I am an Air Force veteran turned middle school teacher and Florida native. After my oldest son graduated college and began his career, my husband and I decided to take our youngest son and 2 dogs to start our adventure as full time RVers early. We currently travel around Florida, our home state, exploring places we've loved and dreamed of seeing, learning to live like locals. We will eventually explore the US, but why not start at home?
I blog about all things teaching, traveling and family--where ever inspiration takes me.
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or www.BarnesOnMove.com
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May is always a hectic time of year for our family as we wrap up our son’s school year and complete state testing, as well as my own since I am a teacher. Even though I teach year round, many students are trying to finish before summer, while several are starting my course for either a summer activity or to play catch up for school before fall.
We are back at our home base this month to accomplish these tasks, some family business, and take care of doctor’s appointments since we will be traveling around until fall. Anytime we are at home base, it seems to be a busy time with seeing everyone and tackling projects while we have all the tools and helping hands.
Last week we added to the mix our nearly 16 year old doxie falling gravely ill from her kidney disease progressing, so we made the difficult decision to put her down while we were home. She is now laid to rest next to her sister, our doxie, Angel, that passed a few years ago, on the family property. It’s been an emotional week, and inspiration to write was even harder to come by.
I also started a YouTube channel for cooking in the RV since we are total foodies on a budget and my allergies are a battle, so that has been taking up time. I’ve only just started posting there, but I would love if you would subscribe to There Is Always Takeout.
Over the years, this blog that has evolved from purely teaching to all things life, which is prompting a change. My husband has a blog and website for our traveling family, so we have decided to join forces and combine blogs.
Over the next several days, we will be exporting blogs from Addicted to Teaching and importing them to Barnes On The Move since writing is more my thing and video is more his. This will allow us to work towards a common goal and share the load. I’d love if you’d take the time to click over to our travel page and subscribe and interact there! We are still going to keep our social media pages as well, so you can follow and interact there (details below).
So, you will see this page fade away from your inbox in the near future, but I will still be posting about Food on YouTube, TikTok & Instagram, and we will post about traveling and family on Facebook, TikTok & Instagram. I’d love if you would take the time to follow along on the new journey, but if you were only here for education, I certainly understand if you won’t be joining us there. I wish you all the best and thank you for your support on this blog over the years!
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find us on Facebook, TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmoveor follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com
Another month has gone by and most teachers are keeping count to the last day of school–seriously, just ask! (I am a 12 month teacher, so my classroom is a revolving door of new and completing students–sadly no count for me!)
This month is full of activity. Many schools are beginning their 4th quarter, the last term of the year. Which means simultaneously trying to get students to finish strong, prepare for end of year and state testing, and stay focused since brains are often beginning into shutdown mode.
Evaluations are wrapping up and end of year meetings are taking place to finalize evaluations and lock in our status for the year.
And, for much of us, at least in North America, we are also dealing with Spring and all that the season entails, like allergies and germs.
Oh, and we are also starting to think about next year, as much for our students as for us.
Conversations with students are starting to revolve around expectations, goals, transitions for their upcoming grade. Much of the curriculum is amping up in complexity–simultaneously tying the year together and preparing for the next level of skills. Some students are progressing quickly, some are struggling…some are acting like they were just dropped in and have no idea what we have been doing all year.
My favorite part of these conversations with students is that there is less focus on what to do and correction. It is beginning to talk more about the why and how, escalating to ways they can expand, and even interject a bit of themselves into their work. This is great so we are able to spend more time with the students struggling, for a variety of reasons, and help them progress and prepare for the next year.
And, if you’re lucky, they are starting to see you as a real human being–not just the crazy person in raggedy clothes they bump into at the grocery store or home improvement store when you ran out real quick, hoping not to see anyone.
If it has been a challenging year, some teachers are beginning to look at their exit strategy. Other opportunities at their school, within their district, or an entirely different career field.
For successful teachers, they may be looking at presentations of offers to advance into leadership, either from within the classroom, or at a higher level.
No matter which choice they are looking at, it can all be challenging, especially if trying to make changes discretely.
Now is also the time to begin thinking about your materials. Begin sorting out what to keep, what to part with, what you will need to replenish for next year, how you may want to structure lessons and connections for next year. A journal can help gather these thoughts and have them to refer to in the last month when supply orders and packing are on a an already truncated to do list.
