Breaking Routines

October 28, 2011

I admit to being a high strung control freak; it works for me. I like to stick to my routines. The other night my husband came home from work and announced that we were all going to the beach. As my kids squealed with delight, I sighed with dread thinking about a later bedtime, the lunches that needed to be packed for the next day, and a second bath once we returned home. My weeknight routine was ruined.

We got to the beach and the kids started building sand castles while my husband went free diving. He brought up two lobsters for the kids to play with (Florida lobsters don't have pinchers so they are pretty harmless) and we ended up eating them for dinner. As the sun began to set we found a baby sea turtle crawling away from the ocean instead of towards it. My children gave the baby turtle a kiss, said a prayer for him and put him in the water. The four of us watched as he swam out into the big ocean and the moment was nothing short of magic. Days later my two and four year old are still talking about that baby sea turtle. They are convinced that he is safe and healthy because they asked God not to let a shark eat him.

It is so easy for me to stick with what works in life and in my classroom. It is uncomfortable to try something new or break a routine when I am not sure of the outcome. Right now I am trying out a new idea in our writing workshop. I am not really sure if it is going to work as well as I hope but I know that I will be a better teacher for trying. I have taught essays the same way for years and I think I have come up with a more effective method. I am sure that every moment won't be as perfect as my trip to the beach, but I do think my students will be able to write stronger essays. I was talking to two colleagues the other day and they both mentioned new ideas that they were trying out and laughing about how things were not going as smoothly as they had hoped.

I really enjoyed eating lobster for dinner, rescuing that baby sea turtle and most of all having a special night with my family. It served as a powerful lesson to push myself a bit and break the routine both in life and in my classroom. Magic may await.