Category Archives: Personal Growth

Causes and Friends, Classes and Courses, Mental Health, Mental Hygiene, Personal Growth, Small People, Using social media

Fact or fake?

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Netsmartzkids has some great resources for teachers and parents who want to keep their kids safe online. Among those resources are some “Into the Cloud” animated videos–each about five minutes long covering some aspect of being safe online.

I’m sharing one in the hope that it will pique your interest and you’ll explore the site. There are free ebooks, activity sheets, games… lots of things to use with kids. But I do have another purpose behind the sharing.

I hope it will get you thinking. I’ve recently noticed that many people are using social media for “research.” Some of this is relatively harmless. “What is the phone number for this local business?” This question makes it necessary for the researcher to wait for a comment that includes the answer. I’m always tempted to point out that a Google search would likely reveal the answer in seconds.

No wonder the phone company started charging for directory assistance. People were calling 411 instead of using the directory. What does that say about us?

But what might be of greater concern is the people who are posting symptoms and asking for medical advice. And, as if that’s not troubling enough, there are often plenty of folks willing to demonstrate their “expertise.” I’m always tempted to post “Call your doctor.” Or, in some cases, “Go to the E.R.”

Telemedicine is a valid concept but it’s not a product I’d contract for on Facebook or Snapchat.

And then there’s financial advice. One of the social media groups I’m part of gets multiple questions every day from people wanting to know things like “What’s the best form of business for me to adopt” and “How much should I charge for…?”

Yes, there is some value in soliciting opinions–but in addition to being able to separate fact and fake, we also could get a lot better at separating fact and opinion. I don’t teach it often but I do have a “thinking skills” program. In addition to differentiating between divergent and convergent thinking, it includes the skill of “happying” and the skill of “crap detecting.”

In that course, I used to ask students to bring in a newspaper. We’d then look at every headline closely and answer this question: “Is the headline a fact or an opinion?” One of the learning outcomes is that we tend to accept opinions as facts if those opinions support what we already believe.

So here’s something else for you to think about. When you start scrolling on Facebook, what are you looking for? Cute kitten or puppy photos are probably safe (although some are digitally altered and do not depict reality–fact or fake?). Or are you hoping to find a lot of people (it is called social media) who agree with your opinions and beliefs?

Kids aren’t the only ones who occasionally get suckered by what’s on the Internet.

Classes and Courses, Mental Health, Personal Growth, Substitute Teaching, Suicide Prevention

Fall is coming…

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Learning Opportunities are coming too!

And with it the requests for information about learning opportunities. Do I even need to start with the “challenging times” things? Let’s jump right into where things stand.

Real Estate Related Courses are scheduled through November. While the dates and days are a little different, I’m basically teaching both the Sales Agent and Associate Broker Courses in both Augusta and Bangor. You can view my course calendar for details or visit The Real Estate Learning Group Website.

Speaking of learning opportunities, I’ve recently added several “instructor pages” for real estate students. You can start with the general page which links to pages specific to each course. And, no, you do not have to be registered for a course to access the pages.

Substitute Teacher Workshops are currently in the works and will likely be available in Dover Foxcroft, Newport, and Pittsfield, probably in September and October. Details should be available in the next week or two. We can agree there is likely some uncertainty how subbing might work this fall in view how districts will approach opening.

If you’ve taken a course with me in the past you’ve likely heard me say there are two answers to any question that are never wrong. “I don’t know” and “It depends.” If you ask me what subbing will look like this fall, I’ll use them together. “I don’t know! It depends!” But I do know that the concepts and techniques in the Substitute Teacher Workshop will continue to be important.

Suicide Prevention Workshops will again be offered in conjunction with the Substitute Teacher Workshops. The workshop I teach is research-based and content is provided by NAMI Maine, so it meets the requirement of LD 609 that all school employees have at least 90 minutes of Suicide Awareness and Prevention Training. Note, however, these workshops are open to all.

Publications and Writing have, I’ll admit, suffered seriously since early spring. I had hoped to release a book this fall but slid it to the back burner in lieu of other priorities driven by COVID-19. I think we’ve all recently had the opportunity learn, as the saying goes, “Life is what happens while you’re making other plans!”

