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The Apology

Posted on September 5, 2014 by auburnchick

Dear Class,

As I sit here and reflect on my day, I have come to the conclusion that I owe you an apology.

Today was supposed to be an amazing day.  It was, after all, Friday…a special day filled with the first pep rally of the year, the first varsity football home game…the end of a short week.

For us, though, it was also a day during which we had to take one of those dreaded diagnostic assessments.

Yes, I know…it stunk.  It really did.

I mean, who schedules a big reading assessment on a fun day?

We went into the lab, and things immediately went downhill.

I asked for your attention, and you ignored me.

I asked for you to stop talking while you began your assessment, and you continued to talk.

It seemed that you didn’t care or couldn’t hear what I needed you to do, so I called in reinforcements.

Then, I think I made things worse by fussing at you in a less-than-graceful way in front of the person I’d called in.

To be sure, you eventually settled down, but it was definitely a difficult hour and a half.

It was a rough way to start the day, in fact, and I never quite recovered my composure.

I want you to know that I sat in my classroom after school and reflected…trying to figure out what had happened.

As God revealed some things to my heart, I began to cry.

It is my goal to become a better teacher every day I walk into my classroom, but I felt like I took a few steps backward today.

I lost my temper.

I raised my voice unnecessarily.

I was harsh when a softer approach would have been the best way to resolve the issues we were having.

Now, to be fair to myself, I have to acknowledge that you had a part to play in how things went down.  Failing to take the assessment seriously and heed my requests was disrespectful…of me and your fellow classmates.  We’ll work on that.

Continuing to talk during the test broke others’ concentration on what was a difficult assessment.

But…

My actions also need to be analyzed as well.

First of all, I must admit that I was probably hypersensitive because…and you won’t believe this (yeah, right)…I went to bed past 1am three nights in a row.  I forgot that although I may think I’m okay, I’m really not…especially by the third day and less than ten hours total of sleep for that duration.  I need to get more sleep so I don’t accidentally overreact to things that won’t matter in the long run.

Secondly, I should have realized that because today was a bit unusual…with the Pep Rally and the first home game…I should have been much more patient with you.

I will also admit that I was embarrassed when I called in for help and, thus, probably subconsciously felt the need to assert myself in front of her.

How lame is that?

I will also readily admit that I don’t do well when things are out of control.  I don’t go with the flow as easily as I should.  I like things…routines and behaviors…neatly organized and managed.

Chaos makes me nus.

I need to remind myself that you guys take your lead from ME, as your fearless leader.  I set the tone for the class.  Sometimes I forget, and I’m sorry.

I want you to know that although we are only three weeks into this new school year, I feel a connection to each one of you.

I desire nothing more than for you to succeed, and I see potential in each and every one of you.

More than anything else, I want you to know that I care for you as individuals.  I don’t want you to think that my fussing today means I stopped caring.

So, with that said, I ask that you will accept my apology.

Let’s put this behind us (I need to forgive myself too) and start anew with the understanding that we need to work together to accomplish the goals we have set for ourselves.

We still have a lot of work to do before June, but I know in my heart that we’ll be shocked with how fast the time went by when all is said and done.

Yours Truly,

Mrs. AuburnChick

Filed under: Teaching | Tagged: | 1 Comment »

Old School Hodgepodge

Posted on September 3, 2014 by auburnchick

It’s Wednesday, which means it’s time to learn a few more random facts about me!  Link up with Joyce after you post your own answers on your blog!

1.  What’s something you wanted to do this summer that you never got around to actually doing?

I really needed to rearrange my kitchen cabinets…donate things I don’t use (which is a lot of stuff) and get new glasses I purchased a few months ago OFF of my counter tops.  Yeah.  That didn’t happen.  I chose to sleep…and read…and knit instead.  Priorities!!

2.  Share a favorite memory of your own back -to-school days as a child.

The main thing I remember about going back to school was when I was a teenager and got to see friends again after a long summer apart.

3.  What’s one chore or daily task you prefer doing ‘old-school’ ?

I don’t use my dishwasher…haven’t for years and years.  I read, once, that it’s not healthy for people with chronic illnesses.  The Mr. has Crohn’s Disease.  Thus, I wash dishes the old fashioned way.

4.  Share something you’ve learned in life through the ‘school of hard knocks.’

I have learned that I am usually more thoughtful of people than they are of me and will go out of my way for others.  I feel as though I am always the person to go above and beyond in friendships, and it hurts my feelings when others don’t do the same.  Perhaps I’m just not a person that makes a lot of close friends.  As a result, I find it hard to give my heart easily because I don’t want to feel left out.  This sounds so elementary-ish, doesn’t it?  Scars from childhood rejection run deeply, you see.  Still, I try to fake the smile, as the saying goes, and plug right on along in life.

5.  As a child, did you mostly bring or buy your lunch for school? What was your favorite thing to find in your lunchbox?

As the child of an often-single-mom, I took my lunch.  I think it was usually bologna.  I lived for Ding Dongs.  Oh gosh…those were so good!!!

6.  Football season is upon us which has me wondering… how big of a sports fan are you (not just football) ? On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being ‘I scream at the players through my television screen‘ and 1 being ‘is knitting a sport?’ where do you fall in fandom? 

Um, hello?  Have you seen my blog name?  AuburnChick isn’t for auburn hair (I’m a natural blonde).  I am a die-hard Auburn University fan.

You might remember when I met this famous quarterback-turned-Auburn-recruiter (one of the best in the nation).  He doesn’t know this, but I consider him a member of my family now…

I got to hug this amazingingly patient, kind young man…former Auburn quarterback!

Yes, I’m probably a 10 as far as fandom goes, but I do knit my way through games.  Ahem.

I had a bit of fun with April last weekend as our teams vied against each other.  We kept up a running Twitter discussion throughout the game.

Folks, don’t let her suave Southern words fool you.  She’s pure football evil, let me tell you.

For the record, MY TEAM WON.  There was no emoji for a white flag.

😀

(I might be a tad evil too.)

7.  Share a favorite quote you think might inspire students of all ages at the start of a new school year. 

Oh, how I love this prompt with me being a high school teacher!!!!

I found this quote by Winston Churchill.  I really need to add it to a poster in my classroom.

Success is not final,

Failure is not fatal.

It is the courage to continue that counts.

My wonderful students are often discounted because of the difficulty they have with their reading comprehension.

My students are heroes, though, because they keep coming back to school, and they keep trying.

To me, they epitomize courage.

8.  My Random Thought

Speaking of football pride, check out my nails, which I got done on Saturday.

Neener, neener.  My nail tech is better than yours!!  🙂

Filed under: Teaching, This-n-That | Tagged: | 3 Comments »

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