I am a big list person. Lists I make include:
To do at school
To do at home
To do for my soccer team
To do (from my lovely wife)
Books I love
Books I need to share with others
Books I need to read
Wines I have tried and liked (or not liked)
Favorite recipes
Favorite restaurant
Pros and Cons for important decisions
Goals for the year (or shorter periods of time)
Favorite movies
Favorite albums
My All Time Fat Guy Baseball Team (seriously, I have that list)
Lists of apps I need to check out
Lists of songs I need to download
My Netflix list
Playlists for my iPod (including the new one that makes sure I end my lawn mowing by hearing Everlong by the Foo Fighters)
This list of lists could go on and on and on.
One list I have never made was the "Why Do I Teach" list.
I have never really had to give myself a pep talk about teaching. Ever since I stepped foot in a fifth grade classroom on my first field experience as an undergrad, I felt like I was just supposed to be working to make the lives of kids better. However, this last school year (my 16th as a full time teacher) was possibly my most challenging. Even more challenging than my first two years when I couldn't find my backside with my own two hands.
I don't want to rehash my year. Let's just say that most problems that you can imagine happening in a 4th grade classroom happened with a capital H. Then layering that with the personal attack that I feel teachers are under in the state of Ohio, a mid-year retirement of our principal and some other random events seriously made me wonder if I should come back to the classroom next fall.
So, in early May, I started composing the "Why Do I Teach" list. The list started off strong, but many things got crossed off the list because I realized that I was trying too hard to cheer myself up. Here are some things that I scratched off the list for various reasons.
"I love my colleagues."
"I love the moment where it all clicks into place for a student."
"I love to laugh and where else could I work where I am nearly guaranteed to laugh everyday?"
"I love to make a difference in the lives of students"
"I love all the perks associated with teaching" (for me this is not a sarcastic joke ... I feel extremely blessed to be a father who has a career that affords him the flexibility to spend quality time with his children)
"I love getting hand written thank you notes from students and their families"
"I love it when I see students become passionate about a book, topic, whatever"
When I was finally done with revising and crossing things off, my "Why Do I Teach" list came down to one item. And it was enough for me to come back for another year. Hopefully it will be enough for me to come back for many more years.
"I teach because it is what I am certain I was called to do"
Later,
Tony
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
To do at school
To do at home
To do for my soccer team
To do (from my lovely wife)
Books I love
Books I need to share with others
Books I need to read
Wines I have tried and liked (or not liked)
Favorite recipes
Favorite restaurant
Pros and Cons for important decisions
Goals for the year (or shorter periods of time)
Favorite movies
Favorite albums
My All Time Fat Guy Baseball Team (seriously, I have that list)
Lists of apps I need to check out
Lists of songs I need to download
My Netflix list
Playlists for my iPod (including the new one that makes sure I end my lawn mowing by hearing Everlong by the Foo Fighters)
This list of lists could go on and on and on.
One list I have never made was the "Why Do I Teach" list.
I have never really had to give myself a pep talk about teaching. Ever since I stepped foot in a fifth grade classroom on my first field experience as an undergrad, I felt like I was just supposed to be working to make the lives of kids better. However, this last school year (my 16th as a full time teacher) was possibly my most challenging. Even more challenging than my first two years when I couldn't find my backside with my own two hands.
I don't want to rehash my year. Let's just say that most problems that you can imagine happening in a 4th grade classroom happened with a capital H. Then layering that with the personal attack that I feel teachers are under in the state of Ohio, a mid-year retirement of our principal and some other random events seriously made me wonder if I should come back to the classroom next fall.
So, in early May, I started composing the "Why Do I Teach" list. The list started off strong, but many things got crossed off the list because I realized that I was trying too hard to cheer myself up. Here are some things that I scratched off the list for various reasons.
"I love my colleagues."
"I love the moment where it all clicks into place for a student."
"I love to laugh and where else could I work where I am nearly guaranteed to laugh everyday?"
"I love to make a difference in the lives of students"
"I love all the perks associated with teaching" (for me this is not a sarcastic joke ... I feel extremely blessed to be a father who has a career that affords him the flexibility to spend quality time with his children)
"I love getting hand written thank you notes from students and their families"
"I love it when I see students become passionate about a book, topic, whatever"
When I was finally done with revising and crossing things off, my "Why Do I Teach" list came down to one item. And it was enough for me to come back for another year. Hopefully it will be enough for me to come back for many more years.
"I teach because it is what I am certain I was called to do"
Later,
Tony
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
And your "Why Do I Teach" list is exactly why I found myself back in the classroom this year! Couldn't agree more with you.
Posted by: MMBrothers | 06/03/2011 at 09:35 AM
Tony~
Loved reading your post. I too feel there are many cliche's that could attempt to explain why I teach. But truly, I teach because it is what I do, it's where I can be myself, it's who I am~ 24/7 I am a teacher! Proudly!
Posted by: Frazierde | 06/26/2011 at 11:29 PM