A Teacher's Ruminations

I yawned all day today. I tried to stop but I couldn't. I wasn't tired, just bored, I think, when I was pushing in to classrooms. Once I stepped out into the fresh air, and took deep breaths, I felt better. Was it easier to breathe in my own classroom? Some days I don't care to answer that question. Now, I have to wonder how the kids were feeling. Did they need some fresh air? Space to move around? Opportunities for accountable talk? Movement breaks? How would I feel stuck to a desk for an hour at a time? Having someone talk at me non stop? What if I was afraid of asking a question, or to borrow a pencil or to go the bathroom? Teachers have the power to make or break a child. With our words we can do great deeds. We can elevate someone or crush them to pieces. We can affirm, ask questions we really don't know the answers to, we can show respect, love, and kindness. So, why would we choose to break down a child? And, yes it is a choice. C...

I'm trying very hard to finish this year on a positive note. I don't want to leave for the summer feeling sour and negative. However, when at every turn it feels as if doors get closed faster than they're opened, it's not easy. Teaching shouldn't be so hard. Teachers should be supported in their work and administrators need to be the ones to do that. I am feeling disheartened despite repeated attempts to brave the storms. I have even considered quitting my present job in order to gain some perspective on my professional and personal life. But something is holding me back. Is it pride in my past accomplishments? Possibly, but it's not the determining factor. Is it that I don't want to let down my ESL students, most of whom will be with me next year? Very likely. Is it the thought that this year has been an anomaly and the hope that next year has to be better and so let's give it another shot? Possibly. What is certain is that I will be doing a lot...

           "He's just bored, " she said.             "No. I don't accept that. In this class, he has lots of opportunities to challenge himself," I responded.  Although seemingly calm when I said this, I was seething inside. This is what I was really thinking: "Not in my class."        "Maybe he needs a nudge. Some kids need that, you know," she countered.       "Maybe," I responded.  This is what I was really thinking: "Maybe that would be true if he were in the class down the hall where all they do is worksheets day in and day out. But not in my class."        Then, as I'm wont to do, I started to doubt myself.        I sat down with Todd (not his real name) to talk about his math work. I wanted to get a better sense of how he thought about this particular problem since his thinking wasn't clearly evidenced in the explanation ...