Invent?
Step into Possibilities?
Give an A?
Contribute?
How can I reinvent myself to be a better person? I think I try on a daily basis to be a better person. I treat others the way that I want to be treated. I work hard to make myself happy, as well as others that are around me. But when I read this week’s readings, I pondered if I am missing something. Is there more that I can offer to others around me? I think I do. But what can I contribute to my students…my friends…my family? How can I provide more possibilities? Or be apart of other possibilities?
I think in order for me to step outside the box, I must list contributions that I can offer to others. I feel that I have a lot to offer others. Not only my work ethics, but I also provide love and compassion. Sometimes, I feel that I might be a little burned out with teaching. But on a daily basis, I still love my students. Of course I want them to learn as much as possible, and sometimes forget about their feelings and how their home life can really affect their school life.
For instance, last week, one of my fourth grade students needed shoes, clothes, underclothes, and toiletries, due to insufficient funds at home. Through a county non-profit organization, I was able to provide these necessary items for this student and his sibling. He was so thankful, and appreciative to receive these items. He didn’t care if the items were name brand, or the latest fashion. He was just happy to have clothes with no holes, and shoes that weren’t falling apart. With his overwhelming response of gratitude, I was able to reconnect with the emotional aspect of being a teacher, as well as looking at how fortunate that I am able to provide for my own family. Still, this kid showed me to appreciate the little things in life.
I think with caring and love, the possibilities are endless. Having a positive outlook in life will provide an abundance of opportunities. Educators are kind, warm hearted human beings that not only teach lessons to others, but also provide love to their students.
So yes, I think that I do have something to offer to my students, LOVE. Sometimes it’s tucked away, pushed aside, or misplaced, but for some reason, my students help me find it.
What I really liked about the reading this week, and what I want to use is giving A’s. The author provided his students with A’s at the beginning of the semester. This way, the students will set their own standards high. It is similar to FSO grading the GPS assignment at the beginning of the class. I know I want to keep this 100%, and will make an effort to not have any points deducted.
One sentence stood out from all the reading…..”Hard Work and Reward…what can be better?”
Zander, R. & Zander, B. (2000). The Art of Possibility. Ch. 1-4. Penguin Books. New York, NY.
Images Courtesy of CC
Janene, what burns us out is usually not the kids. The daily grind of the workload, administrative decisions that drive us bonkers, colleagues who do more complaining than working, and unrealistic parents.
ReplyDeleteThe reason we burn out is because we care. I don’t know about you, but I take my job very personally. I know there is an unhealthy line that can be crossed with this. I know, because I have crossed it. But at the bottom of it all what really drives us is not the subject, or the grades, or even the knowledge. It’s that we care about the role we play in sculpting these young humans. They matter to us. Some how we care for them all. Even the kids who act like spoiled jerks, we still feel the gravitational pull to influence them.
Your reaching out to that boy tells me much about your character. You’re exactly the kind of person we must keep in our schools. We don’t need more tenured, union-protected, “I’m in for the pension” pretenders. Think about this: Everybody in the building knows who the bad teachers are. The kids certainly know who the bad teachers are. Heck, the custodial staff probably know. My impression of you over the last year is that you are one of the great teachers because you are one of the called teachers. Bad teachers don’t burn out because they never gave a rip in the first place.
Don’t be overwhelmed by the stupid side of our crazy profession. I know, easy to say, hard to do. Stay on those kids. Leave a mark on them that time and events and others can never erase. That little boy will never, ever forget that act of kindness. You were God’s hand extended in the most real way it can be felt. I bow to you.
Bruce,
ReplyDeleteHow am I supposed to comment to that??? I read your post last night and thought of how I could respond to your response. I have nothing.
I have been beating myself up all week thinking of how I am ready to leave the education field. When I wrote this week's post, I realized how much I care for my students. (All 1300+). I may not know their names, but I do know they really need love. Unfortunately, most of my kids are not receiving this needed attention at home. Someone must show them, right?
It's a crying shame that those that are NOT in the classroom always seem to have all the answers of HOW to teach. Please, we all know they wouldn't last a day in any of our shoes!!!!
Your right, because of their "ideas" and "resolutions" to problems, they are the ones breaking my spirit.
Thank you for so eloquently expressing your tenacity to achieve success in the face of many obstacles. As we all know, teachers like us are nurses, social workers, psychologists, maintenance workers and techno wizards. We have to be able to come in on a daily basis armed with an arsenal of mental, physical and practical material for “whatever the day brings.” At the end of each day, we must be able to feel as if our efforts “counted.” Did I do all that I could do, could I have dug in a little deeper, and did I fulfill my obligation? -- YES! -- We did and we continue to do so.
ReplyDeleteYour thoughts unfolded so interestingly here Janene, dissecting and hypothesizing about what you offer and give to your students. I think that no matter how much thought you put into it or how self-actualized you are, you'll never know the true extent of how you've touch people's lives - caring goes a long way as emotional currency.
ReplyDeleteI think the important part is giving it your all, setting good intentions and resigning your to the belief, that while you might not always be able to see it or measure it, that you're doing good in the world.
That one student you were able to gather shoes and clothes for will probably remember that kindness for a lifetime.
I completely identified with your story of how helping someone else reminded you of love. Moments like these bring us to our central selves. It reminds me of the days following 9/11. Remember how everyone was more caring, even in traffic? This dissipated after a couple of days it still, after a couple of days, we were reminded of what's really important and we noticed it. I think the key to this idea is to constantly remind us of the big picture.
ReplyDelete