#Reflect31 Day 5

My experiences and knowledge from being a student, educator, and teammate in different fields are all interwoven, like the crocheted blanket here. My goal as an educator is to be like the crochet hook; I strive to be an educator who empowers students to stitch together their knowledge and experiences. Sometimes our connections -- whether it be of knowledge, with people, or to other aspects of our lives -- can feel like the tangled knot of yarn here. It's important to remember that our students often feel this way, too. Untangling a knot is hard, but when we draw on our knowledge and support network, we can work through the knots and create masterpieces.


A teeny bit of insight into the symbolism pictured above:

• The graduation pendant represents my own experiences as a K-12 student
• The paintbrushes to represent art
• The coin purse was a gift from my mentor teacher during my provisional teacher program
• The book represents my training & experience in Higher Education (Marcia Baxter Magolda is my favorite Student Development theorist)
• The roller skate wheel represents roller derby; my roller derby families have been some of the most supportive people in my life post-college
• The background is a baby blanket that I am crocheting for the child of a friend from college

While I was editing the image above and adding text (on twitter I posted a version of the pic with the text in the image), my cat decided to take over my carefully planned display:

What a little knucklehead