I'm not that person

James Clear's book Atomic Habits has been popping up all over the place lately. (It has been the subject of a series of Teaching to the Top Podcasts, which are great if you are looking to build some new habits.) The basic thesis is that small changes or actions that we take can have a massive impact on our progress.

"Every action that you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become." (Check out the video below for a talk from the author.)

This made us think about the power of self-talk and of habits in how we approach our classrooms. If one says I'm "not a touch-feely kind of teacher," then that person is creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. With that said, just reframing my self-talk isn't enough. If we really want to connect more with kids, then we need to think about the habits we can create to make this happen. 

The way to "become" someone is to do it. Habits change beliefs. Habits matter.

This was echoed in a recent blog post from Dave Stuart Jr, which was about creating the habit of connecting with students each day. (If you haven't read his strategy for Moments of Genuine Connection, it's worth the look.) He suggests using a roster, a clipboard, and a pen to literally "check" when connecting to students. And this connects to one of our district goals for SEL, as one of the best "habits" we can create is to give behavior-specific praise to our students.

So, if you want to become a person who praises, set a realistic goal, perhaps to praise each student in your class at least once a day or to catch a certain number of students showing a desired behavior (click for a ready-to-use tool!). 

And perhaps find a teaching partner to hold you accountable, not with carrots or sticks, but with celebration and encouragement. If you miss your goal one day, your partner can encourage you to make up for it with more praise the next day, or remind you to give yourself a day of grace.

And once you meet that goal, say for a full week of school, then maybe you set your sights at two weeks, and onward and upward from there.

"Make it obvious, make it attractive, make it easy, make it satisfying." 

You can be that person.