Celebrations

April 26, 2022

Today we had an online celebration for our student teachers who are finishing this week. There were lots of people on the call, and a few shared their thoughts. One was someone who had been teaching for about 5 years. It was probably good for the graduating students to hear from a fairly new teacher, as this is someone they can to relate to.

Afterwards it made me think about whose voice gets heard in the education world? Whose voices should be heard? And finally, what do I have to add to the conversation? I decided to focus on that third question today.

I think this bubbled up today because something has been rolling around in my head after a call with my sister. I was saying how I’m looking forward to a get-together for my retirement and how I’m sure others are ready to be able to celebrate. (You know, due to the little bitty global pandemic, which had put a lot of things on hold.) I stated that I’m sure people would like to come to get a chance to celebrate. She responded with “I’m sure they would come to celebrate YOU.” All these years teaching and I still struggle to give myself credit for the lives I’ve touched.  Yep, I’m one of those who struggle to accept praise. Maybe that’s why sharing about and developing a growth mindset has been so important to me. A growth mindset helps me remember it’s not about whether I am perfect or not. (Just in case you were wondering, I’m not.) It’s not about being “smart”; it’s about working hard and growing my brain. 

I hope these are life lessons that my students and others have learned from me. In the years to come, I hope I can find ways to share what I’ve learned over these past 35 years.

I have 27 days left before I retire. Oh my.