If my life were a TV show, I’d like it to be an uplifting and inspiring series titled Life with Lori. Truth is, it more closely resembles I Love Lucy, so it’d more likely be Laugh with Lori. I’ll skip the story about how I wore my dress backward to church one Sunday, and the one where I looked down during physical therapy and noticed my pants were inside out, and get right to today’s episode: “Lori vs. Stick Shift.”
I was home alone for a few days, stuck with my husband’s car. Most of you, when you hear that it was a Nissan 350z convertible, will hardly be thinking, Oh, poor Lori. However, when you realize that I hadn’t driven a stick shift for over 35 years, you may sense that comedy gold is about to ensue. Especially when I tell you that it was parked in our very sloped driveway.
I entered the vehicle with an inspiring little pep talk to myself: “I can totally do this. It’s just like riding a bike. Once I get past the sloped driveway, there isn’t a single formidable hill between here and my meeting.” I stepped on the brake, pushed in the clutch, and slid the gearshift over and back. After carefully releasing the clutch and providing enough gas to get the rig going, I was surprised by forward motion.
“Hmm. That must not have been reverse.” I tried again and was propelled three inches forward instead of backward. After one more of these little gallops, I found myself about an inch away from the garage door. Refusing to let the little bucket of bolts beat me, but knowing I was endangering our home, I opened the garage door and tried again. Same result. I got back out of the car, moved an old toilet, bookshelf, and lawn mower that were now in harm’s way, and tried again—nope, moving forward.
I was completely stupefied. The position of the gearshift was clearly at the R for reverse, yet I was not traveling that way. The car was now halfway in and halfway out of the garage. I called a friend who laughs with me and at me without thinking less of me. Instead of enjoying the folly of my predicament as I expected she would, she said, “Have you tried pushing down?”
“What!?”
“Try pushing down on the head of the stick shift when you move it over to reverse.”
Oh my gosh! Newfound hope burst forth in my breast! Perhaps I wouldn’t have to live like this, garage door up, for the next three days, exposing myself to burglars, killers, and neighborhood questions and ridicule.
I tried the suggested idea and was elated to find myself backing up! Thankful for my friend’s experienced expertise, I made it to my meeting on time.
It occurs to me how significantly my experience mirrors what happens sometimes in education. How often do we continue to try the same thing over and over while expecting different results? It seems so silly, yet in the throes of the experience, we just can’t believe that what we are trying isn’t working, so we do it again and again and again. We work really hard. We do everything we know to do. The result? Folly, frustration, and failure to meet our goals.
I’m not a bad driver. I’m actually a really good driver. But my knowledge base didn’t match the vehicle’s need. Likewise, I am a good teacher. I work really hard. But if I am met with a child for whom my technique isn’t working, I can’t continue to try the same thing over and over. I have to try something different.
The good news is that something different might not even be difficult. We just have to reach outside the confines of our classrooms, confer with colleagues, and get back in there. One small shift could be all it takes to move us in the direction we need to go.
News from The Daily CAFE
Raising Readers . . .
Page Turners—Powerful Peeks into History*
Here are 12 amazing picture books that will make history come alive for the readers in our rooms.
Increasing Accuracy . . .
Word Work/Flip the Sound with –ed Endings*
Students notice, find, and sort words with –ed endings into three categories to boost end-of-the-word accuracy.
CAFE Connections . . .
Tracking Thinking
We want students to be thoughtful learners who are aware of their own thinking, so we teach them to track their thoughts as they read.
Focus on Health . . .
Find Your Calm Button
Carol Moehrle encourages us to find and reside in a state of calm.