i'll be the first to say that i am definitely not a perfect teacher. i never have been, nor will i ever be. that said, i've learned a lot in 26 years. let's discuss, shall we?
you can't right wrongs until you've done them and reflected, so let's start there. you know better, you do better. i've gotten so much wrong about being an educator.
first wrong: content over kids.
i'm not sure when education became more about scores, papers, and performance and less about kids. kids should be our focus. content comes after. i was always trying to make sure kids got the content i thought they needed to know. there was always paperwork, score sheets, data points, and progress monitoring to do. there is a place for that, sure. we have to make sure kids can read, write, and add. i get that. here's where i went wrong: i had a first grader one year. she was a great kid. she struggled a little, but nothing we couldn't handle. what haunts me is the fact that i never noticed her stimming behavior until the last nine weeks. how did i miss that? it's embarrassing. i was so consumed by teaching, classroom management, and paperwork that i missed a big thing for this super sweet kid. i knew then i needed to make a change.
second wrong: behavior
when i started teaching i was fully invested in token economies. we did the classroom store. it was draining. it did nothing to help with behavior. since then, i have had clip charts, point giveaways, class dojo, you name it. i gasped in horror when we were told to stop with clip charts. i didn't know what to do with kids who misbehaved, and i can't say that i really know much more now than i did then, except that i hate clip charts and daily behavior charts. for me, it was more trouble than it was worth. i had to keep up with a constant stream of "what did my kid do to get yellow/red?" it wasn't worth it for anyone.
third wrong: eating in the teacher's lounge
now that i stay in my room 90% of the day, i miss 100% of the drama. now i don't hear all the wrongs of the school. all of the "can you believe that..." talk. i don't hear people and their constant complaining. i don't hear all the bad stories about kids. (i still hear some, but not at the level, you know?) so if i don't hear the complaining, i don't complain myself. and i certainly don't complain to the wrong people. i love educators, but we a gossipy bunch. it's so much easier to love your work, kids, coworkers when you don't have to hear the constant bitching.
i know there's more wrongs. maybe i will write about more later. i want to get to the good stuff.
what i get right... here's the meat of what i've been thinking about recently. this is the good good.
first right: greeting kids at the door
i used to think this was so stupid. legit. i had stuff to do!!! folders to check, email to read, stuff to get ready. what a dumbass i was. some kids look forward to seeing you so much. you are their safe place. they adore you. and if you're not at the door anxiously awaiting their arrival? it's a gut punch to a kid.
now greeting kids is my superpower!! i absolutely adore seeing every kid every morning. we dance, we laugh, we share outfits, nails, missing teeth. it's a wild 20 minutes every day but i LOVE it. i get to know all 600 kids in those 20 minutes. i get to love on all of those babies. i get to hear their triumphs and grievances. it is my absolute joy and privilege and my favorite part of the day.
second right: relationships
relationships are everything. it doesn't matter if you are young or old, you work better for someone you know and who knows you. if you think your boss or teacher likes you and they know at least a little about you, you will move mountains for them. kids love to know their teachers. they need that connection to function at school. if they think their teachers don't like them they hurt, and hurt kids don't learn as well or work well for you.
building relationships is fairly simple for me. meet kids where they are. learn about them. let them learn about you. compliment everything. notice as much about them as you can. HAVE FUN. now, i realize i am in a unique situation. i see over 600 kids a week. i don't have the stress of classroom teachers. but the joy of that is i can use the time i would spend on paperwork learning about kids and finding ways to make over them. since that is my absolute dream scenario, i am free to be who i am and want to be with these kiddos. i get to be the fun auntie. i get to be what they need. i have no fear and that is the best gift you can give a teacher or kid for that matter.
third right: following your joy
not everyone gets to find their joy in a career. i came upon my happy place almost by accident. i never thought that teaching critical thinking, engineering, and creativity would be my jam. i am the daughter of an engineer, but that does not an engineer make. i tried learning drafting in high school which was a fail, but i liked it. that said, i wouldn't say that anything technical would be my path. i wouldn't say that what i do is in any way technical--it's more foundational in nature. i get to lay the groundwork for kids to be amazing thinkers, persistent in their pursuits, creative problem solvers, and they get to have fun while doing it.
i found this joy called stem education when i was getting bored and sick of the regular classroom. in learning the process and how to incorporate stem, i regained the passion i had for education again. i was beyond lucky to have a supportive principal who let me do what i wanted: afterschool clubs, summer programs, build a lab, buy copious amounts of stuff, and make lots of mistakes. i can honestly say that this is my dream job. i get all the rewards of being a teacher but almost zero stress. having said that, i think that over 20 years in the classroom gives me the privilege of this position, and i deserve it based on the hard work i put into it.
that said, you have to follow your joy. if you don't, you have no one to blame for your unhappiness but yourself.
all in all, friends, i am lucky to be an educator. it's not a high paying pursuit. it's not stress free. i would argue that it is one of the most disrespected professions in our country. however, i am 26 years in and love it more than i ever have. i'm lucky that i get to be the safe place to over 600 kids a day. i'm lucky that i get to do the one job in the school that is the most fun ever. i'm lucky to have long lasting relationships with my students. my babies.
this career of mine hasn't always been easy. i had a lot of "i wanna quit" moments. i've had frustrations. but the joy. the joy joy joy, my loves. it's what brings me back over and over. the babies. their successes, failures, determination, and just plain preciousness. if you're lucky, you get this opportunity, this joy. i plan on holding on to it for a good long while.
love you, mean it. 💙💙
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