It’s the new year, and we are all here for it.
We did the best we could in 2020, and we learned and grew in ways we couldn’t have imagined a year ago.
It is time for a reset. Many of us think about the new year and plan our intentions for how we want to think or act or what we hope to feel or do. We might set goals or resolutions. We might also join the many who are choosing to proclaim a word for the new year. This is one word that will help you set your intention for the new year. You can write it in your planner or write sticky notes to remind you of your word.
You can even encourage your students to think of their intentions for the new year and come up with their own word of the year.
Sometimes you choose your word. You can look back, reflect and decide the direction you want to move in the new year. This strategy results in words like balanced, breathe, and self-care. You can look at your attitudes and choose an attitude you hope to have in the new year such as grateful, mindful, or joyful. You can choose the type of experiences you want to have which results in words like unplugged, connections or fun.
Sometimes your word of the year chooses you. In look backing, you might realize that this year you have learned to be more patient and more gentle in your interactions with others. Your new word might be grace. Or maybe you have realized that your students have needed you now more than ever and your new word will be support. Maybe you have been doing some soul-searching, even questioning your profession. The one word that brings you back and reminds you of your purpose might be impact.
There are 470,000 words in Webster’s Third New International Dictionary. Which one will set your intentions for the year?
Whatever your word, we hope that you enter into the new year with hope, optimism and good intentions.
Our best,
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