Be the One for Kids

You Have the Power to Change the Life of a Child

Ryan Sheehy

• Publisher: Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc.
• Year: 2018
• eBook ISBN:
  9781946444646
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Students need guidance to succeed academically, but they also need our help to survive and thrive in today's turbulent world. They need someone to model the attributes that will help them win not just in school but in life as well. That someone is you. With forty-eight short, inspiring chapters, this book is suited for improving your personal practice daily. Or focus on a chapter each week to encourage your staff at meetings.

1

Be the One for the Movement

Most people go into education because they want to make a difference. It isn’t money, fame, or recognition educators seek; it's the chance to leave a legacy in the heart of a child. My bet is that you became an educator because you want to make a difference. You are in the right field. Education is a career that enables you to make an impact on future generations by changing the lives of young people in the present.

Be the One for Kids came from many different conversations with educators from a variety of schools. In the past thirteen years, I have taught at twelve schools (some years I taught at six different elementary schools per week) and was a vice principal for two years at a high school before becoming an elementary principal. My journey to becoming a principal was very purposeful and a huge learning experience. The journey was tough but well worth it. I am at a point where I love my job. I wake up each day and spend time with teachers, parents, and students. Having taught at every level in education and at many different sites in different socioeconomic areas, I have seen what works as well as what needs to change.

I want to share my passion for education and my passion for relationships, and I believe educators can be the one for kids by simply enhancing their teaching practices and building relationships.

Throughout my journey, I have had countless conversations with educators who were filled with excuses. They chose not to try something new because no one else would try it. Too afraid to make the leap or intimidated because it was not the popular thing, they let opportunity pass them by. Experience has shown that sometimes all it takes is one person willing to take a risk and get creative to bring about positive change. I have had the privilege of seeing firsthand how one person willing to make a different choice can change the life of a child.

Not every child inherently loves school. I had the pleasure to teach with an educator who took that to heart. She felt it was her job to make sure every student not only left her class with all first-grade content knowledge but also found something they loved about school. She was determined to find that one thing that would get kids out of bed.

Working with the local high school wood shop class, she was able to create the opportunity for first-grade students to have woodshop woven into their daily curriculum. Fast forward twelve years: Graduating from high school, these students came back to thank this educator for helping them find that one thing that ignited their passion for education.

You possess the power to Be the One for Kids. Don’t be afraid to unleash it.

Things to Consider and Tweet

1. How can you Be the One for Kids?
2. How can you Be the One for Others?
3. How do you find that one thing that ignites their passion for learning?

#BeTheOne

2

Be the One Who Knows Kids’ Stories

Who is that student in your class that challenges you? Who is that student you can’t get out of your mind? What is his or her story? How are you going to help him or her succeed? How are you helping them unleash their potential?

When I was a second grader at Olive Elementary School in Vista, California, it was a year-round school, and I was on the green track. One of the months we were off track, our home phone rang, and it was my teacher, Mrs. Lewis. She invited me to have pizza with her and a few other students, and I was over-the-moon excited! Throughout this trip to my classroom, she asked us all about our lives. She wanted to know what we did outside of school, how we spent our free time, and what our families were like. She wanted to know my story, and that was an amazing feeling.

The experience made a strong impression on me, and today I strive to be like Mrs. Lewis and to know my own students’ stories. Every single individual who walks into our school buildings has a story. When we learn those stories, we are more able to provide the tools our students need to succeed.

Think back to your own childhood. Which teacher learned your story? How did it make you feel?

All children deserve to have someone who invests time in them and learns about their lives. That investment also has the potential to pay out major dividends over time.

Spending time in high school as a teacher and as a vice principal showed me firsthand the power of building relationships with students. One year, during the first week of school, a girl came into the office kicking and screaming. She had been about to fight another student but was stopped right before contact was made. She was loud and out of control and was placed in my office to blow off steam. After letting her sit for about twenty minutes, I started a conversation. I looked her in the eyes and said, “Tell me about yourself.”

She had quite the story. This student was in the foster system. Her father had been killed when she was little, and her mother was in jail. She had been abused and continued to bounce from foster home to foster home.

