Great Day

Wow, I don't know where to start.  I have been teaching since 1987.  I have never been as excited about my teaching as I am now.  I feel like a first year teacher without the fear and with a lot of skills, strategies and confidence.  I had two awesome success stories today that I will share with you.  I feel like I'm playing an exciting tremendously important game and winning but there is hardly anybody watching.  There is room for anyone else to play who wants to.  I am having so much fun!!

Yesterday I gave my Russell talk to my classes.  In my Lab classes I give quizzes on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays.  They are open note and we do problems similar to what the quiz questions will be all period and then they use their practice as notes and take the quiz at the end of class.  They have to pass at least half of their quiz to pass the class.  The class is pass/fail.  It is an elective to help them succeed in their regular Algebra class.  I love teaching Lab because of days like today.  I have a student I'll call Maurice, who has failed his last 3 quizzes, while most everyone else is passing most of them.  He turned his quiz in and I quickly graded it and he got a 100% on it.  The bell was about to ring.  I called him over to me and told him his score.  He was very happy.  I asked him what happen, what had changed?  He told me that he listened to what I said yesterday.  I asked him to explain.  He told me that what I said was very motivational to him.  I asked how could that make this change?  He told me that what I talked about yesterday was motivational and helped him know what to do to succeed!!  I got GOOSE BUMPS!!  I am so excited about what I want to share with you.  IT WORKS!!

I BELIEVE IT WORKS FOR EVERYBODY!!  But it has to work for yourself first.  I have to learn to love my students relentlessly and unconditionally first.  I have to learn the difference between Hope and Expectation so I don't get frustrated when students don't perform when and how I think they should because that frustration turns into anger, impatience, rudeness, indifference and finally apathy.  Apathy is the final protective barrier to the pain of failure.  I may not see any growth.  I define my success in terms of what I do, not what they do.  This way I have NO EXCUSES.  My goal for myself is to love my students relentlessly and unconditionally as I teach, comfort, challenge, exhort, instruct, and encourage them.  My goal for them is growth, responsibility, respect and success.  I am not responsible for their change.  I'll say it again louder...I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE for their change.  I have to continually remind myself of this so I stay in what I call HOPE LAND.  Here in hope land I can not be hurt by my student's lack of improvement or poor chooses.  It is awesome.

My second success story for today was with a student I'll call Sharon.  Sharon came into my class crying.  She was upset about her potentially very sick uncle.  She asked to go to the bathroom at the start of class.  Sharon can be a drama queen!  When she returned I asked her what was going on.  She told me about her sick uncle.  I told her I was sorry and asked if it was alright if I prayed for him later and she was grateful.  Then I asked her if she could reel her emotions in and focus on here and now, and do that in all the rest of her classes today.  She was not sure.  I quietly explained to her that she simply could go through the day focusing on this potentially bad news and have a lousy day, or she could choose to be hopeful about her uncle and focus on what her responsibilities were right now.  I call it LIVE HERE.  LIVE NOW.  This is a tremendous Life Skill we all need to learn.  She listened to me.  She heard me.  She followed my advice and relaxed and focused and got a 100% on the quiz at  the end of class.  She has had several other bad days so far this year that have caused her to be unable to be responsible and successful in her classes.  I called her up to me as the class was leaving to tell her her quiz score and more importantly to congratulate her on being able to LIVE HERE.  LIVE NOW.  I told her I was very proud of her.

I am totally convinced that I need to teach my students so much more than math.  For me the math is the vehicle I use to teach them LIFE.  I am humbled and burdened by the awesome privileges and responsibilities I have as a husband, father, friend and teacher.  Life is ALL about relationships and all real learning and growth comes through them.  I seek God's help, love, wisdom and grace to guide and empower me in these.
Day 4