The Response-Able Educator Newsletter
March 11, 2004
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Welcome! This is a free newsletter on becoming a Response-Able
teacher and developing Response-Able students.
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MISSION STATEMENT
My mission is to inspire, encourage and uplift the spirits
of educators so they can in turn inspire, encourage, and uplift
the spirits of their students.
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IN THIS ISSUE
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- Quote
- Spirit Whisperer Contemplation
- Facts
- Connectedness
- Bumper Sticker
- Words to Live By
- ICM Buttons
- Changing the Face of Our Voice
- Manage Your Subscription
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"If we distrust the human being, then we must cram him
with information of our own choosing lest he go his own mistaken
way. But if we trust the capacity of the human individual
for developing his own potentiality, then we can permit him
the opportunity to choose his own way in his learning."
----Anonymous
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2. Spirit Whisperer Contemplation [back
to top]
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What if the main purpose of learning to read is to enable
us to read ourselves? Are your students learning to read?
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Over 100 million plus children worldwide have never spent
a day in school.
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Close ties, a sense of belonging, and feelings of family
created at school reduce the likelihood of drug use, violence,
and early sex, according to the National Longitudinal Study
of Adolescent Health. Students who attend junior high and
high schools with fewer than 1200 students are less likely
than students who attend more populous schools to engage in
risky behavior involving drugs, violence, and sex. Feeling
more closely connected to their teachers and to one another,
these students are less isolated and develop more personal
relationships.
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Spotted on a Chevy Blazer in the Milan, MI, public library
parking lot:
My cat is smarter than your honor roll student.
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The hitchhiker who sucks his thumb never gets anywhere.
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By Chick Moorman
I have antennae that notice things like this, so it came
as no surprise when I spotted the ICM button on a middle school
student in a crowded hallway in western Nebraska.
The button was 4 inches in diameter and contained only three
letters, all capitals: ICM. I had no idea what the button
was intended to communicate. For all I knew, the letters were
really Roman numerals; or maybe the button was related to
an upcoming school election. Curious about its significance,
I decided to ask.
"What do you have there?" I asked the adolescent
who was wearing the button.
"It's an ICM button," he informed me in a tone
putting me on notice that the answer to my question was obvious.
"What do the letters stand for?" I continued. "What
does 'ICM' mean?"
"ICM stands for 'I Can Manage.' Did you know I managed
to bring my materials to class three days in a row? I can
manage my materials."
"Congratulations," I offered.
"Thanks."
"Where did you get that button?" I continued.
"My teacher, Mrs. Chen, gave it to me."
"How do I find this teacher?" I asked, hoping to
get pointed in the right direction.
"Follow me. I'm on my way to class now."
As I entered the classroom of the teacher who gives students
ICM buttons, I realized she was a special education teacher.
She and an aide worked with 15 students in this special needs
classroom.
After introducing myself as the afternoon staff development
speaker, I got right to my agenda.
"I met one of your students in the hall," I explained.
"He was wearing an ICM button. Can you tell me about
those?"
"Oh, that was Luis," she said. "I gave him
one for managing his materials. He's been working really hard
on that, and I thought he deserved some positive recognition.
ICM stands for 'I Can Manage.' One of the things we're working
on in here is managing ourselves. Sometimes I give the buttons
to students for managing their time, their mouths, or even
for managing to be where they're supposed to be at any given
moment. Managing tempers, words, supplies, or the cleanup
effort have also resulted in receiving an ICM button from
time to time. I gave one out last week when one of my students
walked across the room to the pencil sharpener and back without
hitting, kicking, or poking. I gave it to her for managing
her hands and feet."
As I explored the ICM button phenomenon with Mrs. Chen, I
found she distributed them indiscriminately. There was no
set schedule. There was no number of points to be earned in
order to get one. Some weeks none were awarded, other weeks
several were distributed. When Mrs. Chen felt one was deserved,
she gave it. Students kept the buttons for three days and
wore them proudly.
I also learned that Mrs. Chen had enlisted the aid of all
the other adults in the building. Anyone who taught, served
lunch, helped out in the library, worked in the office, or
handled discipline in the school was honor bound to go up
to any students they saw wearing ICM buttons and ask them
where they got the buttons and what the buttons stood for.
Failure to do so would land them in trouble with Mrs. Chen.
Thus, any student wearing an ICM button could expect to be
asked several times a day, "Where did you get that? What
does it stand for?" The student was then able to say
frequently, "I can manage. I can manage my materials."
I wonder if Judy Chen ever rewards herself with an ICM button.
I hope so. I hope she wears it proudly in the halls of her
school. And if someone comes up and asks her what it stands
for, I hope she tells them, "That's my ICM button. It
means I can manage. I can manage my classroom by encouraging
positive behaviors in my students."