So, as we wind this month down, take a breath, enjoy the last few moments of quiet and connection. Next month, the wild ride begins of testing, packing, wrapping up, and planning promotion and retentions.
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find us on Facebook, TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmoveor follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com
If you have watched many YouTubers or started researching RV life, you have probably heard of Beddy’s. If you have not, they are a bedding set that has the bottom section that fits like a fitted sheet and the top zips onto it, similar to a sleeping bag, that has a flip out section for a drop sheet when sleeping.
They are amazingly convenient for making beds, especially in the awkward spaces of an RV. They are also a minimalist’s dream due to their simplicity and ease. Because so many raved about it, we spent the big bucks to purchase them, only to regret it.
The convenience of making the bed was all that the hype said it was. They zip quickly and seamlessly and the bed looks nicely made all day. They are deep pockets, which work great if you have a large mattress or add a topper for extra comfort, or your RV mattress is an odd size. For us, though, that is where the positives ended.
TEMPERATURE They are extremely hot to sleep under–a negative since we only RV in Florida year round. We chose the minky, which is their heavier version, but liked the feel of the material better than cotton. From researching, the cotton is supposed to be lighter and better for warmer climates, but the comforter itself is heavier than I like to sleep with in summer, and since we aren’t always on 50A hookup to run our bedroom AC, it meant we had to have an additional light sheet to sleep under, or kick them off entirely.
WASHING Due to their bulkiness, even if you are lucky enough to have an RV washer, these won’t fit in them. In fact, when we try to use a regular household washer and dryer, we still have to split them into 2 loads per set. Which meant for our 2 beds, we needed 4 loads, or had to go to the laundry mat for the larger washer and dryer. Depending on the laundromat, they wouldn’t always get completely dry, so that meant finding a way to hang them out to dry or spending extra on another dry cycle.
MAKING THE BUNKS RV bunks are an odd size. Even with the elastic fitted bottom section, they were still too big, making the wall side completely unusable. We did get the sheet clips that work like suspenders to attach them from the underside, but this means taking the mattress off the bed and flipping it around every time the bed needs made or torn apart for washing.
While we do love the Beddy’s in terms of comfort and simplicity, they just weren’t a good fit for our RV lifestyle, so have found themselves sealed in a vacuum bag until we have a house again or to pass on to a family member.
Since they are a substantial financial investment, be sure to think about temperatures where you will use them and how you will wash them before making a purchase. In a house where I could do laundry every day, I would absolutely have these, but they just weren’t a good fit for our RV lifestyle, traveling full time in Florida. If they were to come out with a lighter version for warmer climates (more coverlet than comforter), we’d be tempted to give them another try.
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find us on Facebook, TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmoveor follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com
We have been RVing for over a year now and have been “on the fence” about getting a portable dog fence.
Our pups loved having a yard to run around in and have missed that. But with Molly, our senior doxie, a reactor to some vaccines and cannot get them, it means we limit contact for both of them and avoid dog parks. That means they are on a leash if they are outside, or on their tie out if we are all out.
We have also had issues with some park resident’s pets either escaping or just being off leash, and wandering into our site. Since Luna and I were attacked a couple of years ago by a loose dog, we are very skittish. We like the idea of that additional barrier for when they, and we, are enjoying time outside.
On the other hand, it is extra money to spend and inventory to carry around. Some parks have limitations on height, or even if you can have them, so it is something else to think about. And since we move every week or two, it is an extra chore and time on set up and break down.
After going back and forth on it, we decided to give it a try, especially when we found an inexpensive option from Tractor supply (8 24″ panels with a gate were $39 at the time of this blog). We picked up two of them and set them up.
This particular set isn’t the sturdiest and doesn’t stake into the ground like some more expensive options, but it is extremely lightweight, folds up compactly, and works well for our little dogs. We opted to go around the back of our steps, so the two sets give them a good amount of space and they can go down the steps on their own if we leave the doors open on a nice day. The girls have enjoyed the freedom to be off leash. It is also light enough to be used indoors, a great option for when we travel and stay with friends or family and want to limit how far they can go or what they can get into.
