8.30.11

"Luck is when skill and opportunity come together." 

I read this on a random website today. Here's what I'm thinking it says about teaching.

People (some) think that it's easy to get up in front of a room full of raging adolescent hormones, tell them what to do/read/write/think, and then sit down to shop online, read the paper, or check email. Done and done. Opportunity presented itself, task accomplished. (And why do I get summers off?)

But then one student won't stop talking.

And there's a kid in the corner crying.

The kid in front is asleep, head on desk, hooded sweatshirt as blanket.

Another student keeps interrupting you to ask why Germany is called Deutschland, and another kid won't quit waving his hand and saying "ooo! ooo!" while jumping up and down because he's gotta pee NOW.

That student over there can't read.

The one next to him watched his dad beat up his mom and then go to jail...last night.

And finally, a new student just walked in the door. She doesn't speak English.

So now what? The opportunity is right there. Go ahead. Tell them what to do, Doubter of Teachers, then go read your paper. 

This is where skill comes in--the skill it takes to deal with 89 different issues in one class period, and make decisions in a second so that every single kid in that room is reached in some capacity before he or she walks out the door (thank you to my assistant principal for that tidbit of knowledge--Inservice was productive this year).

I could not be more proud to be back in room 109 this year. I'm excited to no end about advisory (I bought my homeroom breakfast for tomorrow, just because, but mostly because I know the girl in the corner only eats one meal during her day and it's her free lunch at school).

Lucky for my kids, I'll take every skill I've got and learn new ones to seize every opportunity with them this year. 

That's my job. Damned proud to do it.