Fun and Easy are Not Synonyms

There are two classes that I take at the YMCA with the same instructor, Matt.  (I have a lot of great fitness instructors that I like very much; but Matt is the best, and everyone should take his classes.)  One is called Group Power.  It is a weightlifting class.  I love it, but it is a challenging class for someone with little strength and zero balance. The other is Cardio Kickboxing, an energetic class with fun music and dance-y moves where I grin from ear to ear and never once look up at the clock.  For reasons that are beyond me, the difficult class is highly attended every week, and the fun class often only draws eight or nine people.  This week, I expressed my confusion about that to Matt.  Halfway through Kickboxing, he said, "Twenty-five minutes ago, you said this was the fun class.  Do you still feel that way?"  Well, yes, I had been jabbing and uppercutting and kicking and laughing at Matt and having a great time while dripping sweat.  Then, he said, "Let's show her it's not the fun class."  But it still was.  Sorry, Matt, it is fun, and there is nothing you can do about it.

I think what Matt heard was "Group power is hard, and Kickboxing is easy," but that is not what I said.  I said that Kickboxing is fun, so I don't know why its attendance is lower.  It is fun, but it is definitely not easy.

Here's the thing. Fun and easy are not the same.  I googled synonyms for fun, and the word easy is not on the list.

While I have never heard or read the word "clubbable" and have never used the word "convivial," I would definitely use the rest of those words to describe the Kickboxing class.  It is lively, amusing, and enjoyable; it is the highlight of my week.  I would never describe it with any of these synonyms for the word easy.

Being a cognitive science nerd, I can't help but see it everywhere now, even in a conversation like this.  The difference between easy and fun is an important thing when it comes to student motivation.  On Thursday, I read a summary of the Robert and Elizabeth Bjork study, from which they coined the term "desirable difficulty."  They found that there is a sweet spot when it comes to learning and motivation.  If a task is too difficult, students give up.  But if it is too easy, they get bored and stop paying attention.  

Wordle didn't take over the internet last year because it was easy, but people loved it because it was at a doable level of challenge, making it fun.  The same can be said for Sudoku, crossword puzzles, and challenging video game levels.  Enjoyment comes from challenge, and so does learning.  Our memories chuck out things that are too easy to learn.  If you don't put effort into thinking about it, you won't remember it (which is good - this is what prevents our brains from being overloaded with too many memories, like what every person you know wore yesterday and what you ate four days ago).  Teachers, recognizing this should help us construct learning activities that lie in the desirable range.  Students should have to think about concepts or dig into their memory for answers.  They should be getting some things wrong, or we haven't calibrated the level correctly.  There is nothing satisfying about accomplishing something that was too simple and easy, and learning will not result.

Yesterday, I gave Matt a heads-up that he would be making an appearance on this blog.  During that conversation, he suggested that the reason challenging things are fun is because of the endorphin release.  While I had connected that to physical training, that conversation was the first it had occurred to me to apply it to academic work as well.  Perhaps solving a difficult math problem or writing a high-quality essay releases endorphins as well.  I'll need to dig into Google Scholar to see if there is any research on this, but shout out to Matt for getting me to think about its academic implications.

It is important that we explicitly relate this to students so they will be more willing to take on challenges.  In spite of the motivation of challenge, we still have to overcome inertia to get started, so it can be helpful to have examples of the joy of meeting a challenge.  I do this in "pep talks," of course, but I like it better when it comes up naturally in the curriculum.  When I teach 8th graders about the Apollo era, one of the things I show them is JFK's "We choose to go to the moon" speech, part of a 1961 address at Rice University.  This is at the heart of that speech:

"But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas? 

We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too."

I love talking to students about this speech because they don't hear talk like this.  For sure, we aren't hearing it from politicians these days; they want to sell us on the idea that their solution to problems is easy, and no one ever has to sacrifice anything.  Students have access to a million technologies whose purpose is to make things easier.  Some of their parents email coaches and teachers to complain if they are being challenged.  Athletic coaches may be the only people truly encouraging them to do hard things on a consistent basis, but even then, I don't know if they are telling their players that the difficulty is, in fact, the point.  Yet, athletes know they feel more satisfaction when they beat a difficult team than they do when they win against the weakest team in the conference.

Nothing worth doing is easy, and it is important that our students know that.  Teachers, we are the people best positioned for showing them that day in and day out.  It's important that we model it by taking on challenges in our own lives, but I don't think they will draw the conclusion for themselves, so we should also take every chance we can to make it explicit.

