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Garden Check-In (Week 16): The Gardener Must Keep Growing · The Grammar of Classical Education

• 0:02
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to our Friday garden check-in.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: I have to admit, it's a little sad knowing that this is our second to last garden check-in.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: Hmm, maybe a garden party is what we need to wrap up with.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: This week, we have turned our focus from the garden to the gardener.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_00: We as teachers can get so wrapped up in what we need to do for our students,
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_00: what they need to help them grow,
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_00: that it's very easy for us to completely forget that we need to keep growing
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: as well.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: We aim to cultivate teachability and wonder in our students,
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_00: but how are we doing in those areas in our lives?
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: So I want you to think for just a moment.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_00: How does a wise gardener grow?
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_00: What are some specific things that we can do to cultivate our growth?
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: I don't mean just the big things,
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_00: but like we've seen in the beautiful garden we've been cultivating,
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it is simply the small shifts that can truly lead to lasting formations
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: in our students and in our lives as well.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: I would say that one of the foundational elements is being sure that the ivy
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: of wonder is still growing strong and healthy in your heart.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: Maybe you need to just spend some time thinking about the, oh, how can we put this?
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: Thinking about the coolness of the things that you teach.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: You see,
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_00: when we realize that there is so much more than just what we see right in front
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_00: of our faces, the world opens up for growth.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: Kind of goes back to E.B.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: White's idea of being on the lookout for the presence of wonder.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: If being wise was just about sitting around and getting lost in wonder, that would be a breeze.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: But alas and alack, it is not.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: We do have to cultivate our knowledge and our mind as well.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: We need to be growing and stretching mentally beyond just our standard subjects.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: I challenge you.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_00: Pick up a classic that maybe you haven't read before and start making your way through it.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: Sure, it may take a while since teaching is a busy job,
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_00: but But like when a mom learns to nap when their baby's napping,
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: maybe you can learn to read when your students are reading.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: I used to love it when a student used an oh dear pass.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: Collectively, we would stop and drop everything and read.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_00: Get it?
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: Dear, drop everything and read?
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_00: But when I say collectively, that included me.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: The kids always got a kick out of it too,
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_00: especially when the timer would go off and I'd given, oh man, as I closed my book.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: I encourage you, grab a classic or maybe even grab a book in a field of interest or...
• 4:11
  SPEAKER_00: Better yet, one of the classical education gotta reads.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_00: By the way, wise gardeners appreciate when their leaders force them to cultivate wisdom.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: And yep, that's all I'm going to say about that.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: There is one final recommendation.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: Wise gardeners learn to glean from the wisdom of others.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: Oh friends, cultivate a community of teacher-learners.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: Encourage, challenge, and inspire each other.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: You've heard no man is an island?
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_00: Well, no garden grows alone either.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_00: So I challenge you in the next week,
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_00: consider what can you do to cultivate wonder in your heart?
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: What can you do to cultivate knowledge in your brain?
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: And what can you do to learn from other gardeners and encourage them as well?
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much for joining us for our Friday Garden Check-In.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: I hope you have a wonderful week cultivating the beautiful garden
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: of students sitting before you, as well as the wonderful garden growing inside you.