What I Would Give...

Momentary vent - I was recently contacted by another English Education major who is doing her practicum now and has applied for an internship. Typically, BYU tries to put students for their practicum at the same school they will be at for their internship or student teaching - granted, that didn't happen for me, but whatevs - and I got an email from this student yesterday, introducing herself by saying, "Hey, I'm the intern that's going to take your place next year." I had to choke down my pride at that moment while secretly wishing she understood the feeling of trying so incredibly hard to do your very best at absolutely everything and be the best, most caring, most rigorous and understanding teacher there could ever be, just to not know what your future holds. So - choking all of my emotions down and realizing that this is a great opportunity to answer HER questions and help her (like I wish someone would have done for me) - I replied, gave her all of my room information, let her know how excited I was to have her in my classroom, and received a reply which stated, "I'll be coming tomorrow for periods 1-3."

I prepped my cute little 7th graders for a visitor, but she never showed up. Yes, I admit, my first reaction was a horrible little mental comment along the lines of "Well, I see how committed you are to this thing... don't even show up....psh." But then I took a look outside and felt incredibly guilty - what if something happened to her? Provo roads were atrocious this morning with all of the snow. I hope she's okay!

And I keep asking myself - why am I so bothered by this? She's going to be here MAYBE 9 times total. It's not a big deal.

And then it hits me. It bugs me because I love it here. I love my room. I love my students. I love being a teacher and I love all of it. I love emailing parents to let them know about student concerns to show them how much I care about their children. I love working with other teachers to help them discover new ways to use technology or to collaborate for new teaching ideas. I love this school. What I would give to be here again - even for a repeat FIRST year, which is a big deal. I've learned so much and grown so much, and I'm grateful for each and every one of those opportunities.

So, dear Practicum student, I hope that you are okay. And I hope you know how blessed you are to be at this school. :D

Promise I'm not bitter..... Or at least I promise to get over it. ;)

P.S. - Greatest book report idea: Character Interview. Have students choose one character, come up with interview questions and answer them as the character, using evidence from the book to support their answers. My 7th graders loved it. Great idea.