It is hard to believe that it is already September. I work in a modified year-round school district and we have already completed five full weeks of school. In another three weeks we will be on our Fall Break. Where has the time gone?!
Before I blink and see October on my calendar, I wanted to take a moment to STOP and THINK. During the month of August I participated in something called August Break 2013. I had never heard of this until, on August 1, I was reading one of the education blogs I enjoy [this blog by Lisa (@TeachingwithSoul)]. The August Break was created by Susannah Conway and you can read all about it here. Basically, it’s a blog/ picture challenge. The August Break allows you to take a break from writing/ blogging while looking at life a little differently, through a camera lens. You post pictures… one a day or as many as you want throughout the month. I had never done something like this before so I decided to challenge myself and join the break.
During this time I learned a few things that I want to share:
- Associating pictures with words can take time, effort, reflection, and serious connection-making
- Posting pictures can be very personal
- Telling a story through pictures is often as challenging as, if not more so, telling a story through words
- Readers can closely view just as well as they can closely read (nice learning for primary teachers trying on the concept of close reading for Common Core-related instruction!)
- Pictures can inspire writers/ writing
- Sometimes you have to look at something differently to truly see it
I enjoyed participating in this challenge and will continue to post my own personal pictures as part of my future blogs. I may even return to some of those August pictures and turn them into blogs with words…
Reflections on Leadership and Learning 