2020 brought on the fifth #onelittleword I've chosen. My previous words were HAPPY (2016), AUDACIOUS (2017), DO (2018), and TIME (2019). My word for 2020 was PURPOSE. I wrote about my reasons for this word here.
2020 has been a wild right, hasn't it? I've been fortunate this year to have stayed healthy and to have my loved ones also remain healthy. I know that hasn't been the case for so many throughout the world with the COVID-19 global pandemic. March brought the closing of schools and the shutdown of pretty much everything where I live in Long Island, NY. Did I stay true to my PURPOSE? I didn't think about my word that much this year. I didn't make it part of my every day thinking and intentions. My focus in the spring was keeping my students connected. I did strive to provide literacy opportunities for them with virtual classroom libraries, blogging and using Padlet to share with each other. I read to my students each day, creating videos for them for different read alouds. Though I wasn't consciously thinking of my PURPOSE, I was living it. This year, I have continued to do my best to lift up those around me- to help make sure they know the gifts I see in them and to be a friend that can be counted on. I have also continued to share my resources and ideas with my colleagues at work and through my efforts atTwo Writing Teachers. Sharing my ideas and great resources I find makes me happy. I think PURPOSE was a good choice for last year. Though I didn't refer back to it as much as I should have, the 3 ideas I set out last year still resonate with me today. They are the core of who I am and what I try to do as an educator. I have selected my next #OLW and I will share it next week! I am excited to read about all the words that others select to guide their year.
7 Comments
Guess as teachers we made such a strong presence online only because of that one word you chose, 'purpose'. I gifted myself ‘unrestrained’ as a 46th birthday present to not limit myself by anything and keep learning new. A very happy new year to you!
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12/29/2020 06:48:16 pm
Like you, my 2020 word served me well. While it wasn't aligned to the pandemic, is is the word (i.e., restore) that got me through. And while a lot of restoration has happened for me (You saw that IG video I posted today!) and for my MIL, it feels like there's so much restoration that needs to be done to preserve our local communities and our country.
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Erika Victor
12/29/2020 06:12:12 am
I appreciate your purposeful shares for sure! I decided to have an "umbrella" word and then a new monthly connected word each month for 2021 (hope I can keep track of it all!).
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Melanie Meehan
12/29/2020 07:20:42 am
I want to know your 2021 word! It was hard to focus on any one word in 2020. It would be fun to choose words in hindsight for it-- chaos, pivot, change, learn...I can think of others, as well. Mine was wow, and there was a whole lot of wow.
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12/29/2020 07:25:23 am
Kathleen, you and I were thinking along the same lines, reflecting on the OLW for 2020 - and yes, was it ever one wild wild ride! Life shifted in ways we couldn't have imagined. There was either no time for reflection or entirely too much time for it...not a lot of balance between the two. What I most appreciate here is how you see that you were living your word, "purpose," even if there was not an overt concentration on it. There was absolutely a subconscious current of "purpose" flowing through all of your actions - you acted with purpose even if there wasn't time to think about it. I can personally attest to being the beneficiary of this line: "I have continued to do my best to lift up those around me- to help make sure they know the gifts I see in them and to be a friend that can be counted on." You always, always do this, Kathleen - you give of yourself, straight from the heart and I am deeply grateful for you! Here's to a happier New Year (hope all is going well with Teddy)!
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12/29/2020 07:32:41 am
Even those who only know your through TwoWritingTeachers know you live with purpose! It was a good word. I also wrote this week about how I didn’t return to my OLW and yet lived it. maybe that’s a mark of a good word- where the intention is immersive, not abstract. I will love to learn your next OLW!
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12/29/2020 05:19:16 pm
Hi, Kathleen! From my perspective, you are someone firmly grounded in purpose--as a teacher of writers and as someone who seeks to connect with others. You have a consistency and an energy to everything you tackle that I admire so much.
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