Today was a cold day, a bitter cold day. The kind of day we don’t allow our students to go outside. Sometimes I am thankful that I do not have to stand in the cold watching the students on the playground, but then I always remember that I must contain them for that free period in my classroom that does not allow their energy to be used, but instead causes them to become more energetic. Thus it becomes more crazy than if we had suffered outside.
Today I took them to the gym. I am always thankful when the gym becomes available during these inside recesses. The students can then still expend some energy and it is a much smaller place for me to observe them. I sit with my bowl of oatmeal that I was supposed to eat for breakfast but haven’t managed to find the time to eat it until lunch in the gym.
At first I wonder about their freedom, about the abuse that seems to happen to freedom when the students receive it. I have some boys particularly that I’m keeping a close eye on. But as the recess continues, and the students have basically divided themselves into three sections in the gym, it dawns on me the responsibility being shown.
The first third of the gym is dominated by most of the boys, some girls, that are playing a game of dodgeball. I didn’t even need to talk to them once about throwing the balls wrong. There was just laughter and happy students.
The middle part of the gym was dominated by some boys who wanted to shoot hoops. Again, smiles all around and not an upset face to be found.
And the third part of the gym, closest to where I sat, was a group of girls who enjoyed zooming back and forth across the floor on the scooters. For once, freedom was enjoyed.
Not very often, as a teacher of the pre-teen hormonal phase do I have the opportunity to just sit back and enjoy the happiness in a room. In my classroom, I couldn’t count with all my fingers and toes the amount of times in a day I’m telling students to quit being so rude to each other, to say sorry to each other, to stop taking other people’s belongings, to quiet down, to do their work. It seems endless. And yet, here they are in the gym, obeying rules they aren’t even aware of, organizing themselves without really having to organize, and everyone was happy. I couldn’t help but smile.
It’s days like this and moments like this that I’m happy to be a teacher. My students are being responsible, independent, and respectable. Not only that, but they’re able to do it while having fun, while being kids.
One student in particular caused me to reflect even more. He came just over a week ago as a homeschool child entering a school for the first time. His level of respect, of being honest, and his “fitting in” is something I’ve been keeping a close eye on. Some homeschool students find it very difficult to fit into a school setting, but not this kid. He was out on the floor, laughing and smiling, playing dodgeball with all the other boys. This is a kid that knows what it’s like to be home without friends, to know very few people. This kid knows the joy of being around others and being able to have fun with them. This kid is one of the few that will admit he enjoys coming to school.
It’s not always easy being a teacher. I wish I could say my whole day was as wonderful as the 25 minutes in the gym during lunch recess, but unfortunately my class was quite chatty today. But I’ve carried that moment throughout the rest of my day, looking past their misbehaviours, looking past their arguments. I know “my kids” are good kids, and that’s the view I hold that gets me through the tough days. Sometimes it’s only those little moments that we, as teachers, look forward to, and that fuel us to keep trudging through the days when we start to question our careers. Those little moments provide enough sunshine to take away many cloudy days.
Calm in Christ and Fitness 