hello, party people.
so my co-teacher and i have been really focusing on parent/teacher communication based on student successes (essentially-reaching out to parents when students do something fabulous instead of the "your kid bit another kid at recess" call/email). anyway, we try to email a few families per day to let them know about the wonderful things their children have been doing in our classroom. the other day we emailed l's family. l is hands down one of the sweetest children i have ever known. he is empathetic, respectful, imaginative, and downright brilliant. he laughs, and plays, and learns alongside the rest of the nuggets with this sincere curiosity about the subjects as well as his classmates and teachers. in a word, he is perfect. the email to his dad talked about how smart and kind he was and how well he is doing in class. the response left me close to tears. (in tears) essentially, l's dad took our "way to be a good parent" email and turned it into a "way to be good teachers" email. he attributed l's successes to our teaching and care. i can't tell you how good it felt to hear the words, "you are making a difference." it was so validating and so needed after a day when i felt like all i did was tell people to stop picking their noses. at the end of the email, l's dad talked about my upcoming goodbye and he said, "i hope miss dewire knows how adored she his by l and his classmates and how much she'll be missed." with a full heart i can say that i do. and i feel so fortunate to have met people like l and the rest of my crew who are so difficult to say goodbye to. looking forward to my last handful of days with my favorite little people. xo
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happy hump day!
had to share a real win of a moment from first grade yesterday. we had read the story "olivia" (one of my favorite talking pigs) and as a class we were discussing the differences between fantasy and reality. a chart was composed on one side a column for things that are real and the other column designated for things that are fantasy. everything started off great. the fantasy list included things like spongebob squarepants, talking legos, and mermaids ("which we know you wish were real, miss d"). thanks, kids. anyway one of my students raised his hand and said with his sweet good-natured speech impediment...santa. and what does brilliant miss d do? she writes santa. in the FANTASY column. ever at my rescue, my co-teacher announces a little too loudly "no, santa is real miss dewire you just put him in the wrong spot!" silly miss d. i played it off cool. and by that i mean i got bright red in the face and incredibly sweaty. it was a close call but i managed to convince the children i had a brain fart. i legitimately believe i would not have been able to get my teaching license had i ruined those children's childhoods. the experience taught me a valuable lesson though. see, i think sometimes i'm focused a little too much on the reality of things. i'm so busy looking for the real that i overlook the fantasy. and the fantasy can be pretty amazing. harry potter, pixar, mermaids, and even santa are things that bring so much joy. those are the fun things and without them life isn't as exciting and magical. i will make it my goal from this day on to keep as much magic in my kiddo's lives as i possibly can. i can't protect them from all of life's cruel realities but i can at least keep their imaginations alive when they are with me. i can foster their sense of wonder and creativity. and if i'm lucky i can keep santa alive for them too. as long as i put him in the right column. yours, dream killer ld happy spring, friends!
on sunday i was traveling back from a blissful week in paradise squished on a tiny airtran plane next to my sister and a young gentleman shamelessly attempting to pursue her. this young fellow was giving it all he had and i was enjoying listening to his attempts whilst reading the second book in the "divergent" series. as the two were exchanging pleasantries the topic of majors was brought up. he asked what mine was...thinking i wasn't listening. my sister told him early childhood and his response went a little something like this, "what like baby sitting 101? all she has to do is feed the kids cookies and take naps. what does she do?" what? yeah. mouth ajar i was THIS close to ripping this kid to shreds with my vicious rhetoric when my sister calmly and plainly told him that he was full of shit. man i love her, always knows just what to say. the rest of the flight when on without a hitch but i still can't seem to shake off the words this young guy said about my craft. what do i do? are you serious? i can't go back in time although i've given it some thought and i now know exactly how to respond should an airtran situation like this present itself again. this is what i do: my kids and i, we try hard. every single day from 9:30 in the morning until 4 in the afternoon. we study each other. our characteristics. our similarities. our differences. we study ourselves. we learn about the things that make us who we are. we learn about our community and our world. we dance. we recycle. we spell new words. we are learning how to read. we are learning how to write. we are learning to be scientists and mathematicians. we are learning how to appreciate each other in new ways. we are learning how to read and use maps. we build each other up. we coach each other when someone needs help. we learn from one another. we are growing. we are evolving. we are challenging what we know each and every day. my frustration with the dude on the plane had far less to do with his underestimation of me and more to do with his underestimation of my kids. people think that because children are young they are seemingly incapable of learning certain things about life. this infuriates me because from where i stand i have seen and witnessed children acting in ways that far surpass the capacities adults place on them. children are so insightful. they are so inquisitive and richly curious. they require a special kind of nurturing in order to grow and learn. i teach because i believe in education and what it can offer a person. what in can mean to someone. i teach so that one day one of my students will be the person to tell someone like the guy on the plane that he is full of shit for saying the only thing you do in first grade is take naps. |
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