Graduates..

Yesterday I attended my first ever high school graduation in which I taught the students who were graduating.

It felt like such a proud moment for me because I felt that in some small way they were standing up there because of the efforts from me and all the other teachers alike.

Now, dont get me wrong. I know graduation is -not- about me! Definitely about the students!! But, reflecting on my first year of teaching, this is a proud moment for me.

It makes me see that all the work that you do does pay off in the long run. and students DO appreciate it.

My eyes swelled up with tears watching some of those who had graced my class with their presence. Precious students. Great students.

They will accomplish great things; I am sure!!


On a random side note, I wonder if this is what it feels like to be a parent?

On another note, next years graduation, I will probably have taught all the students! Oh my, I foresee crying already :)

Favorites.

Everyone knows them right? The teacher's pet.

In the teaching profession, one must treat all his or her students equally; however, there are just a few certain gems in each class that find their way into your heart in a way that seems it will last forever. This past semester, I found one of them.

He is a tall, lanky boy. Silly, funny, and sweet as can be. *John was not necessarily the model student grade wise; however, behavioral he was great. He was one of those students who could make you smile even on a bad day with his silly quirks and comments. In so many ways, *John reminded me of my own brother.

Everyday John and 2 other students come into my classroom and sit down in the same spot they were in when they took my class.

And everyday I have to kick them out and send them to their real class. Haha...

I enjoy seeing them, and it makes me feel good to know that they enjoy being in my classroom too. Does the heart good to think that maybe you made a difference :)

Actions.

I've always been the firm believer that actions speak louder than words. In any problem or situation, I feel as though actions justify the things you say. They have no voice, but always speak.

I feel as though the same phrase can be translated to teaching. You may tell your students all you want that you love and care about them, but if you never do anything for them, then how will they know? If you never teach them, always give them an A+, never correct their wrong doings, how will they know that you care about them?

Teachers who simply give the students what they want will be run-over, and never respected. They become the friend, not the example.

Friday was such a great day.

With every day in teaching, the good always comes with the bad. This day was no different. Friday our English III classes decided to have a Navaho Indian speaker come to talk about their culture and way of living. (We had studied the Navaho Literature in our books). For the speaker, the students had a KWL chart to fill out (What do we Know? What do you Want to know? What have you Learned?)

The students were not excited about either part of this at the beginning of class. "Why do we have to go to the library?" "Why can't we just stay in here?" "wah, wah wah." Of course, with anything you do you will always hear complaining.

However, attitudes were much different coming out of the library than in the library. Walking around glancing at their papers, students were really learning so much about the Navaho culture from what this woman was saying. The majority of students were all listening and even asking their own questions!! Very good questions at that.

One student whispered to me, "Ms. Brandon, I don't have enough room to write in my learned column anymore."

Such a simple phrase, but one that makes a teacher feel so good. So many students yesterday I could see were really into what the woman was saying. What makes things even better is that by the time my fouth block came around, students had already started talking and my fourth block was so excited to go see the woman speak.

ACTIONS speak louder than words. When you show the students that you care and want them to learn, they recognize the difference.

After Hours.

I've heard before that teaching is a job that never ends. That it's never a 9-5 job and its something that goes with the territory of being a teacher.

It's so true.

It is a juxtapose between the grading of papers, after school activities, random reminders of what they may say in class..

Its a strange to think that these souls can affect you with their every day life by what their interests are.. their fun personalities.. quirky and funny comments.. their mere presence in my life makes such a difference..

they make me truly happy.

Out of all of my students, there is one so far that breaks my heart the most... We'll call her Christy. (That is not her name, but I need a name for this story).

Christy is a fragile girl.

Upon entering my classroom, Christy was simply a wreck. You could see in her eyes the fear of entering the room, The way her hands shook as she talked showed the frail, weak person she was. Even the trembling in her voice highlighted the emotional struggle within her own soul..

Christy was the type of girl you just want to save from all of her past. You just wished you could take her problems, throw them away, and show her the type of life you know she's never experienced.

I knew Christy was a part of the Girls Home. The Girls Home is a place where children who are taken by the state are put and taught life skills or received extensive therapy; sometimes both. Usually girls are taken by the state for one of two reasons: horrific family situations or they are troubled teens.

By the middle of the semester, I found the reasons why Christy was placed in the Girls Home. Many times throughout class Christy would give me bits and pieces of information about her life. Many were sad facts that simply broke your heart......

....."Ms. Brandon, look at my picture..."...."Who is that Christy?".... "This is me, my mom, and my sister...." "How old were you then?"..... "About 3 or 4."... "Well, that is such a sweet picture...When is the last time you saw your mom?...."Since this picture...I'm still trying to find them."

Through bits and scattered pieces, I found out more about Christy past. One day she walked in my classroom for 2nd block with tears filling her eyes. I found out her father had passed away. The Girls Home was not allowing her to even go to his funeral. She wanted closure of her dad's memory, but could not go. She cried for a few days about her father's passing which prompted more information. Christy's father was a horrific dad (in my opinion) who has left her emotional scarred for the rest of her life. Yet, in Christy's pure, innocent heart, she stated, "even though I hate what my dad has done to me, I still want to tell him goodbye."

