PLN-4

http://http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/2007/09/speaking-from-soul.html

Today I read a post on The Fischbowl called Speaking from the Soul. Mr. Fisch talked a lot about the importance of the staff at our school and how teachers need to open up to their students just as much as students need to open up to their teachers and to each other.

This relates to our classroom because there are times when, during a presentation, we get really nervous. This is completely understandable and happens to the best of us. Sometimes, we don’t realize that it can happen to our teachers as well.

Mr. Fisch talked about one teacher at our school, Mrs. Gerlich, who had problems sharing her writing with her students. On her blog, Mrs. Gerlich posted:

Now I'm no wallflower, but I don't necessarily enjoy sharing my writing--writing for me is like a window on my soul--perhaps that's why I'm a reluctant blogger. But, I figured if 9th graders could share their writing, if Lary could do birdcalls, I could take a chance and share my poem. So I did. Even for a seasoned professional (or, ancient veteran teacher), I found it hard to recite my poem in front of the kids. Eye contact was hard to make and my stomach lurched, but I did it. Then Lary challenged me to put it on my blog. So I am. No eye contact, but my stomach is lurching...

This blog post relates not only to our class, but to the world as well. We all get nervous. Teachers, students, public speakers, managers; everyone gets scared to go up and talk in front of a crowd. In fact, most people would rather get eaten by sharks or die from a spider bite than speak in public.

We think that once a person grows up, they stop being afraid of public speaking, but there are so many people who do it every day, and still hate it. Teachers like Mrs. Gerlich are everywhere, they hate sharing in front of others, and yet, they make exceptional teachers and leaders. It is just like Mr. Fisch said, people like Mrs. Gerlich lead by example, and it is truly inspiring.