"You should become a teacher!" Powerful words from kids!!
As I go through the grueling process of becoming a teacher, I continue to realize that there is one reason why I want to do this....The Kids.
And those kids are constantly reminding me why I want to become a teacher. They are constantly reminding me that they matter to me and I matter to them.
Here are a few of the Little Things that I have received that warm my heart and encourage me...
First grader: Handmade drawings of herself so I won't forget her.
Second grader: Handmade envelopes made during free time.
Fourth grader: A huge tomato from her garden that I ate at lunch for four days.
Fourth grader: Who said, "Thank you for the extra time on the carpet (doing double-digit multiplication), it really made a difference."
Fifth graders: Who said, "Will you be our teacher next year?"
Ninth grader: Who nodded hello in Target.
Ninth grader: Who asked my dyad teacher why I wasn't there anymore.
Then to cap it all off, while visiting a classroom, I glanced at the wall. There in the exact place it was hung three years earlier, was a picture my son had drawn for his teacher. A picture inspired by a book he had read. Reading had been a struggle.
As I write this, I realize that these heartwarming acts are a simple yet beautiful way for a student to say, Thank You. Who says that kids don't send Thank You notes any longer? The style has just changed.
Thank you for sharing the “little things” – they almost made me cry! I think it is great that your son’s picture is still up in his teacher’s classroom three years later. It reminded you about the struggle he had to read, and I am willing to bet that it reminds his teacher too. It reminds me of that book, Thank you, Mr. Falker, which was recently read in our literacy class. The time we spend with students makes a difference. It can be hard to get to each and every one of them. It can be frustrating when students struggle with an idea. BUT, the rewards in struggling alongside a student and helping them see their potential, (a little cliché, but…) priceless!!
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