Blog Archives

capture & cherish life's spark moments

8/29/2021

In honor of my dear friend, KathiSue Summers, who left this earth much too soon.

I was assembling Spark Moment jars for our district's digital engagement team when I received a call from a friend with news that shattered my heart in an instant. My good friend, KathiSue Summers, had passed away from Covid. To be honest, I’m still in shock and haven’t fully processed the emotion that comes with knowing a friend, whom I’ve experienced countless moments with, is no longer on this earth. However, as I look back on the 101 photos on my phone (thank you iphone for recognizing faces) I am captivated by the “spark moments” we shared. The irony isn’t lost on me that it was in the moment of creating these spark moment jars to capture life’s most precious and fleeting moments, that I’d be confronted with how truly precious these moments are.

These are just a few of the lessons KathiSue taught me from our moments together that I will carry with me always:

Love people fully and unconditionally. KathiSue never knew a stranger. She loved extravagantly and always made people feel special and cared for whether by verbal words of encouragement or a thoughtful note, card, or gift. I'll never forget the sweet little gifts she found for me and the words of encouragement she gave me throughout the years. They always came at the perfect time. She loved to share about her family, friends, and those she served. She was always so proud of the successes of others. There was never a doubt how much the people in her life mattered to her. What a powerful love!

Never stop learning and growing.
When I met KathiSue, she was a retired public school educator/administrator, however you would never know it. Her passion for education was like nothing I’d seen before. She had a thirst to continually learn and find the best ways to make education amazing and reach ALL students. She was always eager to share the latest thing she learned and participated in every educational opportunity she was able to take part in. She leaned into all experiences and "cannonballed" into learning. I'll never forget the video she shared with Tara Martin and I of her "cannonballing" into the swimming pool at her gym to illustrate her passion for trying new things. Her passion was unmatched, awe-inspiring and a great reminder that learning never ends.

Get connected.
I remember when I was first getting to know KathiSue as a member of the Southern Oregon Edtech Cadre, my friend Heather Marrs and I shared the power of Twitter at our regional meeting. KathiSue immediately shared her dislike for this social media platform, but characteristic to KathiSue’s thirst for learning she decided she’d give it another try. Goodness did she! She found her people and before long was jumping into Twitter chats and becoming a vital part of various educational communities. Soon after, she became a part of Voxer conversations where she was in daily conversation with educators from around the world. These communities fueled her. The lives she touched through her connections in these spaces is far-reaching and profound. Find your people. Whether that is in your community, on social media, or on apps like Voxer, community is essential and life-giving.

Smile big and laugh often.
KathiSue’s smile and laugh filled a room. As I scroll through my pictures, I am captured by the joy that emanates from her even in a photograph. Her smile came easy and her laughter was infectious. Smiles and laughter are contagious and bring joy to those who are fortunate enough to receive it.

Be a mentor.
KathiSue was a mentor to many: former students, her connected professional learning network, and new teachers she mentored through the Southern Oregon Education Service District. She found great purpose in sharing her learning and experience with others. There are always people who can learn from our story and journey.

Find ways to bring people together.
KathiSue loved bringing people together whether it was for a CoffeeEDU, dinner, a game night, or virtual event or meet-up. Community meant so much to her and she jumped at any chance to be with those she loved. As the tributes come flooding in as news of her passing spreads, I'm touched by the intersections of her far-reaching connections and relationships. She truly brought so many people together in ways I didn't realize. We are truly better together.

These are just 5 lessons of many that I will carry with me always. It is no coincidence that I’m busy making spark moment jars today. I am so grateful I have captured so many spark moments with my dear friend, KathiSue. The jars will now take on a deeper meaning as I cherish even more each day and moment with those I love and serve.

If you’d like to make a spark jar for yourself, colleague, or team you work with here’s how:

Spark Moment Jar

Materials:
1 mason jar (quart or pint)
1 colorful pen
Post-it notepad
Gift tag with hole for threading
Twine
Spark Moment card (printed on cardstock or paper)

On the gift tag: write "Spark Moments" on one side and a quote of choice or message on the other side.
Thread twine through gift tag and wrap around neck of jar.
Place pen and Spark Moment card in jar.
Add anything else you wish to personalize.
Place in a location where you will see it open and be reminded to capture moments.

