I’ve had many challenging days during my career as a teacher.  I’ve learned though, those days are just as challenging for my students.  I’ve learned so much from my brave little students.  They are so precious!  Adults don’t always know what lies beneath the surface of these precious little ones.  Sometimes our 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 year old students are dealing with issues and problems no child should have to deal with.  When we forget, and we don’t look at the student as the child they truly are, with so much of their soul hidden beneath the surface, we fail. We fail ourselves and we fail our students.  The good thing is that we may have a chance to right the wrong tomorrow.  This story is a collection of a few different students I’ve had.  But could be any child’s story or teacher’s story on any given day at any given time……..

“A Fearless Student”

     “I can’t!  I can’t do this.  I don’t get it!  I don’t want to do this!”  she said with tears in her eyes.  “This isn’t a choice but I can help you if you tell me what you don’t understand,” I answered in a calm voice, although I felt like pulling my hair out!  She laid on the floor and covered her face.  I looked around the room and saw 8 other hands up. 8 students waiting to be helped!  “Okay, I can come back and help you when you are ready,” I said.  Tears were streaming down her face.  So I told her she could take a break and go wash her face off.  Then I left and walked over to the next student who needed help.  I was too busy running back and forth between students who had questions or who needed encouragement to think about the situation going on with this student.  When it was time for PE and the last student in the line walked into the gym, I could take a breather myself and began to wonder why this student didn’t understand the test.  She understood similar questions the day before.  What was going on?  So I pulled her aside after PE to ask if something had happened in the morning.  “No,” she answered.  “Did you get enough sleep last night?”  I asked.  “Well, not really,” she answered.  “Why?” I asked.  “I don’t really have a bedroom or a bed.  I sleep on a couch in the family room.  There was a lot going on at night and I couldn’t sleep,” she answered.  She seemed to be calmer when I was sitting with her.  So I asked if she would like to stay in at lunch and I could sit with her and help her a little more with the test.  She was quick to say yes.  So I picked her up at lunch.  The story she needed to read to answer the questions was about a father and his daughter.  I like to tell stories about my life and my experiences to help the students make connections.  So I told a few stories about my experiences with my dad.  She laughed at the funny parts, smiled at the sweet parts, and she looked sad when I said he passed away. 

                              

She asked me why I would talk about or write about an experience with my dad, when it might make me sad because he is no longer with me.  I answered that talking about or writing about the happy times and the sad times help remind me how much better my life is because my dad was in my life.  After our talk, she seemed more confident and calm to work on her test.  I sat beside her the rest of the time and kept telling her that she could do this.  She just barreled through the rest of the test.  She did a fantastic job, just like I knew she could. 

                          

                                             

Afterward, she made a pop-up card for me with one of my favorite words on it.  “Fearless!”  She was very proud of herself and wanted to show her appreciation for the encouragement I gave her.  She does have a lot going on in her house, much more than a little girl should have to deal with.  …And my prayer for her every night is that she will make it through these tough times without losing her hope or her stamina for life.  That she will gain strength and believe in herself.  That she WILL NOT stop dreaming and that she will do what it takes to achieve her personal best.