For the next two years, we started each day together in my office. She would catch me up on her life, different things that were happening, things that were troubling her, and what her dreams were. That initial conversation in the wake of her meltdown sparked an important relationship. Today I occasionally get messages from her, and one of the most recent said she had graduated and was excited to be starting college in the fall. In the note, she thanked me for believing in her and taking the time to know her story.

When educators invest the time to learn their students’ stories, they have a better understanding of what motivates them. With that knowledge, it becomes easier to empower a student to succeed. Never give up the opportunity to have a conversation that might build a relationship with a student at your school.

The next time you have a free moment to engage a student, try asking about family or sports or favorite music or college plans. Afterward, reflect on that experience and see if the interaction establishes a new relationship, improves an existing one, or has a significant effect on the students’ outlook at school.

Know your students’ stories, and you just might build relationships that last a lifetime.

Things to Consider and Tweet

1. When is the last time you stopped and learned someone’s story?
2. Who learned your story?
3. How did someone learning your story change you?

#BeTheOne

3

Be the One Who Makes Kids Feel Special

High school is a time when students begin to figure out who they are. Some students enter with a good sense of self, while others really struggle with the process. Freshman year, for me, was tough. I transferred from a private school into the local public high school. I went from fifteen total kids in my grade to 350 students in my grade. It was a big jump.

As I made the transition and worked on getting to know others, there was a teacher who made me feel special. I can still remember sitting in the PE office...

Table of contents

• Praise for Be the One for Kids
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Foreword
• Introduction
• Culture
• 1. Be the One for the Movement
• 2. Be the One Who Knows Kids’ Stories
• 3. Be the One Who Makes Kids Feel Special
• 4. Be the One Who Says Yes
• 5. Be the One Who Greets People on Campus
• 6. Be the One Who Makes an Impact
• 7. Be the One Who Shows Kids How to Have Fun
• 8. Be the One Who Advocates
• 9. Be the One Who Welcomes Everyone
• 10. Be the One Who Will Not Take No for an Answer
• 11. Be the One Who Doesn’t Limit Learning
• 12. Be the One Who Engages Parents
• 13. Be the One Who Does the Right Thing
• 14. Be the One Who Puts a Smile on Someone’s Face
• Creativity
• 15. Be the One Who Creates Moments for Kids
• 16. Be the One Who Opens Students’ Eyes
• 17. Be the One Who Knocks on the Door
• 18. Be the One Who Keeps Kids Moving
• 19. Be the One Who Tells Your School’s Story
• 20. Be the One Who Gets Outside
• Empowerment
• 21. Be the One Who Believes in Kids
• 22. Be the One Who Shows Respect, Kindness, and Love
• 23. Be the One Who Is Magical
• 24. Be the One Who Connects with Kids
• 25. Be the One Who Stays Positive
• 26. Be the One Who Inspires Kids
• 27. Be the One Who Teaches Kids It’s Okay to Fail
• 28. Be the One Who Creates Positive School Memories
• 29. Be the One Who Teaches Balance
• 30. Be the One Who Turns Life into a Lesson
• 31. Be the One Who Says It’s Okay to Change the Dream
• 32. Be the One Who Is Real
• 33. Be the One Who Creates Ownership
• 34. Be the One Who Builds Them Up
• Continued Learning
• 35. Be the One Who Loves the Job
• 36. Be the One Who Prepares Kids for the Future
• 37. Be the One Who Reflects
• 38. Be the One Who Asks for Feedback
• 39. Be the One Who Puts Yourself out There
• 40. Be the One Who Is Connected
• 41. Be the One Who Blogs
• 42. Be the One Who Creates a Student-Centered Environment
• 43. Be the One Who Makes Education Relevant
• 44. Be the One Who Models Healthy Living
• 45. Be the One Who Makes Kids Want to Be on Time
• 46. Be the One Who Changes the Game
• 47. Be the One Who Stays Focused
• Conclusion
• Acknowledgments
• More From Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc.
• About the Author