Practicing...

In yoga, we are always practicing.  If you are a yogi, another yogi will ask, “Where do you practice?” or “What type of yoga practice do you do?” In the two years I have been practicing yoga, I have grown to truly appreciate this term.  It gives me permission to take the next step, to advance my practice, to try a pose I never thought I could do just to see if I can.  It’s only practice after all. 

But the power of yoga doesn’t finish at the end of an hour-long class.  You are supposed to take what you learn with you into your daily life.  For me, that means moving toward a mindset of practicing in my classroom.  In an educational culture of high stakes testing and student excellence, our focus tends to be on the final product.  What will students produce to demonstrate their mastery of skills?  What if, though, we shifted the goals a bit and spent more time offer students really good practice at these skills?  How might that change our instruction?    

For example, let’s say I have a student who struggles to identify and explain symbolism in literature.  Rather than focusing on this student’s need to write a cogent, insightful analysis essay on the green light at the end of the Gatsby unit, I could provide him some practice for identifying and analyzing symbols.  Perhaps he could look at symbols in everyday life – the American flag, a sports team mascot, or a street sign – and discussion what those symbols represent and why. I could identify a particular subject or interest area and ask the student to consider what the symbols are in that field and why.  Then the student could create his own symbols, ones that represent him, his family or a personal conflict.  And then, hopefully, he might be ready to move to literary texts symbols with a greater sense of confidence, efficacy and motivation. 

Bob Ross said, “Talent is a pursued interest.  Anything you’re willing to practice, you can do.”  I urge educators to think of their classrooms as spaces in which students can practice new skills rather than “gain mastery.”  If we approach our instruction helping students practice, it may give students permission to try new things, to fail and to try again.  It’s only practice after all.