Community of Caring Board 2014-15, End of Year Dinner!
Tomorrow is my last day of school this year. I have felt agitated lately, without really knowing why. Maybe because I’m in a transitional phrase with school ending and another year right around the corner. This time of year should always cause me to reflect on how the year went. I ask myself if I accomplished the goals I set for myself and my students this year. I tried to express this to my students the other day and most of them listened intently but two girls on the table right in front of me held a conversation while I was talking. I finally said something like “And this is going on while I’m bearing my soul” and they stopped for a second and then went on. It frustrates me when I see people blatantly not getting it because I really wonder if they ever will. It’s very likely they will live their lives and never really pay attention to important things. It’s such a waste to spend life worrying about “things” that have little or no value. I guess I want my part of their lives to matter but I would also like some acknowledgement that the time we spent together taught them a little about life. Ann and I went to the board dinner a week ago. We sat at the table and laughed and enjoyed our student’s company and then we handed to them some bath salts in a bottle with a note. They had nothing for us, which was ok but part of me wanted them to at least say thank-you and then yesterday, our last day of school, we said good-bye to some while others slipped away unnoticed. I must admit that I did feel sad that none of the board members handed us a card or any kind of recognition that our time together meant something. It was hurtful.
Then, as one door closes, another opens and someone appears who took the time to say “thank-you”. It came in the form of a letter typed out and delivered during 4th period, after the first copy was lost. It didn’t say who it was addressed to or who it was from but I knew because it was hand delivered. It was the loveliest part of my day, so much so that I insisted on reading it to Joe right before we turned the lights out to go to bed. It came from a student that I had for one semester. She was quiet and often seemed withdrawn. She liked to sit by herself but gradually as the class went on, other students would sit on her table. No one asked them to, but a few astute students decided they wanted to be there. She would bring a computer to class and often do her work on her computer. She is a brilliant girl but struggled with her social skills and clearly did not want to be touched. I found that I looked forward to seeing her everyday and to growing a relationship with her. After the class ended, she would pop into my room occasionally and let me know how things were going in her life.
Here’s some of what she said in her letter: “…I wanted to say thank you for all that you taught me while I was a student. I really did enjoy Community of Caring for the social factor I got out of it and the relief from stress… You both were very compassionate and care about your students/ what you do and that made my learning/social interactions within the class a lot more fun and emotionally engaging… I’m really grateful that I had the experience of the CC class. It brought me a bit out of my bubble to try and interact with kids my age that weren’t in the IB program but were just as friendly, and I’m happy that I got to meet teachers who had as much fun doing their jobs as you two did.”
She went into a lot of detail about some times when we talked. This note touched me so very much and made me realize how important it is to express gratitude for another person. It’s not enough to just assume they know how you feel about them. It means so much when it is expressed in such a heartfelt way.
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