One of my favorite authors, Gretchen Rubin, loves to share about manifestos. A manifesto is a statement to detail one’s beliefs on a topic, such as marriage or your profession. Gretchen (we are not actually friends on a first name basis, but I’m such a huge fan I feel like I actually know her) has written a happiness manifesto, a habits manifesto, and even a podcasting manifesto.
When her podcast was doing a live show in Seattle, where I live, I was over the moon! I quickly bought tickets along with my sister and good friend. As part of the podcast they invited listeners to submit their own manifestos. As a dedicated fan, I took this opportunity to write a manifesto on teaching. I emailed it in, got a thank you from Gretchen, and then didn’t hear anything else.
on stage with Elizabeth and Gretchen
Fast-forward to an incredibly rainy October night in Seattle. My sister, friend, and I were sitting in Town Hall, after a wonderfully fun dinner, thrilled to be seeing Gretchen and her sister, Elizabeth Craft. As the podcast taping continued, Gretchen introduc ed the idea of manifestos and said they were going to share a couple that listeners had sent in.
All of the sudden I look at the screen and it says “Mrs. McGah’s manifesto on teaching.” My sister screamed in excitement. I was in shock. Gretchen Rubin was calling my name! She asked if Marianne McGah was there and I raised my hand (total teacher move!). They invited me to come up on stage and I sat in a bright red armchair, right next to Elizabeth and Gretchen. I couldn’t not believe it! I was freaking out!
Gretchen invited me to read my manifesto and explain a couple lines. If you want to hear the podcast episode check it out here: Live from Seattle!
It was such an honor to share my manifesto on the podcast. And I was so thankful that Gretchen had inspired me to write it. Putting my core beliefs about teaching into words was a powerful reminder of my vocation as an educator.
So, here it is: Mrs. McGah’s Manifesto on Teaching
- Start with a question
- Connect before I correct
- Whoever is doing the talking is doing the learning
- Do not eat free food (unless it is an entire meal)
- Develop skills over facts
- Technology is a tool
- Assume positive intention
- Not how smart are you, but how are you smart
- It’s not about me, however…
- I am a role model in all that I do (whether I feel like it or not)
In the coming blogposts, I will explain in more detail about these statements. Until then, what would you like to write a manifesto on? What statements would you include?