From Carol – Page 4 – AUSTIN TENNIS ACADEMY

What Happens at CP?

Today…

Two middle school students sit down in the Library in front of the white board and, by memory, hand draw a map of the world. Four others are outside wrangling the horses and learning how to manage not only large animals that are bigger and stronger, but how their own energies affect them, conquering fear and feeling compassion. A gap year student is teaching 6th grade math and designing projects to complete the year since they have completed the required curriculum 8 weeks ahead of schedule. Latin class is at Starbucks. A community member is requesting our upper level students to contemplate the meaning of money, responsibility, and what they will establish as their purpose moving forward in life… and then concretize this by defining and writing their plan. A few others are down at the court working on fine tuning backhands. In the sunshine room, students are studying independently and preparing for the World History class in which each student must research and co-teach a unit. A little while later, the geometry class approached me with a proposal to build a tennis ball launcher – comparing the cost, safety, and efficiency of a combustable vs compression model. And at lunch, CP students stuffed 300 plastic eggs for the JD Easter Egg Hunt, took an SAT vocabulary quiz, ate Shepherd’s Pie, and a few went to mentor lunches to discuss current projects. Then off to Chemistry, Calculus, French and Spanish…

… just a typical day.

Race to Nowhere

“Race to Nowhere” is an education documentary that challenges current thinking about how to best prepare our students for success. It encourages us to rethink not only WHAT it is we are preparing our children for but HOW we go about doing it… and more importantly… WHY we do it.

I first viewed Race to Nowhere in an auditorium filled with parents and public school teachers and administrators at Austin High School. I’m not sure there was a dry eye in the house. And there were several angry educators. This film endeavors to raise awareness and change public opinion about the educational institution much like “Supersize Me” strived to change the perception of the dangers of our fast food nation. It temporarily satisfies the hunger, but the damage done over the long term is often irreparable.

It is an interesting study well worth the 85 minutes. If you are interested in attending a viewing of this film, please contact me. ~Carol

Bag Check

I have heard Coach Doug call a player’s tennis bag a ‘life line’. It should contain everything you may need on the island of the competitive tennis court.

My son, Josh, is meticulous about his tennis bag and its contents. It is organized like a ship captain’s data log. Everything has a space and everything is in its place. Now, mind you, while he has always been pretty good about this task, at times, it might have looked like this: 1) some brown thing that resembles the remnants of a banana peel, and a 7 month old protein bar crammed together in the side pocket with 5 dirty socks. ( Do I need to describe this smell? ) 2) the first aid kit that I purchased and carefully packed for him so that he would have bandaids in case of a blister eruption during that all important 3rd set… is opened and scattered in every orifice of the bag, along with random pieces of paper and a dried up Subway sandwich. 3) No strings. This may not sound like a big deal… but let me tell you, if you are traveling out of town and you need to string a racquet, the stringing charge is twice the normal ATA $ amount because it is always a rush, you don’t need to be paying extra for THEIR string.

Over the years of varied experiences, his bag has become full of interesting and useful items for tournament play. So from Josh’s bag check to yours, I suggest you keep these recommended items close at hand:

1) Racquets. How many? A good rule of thumb for the # of racquets you keep in your bag could be determined by the duration of the tournament being played… ALWAYS AT LEAST TWO. Three day tournament – 3 racquets, 5 day tournament, 5 racquets.

2) string, grips, balls for warm-up

3) sun screen, hat, visor, sun glasses

4) extra shirts, socks, jacket, pants, shoes, shoelaces

5) snacks, bars, fruit, nuts, water jug, Emergen-C or other electrolyte powder/tablet

6) first aid kit, (Epi-pen if allergic)

7) script notebook, match cards, tournament draw with directions to sites

8) a good book to read

Over the years, you will develop your own unique items to keep in your bag… remember to be prepared and keep a strong life line. You just never know, someday, the Tennis Channel might want to do a Bag Check on YOU to see what’s inside your bag!

I wonder what they will find?

~Carol

A Whirlwind in DC

I spent a few days with some of the greatest creative minds in education. The 2013 Advanc-Ed Summit was held in Washington DC and the focus was Successful Learning in the Digital Age. I was really looking forward to the inspirational architecture, history and messaging intertwined throughout the sites of our nation’s capital, and I was pleasantly surprised to find just as much stimulating insight through the events and speakers at the Summit.

I was honored to meet Sir Ken Robinson, author, inspirational TedTalk speaker, advocate for education revolution, and the keynote speaker for the event. He spoke about the immense opportunities to lead the changes for education out of the industrial age and into the digital age. Sir Ken’s School Kills Creativity is a favorite TedTalk of mine and his books – The Element, and Out of Our Minds – inspire us to demand creativity as the forefront of our education.

I visited with Dr Steve Perry (on Oprah in July) who is an MLK style visionary implementing change as the principal of Capital Preparatory Magnet School in addition to authoring, Push Has Come To Shove: Getting Our Kids The Education They Deserve – Even If It Means Picking A Fight.

I also heard from members of the teaching community of U Penn and Washington U, and had breakfast with Roberto Rodriguez, Special Assistant to the President of Education.

