I struggle with finding balance in many areas of my life. It seems I overdo one thing and neglect others, whether that is a balance between work and home, time with family or by myself, or even a balance between time spent reading or writing. Does this sound familiar?
This week I ran across a blog post from Stephanie Affinito, A New Perspective: From Balance to Beats. She explains how there is no such thing as balance, and she shifts the thinking from balance to beats. (Before writing today, I encourage you to take some time to read her post.)
She further explains “If we think of teaching and learning as a melody played in our classroom, then we would naturally expect variation in the beats over the course of the song. The rhythm might shift from fast to slow, gain intensity and then dissipate and even have a repeating chorus. The point is that the variation is what makes the song a song and the varied practices in our teaching are what make a classroom a classroom.“
I have also included Stephanie’s sketchnote to get us going. There is so much to think about and unpack from this blog post, quote, and sketchnote.
Although this is designed for thinking in the classroom, I took some time to write questions about my life in my notebook. These questions led me to some answers and some goals, which I have chosen not to share.
What melody are you creating in your classroom? In your own life? Please take some time to think about this week’s prompt and share your your thoughts and where your writing took you. If this prompt inspired a blog post, then please share the link in the comments. As always…I look forward to writing with you this week.
Leigh Anne is a 6th grade ELA teacher in southern Indiana and is trying to find a new summer melody by focusing on and taking care of her. Follow Leigh Anne on Twitter @Teachr4 or on her blog, A Day in the Life. She would love to connect with you.
Three Teachers Talk 
This prompt made me think about all the things I have going on this summer and how I was just kind of lamenting about it yesterday when I wrote a poem about it that I posted for Poetry Friday. But when I really look at my schedule, June is jampacked but I’ll be chilling like a villain in July. Thank you for sharing Stephanie’s post. It helped me shift my mindset and perspective that I am making music in my life right now. I pray it all pays off into beautiful melodies that will be made in the classroom next year.
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“Making music in my life” – I love that line. I do like the mindset of beats instead of balance. I need to pay attention more to the music of my life! Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Donnetta!
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So I looked at the melody of my week….
Quick, brisk, loud section = hecticness of last two weeks of school
Some blaring unharmonious notes= unexpected change in school leadership next year
Slow, flowly, quiet= My time reading, writing relaxing
No music- rests- my yoga and meditation time
So this melody would cycle through the 5 work days having parts repeat and circle back
I wish I could post a photo of my journal page- I had staff flowing across and different color notes for the parts of my week
This was fun- a new way to look at life. It took away stress to achieve balance and just notice the pace and sounds of different moments.
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I love how you looked at the melody of your week – I can see this becoming a regular notebook page! I wish there was a way to post photos too, as I would love to see this! I am glad this prompt spoke to you this week!
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I had a lot of fun with this prompt and with the visualization of the rhythm of my classroom. The thing that came to mind was the symphony of parts: students reading and writing all spread out around the room, me sitting side-by-side to conference, small groups making the room a little louder… each part playing together in the flow of the classroom. I notebooked the topic and made some sketchnotes of my own!
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I like the words symphony of parts! That perfectly describes most classrooms. Thank you for joining us, Lindsey!
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