As the principal, I spend a lot of time building strong relationships with my teachers. It's our school. It belongs to all of us. I trust them and they trust me. The downside is that they aren't afraid to come up to me and say it's time to upset the apple cart. Over the years, I've had teachers come up to me with some "crazy" requests —things that challenged me as an educator and as a leader. Hither are v instructor requests to which my starting time thought was "Absolutely Non" but my actual response was "Become for it!"  because each fourth dimension I realized they would brand our school stretch and grow in new and interesting ways.

1. Do you listen if I get rid of my instructor desk-bound  and my students' desks too?

SOURCE: Tales of an Adventitious Teacher

 Nothing was wrong with the old article of furniture—teachers but wanted new types of spaces. But what if someone wanted to go dorsum? We've all seen the educational pendulum swing from one side to another. And withal, I seriously doubt that with all of our new discoveries, we'll be moving back to rows and one-size-fits-all. So, out went the desks and chairs.

It started with one request, and within ii years, my whole building has been transformed. Walking into classrooms, you see kids working at high pinnacle tables, regular tables, tables low to the basis, in camp chairs, and even lying on the floor. And the thing is—they're actually working.

ii. Can I loop with my students?

It doesn't piece of work out every yr. But when the opportunity arose, I immediately agreed to this asking from a teacher. We know that relationships are crucial for learning, and past looping, we bypassed the relationship-forming stage, and were able to spring right into learning. Information technology'due south been particularly beneficial for kids with anxiety and those who are shy.

iii. From students, "Can we sell stuff to raise money for a water pump in Sudan?"

Even students like to arrive on the requesting action. It'd be easy to say "no" to a request like this one. After all, I take to call up about food sale guidelines and a myriad of other topics. Only through the process of planning and executing a project like this, students get deeply committed to a cause. This passion helps them develop inquiry, communication, and long-term planning and organization skills.

My initial "yes" has made manner to a slew of copycats: second graders selling popsicles for Children'southward Infirmary, a 5th grader selling broiled goods for an animal shelter, and almost recently, 3rd graders working to find the most effective mode to help those impacted by Harvey and Irma. While it takes time to charabanc kids through the process, cultivating thoughtful citizens tops my "important" listing.

4. Can I switch the guild I teach these units? Or skip this unit?

Irresolute the order teachers teach units or skipping units aren't requests that get a quick yes—they come with a squad conversation. Can the rationale be explained? What does the data bear witness our students need. Do we believe information technology is most important?

At the finish of the year, I ask each of my teams to spend time reflecting on the curriculum map. What worked, what didn't?  Sometimes, the changes nosotros made really piece of work. Other times, we realize why things had been sequenced the way they were. But through that process or reasoning, trying, and reflecting, we become stronger teachers.

5. Can I throw these books away?

When our library supervisor showed me a huge cart of  books ready for the Goodwill pile, I went straight to salvage mode. These are such good titles! How could we perchance get rid of a re-create of a Cynthia Rylant volume? "Yeah, simply they are worn and ratty," she told me. I acquiesced when she assured me that we had other, newer copies. A couple weeks later, I asked kids what they thought of our newly renovated library. In addition to talking near the new "poof" seats, they likewise commented on how the books looked newer and nicer. Sometimes, more than isn't better.  And sometimes, you demand to say aye, even when information technology would be easier to say no.

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