Excitement is Contagious

Last week I overheard several conversations about exercise. It wasn’t the typical kind of “new year exercise” conversation either, they weren’t lamenting about having to do it, nor how sore they are now that they’ve started a new routine with the new year. Instead these conversations were upbeat and positive.

What is influencing everyone’s attitude about exercise in this school? I wondered. So I began poking around, asking some questions. It turns out the PE teacher, Nancy Boston, challenged everyone to participate in the Presidential Fitness Challenge. Nancy is passionate about living a healthy lifestyle and her passion is contagious. She isn’t pushy or demanding or condescending, she simply wants others to enjoy the benefits of leading an active life. Thinking back to the conversations, I realized Nancy was a participant in many, listening to others share their exercise stories, offering a smile, and a little encouragement.

So this made me think about writing. Writing, like exercise, is good for you. The act of writing (and of exercising) leads to really good stuff. Yet, I’m noticing how the challenge is a nudge that pushes some people into establishing a new routine.

We have a writing challenge coming soon. This March marks our fourth annual Slice of Life Challenge. I’m hoping you will join us this year, and extend the challenge to your classroom. To prepare, set up a blog for yourself (I use both WordPress and Blogger, both free and user-friendly choices), and prepare a record-keeping system (here is Stacey’s from 2008) to help your students track their writing.

One more thing, why wait until March to join the Slice of Life community? Every Tuesday we host Slice of Life . . . maybe you’ll want to join tomorrow?