Can't Start a Fire Without a Spark
Sparking up Dreams
Do you remember any of those old Tom and Jerry Cartoons where one of the characters lights a bomb or firework and a mass explosion goes off in a matter of a few seconds? Well, when I proposed the question, “How would you describe your dream Literacy Center,” a spark definitely set off a large explosion of ideas. In visiting the idea of a dream Literacy Center, I had informal conversations with three of my colleagues to better understand our vision and to possibly create steps that will make our collective dreams a reality.
Collective Dreaming
Some ideas that we dream about are creating a space where evidence of learning is displayed for other learners and a broader audience to view. We dream of small group classes where students will collaborate and learn from each other while accomplishing the goals that they set upon starting sessions at the Literacy Center. We dream of having a reputation around the community, that if someone is looking for assistance in the many areas of Literacy (financial, computer, health, etc.) we will be able to set up a tutor/learner pair, or create a small group class to meets the demands of individuals in the community. We dream of a centralized database to reduce staff hours spent on reporting statistics for funding.
Spinning Wheels and Fear
As I began to think about the individual and collective dreams, I continued to have brief “whatif” conversations with my colleagues. (For a visual, just imagine a hamster running on a spinning wheel, but never moving forward.) As a group we are excited to share our ideas, but often times we “spin our wheels” and then we never reach the next step to make the idea or thought a reality.
Another obstacle we face is fear. As a department that is no stranger to budget restrictions and threats, our fear can paralyze our momentum to try move outside of the status quo. From our collective dreams, I don’t think that any of us want to let fear get the best of our programs and hinder what we can do today. A former colleague/hockey coach of mine use to quote Wayne Gretsky whenever we were faced with a choice to act or accept things as they were. I can hear the words ringing loud and clear in my mind right now. “You miss 100% of the shots that you never take.”
Finding Bright Spots
Once we set our fear aside and “start taking shots” we have plenty bright spots that are worth noting. From my conversations with my colleagues, I find it very empowering and promising that we all agree we can make small changes that can get us closer to our dreams. Another bright spot is that the Chula Vista Literacy Center is housed inside the large South Chula Vista Branch Library. The building itself, provides ample wall and display areas to show evidence of student learning. Finally, as a literacy/learning center, there is freedom to try new classes based on learner demand. With efforts within the City of Chula Vista to be awarded one of “America’s All Around Cities,” we will be connecting/partnering with other city department to help the City of Chula Vista achieve this goal.
Time for Change
With dreaming and idea sharing in motion, it is the perfect time to keep the momentum going. My colleagues and I are truly seeking ways to create more equitable and engaging learning environments. One change that we are seeking is to be known as a source where members of the community can come to achieve their learning goals. We would like to market the Literacy Services throughout the community to reach learners that may not know services are available to them. Next week, we will be visiting a Literacy Center in Carlsbad to see some of the ways they obtain tutor and learners.
We would also like to structure some of our classes using project based pedagogy. We feel that many of our learners would benefit by connecting hand and heart to their learning. We would love to see our student’s work shared and celebrated throughout the community. After spring break, my colleague and I will be implementing a 10 week project geared for fourth and fifth grade students that are struggling with reading comprehension.
Our Critical Move
To keep our momentum, it is crucial that we continue to have dialog about our vision and steps to get us closer to that vision. Communication is one of the critical pieces to set any of our actions/changes and visions into motion. Since we are in the early stages of sharing ideas, we thought that it is best to keep visual reminders that any one of us can add to or change. We have decided to create a communication board. We have placed large sheets of chart paper in our shared office. On sticky notes we can add topics, ideas, visions and steps we are taking to get to things done. Every Tuesday, we will dedicate 30 minutes to add, update, check our status, make changes, or prioritize information that we want to discuss. Most importantly, we will figure out a timeline and set dates to hold ourselves accountable to our vision.
Reflection
It is amazing that one question can generate so many thoughts and ideas. I truly appreciated hearing my colleagues ideas and dreams. It was powerful to hear each individual during separate conversations. I was surprised that our dreams are closely aligned. I was surprised that when I asked my colleagues to dream, they naturally began to think about changes or steps that we can take to work towards our shared vision. As I think about our shared vision and dream, I wonder about the challenges that we might face. I wonder what the possibilities are if we collaborate with other city departments or community services. I am excited about the unknown and the journey that we are planning. It makes me proud to work with people who are willing to take risks, continue to learn, and are working to bring services to individuals in our community.
In the past few weeks it has been exciting to be engaged in deeper conversations about the Literacy Center with my colleagues. It has been a great experience asking questions and listening to my colleagues responses. Though communication has been a challenge for us (due to varying schedules and other library duties), I hope that we can commit to sharing our ideas on our shared wall and at our weekly Tuesday meetings. I think that my colleagues and I feel empowered when we look critically at what we are doing and generating ideas on what we can be doing. My hope is that we can continue to keep our ideas fresh and make changes to be able to take steps towards our shared vision. Sometimes we all just need a little spark to set things into motion.
