Surrounded.

 "Ask yourself one simple question every morning on your way to work: Would you want to be a student in your class?" 

Would I? 

Would I feel comfortable? 

Confident? 

Interested?

 Engaged? 

Loved?

This post is just as much a challenge to me as I hope it is to you wherever you may be in your teaching journey. I am learning A LOT during my time here. I have only four short months left. Last semester, I had the mindset that I was going to invest one hundred percent in my students. Give them my absolute best because that is what they deserve. Well, let's be honest. That is quite easy with some students, but those few that love to push all of your buttons...that is a challenge. How am I supposed to give them my best when they clearly do not care, disrespect me, ignore my instruction, etc.? I have an answer to that- see them like God sees them. Love them like He loves them. I have only had one student personally attack me last semester. Not physically, rather verbally. It hurt. A lot. I learned that most of the time the actions they exhibit towards me aren't a personal attack on me at all, so the best way for me as their teacher to respond is talk (to the best of both of our abilities), and let them know I am not expecting perfection, whatever that may look like. The students here as very respectful, as I have mentioned before. They are children who might come from broken families, verbal abuse, educational neglect, and lonely pasts. God has chosen every one of my students to be my students this year. For a reason. Would I want to be sitting where they sit listening to a lesson, making a poster, watching a video, writing sentences? Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, not so much. I am striving to make that a resounding YES this semester. As I am writing this, I am listening to "You're Gonna Miss This" by Trace Adkins. How appropriate. Perfect. Being a teacher is hard. I am surrounded by things that remind me why I chose this path. The smiles, the hugs, the moment they repeat something perfectly, the moment they remember it for the next class. Just this morning sitting in my office, two of my students have came in and told me good morning. It's the little things - really. So, I bring up the question again...would I want to be a student in my class?

This place is wonderful. The students. The teachers. The environment. The lessons I will be able to carry with me throughout my career, wherever God decides to take it. It is all great. Every day, though, asking myself that simple question can be the difference between a great day and a mediocre day.