The end of an era

Today has been absolutely heart wrenching.




I saw half of my students for the last time - since my school is on a block schedule, I only see my students every other day, making today the last time I will see many of them.

That also makes today the first real slap-in-the-face reality of leaving the classroom.  I have been a teacher for 10 years, plus some student teaching and that weird year in China, so... let's call it 12 - which is the same age as many of my students.  I have been a teacher since before most of my students could walk, or talk.  To them, it is a lifetime.

And I guess in many ways, it's a lifetime for me, too.



For the past ten years, I have woken up every day and gone into a room of young people where I was expected to be the smartest person in there -- or at least the one that knew what was going on...

Usually that was the case...

However, that wasn't always how it went.



Teaching is much harder than I ever thought it would be.  I also like it a lot more than I thought I would.  I hate the bureaucracy of teaching, especially in a large district like this.  I hate the never ending paperwork and things to sign.  I hate forgetting when I sign them and getting in trouble.  

But I love students... 
Ok... not all the students...  



But over the years, most of my students have been wonderful people that will probably go on to lead amazing lives.  I've known many of them to get married and start families of their own.  They go to college.  Some have even become teachers -- which makes them poor.  That part is sad, but it makes me happy knowing that good people like that are carrying on to love students in the classroom.

Since this is so incredibly hard, I'll write more tomorrow when I stop crying... 




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