In about fifteen hours I will lace up my boots, secure my ropes, make sure I have my snake bite kit, and begin the ascent up the mountain that is my thirteenth year teaching fifth graders. The children themselves do not arrive until August thirtieth. This coming week will be full of getting my room together, planning out the first month or so, copying papers, getting to know names, and of course, hours of meetings (and there was much rejoicing).
As I sit here on my comfortable couch, knowing that my hours of enjoying its summer comfort have now dwindled down to single digits, my thoughts turn to my wish list for the upcoming year. So, I wish...
I wish for a classroom full of motivated kids. As a teacher I am more concerned about day in, day out effort than I am about each child's ability level. I would rather have a roomful of academically weak kids who WANT to learn and work hard to achieve as much as they can than a roomful of academically strong kids who are apathetic. There is no moment more amazing in teaching then when a motivated child surprises herself with what can be accomplished when good, old fashioned effort is a part of the equation.
I wish for a group of parents that embrace a collaborative spirit. The education of their child does not take place only in the classroom between the hours of 8:30 to 3:30. I wish for parents that see education as a three part team sport, with equal parts of responsibility between student, teacher, and parents. The better team effort we have, with excellent communication between all parties, the better chance the student will have to make the needed progress.
I wish for opportunities to grow, both professionally and personally.
I wish for patience, more so with my own short comings than my students.
I wish for the humility to reach out to colleagues if I need advice or help with a problem and for the quick response to anything asked of me.
I wish for time. For enough time to meet the needs of each of my students. Children are like fingerprints, like snowflakes. No two are exactly the same. When they walk into my room next week I will have twenty-four or twenty-five amazingly unique individuals. Each one will arrive with their own individual cocktail of strengths and weaknesses, not just academically, but also socially, economically, and emotionally. Time is the most valuable commodity in a school day. I wish to have enough for each need to be fully met.
I wish for success for each child and for the ability to shut out all the voices clamoring about standardized test scores and adequate yearly progress. My main focus must be on the success of each student and remembering that success is not always measured exactly the same for every child. If I can help a student's individual skills and ability to grow, to prepare him to handle the rigors of middle school, pacing guides and national averages be damned, then I have done my job.
I wish to remember that there is more to teaching than worrying about state assessments, to remember to teach my students to think critically and logically when they are faced with a problem. To always see my learners as people, not dots or lines on a graph.
I wish to remember to always choose my words carefully when I talk to my students. I am the single greatest influence on the environment in my classroom. My words need to be positive, empowering, and compassionate. Months of trust between student and teacher can be blown to pieces with a careless or angry word.
I wish for a successful and empowering year for my colleagues; in my building, my state, my country, and the world, be they public school teachers like myself, private school teachers, or home schoolers. We are truly blessed to have the daily opportunity to touch the future, from the nervous first year kindergarten teacher to the seasoned thirty year high school veteran.
Lastly, I wish for good health and safety for all as we begin this climb together. Before we know it...it will be June.
