
As a GT teacher, I only see most of my students once a week. I worry a lot that, once the classroom door closes behind them at the end of the day, the hours we spent together quickly fade. That’s why I try to do my best to connect our class activities to their real lives. Every once in awhile I like to shock or provoke them into considering something that can’t easily be forgotten. Ethical discussions like The Trolley Car Dilemma tend to “stick.” Students bring them up weeks later – sometimes even the following year. Yesterday, my 2nd graders went on a field trip where some of them ate fried insects. I’m pretty sure they won’t forget about that any time soon. In fact, I’m pretty sure I won’t forget about that any time soon.
I guess that what I hope is, at the end of the day, when a parent asks a child, “What did you do in school today?” the child can give a better answer than, “Nothing.”
No, I take that back.
At the end of the day, what I really hope is that the parent doesn’t have to ask the child, “What did you do in school today?” I hope that the child is so excited about her day that she will blurt out a summary without any need for prompting. I hope that the child will sit at the dinner table and say, “We talked about this today. What do you the rest of you think?”
I hope the child thinks about how much his teacher cares about him. I hope the child thinks about questions that still need to be answered. I hope that the child doesn’t dwell on what he was taught, but on what he learned.
And, most importantly, I hope the child can’t wait to learn more tomorrow.
I’ll think about that the next time I’m with a student.
Thanks for your comment!
Great post, thank you for sharing! As a student, i can relate to the importance of that “lasting memory” after you leave the classroom. I’ve always remembered great teachers and professors who have taught with that same goal in mind.
I’ve reblogged this on Academic-Zone:(http://academiczonelms.wordpress.com/2014/02/25/how-to-get-your-students-excited/).
Thanks! I will check out your blog!