The beginning is always the hardest. Whether it's a new school year, a new semester, or just a new day, planning instruction is always hardest at the beginning. I think this is because we all know what is at stake and we want to get it right, so there is a lot of pressure to "cover" everything. With to-do lists that far exceed our time available, instructional planning is critical -- it's the "special sauce" that will create the educational masterpiece we are all striving to achieve. So, with all this pressure and with such high stakes, how do you go about planning for instruction? Are there some keystone habits (to borrow a phrase from Charles Duhigg's book The Power of Habit) that can help the process? I think so, and will share one of them in today's blog.
There is a great story that has been making its rounds for years (as great stories are wont to do): the Mason Jar Philosophy Lesson. Just in case you haven't heard it, the story goes something like this: (Note: my version makes the professor a woman.)
A philosophy professor stood in front of her class with a large Mason Jar and several other objects. She told her class she was going to demonstrate something important about life and wanted them to answer a series of questions as they went along. First, she filled the jar with golf balls. She asked her students, "Is the jar full?" They answered in the affirmative. Then the took an entire bag of marbles and poured them into the "full" jar -- the smaller marbles fit in nicely between the larger golf balls. The professor then asked, "How about now? Is the jar full?" Again, the students told her "yes" though they were not quite as confident as before. Next, she took a box filled with sand and carefully poured it into the twice-full jar, shaking it a little as she went, allowing all of the grains to fill into the still-available spaces. It all fit. She then looked at her class and asked, "Is the jar full?" Being a smart class, they now gave answers like "not really" or "it depends" or "no". Smiling, the professor took a glass of water and poured the entire thing into the way-full jar -- again, there was room and all the liquid fit. "Now", she said, looking once again at her class, "what is the lesson here?" One bright student said, "No matter how much you have going on in your life, there's always room for more stuff!" "Not exactly" replied the teacher, "the lesson is that unless you start with the big stuff, you'll never get it all in there. You must remember that and make room for the most important things first.
What does this have to do with instructional planning? I'm glad you asked! Everything, as it turns out. You see, just like with the Mason Jar, we must start with the big things: the core concepts and skills and knowledge that we want our students to obtain. Then, there's always room for the other items that are important, but not critical, or nice, but not necessary.
Keep the Mason Jar story in mind when you plan your next lesson, semester, or school year: start with the big stuff, make sure you've got those in there, then fit in the smaller items. You will be pleasantly surprised at how much you and your students can accomplish!
The Solver Blog
Author: Dr. Diana S. Perdue