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Not Just Another Year

August 20, 2013 By Rachel

Tomorrow I begin my 10th year of teaching! It really is crazy to think it’s been that long.    I’ve always known I was a teacher.  God put it in my heart when I was a little girl and I was teaching every afternoon in my bedroom.


I realize now more than ever that it is so much more than actually just teaching “skills”.  I was reading Heather’s post over at Petals of Joy the other day.  She wrote about what she wanted the parents of her students to know.  I think she’s a middle or high school teacher, but a teacher none the less.  I was in tears by the end of her post!  She wrote it so beautifully!  This part really spoke to me:

“I feel responsible for the next generation in mind-blowing ways. This is a heavy burden. I sense its weight each time I step into my classroom. I understand—really understand—how great the task is that lies before me. The question Am I making a difference? is a constant.
But I know my job is worth it. I know this in the way I know my students are worth every ounce of effort in my body. And when I see the light behind a teenager’s eyes? Every fiber, every muscle, every tendon tightens and then soars. The light of knowledge is mine to bestow. The role is serious. Success is always just a breath away. Sometimes I’m holding mine. When my students get it? I can smile. I can breathe.
Because really, I’m teaching them about life. Each day. A new lesson teaching rhetoric, similes, or Thoreau is really a lesson about life. How we’re connected. How we’re living. How we’re breathing.
And you must know, you absolutely must know—I pray for my students. Their hurts break my heart. Magic wands and pixie dust don’t work in this real world. I know there is only One who has the power to heal souls. So my knees are raw from the bending and stooping over the desk of your precious one.
I love your sons and daughters. And while a need for education may be the reason they walk through my door, my deepest desire is that my students know they are loved. This is my goal. My objective. My mission.
Because they will know my sweet Jesus by my love. And even though His name can’t even be a whisper on my lips within school walls, I will love your children. I will love them because He first loved me. I will be His light in their darkness.And because I love your sons and daughters, they will learn. They will learn all that matters in this life. They will learn because they are loved.
By this all people will know that you are My disciples,if you have love for one another John 13:35 (HCSB).”

The whole post she wrote is amazing and if you have time you should read the whole thing here. 

Tomorrow brings excitement!  New faces to love! New possibilities!  I can’t wait!

  • Rachel
  • Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Teaching

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Unknown says

      August 21, 2013 at 1:11 AM

      Great post! Thanks for sharing!

      Jamie
      teachingtidbit.blogspot.com

    2. Deb Hanson says

      August 21, 2013 at 3:23 AM

      Wow…that was an amazing post. So, so true! I love that you and Heather both witness to your love for God and Jesus day in and day out through your work…and that you don't hesitate to blog about it! Very inspiring – thank you! ~Deb
      crafting-connections.blogspot.com

    3. Carolyn Kisloski says

      August 21, 2013 at 12:39 PM

      What a beautiful post. Thank you so much for sharing. I hope your first day went GREAT!
      Carolyn
      Kindergarten: Holding Hands and Sticking Together

    4. Anonymous says

      August 22, 2013 at 12:47 AM

      Rachel, hope your first day back was FANTASTIC! Thanks for sharing such a great post!

      Karen

      An Apple a Day in First Grade

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    msrachelvincent

    Rachel | 4th Grade Teacher
    How long is your students’ attention spans? I o How long is your students’ attention spans?
I only have about 10 minutes before I lose them! 🤪
And I don’t know about you but my lessons are typically longer…so I try to mix it up every 10 minutes with a Think-Pair-Share or some kind of movement
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#teachersofig #iteachtoo #iteach4th #iteach456 #teachersofinstagram #teachingelementary #attentionspan #minilessons #thinkpairshare
    6 ways to get your students participating in your 6 ways to get your students participating in your lessons!
1️⃣ Think Time - giving your students time to think about the answer keeps your over achievers from answering all the questions 
2️⃣ Movement - Stand/Sit if this is your answer
3️⃣ Turn & Talk - Everyone shares their answer with a partner
4️⃣ Hand Signals - Perfect for multiple choice questions
5️⃣ Think-Pair-Share - Combines the think time with turn & talk 
6️⃣ Repetition - repeat important information to help it stick
🗣🗣Which number are you trying this week?!
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#teachersfollowteachers #igteachers #iteach #teachergram #iteachfourth #iteach345 #teachingstrategies #studentparticipation
    Do you have these 4 teacher goals?! 1️⃣ Instr Do you have these 4 teacher goals?!
1️⃣ Instructional Goal - How are you improving your instruction?
2️⃣ Relationship Goal - How are you building relationships with students or coworkers?
3️⃣ Balance Goal - How are you trying to have a better work-life balance?
4️⃣ Non Instructional Goal - What other area are you trying to improve?
Here’s my 4 goals!
1. Vocabulary Instruction 
2. 2 Positive Notes a Week
3. Leave by 3:00 3 out 5 days
4. Clean off back counter once a week
What are your goals?
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#teachersfollowteachers #igteachers #iteach #teachergram #iteachfourth #iteach345 #teachergoals #teachergoals🍎
    Coming back from break is a lot easier than the fi Coming back from break is a lot easier than the first day of school!
Less teacher talk 🗣
More student talk 👥
1️⃣ Give your students time to catch up with each other. Even adults like to chit chat about what we did during break!
2️⃣ Review procedures by playing a fun game. Charades is a great way to act out procedures to see if other students can guess what they’re doing!
3️⃣ The halfway point of the school year is a great time for students to set goals!
What’s your favorite thing to do after a break?!
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#teachersfollowteachers #igteachers #iteach #teachergram #iteachfourth #iteach345 #studentgoals #classroomprocedures #classroomideas
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