One More Thing...

This is something I wrote a couple of months ago following a particularly grueling school committee meeting...call it my own personal venting session. I was getting a little tired of the "negative energy" in the air...anyway, I have shared it with only a very few so far (my mom, my husband, a good friend from college...and Ron!) but I think - I hope - it is something that will resonate with you all.

I am your child’s teacher. I come to school every morning long before she arrives, and I stay long after she leaves. I prepare lessons that meet her needs and the needs of every other student in my room. I assess her constantly so that I may monitor her progress and adjust my instruction accordingly. I bring her papers home with me every night to correct, and I work every weekend to be ready when she returns to school on Monday.

I am your child’s teacher. I teach him reading, writing, math, science, social studies and health. I teach him the skills he needs to compete in the technological world of the 21st century. I teach him an appreciation for the arts. But my teaching is not limited to academic subjects. I teach him time management and anger management. I teach him patience. I teach him citizenship, respect for himself and others, tolerance for diversity, perseverance, and the joy that comes from satisfaction with a job well done. I teach your child self-esteem, not through empty praise, but through completion of tasks, and the knowledge that he “can do it.”

I am your child’s teacher. I invest my personal time and my own money into professional development so that I can continue to hone my craft. I have a Master’s Degree, but I spend hundreds of hours doing additional coursework and attending workshops and seminars. I am your child’s teacher, and I know that he will never have a chance to live this year again – so I must do everything within my power to make sure that no year is a bad year.

I am your child’s teacher. I comfort her when she is sad, and I listen to her when she is angry. I stand up for her when she is being bullied and I hold her accountable when she is behaving inappropriately toward others. I encourage her when she doesn’t feel up to the challenges of the day. I push her when she is not doing her best, and I acknowledge her efforts when she is.

I am your child’s teacher. Every day, I walk the classroom tightrope, finding and maintaining the delicate balance between pushing him hard enough so that he can progress and not frustrating him so that he wants to give up. I worry when he goes home at night not understanding the math lesson, and I agonize when he doesn’t do well on the reading assessment. I am thrilled with his every success and I suffer with his every failure.

I am your child’s teacher. I am also a parent. I know what it is to say goodbye to a child in the morning and place her in the hands of a stranger that I must trust – not only to teach her, but to care for her - until I can be with her again. I empathize with you, and so I share what I learn about your child through report cards with thoughtful comments, through progress reports and through communication logs. I want you, the parents, to know what I have learned about your child – and I want to learn what you know. I contact you when there is a problem and I contact you when there is a reason to celebrate. We are partners, and the more we work together, the better your child’s educational experience.

I am your child’s teacher. I am humbled, daily, by the awesome responsibility you have placed before me in the form of your child. I recognize my good fortune, daily, when I arrive at a workplace that feels like a second home, where I am surrounded by children’s laughter, where there is always the promise of a new adventure, and where the air vibrates with the anticipation of what today might bring...I love my work, and I work for your child.

I am your child’s teacher.