The hour was almost up. I had been sitting at the table with two other teacher’s aides observing the counting of change. I had watched as students meticulously tried to put the quarters in a stack of eight coins. Five separate columns of eight coins made $10.00. It seemed like it took forever. And getting the coins in a stack was challenging. Once the last quarter was placed on top, the stack fell. More than once I wanted to grab the coins and put them in the stacks and into the coin wrappers. My headache grew and I felt the frustration of trying to teach special education students.
I had been a teacher for several years but after a recent move to Virginia, I decided to stay at home. Eventually I decided to work as a substitute teacher and I was kept quite busy. The variety of courses I taught had a broad range from history to English to science or band. Even art and Industrial Technology were on my list. But there was always the challenge of authority. A day of fun! That’s what the students always thought. Students talked, moved around their own chairs and made their own seating arrangement. Try to teach a lesson and you felt like you were spinning your wheels and going nowhere.
When I made the decision to quit substitute teaching, I was asked if I would consider special education. There was a real need for a regular substitute teacher and the change of pace was less stressful. I was so used to working around gifted and talented students that challenged my abilities. That was my comfort zone. Maybe a different focus was not such a bad idea. Trusting in God, I made the decision to assist in special classes.
The lower wing in the school was for severely handicapped students. This is where I started my journey and gained a lot of insight into myself. The slow pace seemed enjoyable at first. But then my overactive personality tried to take over and move the pace just a little faster. Why does it seem to take everyone so long to finish? Wait, this is special education and for some even getting to school is quite an accomplishment. Teaching is more than just dealing with “regular” students. Slow learners need just as much help if not even more. Basic skills need to be mastered and a sense of pride in finishing something is equally important. God, can you open my eyes and let me see things through your eyes?
Let’s try it again. One… two… three… four… five… six…seven…eight. One whole column of quarters stacked neatly on the desk. Wonderful! You just finished the first part. Find the quarters in the change and stack them up. We made it all the way up to five before we had to start over again. Two columns finished. The next stack of quarters went up fairly quickly but as the last quarter was placed on top, the coins fell knocking over the second standing column. Back again to one standing column of coins. Over and over again we counted the coins and stacked them up. We finally made one full group of coins that made $10.00 and all those coins went into the wrapper. The student sitting across from me looked up with pride in his eyes and smiled.
My headache disappeared after a couple of weeks in class. Watching the concentration on the faces of students working on a project was a study in itself. It was hard—just as hard as calculus may be for someone in math. But the goal was the same. Learn the material, practice, and pass the test with flying colors. Small goals were important. Look at the person who is trying so hard to accomplish a task. Gaze into his eyes and find the hope that is hidden under the surface.
God used an experience like this to give me a new focus. We all take baby steps somewhere along our Christian life. We don’t always see the tiny lessons we have learned at the feet of our Heavenly Father, but His pride in us can be seen in His compassionate eyes. We have lessons to learn and He will gently guide us along the path. We can discover new insights and then take what we have learned to reach others who may be struggling. Our special education comes from the greatest teacher available.
Teach me your way, O Lord---Psalm 27:11
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
UNFORGETTABLE CHARLIE
Charlie! Has anyone seen Charlie? I can’t believe he’s gone.
This was the question on everyone’s mind when school opened on Wednesday morning. The class was small, ten students in all, but everyone liked Charlie. He had run away once before and ended up in the principal’s office. He was rescued and brought back home. But this time no one had a clue as to where Charlie was. No one, absolutely no one, had seen him.
Charlie was part of the homeroom class in Mrs. Leonard’s sixth grade. The room was small but studying science was special. There were always some plants in the room or science experiments that were being conducted. The principal had given permission for the teachers to bring extra items to class to make lessons more interesting. Anyone could find a plant and study it. This group of students wanted something different. So when Charlie arrived everyone was excited and interested in science.
Charlie had soft fur that was a light gold color. He had two tiny ears and a mouth that he could stuff with plenty of food. He was so funny when his cheeks were full of seeds. He would find a place somewhere in the cage to hide it. Later on when he was hungry he could nibble away at his stash. He liked to bury way down under the cedar shavings and try to hide from everyone. There was always plenty of water in the cage and everyone took turns taking care of Charlie.
The plastic cage was small but it had a lid on top and plenty of holes to assist in breathing. The wheel was in the middle of the cage where Charlie could exercise. A Habitrail of interconnecting tubes and tunnels provided a maze for even more exercise. Everyone looked around the classroom but there was no sign of Charlie. Now he was gone and there was a puzzle to solve. Where had Charlie disappeared to now?
One other time Charlie had escaped and run down the hall right towards the nursery. Someone outside the nursery room screamed and poor Charlie ran right into the principal’s office. He ran along the side of the wall and headed into the first room he could find. No one there saw him enter but it wasn’t too long before the secretary noticed something run past her desk. She didn’t know what it was but she knew that nothing was supposed to be running around in the office. A shriek brought everyone’s attention to the “mouse”. It took some time for the principal to rescue Charlie but he brought him back to the classroom. Charlie was placed securely in his cage with the top snapped back in place.