Do you remember any of those old Tom and Jerry Cartoons where one of the characters lights a bomb or firework and a mass explosion goes off in a matter of a few seconds? Well, when I proposed the question, “How would you describe your dream Literacy Center,” a spark definitely set off a large explosion of ideas. In visiting the idea of a dream Literacy Center, I had informal conversations with three of my colleagues to better understand our vision and to possibly create steps that will make our collective dreams a reality.
Collective Dreaming
Some ideas that we dream about are creating a space where evidence of learning is displayed for other learners and a broader audience to view. We dream of small group classes where students will collaborate and learn from each other while accomplishing the goals that they set upon starting sessions at the Literacy Center. We dream of having a reputation around the community, that if someone is looking for assistance in the many areas of Literacy (financial, computer, health, etc.) we will be able to set up a tutor/learner pair, or create a small group class to meets the demands of individuals in the community. We dream of a centralized database to reduce staff hours spent on reporting statistics for funding.
Spinning Wheels and Fear
As I began to think about the individual and collective dreams, I continued to have brief “whatif” conversations with my colleagues. (For a visual, just imagine a hamster running on a spinning wheel, but never moving forward.) As a group we are excited to share our ideas, but often times we “spin our wheels” and then we never reach the next step to make the idea or thought a reality.
Another obstacle we face is fear. As a department that is no stranger to budget restrictions and threats, our fear can paralyze our momentum to try move outside of the status quo. From our collective dreams, I don’t think that any of us want to let fear get the best of our programs and hinder what we can do today. A former colleague/hockey coach of mine use to quote Wayne Gretsky whenever we were faced with a choice to act or accept things as they were. I can hear the words ringing loud and clear in my mind right now. “You miss 100% of the shots that you never take.”
Finding Bright Spots
Once we set our fear aside and “start taking shots” we have plenty bright spots that are worth noting. From my conversations with my colleagues, I find it very empowering and promising that we all agree we can make small changes that can get us closer to our dreams. Another bright spot is that the Chula Vista Literacy Center is housed inside the large South Chula Vista Branch Library. The building itself, provides ample wall and display areas to show evidence of student learning. Finally, as a literacy/learning center, there is freedom to try new classes based on learner demand. With efforts within the City of Chula Vista to be awarded one of “America’s All Around Cities,” we will be connecting/partnering with other city department to help the City of Chula Vista achieve this goal.
Time for Change
With dreaming and idea sharing in motion, it is the perfect time to keep the momentum going. My colleagues and I are truly seeking ways to create more equitable and engaging learning environments. One change that we are seeking is to be known as a source where members of the community can come to achieve their learning goals. We would like to market the Literacy Services throughout the community to reach learners that may not know services are available to them. Next week, we will be visiting a Literacy Center in Carlsbad to see some of the ways they obtain tutor and learners.
We would also like to structure some of our classes using project based pedagogy. We feel that many of our learners would benefit by connecting hand and heart to their learning. We would love to see our student’s work shared and celebrated throughout the community. After spring break, my colleague and I will be implementing a 10 week project geared for fourth and fifth grade students that are struggling with reading comprehension.
Our Critical Move
To keep our momentum, it is crucial that we continue to have dialog about our vision and steps to get us closer to that vision. Communication is one of the critical pieces to set any of our actions/changes and visions into motion. Since we are in the early stages of sharing ideas, we thought that it is best to keep visual reminders that any one of us can add to or change. We have decided to create a communication board. We have placed large sheets of chart paper in our shared office. On sticky notes we can add topics, ideas, visions and steps we are taking to get to things done. Every Tuesday, we will dedicate 30 minutes to add, update, check our status, make changes, or prioritize information that we want to discuss. Most importantly, we will figure out a timeline and set dates to hold ourselves accountable to our vision.
Reflection
It is amazing that one question can generate so many thoughts and ideas. I truly appreciated hearing my colleagues ideas and dreams. It was powerful to hear each individual during separate conversations. I was surprised that our dreams are closely aligned. I was surprised that when I asked my colleagues to dream, they naturally began to think about changes or steps that we can take to work towards our shared vision. As I think about our shared vision and dream, I wonder about the challenges that we might face. I wonder what the possibilities are if we collaborate with other city departments or community services. I am excited about the unknown and the journey that we are planning. It makes me proud to work with people who are willing to take risks, continue to learn, and are working to bring services to individuals in our community.
In the past few weeks it has been exciting to be engaged in deeper conversations about the Literacy Center with my colleagues. It has been a great experience asking questions and listening to my colleagues responses. Though communication has been a challenge for us (due to varying schedules and other library duties), I hope that we can commit to sharing our ideas on our shared wall and at our weekly Tuesday meetings. I think that my colleagues and I feel empowered when we look critically at what we are doing and generating ideas on what we can be doing. My hope is that we can continue to keep our ideas fresh and make changes to be able to take steps towards our shared vision. Sometimes we all just need a little spark to set things into motion.