We are currently at a park that doesn’t allow fencing, but, because it is lightweight and compact, it was easy to move them out of the way and set up. I’d love to get another set or two to give them more area and fence in our entire under awning area, but not sure we want to spend the money or have the cargo.
So, if you are like us and not sure, start with the less expensive option and only one set for a month or so. It will be a small investment and you can always add more panels or upgrade to another set once you have had a chance to try it.
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find us on Facebook, TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmoveor follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com
I’m in several RV life social media groups, so interact with people at all stages of their journey. One of the most frequent questions asked from those just starting out is “what do I need to pack in my RV?”
The answer is simple: whatever you will need in your daily life.
But the process isn’t so simple.
When we live in a sticks and bricks, we have room, and how much everything weighs doesn’t factor in when making decisions.
But in RV life, space and weight are crucial, so must be thought about. Anytime something can serve multiple purposes, it’s a winner. If a lighter option exists on something you use, it may be good to replace it.
It also depends on what size RV and how long you will be in it. Our packing list for our 16 foot travel trailer for a long weekend is quite different from our 39 foot 5th wheel that we now full time in.
Some of typical living spaces may not be in your RV, some may be combined with another space, so be sure to think about that. Sketching out your storage space and listing what you’ll keep where can be very helpful, and save you from purchasing a rig that may not work for you. Keep in mind, just because the space is big enough, doesn’t mean you should fill it!
So let’s run through the spaces of a typical home and RV and what to think about when deciding.
BEDROOM This is a pretty basic list since the bed and clothing storage come built in. You will need bedding, possibly 2 sets so you have a back up if you won’t have quick access to laundry. You’ll need clothing for the seasons and activities you will participate in. Think about where you will be staying and how often you will have access to a laundry facility to decide. Most of us have too many clothes and that is a lot of extra weight, but, since we do laundry weekly, our rule of thumb is 7-10 days worth of clothing items, plus workout gear, swimwear and sleepwear.
BATHROOM This is another area where it can be easy to have too much. You will need your basic toiletries, cosmetics, linens (plus an extra set, depending on laundry routine) for both bathing and swimming, and don’t forget about pets, if they get bathed. We also keep a few extra throw blankets and scatter rugs in here for cooler weather or messy feet.
KITCHEN This is the area most of us overdo things. While there are plenty of gadgets that do one thing really well, there are a surprising amount that can do more than one thing and eliminate utensils or special equipment. It comes down to what is important to you. Most don’t have a dishwasher, so we keep enough cups, plates and bowls for our family of 3 for 1 meal, plus utensils, as well as enough storage containers to serve from and hold leftovers to feed us all a meal–these are our guide. Should we have company, we use paper plates! I love cooking and baking, so we made room for a nesting mixing bowls, a hand mixer, instant pot, coffeepot, and cook with 2 cast iron pans and a boiler, plus we have a Blackstone grill since we have always loved grilling out. A few specialty utensils and our set is complete and has served us well for over a year.
LIVING ROOM/COMMON AREA This area will be used for movies and television watching, reading and board games or electronic games. We have a small cabinet that houses all of our entertainment–so we downsized our games to travel or card decks, and all of our DVDs fit into small books and stack with our small library of favorite books, as well. Our game system is small and compact, so doesn’t take up a lot of room.
We also keep a couple of throw blankets for cooler nights. Since our RV has only a 2 seater loveseat, we added a lightweight beanbag chair for extra seating, in addition to dining chairs, and it has worked perfectly without adding extra weight. We also added an area rug that makes it feel like home an is an added layer of insulation for keeping cool or warm in the RV.
GARAGE Our 5th wheel RV has a large garage, so we can hold a lot, just as you would a garage in a home. We store tools and equipment for basic repairs or work and RV hookups. For entertainment, we have our snorkeling gear, inflatable paddleboards, fishing poles and a tackle box, bike helmets, a tote of outdoor toys, and a stroller/trailer for our dogs. We also fit our rug, folding chairs, solo stove and dog fencing for enhancing our outdoor space when location and weather allow. Our bikes don’t fit in here, but they do fit on a bike rack on the back (that we ensured was RV rated!). We also like to hike, so keep a small hiking pack, hiking sticks, thermos’s and a soft lunch box, as well as rain gear and a couple other backpacks.
