Last week, I finished reading The Hidden Life of Trees. The book itself was way outside of my comfort zone and general area of interest; however, it was recommended to me by someone I respect greatly. So, I picked it up. If I’m being honest, I didn’t really love the second half of the book, but the first half was fascinating.
One of my greatest takeaways was this passage:
Aachen discovered something amazing about photosynthesis in undisturbed beech forests. Apparently, the trees synchronize their performance so that they are all equally successful. And that is not what one would expect. Each beech tree grows in a unique location and the conditions can vary greatly in just a few yards. The soil can be stony or loose. It can retain a great deal of water or almost no water. It can be full of nutrients or extremely barren. Accordingly, each tree experiences different growing conditions…
And that’s what makes the research so astounding. The rate of photosynthesis is the same for all the trees. The trees, it seems, are equalizing differences between the strong and the weak.
It’s important to note that photosynthesis is what trees do – they use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to create oxygen and sugar. Photosynthesis is their job. And, despite the differences between the individual trees, they work together in harmony to ensure it’s happening at the same rate throughout the forest.
I think we can learn a lot from trees. Not just as people, but as educators.
In schools, one of the primary jobs is to generate learning. However, in schools, just like in forests, the conditions vary greatly from place to place. On any given day, there are some staff members who are strong and others who are barely clinging to life.
If we can learn something from the wisdom of trees, maybe it’s that the strong should be helping the weak to ensure learning takes place across all the classrooms in a school. After all, we never know when the conditions will change and those that were formerly strong will need help from those who were formerly weak. When we create a culture of helpfulness and nurturance, we get the job done for students despite the weaknesses that exist within the system.
As you lead this week, remember to help if you’re feeling strong and to accept some help if you’re feeling weak.
Choose to be Great!
Angelo
CHOOSE TO BE GREAT 