Fish Philosophy Blog

On January 6 in our Professional Teacher course we discovered the Fish Philosophy, and I immediately became attached to the four simple principals which it contains.  These principals are
                      
                       1)  Play
                       2)  Make Their Day
                       3)  Be There
                       4)  Choose Your Attitude

Each of these ideas may seem rather obvious and simplistic, however how many people can honestly say that they follow each of these everyday?  All of us have had those mornings where the power goes out while we're in the shower, our car won't start, or our cat throws up in our new pair of shoes.  Each of these inconveniences can put us in a rather poor mood, which our peers and coworkers notice as soon as we walk into the office.  We allow these troubles to ruin our entire day, causing us to perhaps miss out on potential pleasures.  Fish encourages us to push past these bad mornings, and work hard to choose a positive attitude.  Try to be optimistic and think that the day could only go up from where it was.  As teachers, we have to realize that our mood can affect the tone of our whole day and the attitude of our students; why not to choose to make the day a lot more light and bright for everyone.

The principal of taking time to play is also so important, for not only children but adults too.  Who decided that being a grown up meant replacing play with meetings, lesson plans, laundry, and bills?  Perhaps all these not so fun tasks could be a bit more appealing if we consciously chose to make them fun, and introduce a little time for play into our work.  After all, who's a crazy dance, a silly song, or an impromptu game of sock baseball going to hurt?

Our students will be looking up to us everyday for guidance and advice, which is why being there is so important.  I like how the Fish philosophy states that this doesn't mean just being present, but actually being involved and interested in all that is occuring.  Students can tell when someone is really listening, and genuinely concerned about what they are saying, and this encourages them to open up more.  This also goes for adults as well.  We all have times where we just need to talk out a problem, or vent to somebody, and just knowing that that person is listening can help a lot.  Everyone leads busy lives, but by setting down your pen, or putting aside your marking for just a few minutes, you can really help make the day of someone else.

My favorite principal of the Fish philosophy is make their day.  In our Professional Teacher class we have started a warm-fuzzy bucket, where students put in compliments about one another which are read aloud in class.  These could be messages of appreciation, recognition for a good deed, compliments, or just kind words.  They may seem rather small, but these positive, anonymous notes can really boost your day when you're feeling kind of down.  Everyone can feel a little self confident at times, but recognizing one of their strong points can help encourage them to continue on.

The Fish Philosophy is something that all people should strive to live by everyday.  This video would be beneficial to everyone, from child care providers, to servers, to pilots, to retail consultants, to teachers.  Any work environment could only benefit from educating their employers on the four principals of Fish.  The Fish philosophy is great, however sometimes we need a reminder to keep living by it.  This is why there are some fish swimming at the bottom of my blog.  They'll serve as my constant reminder to play, make their day, be there, and choose your attitude.