Throughout my career the teaching path has been rerouted again and again for countless reasons, and now I'm in the process of another redirection. Each time, the rerouting finds me focused more closely towards the specific tasks related to teaching students at my grade-level. To me, this simply says that I'm meant to work with students. Funny how life corrects your path when you veer in other directions.
As I think of this rerouting to even deeper and more specific work related to the students I serve, I'm thinking of what this means.
Vignettes come to mind such as the focus this afternoon on teaching kids to play a fair game of kickball. No easy task, but boy were they having fun once the game started flowing and everyone began playing by the same rules.
Letting my small group of fifth grade girls lead me through the museum today. Listening to their bright questions, connections, and inferences. Noticing what they love.
Hearing young children on the bus tell me about their personal interests, questions, and dreams for the future--watching who they gravitate towards and what they like to do.
Observing the student teacher's terrific poise, attention, and care for the students, and feeling gratitude for the dedicated and gifted teachers and teaching assistants that work with me each and every day.
Looking at the wonderful new furniture in my classroom that allows me to teach in a more modern, collaborative, and open way, and knowing that there are countless educators online and offline ready to help me learn via their books, presentations, conversations, conferences, blogs, and more.
I truly enjoy the focus of my work which is to teach children as well as I can. I like working with the children, their families, and my colleagues to problem solve, observe, discover, and seek the best ways to help each and every child. This is good work and work I'm committed to.
So in the days ahead, I'll eat a bit more humble pie as I redirect myself to the depths of classroom teaching and caring. I'll veer away from no-win areas of struggle and strife and work to do what I can to teach well. I can do this. Onward.
