Y’all there is no tired like the first week of school tired. If you are a teacher, a student or a parent, you are probably exhausted! Getting back into routines after summer is no easy task.
There is also no excitement like the first week of school excitement! It’s my favorite week of school! I have 124 students that I am getting to know and have already learned so many cool things about them!
Each class has its own dynamic, its own personality. It’s like having children – you have to find that personality and figure out what works for each one! It’s exhilarating. Besides that, teenagers are just fun!
So, yesterday I gave instructions to my level 4 class for their first presentation. I’m stressing to them how much I want them to practice their presentation and not “memorize” it. I show them tricks that I have used in the past to help me remember what I want to say and then I do a sample presentation for them.
I should have thought this through! I am rattling off who I am, a little about my family and my hobbies when I get to the question about something I did this summer. I don’t want to make it anything huge. Not all students get to have exciting summer experiences. Some of them never leave town. So, I am thinking fast to come up with something and remembered that I did a lot of baking this summer. I told them I learned how to make pretty cookies that didn’t look like old, wrinkled faces.
I finish the presentation and ask for questions. This hand goes up and this student says, “We are going to need proof about those cookies, so you will need to make us some.” The entire class quickly chimes in and with that I have found the personality of this adorable group! This is going to be a fun class! And, I am going to have to be careful about what I say!
I am also amazed at how they can really make me think. On the first day of school, I asked students to complete some information about themselves. As part of that activity, they could ask a question about me. One of the questions I got from a student was, “What career would you have if you weren’t a teacher.” I thought about it and thought about it.
I don’t know.
I can’t imagine not being in education. I love teenagers. I walk into the same school building every morning and yet I have no idea what is going to happen from day-to-day. I don’t know what students are going to say, how they are going to feel, what has happened since the last time I saw them.
Not being able to answer that question was so exciting for me! I am exactly where I need to be.
Today is our fourth day of school. And to top it off, we have had a full moon this week (it’s a thing). I am exhausted and couldn’t be more excited about a school year.
I have so many goals for the year. So many things that I want to teach them both about Spanish and about life. I will succeed at some, fail at others and forget a few. But, most of all, I want to feel this excitement all year long. And I know that I won’t because I am human. So, today, I will enjoy this feeling. I will praise God for days like today and continue to spend time with Him, so that when those difficult days come, I will be better equipped to face them knowing that we serve a God who is sovereign and will provide for all of our needs.
I am off to school to convince some students in my Spanish I classes, that they are not too cool to sing and march to the alphabet song. I should probably have more coffee!
I pray that you find some excitement today in whatever career path you have chosen and that you see God working all around you!
With Eyes on the Cross 