~continuing on~
~Kay County, Oklahoma on Day #10 of continuous learning~
As a teacher, one of the most valuable things of which I have been reminded in the days of the virus is this. Building strong and viable relationships with students and their families is one of the greatest assets any educator can have going for them in the time of continuous learning from home. I am most thankful for the wonderful family partnerships that I have found within my 5th grade classroom this year at Liberty Elementary School. During over 4 decades in the business of education I have always been grateful for that, but I am even more so now.
The last month of my career in education finds me on one side of a computer screen as I try my best to navigate the kids and their parents through the maze of assignments on our continuous learning plan.
It's not been the easiest of things.
Not for the kids.
Not for their parents.
And surely not for their teacher.
Yet not a one of us has given up, even when things are difficult to understand.
I have been blessed during this final year in the classroom with yet another great group of parents who have stood right beside me the entire year. I could not have picked a better collection of folks, ones who would do anything they could to make our 5th grade year go as smoothly as possible. They have sent me their very best each day of the school year! They have never wavered in their support for me and from the beginning in August of 2019 to the current state of the world in 2020, they have given me their total confidence. If this had to be my final year as a teacher, well then at least I can say that I was surely in the best of company.
Their company.
I have tried to check in with my students at least twice a week since this all began. It's heartbreaking in its own way to only be able to see them on the screen of my computer or to hear their voices over the phone. I long to give them a hug or stop by their desk as they are working, simply to see how they are doing. I'm not sure how we would handle this all without the modern technology available to us today. The things which we have always taken for granted mean ever so much more right now.
It is quite heartwarming to see everyone working so diligently on their assignments from home. The parents of my students have been placed into a situation that they never expected to go through, but that hasn't stopped them from doing anything and everything they can to work with me to ensure that continuous learning goes on. The dining room table has been converted into a new kind of classroom and when I see the magical transformation that has taken place, it makes me feel a whole lot better. I applaud the efforts of parents everywhere as they do their best to make sure that learning is still happening. I give my deepest and utmost respect to the 18 families that represent my final class to teach. I love each and every family that I have served this year.
I didn't want it to end this way, but then no one did.
There have been times when it would have been easier to simply give up, but then where would it take me? It would take me absolutely nowhere. How would it help my students? It would not. So my undying plan is to continue to teach on with the best of my ability, albeit in the most unusual of ways, until the last day of school on May 8th.
It is not in me to quit.
There are still lessons to teach and young lives to nurture.
18 of those young lives are the responsibility of one teacher.
~me~
As a teacher, one of the most valuable things of which I have been reminded in the days of the virus is this. Building strong and viable relationships with students and their families is one of the greatest assets any educator can have going for them in the time of continuous learning from home. I am most thankful for the wonderful family partnerships that I have found within my 5th grade classroom this year at Liberty Elementary School. During over 4 decades in the business of education I have always been grateful for that, but I am even more so now.
The last month of my career in education finds me on one side of a computer screen as I try my best to navigate the kids and their parents through the maze of assignments on our continuous learning plan.
It's not been the easiest of things.
Not for the kids.
Not for their parents.
And surely not for their teacher.
Yet not a one of us has given up, even when things are difficult to understand.
I have been blessed during this final year in the classroom with yet another great group of parents who have stood right beside me the entire year. I could not have picked a better collection of folks, ones who would do anything they could to make our 5th grade year go as smoothly as possible. They have sent me their very best each day of the school year! They have never wavered in their support for me and from the beginning in August of 2019 to the current state of the world in 2020, they have given me their total confidence. If this had to be my final year as a teacher, well then at least I can say that I was surely in the best of company.
Their company.
I have tried to check in with my students at least twice a week since this all began. It's heartbreaking in its own way to only be able to see them on the screen of my computer or to hear their voices over the phone. I long to give them a hug or stop by their desk as they are working, simply to see how they are doing. I'm not sure how we would handle this all without the modern technology available to us today. The things which we have always taken for granted mean ever so much more right now.
It is quite heartwarming to see everyone working so diligently on their assignments from home. The parents of my students have been placed into a situation that they never expected to go through, but that hasn't stopped them from doing anything and everything they can to work with me to ensure that continuous learning goes on. The dining room table has been converted into a new kind of classroom and when I see the magical transformation that has taken place, it makes me feel a whole lot better. I applaud the efforts of parents everywhere as they do their best to make sure that learning is still happening. I give my deepest and utmost respect to the 18 families that represent my final class to teach. I love each and every family that I have served this year.
I didn't want it to end this way, but then no one did.
There have been times when it would have been easier to simply give up, but then where would it take me? It would take me absolutely nowhere. How would it help my students? It would not. So my undying plan is to continue to teach on with the best of my ability, albeit in the most unusual of ways, until the last day of school on May 8th.
It is not in me to quit.
There are still lessons to teach and young lives to nurture.
18 of those young lives are the responsibility of one teacher.
~me~
One of the final group activities that we did as a class back in late February and early March still hangs on the wall outside of our classroom door in the hallways of Liberty Elementary School. We were studying geometry in math and so I decided to let the kids have some fun with patterns and design. Little did we realize it would be the last thing that we would do together. I'm so glad that we took the time for it!
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