INTENTIONALITY

The concept of intentionality came to me this last year as I discussed Invitational Education with Carol Fries; SUNY Potsdam professor, former AAKer, and 2003 Teacher of the Year. The concept of our discussion surrounded AAK and how we unintentionally developed an inviting atmosphere and climate. We concluded that this developed through years of individual people making a true difference in the lives of their coworkers and of their students. They made a positive impact on others. This welcoming spirit at AAK has led Carol to additional prominence as a conference presenter and author.

The next time the idea of intentionality was mentioned to me was at a conference this past summer. Paul Vermette, a Niagara University professor who is best known for collaborative educational strategies, spoke about the Social-Emotional Learning Standards (Yes, NYS does have standards for SEL). He suggested that we should be intentional about our interactions with kids. He professed that we have to teach them proper rules for society, civility, and etiquette. I don’t think he was referencing Emily Post – he was simply stating that to get a desired behavior we have to teach and model it. During my time with Paul Vermette I discovered that the concept of Invitational Education and Social-Emotional Learning are infinitely connected. Both depend on intentional actions which positively impact others.

This has led me to the idea of purposely and intentionally creating the environment that we treasure here at AAK. Is eating together one of my intentional acts? Yes. Is saying good morning to you with a smile intentional? Yes. Do I really want to smile? Actually…yes! Are the huge plants in our entryway intentional? Yes. What about our new painted Sandstoner Man in the office? Yes – and thank you Jani, it’s really cool. We need to be intentional with our thoughts and actions towards others and create an environment that is inviting and welcoming.

What about our interactions with the students? Can we intentionally impact them? We definitely can. Kids don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. I’m not sure where this quote came from, but I would speculate that the originator of this taught more academic information than I ever dreamed of as a teacher. Creating a welcoming environment for students is paramount to their success. Kids really will tune you out if they don’t believe you’re there for them.

According to Carol Fries, AAK already has a tremendously inviting climate and I would agree. Paul Vermette is trying to come to AAK this fall to see us for himself – not that he doesn’t believe me, simply to find an example of a school who attends to the Social-Emotional Learning of the students. What both Carol and Paul recognized was that schools who implement the NYS Essential Elements are, by design, inviting. We are the stewards of this environment and our responsibility lies within Essential Elements.

Thank you for your intentionality. The students, staff, and AAK are better because of it.