The Whole Picture.

I have had several "Oh no, I hope nobody walks into this class right now" moments.

Then, I thought to myself: Actually, I hope they do and I can see the judgmental look on their faces, the disappointment in their body language. THEN, I want the chance to explain why the class was the way it was. They saw a snap shot. I should have the chance to show them the whole picture.

That student standing at the back of the room throwing paper wads at the wall - He screamed at the top of his lungs & began throwing his pencils & pens in the middle of a semi-quiet lesson distracting every.single.student. Now, he only distracts himself.

The student staring at the Power Point not taking notes- He had his notebook taken away because of bad language & completed the notes in my office during his free time.

The student that did not receive his paper back to complete and is laying his head on his desk- He never turned it in the first place and is upset I had him restart the entire paper.

The student who has his head on his desk doodling on a scrap piece of paper while everyone else is on task- He was upset I confiscated his scissors after he started to cut his wrist.

I am not ignoring these kids. It may seem that way if you walk past & look in the windows. You do not know the whole story. For the sake of my kids and myself, please do not jump to conclusions.

Please do not judge what you see in a classroom when you do not have the full picture. In my case, when you were not in there the class beforehand, do not know the students, and leave 5 minutes into a 40 minute lesson. It is hurtful. It is unfair.

Thank you to those who have shown me grace, understanding, and poured into me to guide me to have better and better classes every time.

During my student teaching, I learned not to judge a lesson by watching 5 minutes of it, but here...now, with these kids, it is so real. It effects so many things. Teachers ought to stick together and build one another up (especially when some kids have a tendency to tear us down and push ALL our buttons).

Do not take one piece of the puzzle and analyze it, judge it, criticize it, without seeing how it fits into the overall finished product.

There is exactly one month left of school as I write this. I am still learning. It is amazing. Every day is an adventure. I love every second of it. This lesson, though, might be the most important one I have come to remember. Do not criticize (externally or internally) what you simply do. not. know. Teachers do so much & one of the last things they need is for that one puzzle piece to be judged when they have worked so hard to polish/love/care for every piece and figure out ways to put all the pieces together for a productive, safe learning environment.

Look at the whole picture - I'll leave you with that.