Causes and Friends, Communication, Mental Health, Mental Hygiene, Personal Growth, Teaching

Numb

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A short film by Liv McNeil

Watch. Think. Since this will appear on Mr. Boomsma’s Facebook Page I’ll request that you watch and think. It takes three minutes to watch. You’ll want to think about it longer than that before commenting. You might also want to read Liv’s explanation on YouTube.

Liv also posted an important resource in her comments: “This is a COVID-19 youth mental health resource hub if you’ve been negatively affected by isolation, https://jack.org/covid.”

After watching, thinking, and commenting, share it. If you have children, consider watching it together and asking them what they are thinking and feeling.

Congratulations, Liv… on the completion of this important, helpful, and extremely well-done project.

Causes and Friends, Learning, Maine Life, Mental Health, Mental Hygiene, Personal Growth

Am I Okay?

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You don’t have to know me too well to know that one of my favorite questions is “Are you okay?” During this pandemic, it’s become a more important question and I’ve found myself asking people the question in various forms.

Unfortunately, I forgot to ask myself that question until recently when, I realized that, for various reasons, I was not okay. In short form, I was allowing “things” outside myself exact a mental and emotional toll that was less than healthy.

I kicked some self-care strategies into gear and am pleased to report I’m better. I’m not inclined to declare myself “okay” yet, not fully. But I’m a lot more okay than I was a month ago.

In a strange irony, the writers’ group I belong to posed some interesting survey questions recently. “What did lockdown teach you about yourself, your creativity, and your author business? For those that are now moving through the unlocking phase, what will you do differently creatively, personally and business-wise?” Since it’s a writer’s group, they were open-ended questions, not survey style.

While the pandemic is far from over, let me share with you some of the lessons I’m learning.

I’ve already at least hinted at the importance of “self-care” and asking “Am I okay?” It’s important to figure out what “centers” us–what keeps us grounded and focused. It’s about calming our emotions and slowing our minds. For me, writing is very effective and I realized that I hadn’t been. So I started writing–following my own advice regarding writer’s block. Just write. Don’t think. In the past thirty days, I’ve produced an amazing journal that, hopefully, no one will ever read. I’ll continue writing for myself but it has prepared me to start writing for others. If you haven’t noticed, this is my first blog post in some months.

Lesson 1: Ask yourself if you are okay. Spend some energy getting centered using whatever techniques work for you.

While it conflicts with the traditional writer image, I also have come to realize that human contact is important to me. While there are many times the idea of locking myself away to write, write, write, I know I wouldn’t last very long. I consider myself an introvert–that surprises many people–but I also like and need human contact. We all do. Solitary confinement is a punishment. Terms like “lockdown” and “quarantine” are troubling. If I could change the vocabulary, I wish we’d talk about physical distancing instead of social distancing.

Lesson 2: Make a conscious effort to reach across physical separation to stay close and connected to others.

When restrictions were implemented, I was teaching three real estate courses with a total enrollment of about 75 students. I’ve always said that I teach students, not courses but the reality of that became undeniable. Since we couldn’t assemble for classes, it took time and creativity to stay on track. Thus, I became acutely aware of the importance of technology as we move forward–not just through COVID-19 but through life as we know it.

There was a strange dichotomy in this–while I was physically distant from those students, I became more “intimate” with many of them as they shared their challenges… a single dad who suddenly found himself with homeschooling his three kids, a mom who works in health care and is afraid for her child who has asthma, students who found it difficult to concentrate. The list at times seemed endless.

I do not believe, as many do, that technology is a solution to most problems, but it becomes an important tool. I’m a bit amazed at how much technology I’ve adopted in the past several months. We didn’t have classes but we did have email, texting, phone calls, video conferencing, social media… I adopted the slogan that we would “stay the course.” There was never a question of what we would accomplish. We did have to keep asking how we would accomplish it.

Lesson #3 Embrace technology without making it an all or nothing proposition. Technology is a tool–it doesn’t replace anything and shouldn’t be the only tool we use.

