This past week I saw this post that was of a heart on a hospital window and it said " When "I" is replaced with "we" Even "illness" becomes "wellness"."
This has stuck with me all week as I thought of what I am going through, what we are going through, what our community is going through, and ultimately what the whole world is going through.
This isn't just an "I" situation going on here, this isn't about how this is affecting me or my loved ones alone. This is bigger, this is important and the change may start with "me" but it ends with "US". What I do is important and it is a start, but what WE do together as a community and as human beings is even more important. We have to do this together, because we are in this together, and we will get through this together.
In the classroom this is my mentality at all times. I never see myself as a 1 man team, I never see my ideas as my own, my accomplishments as my own, or my failures. I work in a classroom of 36 children, from the ages of 2.5- 5, with 4 teachers including myself, we work as a team at all times.
When I have an idea for my classroom, I like to talk to my teachers about their thoughts, and then together we have the idea blossom into something special. This is true for classroom management, activities, behavior plans, schedule changes, etc. It is so important for you to see your classroom as a special place where everyone can shine, from the students to the teachers. This is not a place to think of yourself as the one in full control, without having an open mind and trust of the others that you work closely with, it can all fall apart. It is important to build relationships and trust with your teachers, and help them grow professionally while working in the classroom setting, giving them the opportunities to do so in the classroom helps them grow. Building others up, is something that I take seriously as a lead teacher in my classroom. I spend half of the day, observing the children, making and changing goals for them, and helping them grow as individuals. I spend the other half of my day observing my teachers, making and changing goals for them, helping them grow as well as individuals. I want my teachers to learn and grow, I want to give them goals to work toward, challenge them with new approaches to behavior, give them solutions, and watch them try these solutions within the classroom on their own the next time it arises. The most important part about this is to build them up, praise them, buy them a coffee once in a while, etc. It is important to show your appreciation for your team, give them a shout out, make them feel good, make them feel seen, and overall make them feel appreciated. Together, we make our classroom a warm and welcoming place to be. We all bring different strengths and experiences that build the environment that we share with the families and children within our classroom.
Now, even though we are unsure of what our classroom will look like when we return to work, I know one thing is for sure, we have stayed a team through this all. We care for and miss our children so very much, we are connecting with them virtually, and through mail, we still are wishing them happy birthdays and planning their preschool graduation. We may not be together but we are are "one'. One preschool classroom family, and these times are easier with the team that stands beside me and connects with our classroom virtually until we can meet again.
It is important to be the wellness of the world and not the illness. Don't be selfish, don't speak of yourself without giving others credit. By all means toot your horn sometimes, be proud of yourself, celebrate your good days, your goals, and your accomplishments. A good balance of self-love, and raising others up, is what our world needs. Be kind, and help others, we are all in this together.
We need the wellness of people not the illness.
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