For the past few years, I have seen this book talked about all over social media...I FINALLY got a copy to read for myself! Sadly, with all the busyness of the school year the book sat on my bookshelf gathering dust :-( Well, after several relaxing weeks of summer vacation and several books in my "books I've read" collection later I finally started the book. I am only a third of the way through the book but all I can is AMAZING! I am one of those people who can't JUST read a book...I highlight, underline and make notes all over the margins. Books are meant to be usable resources right?!
I wanted to take time and share some of the great insights I have gained from what I have so far...
I would have to say I am not one of those "over the top" teachers who jumps up and teaches from the desk tops. But I do know that what I am is someone who is deeply passionate about teaching and kids! After reading the first few chapters, I am truly challenged and encouraged to make a change in the way I teach and be totally passionate about my teaching and striving to include more life changing lessons in my daily lessons!
Few teachers enter the profession because of their love for their subject area but instead because of their passion to teach students and help them be successful in what they do. All teachers know that as the year goes on your energy and enthusiasm often decreases due to the increase of things we are asked to do on top of planning and teaching. On those days when we lack that passion for teaching because we have taught the same lesson/activity for the past 'X' amount of years, Burgess encourages us to rely on our professional passion to help fill the gaps where we lack passion about our content. With the focus on our professional passion, our focus is no longer on teaching the standard but instead it is about changing the lives of our students and helping them to see the content as useful information!
I have taught a self contained class for all of my years of teaching up until this past year when we departmentalized. Me...with my masters in education in reading and my reading specialist certificate...was the MATH teacher for our grade level. I have to say that I don't ever remember having such a huge passion for teaching any previous year as I did for this past year.
Don't get me wrong...teaching only one subject has its pros and cons...but having the responsibility for all the math scores at the end of the year on the "dreaded state test" was a lot of pressure. It was encouraging to read his numerous examples of how he included passion in his teaching. Like I said above, I am not one of those "stand on my desk, run around the room teachers" but my passion is definitely present in how I prepare for my lessons each week. I am constantly thinking of ways to tweak my activities or lessons to make them meaningful and applicable to my students instead of just planning lessons with lots of fluff.
I want to show this passion in my teaching so that my students are almost magically draw to the lesson because of the sheer power that fills the presentation of the lesson...to be draw in to the lesson by some mysterious magnetic force!
As Burgess states in the chapter about Passion..."Teaching is a job filled with frustrations, trials and tests of your patience. Use your passion to soar over obstacles instead of crashing into them and burning out!"
I want to leave you with my two favorite quotes from this chapter...
"Passion is like an intoxicating drug but without the dangers and side effects."
and "Light yourself on fire with enthusiasm and people will come from miles around just to watch you burn!....Light yourself on fire with passion...and don't worry if it's not a controlled burn."