Group Power is hard.  Spin classes are hard.  Boot camp is hard.  Cardio Kickboxing is hard (but it is also fun).  But with all of them, the hard is the point.  It's why I joined the Y in the first place.  After all, I was not pushing myself at home for free.  I wanted to be challenged, and that is, thankfully, what is happening.  Thank you to Matt, Stacey, Jay, Greg, and Liz for never making it easy.  Learning to read is hard.  Long division is hard.  Analysis of literature is hard.  The syntax of a foreign language is hard.  But the hard is the point.  It's why we go to school.  We want to learn the things we couldn't have learned on our own at home.

I'll end with one more quote, this one from Penny Marshall's masterpiece A League of Their Own.  

Speaking of making this concept explicit, our chemistry teacher has this quote framed and hanging by her classroom door, so students who have just finished a hard class can read it on their way out and remember that was the point.

Care Deeply About Learning

During the first week of school, I often share this gem from Simon Sinek.  "Working hard for something we don't care about is called stress: Working hard for something we love is called passion."

Teachers have to be careful when we share quotes like these because what Simon means and what I intend in sharing it is not always what gets communicated.  Some students will read this as an exhortation to only take classes that already interest them, free from the burden to challenge themselves with anything new.  After all, they have been led to believe that any negative feeling is to be avoided and prevented whenever possible, so stress is considered evil.

I don't know how much you may know about the work of Simon Sinek, but I can assure you that he is not Marie Kondo-ing his way through life, only doing things that "spark joy."  With books to his name like Leaders Eat Last and The Infinite Game, he shares some challenging truths in an optimistic way, encouraging people to find "Their Why."  But he isn't bouncing around advising people to follow their bliss.  He works with CEOs, government officials, and Marines, for heaven's sake. 

What I think Sinek is advocating here is the reason I share it with my students.  We should care deeply about more things.  He talks a lot about putting your phone down and having real conversations with your co-workers.  This will cause you to care more about them.  He describes how the cumulative effect of small consistent acts of care will make you a leader in ways that a weekend retreat will not.  To do that, you can't be faking your love for your people; if you are faking it, you won't be able to keep it up over time.

I was engaged in an email conversation with a colleague this week.  In it, she said, "I’m trying to figure out how to get students to find joy in being curious!"  My reply to her was that finding the joy in being curious was practically my life's motto.  I've always wanted to know what causes any phenomena and have been up for solving a puzzle or untangling a knot.  My recent exploration of classes at the YMCA has given me fresh opportunities to learn new things.  I simply cannot imagine walking around the world without being interested in the things that happen in it.  It's why I love game shows, and it's why I listen to podcasts like Stuff You Should Know and The TED Radio Hour.  So, my entire career has been about modeling this curiosity to students.  

It doesn't have to be about science.  If a student expresses the slightest interest in trying something new, I will push them in that direction.  It was how I recruited students for the yearbook.  I try hard to get students not to take study halls because there are such interesting electives in our school.  I tell them how much I regret that I gave up an opportunity to take art with one of the best art teachers in NC because I was intimidated that he was one of the best art teachers in NC.  I talk about the Human Anatomy class I took in college, in which I cried EVERY SINGLE week but that I look back on as one of my most valuable classes.  Recently, my friend and I were talking about trying new things, and she said, "You just become a more interesting person, don't know?  It gives you new things to talk about with people."

I'm not saying everyone has to be endlessly fascinated by everything, but life should be about expanding the things that interest us, not about limiting them.  Don't become the kind of person who loves one thing and only wants to do that all the time while dismissing everything else.  Be the kind of person who cares deeply about more things, and you will have less stress and more passion in your life.

Summer Goals

The most frequent question I am asked as a teacher is not about teaching.  It is "What are you going to do this summer?"  Maybe, it is because people in other professions don't get 8 weeks away from the office that the notion of how teachers spend their summers is so intriguing.  Of course, the answer is different for every teacher.  Some have summer jobs to supplement their income.  I did that earlier in my career, but I'm happy to be at a point now where that is not necessary.  Some do summer camps or summer school teaching, but I feel like that would cause me to feel like my life was one continuous school year.  I need to "not do kids" during the summer so that I am ready to see them again in August.  And, of course, there are teachers who unplug completely.  

I use the summer to do the things I haven't had time to do during the school year.  It breaks down into four categories - home stuff, school stuff, physical stuff, and reading.

