I know it has been a while since I last posted, and that is completely my fault! I have gotten so caught up with school, grades, holidays and then my nice long break, that I have put my blog on the back burner, maybe even on a burner in someone else's house!
It is good to be back from Christmas break. Although it was such a blessing to see my family and friends when I was home, I really love my kids here, and getting back to them was fun too! It has also been extremely challenging, as some of my behavior problems have reverted back to how things were in September. And it was so nice before Christmas!
It has been interesting as well this past week to talk with my kids about Martin Luther King (Martin Luther King day is on Monday, in case you didn't know), and see their reactions and perceptions of who he was and what he did. I have a very ethnically diverse class, so sitting up in front of them and talking about race and segregation made me feel a little embarassed to be saying that some white people thought that they were better than people who had different colored skin, but yet so thankful that they were all so surprised that the story was true. In their young minds they have not yet experienced racial prejudices or tension, and their short life has been filled with much more opprotunity than perhaps they would have had 50 or 60 years ago. I am thankful for how far this country has come. I think I am more grateful and appreciative of all that Martin Luther King did now, as I see what could have been had he not pursued his convictions and sacrificied as he did.
The highlight of my week came when one of my students came over to me when they were cleaning up their centers at the end of the day and rammed his head into my shoulder and put his arms around me and said "Ms. J, you are the best teacher." I don't need to hear that kind of thing to know that I am a good teacher, but hearing him say that made my heart swell with joy. Hopefully he'll look back someday as me having an impact on his life, and my hope is that all my students will do that.
1 comment:
Great observations on how we far we have come in understanding people. It is good that we have days in which to remember the sacrifices that very committed people such as MLK have made. Keep up the "best teacher" work!
Post a Comment