Humans love predictability–we actually depend on it. We are currently living with a lot of uncertainty. When I started writing in an attempt to get “centered” I realized how important it is to occasionally focus on what hasn’t and won’t change. I didn’t write a list but once I started thinking about it, there’s a lot that won’t change. The law of gravity is a place to start, there’s no indication that’s going to change any time soon. It might seem silly but it’s about getting started and recognizing it’s not something you finish. It’s really about changing focus.

Personally, I’m learning to hate the phrase “new normal” almost as much as I find “we’re all in this together” annoying. While it’s true that COVID-19 affects everyone it’s equally true that it affects everyone differently. For that reason, I believe we each have the ability to largely control and develop our own “new normal.” We just have to get centered and focused, stay connected to others, and use technology and other tools as we move forward through time.

Conclusion: We do not have to be a victim of COVID-19 or anything else that comes along.

Learning, Personal Growth, School Programs, Teaching

Dear Parent…

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One of the educational forums I visit regularly has a recently started thread asking teachers to share the letter to homeschooling parents they wish they could write. Needless to say, there are some funny ones… and some that have quite an edge on them. After all, it’s somewhat normal to criticize teachers and blame them for behavioral issues and any lack of learning. Right now, the shoe is on the other foot.

Social media has also given rise to some funny stuff that acknowledges homeschooling may prove that the business of teaching and learning is not so easy. “If you drive by and see the kids outside and the doors locked, it’s because we’re having a fire drill.”

And the cartoons! Since Dad sometimes fills the role of “principal” I also liked the one where it’s apparent the Mom Teacher has threatened the Child Student with being sent to the Dad Principal. The child points out that the principal is sitting on the couch in his underwear.

It’s great that we’re having fun with this… and it may turn out that parents end up with a greater appreciation for teachers and the school environment. I hope so because I don’t think we fully appreciate some of the advantages the school environment provides.

One of the big ones is that schools are designed as a learning environment–learning is the norm and it’s an obvious expectation. Everything from the furniture to what’s hanging on the walls in the classroom is about learning. When you walk into a school building there is no doubt over what is going on inside

If I were writing to parents about the current situation, I’d be tempted to ask a question, particularly to those who are finding homeschooling a challenge. Is your home a learning environment?

I’m not suggesting that homes should look like a school, although for homeschooling there should be some specific physical learning areas if that’s possible. I am asking whether or not learning–and the value and fun of learning come through clearly.

A downside of “school,” is that some kids come to “hate” it. I wrote a piece a while back about an adult student who advised that she was “sick of learning.” (.) I sincerely hoped she was sick of being taught–that’s fundamentally different. There’s a difference. Learning is a natural process that we instinctively embrace. One of my classroom rules is that we are going to enjoy learning. Or at least try!

Learning should be about curiosity, exploration, and fun. Those are things that shouldn’t be limited to a classroom. In fact, the classroom has a disadvantage on this point. Due to the need for assessments and grades, it’s easy to lose sight of the fun.

When I’m teaching adults one of the more fun things is when parents share stories about how their kids view the parent’s learning. There’s a connection that can lead to some funny things. Sharing is important because it makes learning natural. I will always remember the Mom who arrived for a class starting with a quiz. She said that her young son warned her before she left, “Mom if you don’t pass today, there will be no electronics for the week.” He was quite serious. While it was funny, it also means that quizzes and tests are part of the family environment. And so are the consequences! Creating a learning environment can be as simple as a kid who sees Mom or Dad reading. Learning becomes a way of life.

I remember once being behind a woman towing a toddler through a store. The toddler was in the “why?” stage which can be very tiring. When he asked his question, Mom replied with her own question, “What do you think?”

There’s a lot to like about that response. It reflects that thinking is valued. It acknowledges that curiosity and exploration are a way of life. A child being raised in that environment will learn.

So if homeschooling is a current challenge, remember to teach the joy of learning–don’t just do worksheets and follow schedules. Kids may not want to sit down and complete worksheets and other tasks but they are curious and they will enjoy learning if we give them the chance.