What to do now? Put up posters letting others get in on the search? Take time away from math class and go up and down the halls searching for Charlie? Skip lunch and go on a hunt for Charlie? There didn’t seem to be any easy answer so the students stayed in class. About an hour later the mystery was solved. Charlie had been found in the church baptistery. Charlie had managed to escape from the classroom, run down the hall to the church sanctuary and then walk around the outside wall of the church all the way to the back where the baptistery was located. What a long walk for such a little guy! Poor Charlie was dead but at least the baptistery was not filled with water. He had gone so far from his cage in the classroom that he couldn’t find his way back home. Apparently he had died from lack of food or water.
No one ever figured out how Charlie escaped. Maybe someone else had opened the classroom door and took him out of his cage. Curious small children may have entered the room with an adult, played with the hamster, and forgot to be sure that the cage top was on securely. Maybe Charlie wiggled the top off the cage and slid out. No matter what happened, Charlie was gone and there was no way that we could get approval for another hamster.
The rest of year went by much like any other school year. Math seemed hard and English was okay. Everyone had to study for tests and when spring arrived, everyone knew that it wasn’t too long until summer vacation. Nothing much was ever said about Charlie any more.
Going to school is a part of growing up. It seems like each school year is so long and summer vacation is always too short. Academic tests, football and basketball, band and drama, or science fairs are part of the steps up the ladder. Not everyone makes the same choices along the ladder up to graduation but the main goal for everyone is to finish school. Some teachers you forget and others you remember because of something special that they did. We never had another pet or animal in any other science classes but the sixth grade teacher who permitted us to have a hamster is someone that I still remember.
*Psalm 127:3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord
This was the question on everyone’s mind when school opened on Wednesday morning. The class was small, ten students in all, but everyone liked Charlie. He had run away once before and ended up in the principal’s office. He was rescued and brought back home. But this time no one had a clue as to where Charlie was. No one, absolutely no one, had seen him.
Charlie was part of the homeroom class in Mrs. Leonard’s sixth grade. The room was small but studying science was special. There were always some plants in the room or science experiments that were being conducted. The principal had given permission for the teachers to bring extra items to class to make lessons more interesting. Anyone could find a plant and study it. This group of students wanted something different. So when Charlie arrived everyone was excited and interested in science.
Charlie had soft fur that was a light gold color. He had two tiny ears and a mouth that he could stuff with plenty of food. He was so funny when his cheeks were full of seeds. He would find a place somewhere in the cage to hide it. Later on when he was hungry he could nibble away at his stash. He liked to bury way down under the cedar shavings and try to hide from everyone. There was always plenty of water in the cage and everyone took turns taking care of Charlie.
The plastic cage was small but it had a lid on top and plenty of holes to assist in breathing. The wheel was in the middle of the cage where Charlie could exercise. A Habitrail of interconnecting tubes and tunnels provided a maze for even more exercise. Everyone looked around the classroom but there was no sign of Charlie. Now he was gone and there was a puzzle to solve. Where had Charlie disappeared to now?
One other time Charlie had escaped and run down the hall right towards the nursery. Someone outside the nursery room screamed and poor Charlie ran right into the principal’s office. He ran along the side of the wall and headed into the first room he could find. No one there saw him enter but it wasn’t too long before the secretary noticed something run past her desk. She didn’t know what it was but she knew that nothing was supposed to be running around in the office. A shriek brought everyone’s attention to the “mouse”. It took some time for the principal to rescue Charlie but he brought him back to the classroom. Charlie was placed securely in his cage with the top snapped back in place.
What to do now? Put up posters letting others get in on the search? Take time away from math class and go up and down the halls searching for Charlie? Skip lunch and go on a hunt for Charlie? There didn’t seem to be any easy answer so the students stayed in class. About an hour later the mystery was solved. Charlie had been found in the church baptistery. Charlie had managed to escape from the classroom, run down the hall to the church sanctuary and then walk around the outside wall of the church all the way to the back where the baptistery was located. What a long walk for such a little guy! Poor Charlie was dead but at least the baptistery was not filled with water. He had gone so far from his cage in the classroom that he couldn’t find his way back home. Apparently he had died from lack of food or water.
No one ever figured out how Charlie escaped. Maybe someone else had opened the classroom door and took him out of his cage. Curious small children may have entered the room with an adult, played with the hamster, and forgot to be sure that the cage top was on securely. Maybe Charlie wiggled the top off the cage and slid out. No matter what happened, Charlie was gone and there was no way that we could get approval for another hamster.
The rest of year went by much like any other school year. Math seemed hard and English was okay. Everyone had to study for tests and when spring arrived, everyone knew that it wasn’t too long until summer vacation. Nothing much was ever said about Charlie any more.
Going to school is a part of growing up. It seems like each school year is so long and summer vacation is always too short. Academic tests, football and basketball, band and drama, or science fairs are part of the steps up the ladder. Not everyone makes the same choices along the ladder up to graduation but the main goal for everyone is to finish school. Some teachers you forget and others you remember because of something special that they did. We never had another pet or animal in any other science classes but the sixth grade teacher who permitted us to have a hamster is someone that I still remember.
*Psalm 127:3 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord
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