When You Have Ideas

 Sometimes I have great ideas.... 

When I was first teaching, we didn't have laminating machines, book binders, Teachers Pay Teachers, Twinkl etc and photocopying was limited to black and white worksheets. We had some resource books that included clip art cartoons and a few templates. We didn't have internet, emails, Pinterest or even mobile (cell) phones. We made up our own resources and put contact on them to make them last longer.

A few years later, I fell in love with "Publisher" program and made my own A4 displays. I discovered one of my 'originals' in a box the other day and it did not look professional at all. It had the words, "If I can't, I will learn how" and I had put a border of berries around it. That one was even laminated!

Sometimes I have great ideas but I tell myself that a) I'm not an art/craft person and b) I couldn't make it look as good as what is in my head.

At one school, I had a good friend/colleague and I'd take her aside and share my ideas with her. Karen was very artistic and she would create my ideas for me. She painted a mural on the side of the wall, she twisted wire through my hair to make it look "Pippi Longstocking" ish, she made costumes and decorated my classroom and office.

Yesterday I was with my Year 5 class and we were planning a few surprises for the Year 6 students graduation dinner in a couple weeks time. We began working on one idea and the students were making it look great, when I had a second idea. I shared my idea with one of the students and as I explained it to him, it grew and developed and I began imagining how the end product would look. I looked up a few Pinterest ideas, clip art sites, explored different sizes and printed out a possible stencil.

As I went for my walk this morning, I revisited that idea again and came up with a less time-consuming yet more professional-looking end product. Coming up with ideas is energising for me and finding someone who can create the idea from my idea, is even better.

As time goes on, we literally have more resources available at our finger-tips. We want our students to be life-long learners and we want them to create presentations that are original and unique. It is important that we model both of those attributes for them.

So, first of all "Dream Big" then next of all, work out a way to make those dreams happen. (or find someone who can)