Although many of the break out sessions still asked questions based on the old paradigm of education and one that still stems from an industrial age, many private and public schools are implementing dynamic changes, much like ATA College Prep. However, it is clear to me that we are definitely on the cutting edge of where true education is headed. All of the buzz phrases and ideas – blended learning, credit awarded for off-campus activities, rewarding performance instead of seat time, self-pacing, hiring experts over certified teachers – which were being thrown around in presentations and topical discussions are all things that we have been doing for years at CP, and even more years ago through small, focused, leadership and home education models. My contribution to the Summit discussions focused on explaining that the goal of a broad liberal arts education strives to liberate the mind and free its creative nature, rather than fill it with a common list of skills deemed necessary to fit into the assembly line of workers. We are striving for ‘higher’ education not only ‘hire’ education.

The highlight of the Summit, the closing ceremony featured 3 students who are practicing owning the responsibility of education. They have each created and developed their own start-ups, campaigns, or designed part of their course loads during the latter part of high school. They shared personal stories of why schools have failed them, how they have been supported, and what can be done to improve education, as well as the impact of mentor relationships. One young man is creating a template for high school students to defend their knowledge acquisition through unique and performance-based expert presentation options rather than standardized tests.

Out of the mouths (and minds) of babes come a great deal of wisdom… and we should listen!

At ATA CP, I am proud that we create mentoring relationships, stretch the mind, afford opportunity to grow in many directions… and that we strive to do it in creative and entertaining ways. After all, isn’t that what learning is? Loving to learn about who we are and who we are becoming in an ever-changing world of beauty.

Looking forward! ~Carol

CP Students Celebrate Chinese New Year!

from Morgan, student contributor

Chinese New Year is here! This year is the year of the snake. The first day of Chinese New Year is February 10th, so the New Year is well underway. The Chinese New Year celebration lasts over a span of two weeks. In preparation for the New Year it is a custom that Chinese people thoroughly clean their house sweeping away all of the bad luck from the previous year. After the first few days of the New Year they don’t clean their house to prevent the good luck that the New Year will bring to go away. Eight is the lucky number of because the word eight in Chinese rhymes with the word fortune and wealth. Red is the lucky color of the New Year; Chinese people typically paint their doors and windowpanes red for good luck. Some people also decorate their home with plastic firecrackers to ward off bad luck. Paper cut outs are also hung during this time. Red is also worn through the New Year and when worn with gold it shows full participation during the New Year. Children receive red packets filled with lucky money. Tangerines and oranges are also handed to children for good luck. Chinese people use the greeting 恭喜发财 (gōng xǐ fā cái) – meaning “you wish someone to be very rich” – but the phrase is generally used as a Happy New Year. Chinese New Year is the most important part of the New Year because it is a time to connect and share with your relatives and friends. During Chinese New Year the Tray of Togetherness is used, it is a tray with eight compartments filled with food for good luck for people to eat from. Fish is also cooked because the word for fish rhymes with surplus or excess. Dumplings are made and some Chinese families hide a coin in the dumplings and whoever gets it is said to have good luck during the coming year. The Chinese Class of ATA College Prep went to 王老师’s house to cook for the New Year, we made dumplings, salmon, rice cake, and a noodle dish, it was all very delicious. Here are some photos of us celebrating the Chinese New Year. 恭喜发财!!!

Ode To A Copious Vocabulary

Each week, CP students are challenged and tested with 10 new SAT worthy vocabulary words. The ongoing contest is who can use them most eloquently in daily conversation… this week, Coach Newman wins.

I was in San Antonio watching the Boys and Girls 16s National Open the past three days. There was a clear difference between ATA players and the other players I watched. The milieu of ATA College Prep is one of teamwork and focus. I have been impressed with the progress the players I watched have made, and by the progress all of you have made this year. While sometimes rambunctious at lunch, during workouts and class you jettison bad attitudes and you each bring a unique, piquant taste to the ATA CP experience. Improper terms and other negative self talk are anathema to you, and the diaphanous difference in skill and level make practice matches especially challenging and rewarding. You all get along well; there is rarely a schism and you have a tacit understanding that treating each other well is the name of the game. Fortunately, none of you are bibulous, so tournament trips go smoothly for the most part. And, while we have room to grow, there is not room for a googol of ATA’ers. You are one of a select few who get the opportunity to particpate in ATA College Prep.

Meditate Your Way to Genius

CP students practice square breathing at the beginning of each school day. They practice Alpha on the courts before the beginning of practice. They practice ‘the golden’ in between points. What do these things have in common? They are all methods of becoming aware, eliminating distraction, and tapping into the alpha brain wave.

This article A Neural Basis for Benefits of Meditation describes a Brown University study that proposes a neurophysiological framework to explain the clinical benefits of what we already know and practice here at ATA CP.

Think it! Be it! ~Carol

School Kills Creativity

If you have not had the pleasure to contemplate Sir Ken Robinson’s views on education… take a few moments to watch this TED Talk.

Nurturing Nature

According to Joshua Leibman, author of Peace of Mind,

“There is here no fatalism of endowment.”

