Kids Are Funny.

I have been amazed so many times this summer. I was first a tad bit amazed at my decision to teach summer school, after the year I had. It was a logical choice, though. It made sense for many reasons, and I don't regret it at all, aside from the time I missed out on at home. That's another discussion altogether...

Well, today was the last day of summer school. As I watched the students today, I was half-blown-away by a few things, which I can just barely put into words. There's so many stories in a classroom, and so many in each student, I am sometimes led to just smile thinking about the whole mix of things. I am trying to start a sentence here about a few specific kids that were in class this summer, and each time I start, I stop myself because it seems not right... I truly can't express what I'm thinking in simple words.

Here’s what I can write: Every kid needs to be appreciated, accepted, and shown love. Every single student, every child, as often as possible. My mother and my aunt have expressed a similar thought about teaching/education. How would I want my child treated? Here’s what I tried doing this summer… I became a step more real. I always try to respect my students, even those who are far less than respectful themselves. I try to think about what has caused or led to their behavior instead of focusing on the behavior itself. I try to speak kindly and be slow to become frazzled or upset. I try to watch and observe and respond in a sensible way. This does not mean I never lose my temper or run out of patience. That happens too. It’s just interesting to see what transpires when you teach and talk to kids, not at them. I haven’t said here what I set out to say… but there’s just something awesome about time and teaching. If you pay attention, and relax a little, you’ll watch kids grow leaps and bounds and you’ll laugh – a lot.

Today, on the last day of summer school, I had students who didn’t want to leave, students who were beaming from ear to ear about passing the class (because they never dreamed it possible), and a couple working harder than I thought they could (or cared to) just to finish a poster project that may or may not help their grade. And then there’s me – I told an eighth grader today, “Wow, summer went so quickly. I’m almost as sad as I am happy.” Karisha, who had returned to the classroom, after she had been dismissed for an awards ceremony, said, “I know!” then looked around to see who heard. Then, she sorta meandered around the room, and I thought she might have had more to say… perhaps I’ll never know. Kids are funny.