PORCH/PATIO Most campsites have an outdoor space, so we set ours up with the gear we store in our garage. Some RVs even come with fold out porch/patios, but you’ll still need to store things when it is folded away, but you can still create this outdoor space. We had a hammock when we started out, but it wasn’t quick to set up, so we have since put it in storage.
This will just get you started, and as you learn to make these decisions, you will figure out what works for you. Weight is always a factor, so pay attention to what you have. If you plan to spend more time “boondocking” or “off-grid” (a.k.a. not plugged in and completely self-reliant) then you will want less weight to allow for fresh water, and full black/grey tanks when driving (1 gallon of water is 8lbs so it can add up fast!)
A shake down trip, or a few, will be vital to “test drive” the lifestyle and see what you need. Depending on how often you go and where, it can vary. We are lucky enough to have a home base we stop through every few months, so we can swap things seasonally, but this isn’t an option for everyone.
You may keep stuff you end up not needing, and you may get rid of things you did actually need. It will happen. Often you can replace them, and there are always donation drop offs along your travels to get rid of things you won’t need.
Are there things I forgot to include? Comment below and let me know!
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find us on Facebook, TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmoveor follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com
Most of us know someone that has been a victim of identity theft. It may even be you. It can be exhausting, time consuming and financially damaging to fix.
I have been a victim, myself. My data was in a couple different breaches several years ago with major corporations and we got free credit monitoring for a few years. We got lucky, nothing really happened during the coverage time.
Then, a couple of years ago, I got a strange call about a checking account I had opened online with a bank I had never heard of. They were offering to help me get started since I hadn’t used my account yet.
I hadn’t opened the account.
We quickly got it reported to the fraud department, and it was shut down. That was great.
Unfortunately, since there was no monetary damage done, there was no police report to file.
If only that were the end of it. Within a month, I had 3 more banks contact me, same thing–a checking account opened, not used. One didn’t even call me, just mailed me checks.
All three were remedied with a phone call to the fraud department.
I started researching and found out that the best thing I could do was freeze my credit, and put a fraud alert on it due to the activity, which would require me (or anyone pretending to be me) to visit a branch in person with photo ID to complete the process.
This has worked pretty well for me in the last few years.
Every 4-6 months, the activity starts up again–I’m guessing the “company” that purchased my information just sold it on to the next company and they are trying again. I have had more than a dozen attempts at opening bank accounts in my name–and only bank accounts.
It has been a very scary process, especially since I learned that there is no way to monitor bank accounts opened in your name if they are not credit cards or loans. Bank accounts ONLY appear on your credit when you are delinquent and the bank files a complaint on your credit. Which means there really is no way to monitor for this type of activity.
Prevention is the only way, but since we use credit for homes, vehicles, credit cards and bank accounts, it can be challenging. Credit freeze has been the best in our research, including talking to fraud department experts.
Freezing your credit is completely free and anything that tries to run your credit will get denied and some sort of contact the customer response.
Should I need to “thaw” my credit for something, it’s pretty easy, and as long as it isn’t too frequent, it’s free. You can choose which agency to thaw and for how long, so when I’ve needed it, I just communicate with the finance person that it is frozen, find out which agency, or agencies, they use, and when they will run it, so it is only available for 24 hours or less.
If you freeze your credit, there’s a few things to know.
First, freeze with all 3 agencies (Transunion, Experian, and Equifax). They can easily be found online. Their website set up and process varies, but you put in your information and freeze it. You will need to create a password and you’ll get an ID code that cannot be requested any other way, so you’ll want it someplace to safeguard and find when you need it. Watch out for their other monitoring or distracting options for other services that cost money, you don’t need them for freezing, but explore them if you are looking for other options. Be mindful that, for your free annual credit report, frozen credit may impact this.
There are many services out there that charge a monthly fee for protection to monitor your credit. These can be a great service for watching and handling AFTER something happens, and they will help repair it, but they don’t prevent it. Only freezing your credit does.
We have found this to be very successful, and, since financing is an extra step, it has helped keep us from impulse purchases, and get rid of those credit card preapprovals that came in the mail all the time. It has also given us peace of mind that there will be limited damage.
Should something make it through an application process, the fraud department sees my alert and activity and quickly verifies what I’m saying and can reverse it. A huge help when the attacker hit my actual bank and shut down all my accounts–which coincided with their phone lines being down. That was a scary few hours.
