Running head: FISH!

REFLECTION

FISH! Reflection

Lillian Blizzard

Salisbury University

ELED 340-350

February 3, 2020
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FISH! REFLECTION
FISH! Reflection

The FISH! Philosophy is dedicated to making work rewarding and fun every day through

engagement, choice, and positivity for people to be efficient in their jobs (Lundin, Paul, &

Christensen, 2000). The first cornerstone is choose your attitude. Choose your attitude means

that everyone can choose the attitude they bring to their work (p. 21). This cornerstone applies to

a personal experience I have had when I found out I had to receive intravenous immunoglobulin

(IVIG) treatments in 2018. I could have stopped going to school because of the side effects I

experience, including migraines. Instead, I choose to be happy to receive the treatments, and I

was confident they would not make me drop out of school. With these attitudes, I pushed through

school, even though it was hard at times, and I have succeeded every semester. This cornerstone

applies to classroom management by making sure I have a menu the students can use to choose

their attitude throughout the day. Having this menu will teach students they can choose their own

attitude when coming to class and completing their work. When students choose a positive

attitude, they will learn better and be more efficient in completing their work.

The second cornerstone is play. Play means for people to have fun when working, while

also bringing creativity and enthusiasm with them (p.46-47). This applies to a professional

experience I had in my field placement with a lesson on punctuation. To make the lesson fun, my

mentor teacher told the students to use playdough to fix the punctuation mistakes in the handout

given to them. The students were being creative instead of using a pencil to complete the

worksheet, and they were enthusiastic about the work. Play relates to classroom management

because students are constantly bored when they cannot express their creativity, which can lead

to negative behaviors. Along with creativity comes enthusiasm. I will provide choice to the

students when completing some assignments for them to express their creativity.
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The third cornerstone is make their day. Make their day means to engage people with

creativity that makes memories to make their day memorable (p. 49). This cornerstone applies to

when I crochet. Every year I choose to do handmade crochet gifts for people, and I do not expect

anything in return. People are always so happy because the gift is memorable since it is

handmade, and they understand how much time I put in making them. It is engaging because of

the element of surprise when they open their gifts. For this cornerstone in the classroom, I will

complement the students regularly and recognize the effort they are putting into their work.

Students want to be recognized for what they do and the effort they put in their work instead of

being invisible in the classroom. When students think they are invisible, they sometimes start

acting out in the classroom. The complements will engage the students and hopefully help them

complete their work to the best of their ability.

The fourth cornerstone is be there. Be there means not daydreaming, but to be fully

engaged in the work you have to complete (p. 51). This applies to a personal experience I have

had when I first started college. It was hard to be there for my friends and family with the

amount of course load and work associated with the classes I took. I learned I had to be there for

my friends and family even through all of this course work to maintain my relationships with

them. This meant that when I am spending time with them, giving them my undivided attention

and not doing anything else. Be there relates to what I am going to do as a teacher. To be there

for my students, I need to make sure the body language and tone of voice I use conveys that they

have my full attention. I also need to make sure I stop what I am doing and focus my attention on

the students who need me. This conveys to the students I am there for them and builds a trusting

relationship. When students trust the teacher, the teacher will get through to them more and help

them learn.
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References

Lundin, S. C., Paul, H., & Christensen, J. (2000). FISH! NY: Hachette Books