new year – Dear Teacher/Love Teacher

Dear Teacher,

Happy New Year! And so a new one begins, huh? I am not sure what this school year has been like for you so far, but you have a fresh start to the second half. What are you going to do with it?

I can’t help but think of a new year as a seed. It is something that is up to you on how it will grow. Like I teach my students whenever I teach my unit on plants, seeds stay dormant until they have the right conditions to grow.

I moved into my current classroom and curriculum three years ago. In one of the drawers, I have many as a science teacher, I found a bag of beans. I had no idea how old they were and decided not to use them….until this year.

This year, I went a little “grow crazy” during the plant unit and tried to plant as much as I can using the big grow light set-up we have. I remembered those seeds. I did the germination in a damp paper towel thing, and despite the age of the seeds, they still germinated!

I planted them, watered them, and let time and nature do the rest. As I said, I grew several things all at the same time. I was disappointed that, though many things flowered, nothing came to fruit…or so I thought.

Another teacher came to observe in my room and we got talking about my plants and how the plants flowered by nothing else. He knows a lot more about growing than I do, and he started looking through them. And he found something…on the bean plants. He found little bean pods. Not only did they grow, they produced more seeds! I was disappointed in the size until some students and I started looking through the plants and we found large bean pods! It was a cool moment for this science teacher who is bad at growing stuff!

(c)DearTeacherLT2015 (You may use the image if you link back to the blog and/or give credit to Dear Teacher/Love Teacher)

Though the beans were who-knows-how-old, they were still dormant and waiting for the right conditions to grow.

Why did I share this story?

Teacher, you may have had a rough school year. Not much may seem to have happened for you or your students. You may have seen nothing but seedlings so far…or worse, you just see empty soil.

Do not give up!

You have a fresh start coming up!

Your seeds may still just be dormant.

You just need the right conditions for growth!

I do not know what growth or the right conditions look like for you, but you do. What will it take to make that happen? What do you need? What do you need to focus on?

Stop whining about what is going wrong this year and work on what is going right! Give yourself and your students the light, water, and nutrients needed for growth! Reflect, regroup, and regrow!

You can do it!

You know what it takes!

You have what it takes!

It time to get growing!

It is grow time, Teacher!

You are awesome and I know you have what it takes to get things growing this year. You are an amazing teacher. You are making a difference. Don’t give up! Keep on teaching, Teacher!

Love, Teacher

Dear Teacher,

So, the old Earth is finishing up another trip around the Sun. New Year’s Day is kind of like Earth’s birthday. Another year is over and it is time to start a new one. I bet you are reflecting aren’t you? It is kind of the human thing to do.

How was this year for you? What were the highs? What were the lows? How are you feeling about a new one starting?

Since you are in an introspective mood, I want to give a challenge to your inner monologue.

There is something you need to think about. The year is over, but the school year isn’t even halfway. This has been a difficult school year for most of us. We have been beat-up, beat-down, and you just feel beat.

You need something to get you through the rest of the year.

You need one thought.

You need a reminder.

This is a reminder only you can give yourself.

You need to answer one question, and I think you should answer it right now. Write down your answer. Give some reasons why you answered the way that you did. Put it somewhere to remind you for the rest of the year.

Are you ready?

Why are you a teacher?

I know, I know, this year you have probably asked yourself that a lot…with sarcasm and negativity. That is not what I am talking about. You need to reflect on the whole reason why you became a teacher in the first place. You need to think about the heart of what and why you do what you do and deal with what you have to deal with. There has to be a reason. You probably have many.

I bet your reason has little to do with content. It probably has everything to do with students and making a difference. I know this is the case for me.

Let me give you my reasons. This is more for me than for you…because I am a teacher and I need to do this as much as you do!

Why am I a teacher?

I have a huge heart and am filled with compassion for people that have little to no resources (aka…live at or near the poverty line)…teaching at a Title I school is a great way to have an impact and make a difference.
I want to help students, especially at-risk boys, start thinking through choices and become leaders in their families and communities.
I love to learn and pass that love of learning on to others.
I love the process of teaching and learning and I love to teach others how to learn better.
I am creative and obviously have a gift for teaching, I would be miserable not using my abilities and talents to help others.
Teaching is in my blood and I live for it…I would be bored doing anything else.

I can probably come up with 1000 more reasons, but I think this is a enough for now. That was helpful to my teaching heart and teaching soul! Thanks for letting me do that here!

What about you? Why are you a teacher?

You are awesome and you are good at what you do! I highly recommend some reflection on your reasons for teaching. It might make you ready to endure more of what is wearing you out this year. You have a reason. You have a purpose. You are making a difference. Keep on teaching, Teacher!

Love, Teacher