Click HERE for a Padlet template to collect your Spark Moments Digitally.

Some of my favorite spark moments with KathiSue that I will forever cherish.

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10 relationship-building challenges for a magical beginning

8/24/2021

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In my last blog post I shared a strategy for relationship-building the first few weeks of school called the Magical Mystery Relationship-Building Tour.The post generated a lot of interest in possible challenge ideas for culture and team-building. I have curated a collection of 10 quick challenges that can be used in a variety of grade levels and content areas! Use them in the Magical Mystery Relationship-Building Tour and you will be off to a fantastic start in building a cohesive, collaborative, joyful, and trusting learning environment for your students!

10 Magical Challenges for Relationship-Building.pdf by Tisha Richmond

Canva Website Version

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magical mystery relationship-building tour

8/15/2021

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For far too many years I started the first day of the school year reading through the dreaded syllabus and going over classroom rules and procedures. Students would sit politely, but you could almost see their eyes glaze over and all color drain from their face as they feared the worst. Was all days in Mrs. Richmond's class going to be this boring?

I finally wised up and ditched the syllabus on the first day. Instead, I created an engaging and exciting first day activity called Favorite Things, and became intentional about getting to know my student's names and passions the first few weeks of class. I can't emphasize enough what a difference it made on our classroom culture when I made this shift. Students began to feel psychologically safe in my classroom as they got to know me and their peers. It may seem like a big investment at first when there is so much curriculum and content to cover. However, I will tell you from my own experience that when you take the time in the first weeks to prioritize relationships, it will pay dividends for learning in the long run. When students know they are seen and heard, trust you and their peers, and feel safe in their learning environment, they thrive. Nothing is as important in the first few weeks of school than building relationships with your students.

A strategy that worked beautifully for building relationships and a positive, trusting classroom culture was developing an introduction unit that covered the important procedures and basic skills framed with team challenges and mystery badges. For those of you who have read Make Learning Magical, you are going to recognize this as the MasterChef Bootcamp. This is similar, but I've iterated it so that it could be used in any class or grade level. You can use this idea in elementary, middle, or high school and in any content area. Use this strategy as a launching point to creating your own rendition of the magical mystery tour with your students so you can create a classroom this year that is bursting with magical learning!

Magical Mystery Relationship-Building Tour

Directions:
Print the Magical Mystery Badges on card stock as follows:

4 sheets of 100 point badges
3 sheets of 150 point badges
2 sheet of 250 point badges
1 sheet of 300 point badges

Cut badges along lines and place a silver scratch off sticker over each number.
Mix them up and place in a container or drawstring bag.
The first 2 weeks of class, create an opportunity each day for a team building challenge. It can be a challenge related to learning classroom procedures and routines, getting to know students names and passions, or your content. Keep the challenges fun and light-hearted. Some days it can be a short 10-15 minute activity, and other days a longer one. Mix it up!
Mixing teams each day helps build rapport and classroom culture. Find creative ways to randomly group students to add variety.
Each member of the winning team for each challenge gets to draw Magical Mystery Badges from the container or bag.
But....wait! They can’t scratch them off just yet! They must hold on to them until the final day of the Magical Mystery Classroom Tour!
To end the tour, have Magical Mystery Tour by The Beatles playing as students come in to class. As they enter, hand them a penny for scratching and have them scratch off all their stickers.
Students with the most points unlock something of your choosing! It could be choice for an upcoming assignment, it may be an incentive that would be desirable for your age of student and classroom, or it could be something tangible!!

The best part is that everyone wins because they are now developing relationships with others in the class and you are getting to know them too! It's amazing how powerful a little mystery and magic in learning can be!! Share your team building activities and renditions of this activity on #MLmagical! I would love to see your classroom magic and ideas!