My bank is still able to monitor my credit score since it isn’t actually running my credit, so I am still able to see activity on my score as it changes month to month.
What steps are you taking to protect your credit and financial security?
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find me on TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmove2or follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com, Facebook & TikTok at @BarnesOnMove
Flagler Beach, Florida has become one of our favorite places to visit. In the last year, we have camped there 3 times, and have day tripped there many times before.
We love the old beach town feel of the place. They have been very strict about keeping buildings from growing too tall, they don’t allow building on the beach side, and have many small businesses in the downtown area. The Flagler Beach Historical Museum is right downtown and a great spot to learn the history about the area and people.
As you drive along A1A, you can see the dunes and the Atlantic clearly. They have many pedestrian crosswalks and stairs to the beach, as well as street parking. As you drive, be sure to watch for these.
We have tried a few seafood places, local breweries, coffee shops, and sandwich shops and all have been delicious. My only place I continue to return to is Sally’s Ice Cream Shop on the north end of town–they have so many choices, but the chocolate covered key lime pie on a stick is amazing, and definitely worth a longer walk on the beach.
There are several parks and trails in the area, other than just walking on the beach, and you can see all the different ecosystems that thrive along the coast, and the work to preserve them.
Bulow Plantation Ruins Historic State Park is also there and you can see and learn about an old sugar plantation destroyed during the second Seminole War. There are also many other state and national parks along A1A as you travel north towards St. Augustine. Marineland isn’t too far, if you want a more touristy attraction.
We love camping at Bulow RV Resort, as much for the location as for it being a part of our Thousand Trails membership as an Encore park. While it isn’t fancy, the sites are mostly level and spacious (they are grass sites), and have electric and water, with many also having sewer, but there is a dumpt station at the front entrance. Traffic on the road in can be bad since they share an entrance with a village next to it, and there are no sidewalks, but we haven’t had close calls with our daily runs or walks along it, or just staying within the park. They have a community building that has gatherings, and beverages at night, and the pool and laundry room up front aren’t spectacular, but are well maintained and get the job done.
If you are in the area,
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find me on TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmove2or follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com, Facebook & TikTok at @BarnesOnMove
We dreamed of RV life for years and were thrilled to start our journey sooner rather than later. We’d heard so many horror stories, so we prepared, researched and thought we were ready.
Turns out, we weren’t.
We had a lot of great memories our first year, but we had a lot of issues, too.
NEW RV WOES Sadly, there is not a great deal of quality control on RVs that are new and, with full time use, things wear out quickly. Not to mention, it’s like living through an earthquake with every move. We lost a lot of travel time getting repairs done and not being prepared that some appointments were only to see the issue and get warranty work approval–which means multiple visits. If you have to get repairs, ask questions about your appointment. Will the repairs be that day, or is it just to diagnose? How long will they take? Can you still live in your RV while they work (some offer camping on site at night and they work during the day) or will you need to move out for the duration? Let them know it is your full time home if it is, this changes timelines a bit. And if they won’t work with you, go elsewhere. There are many dealerships that can do the warranty work, you just may have to plan travels around it.
SCHEDULING Even in RV life, there are still doctors, dentist, veterinarian, hair, dog groomers, chiropractors…all these appointments need to happen. Our first year, we just came back for them, but as we scheduled for this year, we selected certain months we’d be home and scheduled for during that time, unless we can take care of them on the road. This made life a lot easier.
MAIL This is a difficult one for some, but we’ve been lucky for two reasons. One, our home base family member gathers our mail as it comes in. If it is urgent or looks important, he calls and opens it for us. Two, I was able to set up with our local post office to get a daily email with an envelope scan of our mail, so I know what is coming in. This is great since I can give a head’s up to our family member about it in advance. I know some have a family member gather it up and mail it periodically to a known location, or you can always pay for a mail service in a variety of forms to bundle and mail, or even scan and email everything.
SOCIALIZING We heard it was hard to meet people, make friends and keep friends, and we thought we prepared, but not well enough. Since we RV in Florida, being outside a lot isn’t always possible to meet people, especially if you are only there for a week or so. We’ve met a few friends along the way and have stayed in touch, though. We have also struggled maintaining relationships with local friends at home. Even though we post on our private social media, they still miss it when we are there, or we are so busy we forget to reach out, or we just miss them as they are off somewhere. We have gotten better about joining FullTime Families, sitting outside, talking to people, and calling or texting our friends as we think of them.
