Dear Younger Teacher Version of Myself,
I’m standing at the graduation ceremony for the class of 2016…twenty years from where you are. This class will always be a special one to you as it is the only time you straight up taught the same group of students two years straight. You will have some of the same students from time to time in Maryland and sometimes you will see a student twice if they weren’t able to get out of the grade you were teaching but this group saw you teaching most of them two years in a row. There are lots of other teachers who experience this on a regular basis but this was the first time for you…
But standing here tonight, there are tears in my eyes because I’ve never known a class so well. There was such a comfort level in teaching them..things just flowed from day 1. It was as if this was the group you were supposed to teach. I’m not saying they were easy…they challenged you as much as you challenged them but you all came away better for it. When it is all said and done and you finally walk away from the classroom, I am sure that this group of students will be one that you always remember.
Now you’ve got children of your own and you’ll always be the closest with them..as a parent you know this but I gotta tell ya…you treated this group like they were your own..that’s how close it was.
You could have taken it easy and let this group move on when they left the 7th grade. You have an established program (19 years in the making) and could have hit reset and begun fresh with a new group.
But that’s just not you, is it?
Instead, you blew up your whole program and 20 years in, you created something entirely new.
One of the best decisions you ever made.
The motivation was to get back to 8th grade and you knew that you would have to teach a group twice in order to do this..this was the price of admission and it was worth ever penny. It’s easy to say this now at the end of it all but at the time you made this decision, it was very scary…you can’t run the same program twice for a few reasons..the curriculum is different and most importantly..these kids will be bored to tears if you do it all again the same exact way.
The good news is…it was very difficult but it worked out. Now there’s not enough room here to cover everything you did but here are a couple of highlights…
You got back to your roots by using video games as a primary source of instruction.
Your paired the games with varying graphic organizers enabling students to show evidence of mastery by providing specific examples of concepts from the games.
You allowed for much more movement around the classroom and upgraded your favorite game..science basketball with a shiny new net and a system for getting everyone involved
You created levels of accomplishment in your labs pushing students to the limit of their creativity.
You had students reflect on their learning every single day.
Your students impacted the climate and culture of the school by embodying the Renaissance process..from putting positive signs on lockers to essentially putting together and running the school talent show..they were awesome!
Sure, it wasn’t all perfect and you’ve got some reflecting and improving to do but that’s the point of the end of the school year..what went well and what can we do moving forward?
The point of all of this is to tell you that it’s ok to start over..reflection and goal setting is encouraged and hey, sometimes that’s exactly what you gotta do.
So as a result of all this, you’ve got a 7th grade program and an 8th grade program that you like. Turns out there’s a new curriculum next year that kind of combines both.
By taking that chance last year, you are going to have a blast creating an engineering and technology oriented hands on science program. You’ve got tons of stuff to choose from and you can use the very best of both programs to create a sick hybrid!
So take a minute, reflect on the last two years and have at it!
You can do this!
Now excuse me while I take a minute to say goodbye to this amazing class. I can’t believe it’s finally here..I said my goodbyes, escorted the group from the cafeteria to the gym, and I’m watching them one last time from the back of the gym as they participate in the graduation ceremony with their families watching the sea of blue and gold.
It has just occurred to me that the next time I take to the front of the classroom in September…they won’t be there with me…Good luck to the class of 2016..you made me feel like the best teacher on the planet, you made me want to ram my head into a wall (sometimes in the same class period), you made me laugh, cry and everything in between. You told me your stories, your fears, your wishes and lots of other stuff that made me call the guidance office pretty frequently. Goodbye to this class..my class…I will miss you greatly and I will remember you forever…
Peace