Home Stuff
Entropy happens, y'all.  Closets get disorganized.  Bathrooms get gross.  Weeds grow like . . . well, weeds.  So, every day of the summer, I have an hour or two set aside for home projects.  Instead of just wiping down the kitchen counter, I remove everything from the counter and give it a good scrub.  On Tuesday, I took every item out of my closet, threw away things that haven't been used in a while and put everything neatly back in it.  I know that by the end of October, it won't look this good anymore, but for right now, it makes me happy.  Mondays are for yard work.  You get the idea.

School Stuff

For some teachers, this is an offensive thought.  They don't want to do schoolwork during their breaks.  I get it, but for me, it is the time to reach for improvement.  I might take a webinar and will definitely read books about cognitive science.  I have two to three hours each day for school-related stuff.  This year that means book edits (I finally figured out how to do it without iBooks Author) and finishing the construction of the teaching video collection that I started in the summer after the hybrid year.  

Next year, I will be taking on a new role at school, which entails teaching a two-day per week study skills course to middle and high school students and doing presentations for teachers.  So, today, I started creating a structure for the class and will begin planning out the year for that when a book I ordered arrives.  I've made one short teacher presentation based on the book I just read and have a few more in mind.  Of course, more of those will be made in November after the Learning and the Brain conference!  

I know.  I know.  This is a lot of school stuff.  I'm not sure I'll get it all done, but I am moving from 18 years of yearbook teaching to my new role as Brain Enthusiast; so it is needed.  If the videos and book edits don't get finished, it will be okay.  I can save those for next summer.

Physical Stuff

For the past ten summers, I have parked my car in the driveway and not driven it again until camp.  However, with the end of the yearbook and my afternoons becoming more flexible, I joined the YMCA in March.  Let me tell you, it is the best thing I've ever done for myself; I love taking group classes.  There will be a post in the future about my teachers there and how they are amazing educators without even knowing it (but I feel like I should wait to get to know them a little while longer before I ask them if I can take their pictures).  Anyway, I am taking a group class at the Y every day of the week this summer (Kickboxing, Group Power (weightlifting), Boot Camp, and four Spin classes), which will result in a little less walking.  I still have a couple of mornings that I will walk to the bank or post office or something, but the classes at the Y are butt-kickers, so I don't need to walk everywhere I go.

When I started at the Y, I gave myself two months to acclimate with no other goals than "try a lot of things" and "don't leave any class before it is over."  In mid-May, I started stepping it up.  I stood on the spin bike and started adding some of the higher-intensity moves in kickboxing.  This week, I set some goals for where I want to be at the end of the summer.  I want to eliminate the XS weight from the mix and do push-ups in Group Power by August.  I want to stand at all cues to do so in the Cycle classes and increase the amount of tension I use regularly.  I've only been to Boot Camp twice, so I don't know what goals to set in there yet.  I was worried when I joined that I would be one of those people who donates money to the gym but doesn't go.  It turns out that I love it so much I am bummed if I can't go.  The kickboxing class is the highlight of my week, and I love the feeling of being sore in the morning (even if I did say I thought Matt tried to kill me after the first Group Power class).  

Reading

By far, the biggest difference between the school year and the summer is how much time I have to read for pleasure.  I finished the required summer reading book already so I could get it out of the way.  Then, I started tackling my To Be Read pile.  I read Your Future Self Will Thank You by Drew Dyck and have made a teacher presentation based on it.  I like to intersperse the fun with the serious, so next up is Matilda by Roald Dahl.  Then, I'll get back to brain science or theology followed by a Dean Koonz novel.  During the lockdown summer and the summer after the hybrid year, I found focusing long enough to read entire books really challenging, so I am thrilled to have my brain back this year.

I know there are many people who are bothered by teachers having summer.  Teachers pack a full year of work into the 10 months we are in the school, so we need the summer to charge the batteries that were drained during the year.  If your child is in my class next year, you should be glad I am starting fresh.    And because of all of the goals I have during the summer, I can fully devote my attention to your child during the school year.  

Proud She is My Friend

Note:  This blog is usually more professional and less personal, but sometimes I have no choice but to veer into an emotional place.  This is one of those weeks.  

Last Friday, we had our high school graduation.  One of the things I am honored to have on my list of duties is the graduation slideshow.  Like those of every school, it is a collection of photos of each senior with music designed to represent celebration, friendship, moving on, and everything else graduation represents.  There is, however, often a double purpose to the music I choose for the slideshow.  One year, a parent was a massive fan of Rod Stewart, so I used his song "Forever Young."  Another year, there were several kids who were big fans of The Office, so I used the Creed Bratton song "All the Faces," which he sang in the finale of the show.  In 2019, the parents of the seniors were the same age I was, so I chose Michael W. Smith's "Friends Are Friends Forever" because it was played so much during our senior years, and I thought they would enjoy the nostalgia.

