This afternoon 2 things happened – that’s never happened in all my years of teaching.
2 students asked if they could use my room to pray…the halls were too noisy, so I said, “Sure!” This group of kids is not shy at all about sharing their faith. Each morning, they circle up in the hall and open their day in prayer. Yes, I realize what I see in the halls & classrooms may be different that what goes on outside of school halls – but there is something different about this group. They are not snippy. They are kind. They smile and offer encouraging words to others – which makes me believe their faith is the real deal.
The 2nd thing was – after our first “official” unit assessment, I had students asking if they could practice some more over the weekend, come in on Tuesday and show me they really can do the “stuff” they messed up on. Really? Asking to do homework ….over the weekend? Really.
Sure enough, I’ve had students asking this week for more opportunities to practice after taking our target quizzes – I’ve received messages for help through our class blog – the site stats are showing that students are looking for help/examples. A student brought me a set of flashcards she had created – I gave her a verbal quiz, a couple she had trouble explaining, but she could write it out to show me what she now understood. Another student without internet access asked for a hardcopy of a some of the resources.
This afternoon, after the last bell, a student came back to my room to see what they had not mastered on their assessment – “felt good about it, but apparently I wasn’t as ready as I thought.” We sat down to look over it – listing areas of focus – 3 big ideas the student repeatedly made mistakes on – but now knows the areas for growth.
I’ve read others’ blogs / experiences with SBG. I half-heartedly believed them. I wanted them to be true – but thought, “I’ll be amazed when…” This week felt like my first real week in my groove. I felt like we got a lot accomplished – in each of my classes.
Our first progress reports come out next week. I am looking forward to responses from parents. I am fortunate to have a colleague who is also a parent – who can ask questions when looking at our parent portal. I have the opportunity to “see” what my input looks like from their point of view.
I am so blessed – to be where I am in this life! I look forward to being in my classroom every morning – I’ve got the best job in the world! I was in a rut last year – but after some great blogs/suggested readings from my PLN/colleagues on Twitter – I am shifting my mindset. The experiences with my students -looking to improve – both today and all week, helped me realize I am moving in the right direction.
the radical rational... 