“When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new.”- Dalai Lama
When we listen to students, we learn. We learn what our students understand, we learn their questions, we learn where they are in a continuum of understanding, we learn their misconceptions, we learn their values, we learn what is most important to them.
When we listen to parents, we learn. We learn about the students’ life outside of school, we learn their needs, we learn what they have overcome in their lives, we learn from the people who know our students best.
When we listen to each other, we learn. We learn best practices, we learn new ideas to improve what we are doing in the classroom, we learn from each other’s experiences as teachers and students, we learn how to be a better teammate, we learn how to support all kids- not just the ones in our classroom.
We are Listen 1st Learning because it shows what we believe in our core; we must listen to learn.