As the week comes to a close I am reminded about living life passionately and leaving things better than we found them. This past week was a tough one at my high school. A senior and her sister, that graduated in 2014 both lost their lives in a car accident on the way home from Spring Break. Death and tragedy are never invited, wanted or something that makes sense to any of us. 

Following the accident I witnessed a student population come together and work for the greater good and honor the students that lost their lives in the accident. We talk a lot in education about authentic learning and allowing students space to create real world solutions and connect their learning.  This situation was real and what this group of students did was move into problem-solving mode to do something that would honor and help the surviving members of these girls families.  As they came together, they found a passion, basketball and came up with an idea to hold an event to benefit the families affected by the accident.  The accident also took another student's life that attended a local high school, and left a student in critical condition yet from another school. The group planning the event wanted to make the fundraiser about all victims and not just the sisters from their high school. They came up with a basketball event that would have a team named after each victim in the accident, and they reached out to our large city to get the best players from area high schools to play. They did more than that; they also connected with athletes that had graduated and are now playing in college. The planning team launched their idea on social media and were blown away by the response that they received. Real ideas, real communication, real results, all done by students. 

Now I have to admit when they showed up at school with their enthusiasm and plan in motion with no viable venue, I thought oh goodness I hope there is a field house available. The district I work for graciously provided a venue when our principal reached out to them. The rest of the planning....well let's just say was amazing. The planning committee all took on different roles, from coordinating basketball players, bringing on help to organize the athletic event from a major university in our city, students to advertise, students to get media involved and students to bring sponsors on board. The students even appointed a point person to make sure the school's administration was  up-to-date.  
​
My post cannot begin to document or detail all of the work they did. What I can offer is...that it has been fantastic to see students work together and make a difference. I heard more than one student say this week, "I can't believe that we have been able to reach so many people and get responses...." These students felt the power of hard work, planning, vision and what can happen when a group of individuals come together and work for a common cause.

After the funeral, I happened to come across a Twitter post that shared the following video with Inky Johnson. Knowing your why, how and what ignites your passion and puts you in a lane to leave things better than you found them.

A family laid to rest two beautiful young women today.  Both of these girls time on earth was brief but powerful. They left all of us better than we were before they came into our lives. The student group working to honor them is following their lead and making us better as a community.  The event will take place this week, and I can't wait to see and experience it with them.​

As educators, how can we encourage our students to find their voice and experience the power of making a difference through their learning and actions? 

"Look what I made," were the words that I heard from a student as he bounded into my office this week. Angel, is an ELL 9th grade student that has been in the United States for a about 15 months. In his hands he held a bust that he had designed and printed of himself with a 3D printer. Angel was so proud. I want to take a step back and see how this moment came to happen.

This year our librarian/media specialist, Mr. Casteel began the year with the dream of creating a Makerspace. He had received two 3D printers and the book, Worlds of Making by Laura Fleming. (If you are looking for information on starting a MakerSpace, Worlds of Making is a great place to start.) Mr. Casteel brought together a team of teachers and students to help him form a vision of what the space might look like and be used for at our school. He did this slowly and thoughtfully, listening and reflecting after each meeting. As the team began to make it clear what might be accomplished or possible in the space, he applied for and received two grants. The funds from these grants made it possible for additional materials to be added to the space. Meanwhile, he set about deconstructing a space in the library that had housed a wired computer lab previously, here he created a home for the Makerspace to be located. Through brainstorming with this team and upon approval of two grants Mr. Casteel added journal embossing, jewelry design, legos and knitting. What was amazing was that he found experts in all of these areas to serve as resources to get learners started in the Makerspace within our building. I say "learners" and not students, because as the Makerspace has opened, many teachers have also wanted to participate. Mr. Casteel also sought out resources from the public library system to assist learners on designing and creating 3D objects. The partnership with the library has been a positive one and helped the Makerspace take shape. 

Back to Angel, he was introduced to the space when one of our ESL teachers along with our librarian decided to hold a special Saturday session specifically for ELL students on a Saturday.  While the space is open to all students, our ELL population sometimes can be intimidated or shy when interacting in brand new situations. Taking a Saturday and creating a time specifically for them to be exposed to the Makerspace and learn that it was a place to experiment and get messy, built confidence and encouraged their involvement.   Angel was on of the students that took advantage of this opportunity that Saturday and he hasn't stopped since. As he left my office today he said, "I can't wait to see what I make next."  And personally,  I can't wait to see what he creates next either.  I guarantee there are some great things to come from him and many others.  I love that we have started down this path of student directed learning and that we as educators have the ability to be learners along side them.  

It feels somewhat magical to experience what it means to just get out of the way and let them create. Have you experienced a moment like this?
​