A small sign of success...celebrate the little victories

I entered the 2010/2011 school year with two goals:

Without doubt, I have experienced some minor success with my goals, as well as some "revamping" of how I plan on achieving my goals. Many of
my students have loved the new ideas, while some long for the days of
old (zero technology, lots of books and stacks of worksheets...). Many
teachers loved the new resources and ideas for improving classroom
instruction, while some claimed it would be too much work because of the
lack of time. Either way, I have learned a tremendous amount about
setting goals for myself, as well as how to carefully tread when trying
implement new ideas and initiatives.

Since
I view myself as a mostly positive and optimistic person, I would like
to have a minor celebration of my most recent endeavor. Last week I
polled my students both through the use of a Facebook discussion post,
as well as through the use of a Flip Camera activity. The purpose of
these two activities was to empower my students to speak up and voice
their opinion on what our next project should be. Overwhelmingly, the
students were against my original plan...and for some odd reason that
didn't bother me. They came up with some great ideas, and in the end,
they have earned the opportunity to do a project on a topic of their choosing (as long as it is in German - I am a German teacher).

Long
story short, the students are doing a Prezi presentation. Thus far, I
am extremely excited about their presentations. The main reason I am
excited might seem trivial, but if you have ever been a classroom
teacher you know it is a big deal. Most of my students today didn't
realize class was over until the bell rang, and when the students are so
engaged and interested in their project that they have forgotten to
check the time, something must be going well. What we do in schools
every day is similar to a war, and because of this we have to celebrate
our minor victories, and push aside our minor defeats. There will be
"ups" and "downs," but if I have to experience a few "downs" to
experience an "up" like I did today...then I am ready for war.