Friday, September 5, 2014

What Do I Love Most About Teaching?

Day 4 of the +TeachThought 30-Day Blogging Challenge!




Learning and teaching are everything to me but at the heart of what I do is always my students.  That's the way it's been since I began in my very first classroom in 1999.

I love the 'aha!' moments, when all those puzzle pieces fall into place for a student who has struggled and persisted.

I love the so-called 'challenging students'.  For me, they've never been challenging; we just haven't found out what inspires them, what makes them passionate about learning.  That's my job - to help them find that and then run with it!

I've loved the moments on school camps, and there have been many!  (Including my Year 8 students dying my hair bright red one year - that's a story for another post!)

I love it when I see students who were previously disengaged and unmotivated want to learn and want to learn even more.  That's what I love the best.

I love seeing students succeed as they move through life.  I don't know how many times I have had to explain to people I talk to that when I talk about 'my kids' and their achievements, that I mean my students - I don't actually have that many children!  Yes, they're my students but they're more than that.  They're important individuals and human beings whom I respect and care for and am always so very proud of no matter how big or small their achievements, inside or outside the classroom.

My Year 5/6 students created a motto a few years ago and I've always held it close - "We are all teachers and we are all learners in our learning environment."  This is so true and so important.  I learn as much from and with them as I can teach them.  That's powerful.

So...what do I love best about teaching... my wonderful students of course.

#reflectiveteacher




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