Habit #7 - Sharpen the Saw

Sharpening the saw is a habit I've recommitted to, as evidenced by enrolling in this educational leadership degree program!  Its already paid off in many ways, the most important being the reminder of how great it feels to learn (and apply) new and valuable ideas and concepts.  Having been in the classroom twelve years now, it can be tempting to rest on ones pedagogical laurels.  But "sharpening my saw" in these online classes has been a great wake-up call, a great reminder that there's always more to learn, even for a veteran educator.  This habit will be a more difficult one to teach.  The reason being, students are already sharpening their saws on a daily basis by simply attending school.  My leading idea is to challenge students to somehow sharpen their own saws over winter break.  Perhaps they could make a new plan about how to be a better student upon returning for 2nd semester in January.  They could get more organized, clean up their laptops, or try new educational apps.  I will consult the students themselves for more ideas on how to "sharpen the saw" when it comes to re-dedicating oneself to being a high-achieving student.