Is teaching easy???

Every day (well ok, almost every day) I wake up and am happy to spend the day with my firsties.  I love my job!  I put my all into my class, into my students, and into our school.  I view my job as getting paid to do my hobby.

Today was a day, where I felt my passion was questioned.  I had a meeting on a student.  The meeting didn't go well and I felt that perhaps my opinion wasn't being valued.  I definitely don't need constant affirmation or accolades for my work, but when you ask my opinion on one of my student's, I only speak the truth.  I reiterated my suggestions/recommendations and graciously stepped out.

I grabbed my lunch, helped find a kinder who was not where he was suppose to be, grabbed a mountain dew, and sat down to talk to a student who was having a bad day. Then recess was over and I went to get my kiddos.  I was greeted at the door by the teacher who was on recess duty and I was told one of my students had fallen.  I asked that another teacher take my kiddos and I went out to the playground.  My little firstie was pretty upset and in some pain.  We are lucky to have a great staff and one of our staff members with a medical background came out and assessed the situation.  She was moving and able to get up, so we attempted to go inside, but her pain was too much and we decided to stay put.  Unfortunately, we were unable to get a hold of family...so we had to call 911.  I was given permission to ride and stay with her until family arrived.  She was a champ and handled everything so well.  Family arrived and it was obvious that I was no longer needed (let's just say I may not be there favorite person for multiple reasons, none of which are warranted.)  Family called back when she was released but not to update us, rather complain about issues the student was having and complain about me.  Of course after the day I had, I didn't want to hear that but with the help of my co-workers/teaching besties I remembered that I had nothing but the best interest of the child in mind.

So I didn't feel the love today.  But ultimately would I do everything the same again, you bet.  Deep down I know that I am there for my students!  I know that every decision I make is made to best assist my kiddos.

Is teaching easy? NO
Is dealing with the needs of every one of my students easy? NO
Is dealing with the politics of teaching easy? NO
Is seeing 18 little faces in the morning worth getting up? YOU BET!!!

And so it goes, I will be back at it tomorrow, because you never give up on your hobby.