Chick Moorman is the author of "Spirit Whisperers: Teachers
Who Nourish a Child's Spirit" and "Parent Talk:
How to Talk to Your Child in Language That Builds Self-Esteem
and Encourages Responsibility." The books are available
from Personal Power Press at (toll-free) 877-360-1477. Chick
Moorman also publishes a FREE E-newsletter for parents as
well as this one for educators. Contact him at ipp57@aol.com
to get your free subscription to one or both newsletters.
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8. Changing the Face of Our
Voice [back to top]
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Frances A. Miller
Elizabethtown Area School District
Elizabethtown, PA
PCDC Board Member
Often, teachers will attend conferences, workshops, or classes
and return with a sense of renewal. One teacher with whom
I work approached me shortly after participating in a Master's
level class, bursting with excitement. She was learning about
empowering students through the use of selective language.
This philosophy is based on the research of Chick Moorman
and Nancy Weber and is explained in their book, "Teacher
Talk." After viewing the book and seeing the difference
it made in this teacher's classroom as well as how nicely
it fit in with a school goal, the decision was made to use
the book with all staff members in the building.
The book is organized in mini-chapters. Each chapter is entitled
with an appropriate phrase, which is then discussed on the
next few pages. For example, one chapter is entitled, "Check
Yourself." The chapter explains how and when to use that
phrase.
At Mill Road Elementary School, we met as a staff during
the summer and decided to create a school goal that focused
on promoting positive communication among all members of the
school community. The "Teacher Talk" book study
was the perfect vehicle to establish the development of a
consistent language between the staff and students that focused
on student empowerment. So teachers, instructional aides,
noontime aides, and reading assistants were all given a copy
of "Teacher Talk." During the first faculty meeting,
we discussed the first five phrases or statements. Support
staff had their own meeting to discuss the first five phrases
too. We continue to use in-service time and early dismissals
to work our way through the book. After learning the "why"
behind each phrase, we do our best to "own" the
phrase by using it in a consistent and pervasive manner.
The change in the building has been incredible. In just six
weeks faculty and staff are using the same language to give
students an opportunity to reflect on their own behavior and
to make appropriate choices. As the principal, I can tell
the shift is occurring as I observe in classrooms and listen
to teachers talk with students in the hallway. This shift
is not always easy, since we often want to fall back on our
old habits in order to solve a problem.
One day, several third-grade students were quite noisy while
in the bathroom. I just happened to walk by when I heard one
teacher say to another teacher, "I know I'm supposed
to say something, but I am not sure what it is." I left
the situation feeling hopeful, because in my mind, hearing
a member of my faculty become tongue-tied was evidence that
a shift was occurring.
The boy's bathroom seems to be a hotspot for mischief, so
we decided to post signs that had "teacher talk"
on them in order to remind the students to choose appropriate
behavior. The signs read, "Are you using appropriate
behavior? Check yourself." and "You are responsible
for you. Check yourself." Within several days, my custodian
came to me and told me she found all of the signs in the trash
can. I was devastated! I really wanted to call all of the
boys together and admonish them for tearing down signs that
the principal had posted. After all, this was disrespectful
behavior. Instead, I chose to meet with all the boys in that
wing of the building. After they were seated, I told them
they had to decide what they wanted to occur when they were
in the bathroom. They had to choose between making it a safe
place to be and making it a place where students would be
concerned about what would happen while they were there. I
told them I was going to post the signs again. If the signs
remained on the walls, I would then know that the students
were choosing to have a safe bathroom. If the signs were placed
in the trash can and the mischief continued, then that would
be a signal to me that students were choosing to have an unsafe
bathroom.
To this day, the signs remain posted on the walls and the
bathroom problems have stopped. The students are proud of
this choice, as evidenced by the many times I am stopped in
the hallway by students stating, "It's going well in
the bathroom today, Mr. Miller: The signs are still there!"
This initiative began as a small seed planted within a teacher
during a staff development opportunity. The teacher saw the
value of the information learned and took the initiative to
pass it along. Now our students leave the building better
equipped to assess a situation and make a good choice followed
by an appropriate action to benefit the school community.
We continue to work on empowering our students while setting
limits and modeling appropriate behavior. We are hopeful our
students will value the life skills of tact, informed decision
making, and listening to their inner voices.
(Reprinted from the Pennsylvania Staff Development Council
newsletter, Vol. 4, Winter 2004.)
(Teachers and administrators wishing to improve their verbal
interaction with students are encouraged to order our book
"Teacher Talk: What It Really Means." "Teacher
Talk" is available from Personal Power Press for $13.00.
Call (toll-free) 877-360-1477. Purchase orders accepted. Quantity
discounts are available.
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9. Manage Your Subscription [back
to top]
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To find out more about books, tapes, and materials by Chick
Moorman, contact him at (toll-free) 877-360-1477 or on the
web at www.chickmoorman.com.
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Subscriber comments, ideas, and concerns are valued. Email
your
comment to IPP57@aol.com
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To find out more about workshops, seminars, and keynote
addresses presented by Chick Moorman contact him at toll free,
877/360-1477 or on the web at www.chickmoorman.com.
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Copyright 2004 Chick Moorman Seminars, all rights
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