Heart. Break.

Overall, I tend to never worry about students too much when I am away from school, but Christy is one that I think about often. I wonder how she is being treated by the people who live in the home. I wonder if she is being taken care of properly. I also worry that she has enough of the necessities of life and still can see the beauty in it.

Everytime I see Christy, I try to show her the beauty in life--that there are good people in this word.

The day that school let out for the holidays, Christy came into my classroom with something in her hand. It was a present for me. My heart was so humbled because I know this girl gives all she has just to get the bare minimum. I was so humbled? in awe? of what she had done for me.

Over the holidays, while everyone was with their families, my thoughts turned to Christy. This year my only wish was for her Christmas and New Years to be one where she felt loved.

I hope my wish came true. 

randomness involved in teaching.

It has been quite a while since I last posted.

Between the craziness of school, grad school, and wedding planning, I am one pooped little girl! No kidding :) But, alas, I have enjoyed the past few months so much.

Today, I am just going to give you the random funny happenings inside the classroom.

Everyday is different; No two are the same! That is 100% for sure.



Here is one grand occasion that happened in my class:
My classes had to create persuasive essays for their assignment one particular week. For this particular assignment, I allowed the students to choose what topic they would like to persuade me on. Some chose normal topics like abortion or gay marriage; things that teachers read about all the time. Some students chose thought-provoking topics such as: safety in schools or how to change certain policies within the school.

Many did very well on this.

One girl decided to write her paper on the topic of sagging--how it should be outlawed and what could be done to prevent it.

This sparked a class discussion. As most of you know, NCHS is about 95% african american :) therefore sagging is the norm for many of my students. Here is the conversation below:

Girl--"Ms. Brandon, where did sagging come frum' any way? It's nasty."
Me--"Well, it did originate inside of the prison..."
Girl--"Um, why?"

I had researched this previously to this conversation so I would know how to respond...
Me--"Well...sagging was to started with inmates of the same sex to let them know who was "available" and interested. It was basically to let others know who was gay inside of the prison."
Sagging Victim #1-- "WHAT?!? You mean I bust a sag, and dat mean Im Gay?!"
Me--"According to the inmates..."
Sagging Victim #1-- "Awe manee... dats messed up.." (As he pulls his pants up and tightens his belt..)
Sagging Victim #2-- "Ms. Brandon, im not trying to be gross or nuthing, but how my booty suppose to breathe?"


Ah, some moments the words are taken right out of your mouth and you just dont know what to say... or how to response, but with laughter.

:)

enjoyment.

Students also seem to make my day brighter.

I hope that I will always continue to have this kind of outlook on them throughout the rest of my teaching career. I feel that if I do not, then that will be my time to step aside.

Overall, this week was a very good week. As with every week, we have our ups and downs; no week is an exception.

Here are a few memories of this week:

In our school system, we have a 30 minute class called: Tutorial. For this short class, we are suppose to basically give students a review of English or whatever subject they are in for tutorial. They change tutorials every 9 weeks to insure they get a "review" of all the subjects. This thursday was their switch to a new tutorial.

All the students knew this: it was announced on the intercom, told numerous times by myself in class, and even on their new schedules.

Yet, two sweet boys insist on walking into my room instead of their new tutorial.

"Ms. Brandon, we dont want to leave you."
"Please dont send us to another class."

Then they sat in their desks, acting like they were not going to leave. eventually they did of course so they would not get in trouble, but they made me smile.

makes my heart happy.

birthdays.

birthdays are not my thing.

never have been. i am not sure why, i believe it is because you get so much attention on that one day. it makes you think or have these expectations like: I must have a good day. maybe im just weird.

i just dont like attention.

but today, of course, you receive attention from all sides because it is the day of your birth. i guess in some aspects it is a day worth celebrating.

a teacher's birthday inside of a school can be compared to that of a celebrity in the real world. i feel that so many students look up to teachers as someone they care and strive to be like; therefore, their birthday is of importance to them.

today i had quite  a few sweet memories i would like to share:

two wonderful girls brought me a card this morning.
"ms. brandon we want you to have a wonderful day. we love you."

two of my classes sang happy birthday to me.

in one of the classes, the song was lead by the biggest trouble maker in the class. he was so excited to sing happy birthday to me. he was the loudest one of all. that touched my heart.

in the other class, one of the soulful african american males had to give me his solo of happy birthday. he sang quite well i must say; then, the entire class resang the song for me.

another student declared she was going to bring me a flower for my birthday. and that she did. a hand picked flower that was almost dead. so sweet that she remembered :)

and finally two more students bought me a pack of m&ms! thank God for chocolate :)


as many "bad" days i may have, or moments when i feel like i am not doing things right, i can look at this and remember why i am teaching.

i do love those students.