This year's slideshow had a different Michael W. Smith song, "Pray For Me."  If you don't know it, let me include some of the lyrics here.  

"Here is where the road divides
Here is where we realize
The sculpting of the Father's great design
Thru' time you've been a friend to me
But time is now the enemy
I wish we didn't have to say goodbye
But I know the road he chose for me
Is not the road he chose for you
So as we chase the dreams we're after

Pray for me and I'll pray for you
Pray that we will keep the common ground
Won't you pray for me and I'll pray for you
And one day love will bring us back around
Again

Painted on a tapestry
We see the way it has to be
Weaving thru' the laughter and the tears
But love will be the tie that binds us
To the time we leave behind us
Memories will be our souvenirs
And I know that thru' it all
The hardest part of love is letting go
But there's a greater love that holds us"

While the song could certainly have meaning for the students as they separate from each other, I chose it to represent my friend Meagan.  She has taught math near me and has been my friend for ten years.  She is taking a courageous step and moving to another school.  While I selfishly wish that were not happening and had been holding onto my denial for weeks, she is going to take her wonderful heart and spirit to a new place.  God will use her there in different ways than he has used her here.

She began teaching math at GRACE at the age of 22 without having majored in education.  I have known many great teachers who did not have education degrees, but it makes it more challenging for them because they haven't been taught jargon (like IEP, accommodations, weighted categories v. total points) or received preparation for classroom management, choosing textbooks, or deciding on a grading philosophy.  Meagan learned quickly because her heart was invested in doing the job well for her students, sometimes giving way too much of her time.  The crazy girl was also coaching tennis during those first few years, so she ended up working all kinds of night and weekend hours.  That investment, however, gave her great relationships with students as did her decision to head up the student council a few years later.  Whatever she does, she pushes students to be their best, and they love and respect her for it.

When our math department chair retired, Meagan had only been teaching for three years; but she was promoted to the position.  Math can be one of the most difficult departments to chair because every student has to take math every year, and there is a lot of math phobia in the world (and not just among students - parents have their own memories and fears).  That means math teachers deal with a lot of other people's anxiety, and their department chair is a sounding board for reply emails, tutoring requests, etc.  It. Is. Hard.  But Meagan never made it look hard.  She happily edited drafts of those replies, researched good practices for her department members, talked through issues, and even helped edit exams.  I've been the science department chair for 16 years, but Meagan was a better department chair than I have ever been, holding the hands of students, parents, and colleagues year after year.  She is such a source of kindness.

Meagan has prompted me to grow as an educator, but she has also challenged me to grow as a person in so many ways.  In these politically polarized times, she makes sure that she doesn't live in an echo chamber.  She intentionally reads books and listens to podcasts by people with whom she disagrees to make sure she understands their perspective.  I was talking about something a few days ago, and she said, "Yes, but here's what they would probably say in response to that."  She wasn't asking me to change my mind or even telling me that I was wrong; she was just showing me the perspective I wasn't considering.  I would advise you to seek out a person in your life that can do this for you, but those people are incredibly rare so you might not be able to find one.  It may be easier to look for a unicorn.  She is such a source of wisdom.

I told someone recently that I knew it made me sound like I was 8 years old to say "I'm sad because my friend is going to a different school next year," but it was true because I was going to miss her so much.  I talk to her about everything, from the personal to the professional to the political or the spiritual.  I value her advice as much as anyone I know (in spite of her being 14 years younger than I am).  She is such a source of wisdom.  But I also love being silly with her, laughing about our student stories, something we saw on Stephen Colbert or John Oliver, or talking about "Naked Girl" at the Y.  She's one of my favorite people to tell something funny or hear something funny from.  She is such a source of joy.

She's going to take all of this wisdom and joy and kindness to a different school next year because, as the song says, "the road He chose for me is not the road He chose for you."  While I am going to miss seeing her every day, I know we will stay bonded (and are already making plans to take kickboxing together) because even though "the hardest part of love is letting go," I also know that "there's a greater love that holds us."

As she said in the card she gave me yesterday, "This is not a goodbye card. It's a celebration of our friendship card."  I'll say the same for this post.  It's not a "farewell to my friend" post.  It's a "proud she is my friend" post.