Looking back, I set up my blog site way back in 2006, but did not do anything with it until now. Thinking about it, I really wondered what I could say that would have meaning for others. I wondered what I do in my classroom that would be of interest to others. I love to teach and put my whole heart into it, but so do millions of teachers out there. Does the internet really need one more blog?
I finally decided that this blog was not for others but for me. A place for me to think about classroom, my students and my teaching practices. Like all teachers, I reflect after each lesson- Did my students learn? Did I help to move them forward? Did I connect with each student at least once? Did I waste their 50 minutes (and mine)? What will I keep for the next class? What will I improve or just toss altogether? What can be done to help that little one who seems so lost? The one who seems so disconnected? The one who seems to just need a hug? At the end of the day when I finally close my classroom door and switch roles to a wife and mother, do I walk away feeling that I have done some good, or do I walk away frustrated? These are the things I ask myself and the blog is a place for me to try and find some answers. Or, at the very least, to record my thoughts so I can see patterns and learn.
To be frank, I often close my door frustrated... There is always so much more to do! My students are complex and teaching is complex; more so each year. I often think that after 23 years, I don't have the energy to put my heart into 180+ more students one more time. To put on the energetic, optimistic smile at 8:00 AM and pour all of myself into their learning day after day. Maybe this blog is also a way to find out if I can or want to one more time. In any event, it will be an interesting experiment... how it will evolve is a mystery to me for now.
Engage!
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