the power of my lecture?
The Swimming with the Sharks Hook
How can I enter the audience and break down the barrier between teacher and class?
Can I participate in the activity?
Can I storm up and down the rows and use the whole room as my platform?
Can I enter the physical space of key areas in the room where attention is waning?
Is there a different place, or multiple places, that I can present from for the sake of novelty?
The Taboo Hook
You want to be careful in how you use these hooks and use good judgment.
How can I use the fact that students are fascinated by that which is taboo and forbidden?
How can I position my topic so that t seems like a little-known script?
How can I take advantage of the fact that students (and adults!) are intrigued by things they aren't supposed to hear?
Can I position my topic as if it is illicit, even though it isn't?
The Mime Hook
How can I use the mesmerizing power of silence to spark interest and engage?
Can I use nothing but written messages to deliver my lesson or opening hook?
Can I use mime techniques and gestures to get my point across?
Can I incorporate charades and/or Pictionary-type activities?
Can students be asked to get their messages across without words, as well?
The Teaser Hook
How can I spark interest in this lesson by promoting it ahead of time?
What can I do to create a positive expectancy in advance?
What aspect of this lesson can I tease beforehand to provoke curiosity?
If I were creating a movie trailer or preview for this lesson, what would it include?
If I were planning a marketing promotion for this lesson what would I do and when would I begin?
The Backwards Hook
How can I gain an advantage or increase interest by presenting this material out of sequence?
Can I tell them the end of the story and let them figure out and discover the beginning and the middle?
Can I show them an end product that will make them want to learn the skills to get there?
Advanced Tactics
The Mission Impossible Hook
How can I design my lesson so that students are trying to unravel and solve a mystery?
How can I incorporate clues that can only be decoded by learning or researching the relevant subject? (Think Da Vinci Code or National Treasure)
Can they be provided a treasure map or sent on a scavenger hunt through your content?
What type of entertaining plot can I use as an overlay or backdrop for this unit?
What fictitious character or role can they play?
What crisis must they prevent?
Can I change this from a standard assignment to a daring and impossible mission?
The Reality TV Hook
How can I design my lesson to take advantage of the popularity of reality TV?
Can I create a Survivor-style challenge and divide the class into tribes?
Can this be configured as an Amazing Race partner lesson?
How can I incorporate Fear Factor type of challenge?
The Techno Whiz Hook
How can I tap into the technological prowess of my students?
Can I give my students the option to create projects and turn in assignments digitally?
Can I create a paperless lesson?
How can technology be used to bridge gaps between school and the real world?
How can technology help to connect my students to people from all over the world and help them gain a global perspective?
Around the Hedges
The Contest Hook
How can I include a contest in this lesson to build excitement and motivation?
What type of review game can I design to ramp up the entertainment level of my class?
What kind of in-class challenge can I create that would take advantage of their competitive instinct?
Can I be part of the challenge or contest?
The Magic and the Amazing Hook
What amazing principle can I demonstrate as part of this lesson?
Is there a magical effect that could help to deliver this message?
Can I teach my students an amazing skill that they will go home and show others?
The Chef Hook
How can I enhance this lesson by adding food or drinks?
Can I cook something for the class?
What type of food would be perfect for this lesson?
How can I use food or drinks to demonstrate a point, serve as an incentive, or just help create a positive atmosphere for a special lesson?
The Mnemonic Hook
Are there key bits of information I want my students to know cold?
Is there a pattern to point out?
Can the point of the lesson be tied to previous knowledge?
Does a mnemonic exist for the material?
Can I design my own mnemonic to help them remember this material?
Can the students create their own mnemonic?
How can I embed a mnemonic theme throughout my presentation to aid retention?
The Extra-Credit Challenge Hook
What high-interest and motivating challenges can I create that relate to this unit?
What intriguing mission can I send students on to allow them to extend their learning in a unique way?
How can I provide my students the opportunity for an experience that will create life-long memories?
Discussion Questions
Choose two hooks that you have put in place or have seen put in place. If you can't identify two, think about two that you would want to put into your lessons.
Don't forget to respond to at least one one other person's comment.
Burgess ends our journey by circling back around and focusing on us as the educators. He's given us his beliefs and his tools, now he leaves it in our hands to use these ideas.
The Awkward Question
It's a simple question..."Do you want to be great?" For some reason, in education, asking if you want to be great is often frowned upon. There is a belief that we must stay with the herd. There's a misconception that there is only a finite amount of greatness available to us all, and if I use it, that greatness won't be available for someone else to use. Burgess notes that that is simply not true. Greatness is available to all those who want to work for it.
"I can think of no higher purpose or calling than teacher." (148) If we truly believe this, can we afford not to strive for greatness?
Where Do I Start?
"'Starting' may well be one of the most difficult and under-appreciated skills of all." What holds us back from taking that first step? Burgess gives us five of the most common reasons but also notes that "they're all conquerable." (154)
1. The Fear of Failure
"Quite simply, some people don't start what they know is in their best interest and what they really, deep down want to do, because they think their efforts will be wasted in failure." (154) This fits perfectly into Growth Mindset. Burgess paints the picture by asking us to consider what would happen if a toddler would have that adult mindset when trying to walk...."we would still be crawling." (154)
2. Believing You Have to Figure It All Out Before You Begin
Sometimes teaching is like building the airplane while it's flying in the air. Take the first step even if you don't have it all figured out.
3. Perfectionism
People can become paralyzed through perfectionism. If I don't do it just right, it's going to be all messed up. Again, it's easier to not do it than see it not done to perfection. Life is all about setbacks and growing from those setbacks...Growth Mindset.
4. Lack of Focus
When I first read this, I thought it was a contradiction to the above #2. However, he clears this up by stating "Subconsciously, we know if we keep ourselves busy and over-scheduled, we won't have to face the great work we know that we should be doing." (160) It's not about having it all figured out but keeping the big picture in focus. Our focus needs to be seeing our kids be successful, and everything we do should be done with that focus always in front of us. Burgess tries to clarify this by using Stephen Covey's big rocks metaphor. If we start with the big rocks (our big ideas), we can accomplish more than when we get caught up in the little stuff.
What are your big rocks?
5. Fear of Criticism or Ridicule
"Criticism and ridicule come with the territory if you are going to try new ideas and be proactive rather than reactive. You'll get stuff wrong, make a fool of yourself, and many will give you grief for it." (160) If history has taught us anything, it is that people will fear and ridicule that which they do not know. We see this in politics, education, business, marketing, religion, healthcare...and on and on and on. If you have a Fixed Mindset, you will agree that not doing something to escape that criticism and ridicule would be worth it...we won't get better with a Fixed Mindset.
Steve Jobs
I came across this tribute video to Steve Job while I was reviewing this section. I think a reflection on Steve Jobs is great way to wrap everything up. Did he want to be great...YES! Did the five common fears listed above affect him...yes. Was he able to see beyond and not be stopped by those fears...yes.
Final Reflection Discussion Questions
As a final post, I would like you post a comment that reflects the following:
How the PIRATE philosophy will impact you as you move forward in education
How you will try to recruit a crew to go on your voyage
How you will take your first steps
Okay...our ship has reached port. Let's hit the beach!
