So, when I ask the students for ‘their ‘word.
Their ‘existence’ word ...
Their ‘life’ word ...
 
Most found it very difficult to describe WHO they were being.
 
They just were doing!!!
 
They did not know what a ‘being’ was.

Roll taking.
I have just been a reader / writer to someone who could ‘NOT’ write.
 
He is unable to write!
YOU are able to write.
YOU are very lucky!
 
Be grateful
Be grateful that you can write!
Be grateful that you can see!
                 that you can speak!
Be grateful for the food we eat, and all those who contribute to that!
 
When I take the roll, I want YOU to tell US what you are grateful for. 
What you are REALLY grateful for?
 
That was a very very humble roll taking
They got it!  They really got it.

Judgement
​
A lovely little girl was holding two apples with both hands.
Her mum came in and softly asked her little daughter with a smile: "My sweetie, could you give your mum one of your two apples?"

Every child has a different personality, as does a class, as does a teacher.  It is 'fun' finding that out and gelling with it.

The Unit
 
I worked in a unit attached to a high school. Disabilities etc.
 
The woman who ran this unit was very stern and very strict with all she met.  Almost scary. Why? Because she loved the unit she kept a tight rope and, in my mind, it ran really well.
 
I absolutely ‘loved’ her and, I don’t know why, it seemed she, me. Crazy!
 
I overlooked the stern, the strict, the scary, and made her laugh.

I put it down to the 10% rule. There is always going to be people who trash the universe. However, it is also mine/your universe too. So I clean it. I set an example, and clean it for all of us, as do others I see occasionally in the schools. Mostly, though, teachers have more pressing things to do, so I do my bit for them, going to great lengths at times. A school is such a (mass) learning environment...

I lived in a caravan at Piha
Do you know where Piha is?
 
One Sunday, I was walking the beach picking up rubbish.
Rubbish that came in from the sea, yet mostly, rubbish that visitors left behind.

Hey, I am still getting my website done which will be out hopefully in a soon. 
I was delighted to find some people are following my blog. 
Thank you, thank you, thank you. I am being a bit coy at the moment, wait until I really get going!!!!!

Respect
One HUGE school I went to – from Day Care to Kindy, Pre-School, Primary, Secondary – HUGE …
 
Locks on ALL the doors, esp. toilets and staff room. Tricky to get around, as WE don’t get keys (especially when you want to go to the toilet!!!). Who gets time to go to the toilet???? Not like yet another school where the car park was locked, AND when and IF you got into the car park, THEN YOU COULD NOT GET INTO THE SCHOOL!!!! And wait for it – AND YOU COULDN’T GET OUT of the car park either!!!

I am told that with modern technology we are getting further and further away from relationships, both with others, and also, ourselves.  I have a real bee in my bonnet about having ALL students from 5 years to 18 years choose a word.  I started to doubt myself and wondered what I was up to.  I continued going, and, now I see how purposeful, how personal, and how empowering it is for them.  Give them a chance I say ...



​

Integrity
 
Give me a word.

This gorgeous high school boy sincerely told me he could not think of a word.

 I will put a ‘dot’ by your name and you tell me later.
 I passed by him several times – no word.

Then I went to him and I said ‘integrity’!
 “No, no, no, - I couldn’t have that word.”
 
"Think about it", I said.
 
I forgot about it, the bell rang,
when next thing –
 
This gorgeous boy came up to me and said:
 “I’ll take it!”
 
I was really touched.  He had thought about the word integrity ALL that time,  decided he wanted it, then he took it home with him – forever …
 
Great choice, my lad …

​Hall of Fame
Let's make life meaningful.  I hear some fabulous songs that teachers take the time to seek out for their classes to sing.  The Hall of Fame was one of these.
75 kids
All singing a song about the ‘Hall of Fame’. 
THE Hall of Fame.

I got to thinking, it is all very well singing about something being ‘out’ there, ‘away’ from us.
 
Yet hey, what about our very own, inside of us,
‘Hall of Fame’ …
 
We can build our very own Hall of Fame.  What of?
Heard of the 3 pigs?  Lets get some ‘core values’. Even grab some off the classroom walls, strength, resilience, direction.  YOU, you just go looking for them.  They are everywhere.  YOU can chose what you want?  YOU can choose where you go in life by creating your own Hall of Fame.

Exciting?
 
Let's start building  …