Recently, I was gifted with a Bonsai tree.
I always admired images of these miniature works of art – carefully
cultivated and delicately crafted over long periods of time. I used to
imagine the patience involved in watching something so precious progress so
very slowly and the assiduity necessary in guiding its growth.

I spent days, weeks, months looking at my new
charge, wondering in what directions its branches might tend to grow. I
would occasionally turn it and put it in a different place so as to admire it
from another perspective, visualizing it in its future. In an effort to
gain ideas of how I wanted to form its shape, I began researching other Bonsai
creations, hoping to find the perfect one to inspire my new canvas ready for
change. I found images of amazing oak trees so tiny in stature but
grandeur in shape and personality. I found fall colored maples and
evergreen pines that mimicked the most majestic forest specimens.
Then… I peered back at mine. It was then, for the first time, that I
noticed It was really rather… ordinary… and sort of lopsided; most of its
leaves were too big for its trunk size… some were even yellowed, and I really
wasn’t sure how to tame its awkwardness. I became less enamored with its
nature and a bit more obsessed with trying to change it into one of its more
majestic counterparts.

Well, it was not a maple, nor a pine, nor a
mighty oak… it was in fact a ficus with a tiny trunk and oversized
leaves. What happened to my love affair with this newborn project?
Had it changed? Had I changed? Or was I simply comparing it to other Bonsais
that held different DNA? It was then I began to question, like most
beginning Bonsai caregivers, whether or not I had the ability to maintain a
healthy plant. (I thought back and remembered when I was 10… I talked my mom
into stopping on the side of the road and spending an inordinate amount of
money to purchase one for me… I proudly took it home, loved it for days, and
then it died.)

I took a deep breath, picked up my clippers and I
began to carefully clip a few leaves that protruded beyond the limits of the
container… the outliers. Clip, clip, clip. As I did so, a tiny bead of
liquid formed on the tip of the clipped surface in an attempt to heal the
affected part. This process changed and limited some growth of all but
one protruding branch… and I left it there to do as it wished. It is well-known
to Bonsai artists that the key is in being able to control the degree of stress
that a plant will take and still remain healthy. He must have the
willingness to learn, experiment and accept the results of these efforts. He
must also recognize that the growth process takes time, and there are no
shortcuts. Overall, I have not done too much to my beautiful ficus… I
spent more time observing its nature – where it leaned, where it was too big,
where it needed to grow, which leaves needed taming – than attempting to create
an entirely new breed. But its shape has gradually and ever so slightly
begun to change. I am in love with the way the leaves are clipped and
then push forth and then grow back to a more refined maturity.

The ultimate challenge for the
bonsai designer – as it is for a
parent, coach, or teacher – is to expose and draw out the essence. And then… ever so
gently… creatively guide the refinement of maturity.

Happy Growing! ~Carol

Did Thomas Edison Get an “A” in Light Bulb Design Class?

In all of the serious aspects of our lives, do we really remember the powerful relationship between creative play… and thinking?

Problem solving comes from exploration. If the silly ideas of the ‘impossible’ are ignored, passed over and closed down in our children, they will stop thinking creatively. They become embarrassed by failure, when in reality, failure is how we learn. Failure is how we learned to walk – we stumbled through it. It’s how we learned to ride a bike – we fell over and skinned our knees. Failure is how we become intelligent… otherwise, how would we recognize success? In today’s success-driven world, failure is often perceived and treated with negative connotation.

Thomas Edison failed many, many, many times before developing a successful light bulb. But each time he failed, he embraced it as an opportunity to learn again… only, the next time, with more knowledge. He did not hide behind his embarrassment, or shy away or quit. He persevered. He did what we all should strive to do.

However, I wonder what would have happened if Mr. Edison had been graded by an instructor over that period of time of epic failure and had received a failing grade for each failed attempt. Would he have passed his ‘light bulb development’ class? Would the final result of the light bulb make up for all of the failed attempts? Or since he already had 52 failing grades, should he have quit since it was obvious he would never pass the class, since the successful attempt would only account for one grade and definitely not enough to raise his grade to a passing one. What if the course was over before he had the en’light’ened epiphany? Or… would he have continued his explorations – putting aside the grade or what others thought about his failures – for the sheer love and passion of solving the challenge?

Failure is an opportunity to begin again… and learn again… only this time… more intelligently.

Learning is a mystery. One day, knowledge of a certain topic is unknown and does not exist… and then on the next… it appears. The brain is a malleable organ. It is capable of growing and stretching as far as we challenge it to do so. So how do we keep it open? Keep it playing. Keep it thinking. If we ask the right questions… the results are wonder(ful).

~Carol

Self Actualization

“Musicians must make music, artists must paint, poets must write if they are to be ultimately at peace with themselves. What human beings can be, they must be. They must be true to their own nature. This need we may call self-actualization.

.. It refers to man’s desire for self-fulfillment, namely to the tendency for him to become actually in what he is potentially: to become everything one is capable of becoming.” ~ Abraham Maslow (for notes on his book Motivation and Personality visit http://bit.ly/TfV703

Paramos

Every Drop Counts

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