WORK & SCHOOL We knew we would be closer together in a smaller space, but it took us some time to get used to it. The hardest part is overlap. As a virtual teacher, I do a lot of calls and zoom lessons or meetings, which means the house needs to be quiet and I need to be somewhere with proper lighting and workspace. My son is a virtual student, so deals with the same needs. My husband runs his own business, so has incoming and outgoing calls, as well as work to do. The good news is, other than class times and appointment calls, we can be flexible about who is working and where, but this can make for long, quiet days while we all get through everything, especially if the weather isn’t conducive to being outside. We’ve learned to talk about our week and our day, plan well, and created workspaces throughout the RV so we each have a quiet place if we all need to be on at the same time.
So, as we start year 2, we are doing it a bit differently. While we did get a new RV last month and will still be dealing with a lot of warranty work, we know what to expect and can ask the right questions or make the right plans this time. We are also trying to stay in locations longer, be outside and talk more, and invite our friends to come camping, visit, or get together when we are in town. Our son’s classes have a lot more flexibility and we are learning when we can all work at the same time in the same room, or walk to another room. This new floor plan has a bit more distance between living room and master, so they can watch a movie while I have a call or meeting in the back room. I have faith we will do better this year, but we are sure to still make mistakes and learn more.
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find me on TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmove2or follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com, Facebook & TikTok at @BarnesOnMove
My eleven year old son recently discovered a love of Empanadas while at the RV show and has been asking us to try and learn to make our own so he can choose his own fillings. After researching online and reaching out to fellow friends with a love of cooking, including those with a gift for Spanish dishes, and found out that there are premade shells in the freezer!
When we hit up the grocery store this weekend, I found them, so we gave it a try.
He really only wanted chicken and cheese. We cooked a chicken breast in our instant pot, shred it with a fork, added in some Lowry’s seasoning, minced onion, bacon bits and shredded cheeses (we blended the end of some bags we needed to finish) and-voila!-we had a stuffing! I’m not a measurer, so couldn’t tell you how much of each.
We added a small amount to the shell, folded it over and pressed to seal the edges with a fork. We then remembered we needed to press the air out and to use a bit of water to help the seams, so finished the rest this way. Then we fried them in canola oil.
They turned out better than expected! (Our family’s motto when it comes to trying new dishes is “there’s always take out” so we aren’t afraid) We did decide that the flour shell did mute the flavors so we needed to add a lot more seasoning and cheese.
We were pleasantly surprised at how easy it was and will definitely make these again for a quick meal. Even being in the RV, it was pretty easy!
What is a meal you took on the challenge to learn? How did it go? Let me know in the comments below!
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find me on Tik Tok @sonya.BOMSquadleaderor our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com, Facebook & TikTok at @BarnesOnMove
Our world can be such a paradox, especially when it comes to education. Every student is an individual, with knowledge, skills and struggles uniquely their own.
For some, those struggles may required education plans to help them demonstrate their learning and show just how capable and intelligent they truly are. For others, those struggles could have nothing to do with academics, but interfere with them nonetheless.
But, a school environment also has very rigid structure and requirement that can sometimes contradict the student’s learning needs, and stifle their emotional or social needs.
We also see this in the everyday world as adults–embrace our individuality while also trying to fit into society’s everchanging norms.
I won’t dive into that subject today, but focus, instead on how we can support the student that is still learning how to fit into the world because they are still learning who they are and what they are capable of.
History is riddled with stories about people, including children, who didn’t fit an image of what they should be. It took them time to find who they were as a person and what their unique talents are.
The prodigal son that left and returned after having squandered his inheritance, being celebrated by dad and despised by the sibling that stayed and worked.
David, who was weak and yet killed Goliath with a sling and a stone, then became a great King.
Albert Einstein who didn’t speak until he was 5 years old, but went on to win a Nobel Prize.
Oprah Winfrey who was born into poverty and endured unspeakable acts as a child, only to grow up into the entrepreneur and philanthropist she is today.
So, how can we do the same thing with our students, even if on a much smaller scale?
TALK TIMES Students are humans that have stresses and worries of their own and they need a chance to talk about them, whether to seek advice and guidance, or to just vent out loud. Allowing some free talk time with peers throughout the week for a few minutes can be good. Sincerely checking in on them and asking about their game last night or their vacation after a break and listening gives them this chance and shows them they are valuable and someone wants to hear them. If they have deeper concerns, be sure to have access to a guidance counselor they can talk to as well, and let them know that sometimes we all need help and need to talk to someone.
MENU ACTIVITIES When it comes to learning strategies and demonstrating mastery of a skill, allowing students to choose from a variety of options that fit their comfort zone, interests, or skillset will allow them to truly show what they know and measure the skill you are looking for. Sometimes in life there is only one way to do something–a driver’s test requires driving an actual car on an actual road; standardized testing requires answering questions on a computer most times–but sometimes there are other options. Be open to alternatives so you can really see your student shine. This also helps when there are certain things that need to be done a particular way, they learn how to do that as well, but can concede that they will still have other times to show their individuality in their work.
OPEN OFFICE TIMES Having a time for a student to stop by your classroom, your zoom room, or call you (if you are not in a physical school campus with them) can create opportunities for students to reach out with questions if they aren’t comfortable during class time. It will also make them more likely to reach out if they don’t think they will be bothering you. I’ve used this technique for years and have had students pop in to say hi, chat about an issue they couldn’t bring up in class, ask a quick question on an assignment, or even get hands on time for a project they were completely lost on or didn’t have resources or space to work on at home and used my classroom. This is an additional step that truly shows students they are valuable and their unique learning style is okay and you will still support them.
LISTENING Not all students want an answer or solution, sometimes they just want to be heard without judgement and acknowledged by someone that their feelings or thoughts are okay. By actively listening to them–repeating what they said, acknowledging their feeling or thought–can go a long way in helping them work through a situation. I’ve had students in my room crying over a break up, and saying with an eye roll ” I know, I know, I’m young and it isn’t real love yet” and I let them know that if it is real to them, then it is real. My life experience level is different than theirs and not a fair comparison. I’ve had students also come in and feel they weren’t being challenged in class, they were placed based on test scores in remedial class but had been ill or lost a family member during testing and weren’t focused. So we talked about what we could do to challenge them and help them grow as a student, or even appeal on their behalf to change their course level with evidence of their learning.
RESPECT This is always my #1 unbreakable rule in my classroom, and life in general. If we show respect to everyone and everything, all the other rules and guidelines pretty much take care of themselves. Respecting a student and their situation, thoughts, feelings, or work is crucial to their development of both self-esteem and social etiquette. We won’t always agree with them, but we can still respect them and learn from them. I am not the person I was 16 years ago when I went searching for my first teaching job out of college, and part of that is because I learned, not only from professional training, but from my students. And that respect was acknowledged and reciprocated by my students and their families more often than not.
GRACE Students will make mistakes, lose their cool, refuse to work, or be mean sometimes. But we are the same way. Having grace when someone snaps or doesn’t work is crucial to changing the negative behavior into a positive outcome and learning from it. When a student is frustrated and yells out that something is stupid in class. Instead of getting onto them for the outburst, quietly go to them and give them a pass to a quiet place to regroup, or if it won’t escalate things, invite them into the hallway or office for a quick check in. Acknowledge and give them a chance to clarify. “It sounds like you are upset about something. What’s going on?” Let them vent, then ask what they should have done instead of yelling out and let them do that. Also, clearly state your forgiveness and your support for their success, and invite them to tell you another way next time they have an issue.
I can’t stress enough that our role as educators is to educate students, but that isn’t always just “reading, writing, and ‘rithmatic”, sometimes that will also be building character and helping them become who they are meant to be. Take the time to see them as individuals and be there for them, it can make a world of difference to them, and they can make a difference in the world.
And remember to do this for everyone, not just students in your classroom. Helping someone in need can have a huge impact in their world as an individual, and the world around them as a whole. If their struggle is beyond your expertise, then be there with them and guide them to someone that can help them through their struggles, don’t ignore it and let it grow to something uncontrollable. Be a helper, even in the little ways.
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find me on Tik Tok @sonya.BOMSquadleaderor our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com, Facebook & TikTok at @BarnesOnMove
