Rosie Writes!: Reflecting on My New Pups!

2015 Coppell Cadre with Dean Thomas!!

It is Thursday, May 14th, 2015, and I am sitting by the window at one of my local Starbucks "offices" enjoying the beautiful day. A few minutes ago I completed all of my grades, which means I have officially wrapped up my semester. This is always a bittersweet time for me because I have attachment issues with my students and that has genuinely been the case with this Coppell cadre pictured below. I could tell the first day of class in January that they were going to be a special group. Even though they might have looked a little sleepy-eyed and had a normal sense of apprehension, I could tell that they really wanted to learn about teaching kids and becoming the best teachers possible. In order to do that they would be expected to be in class, be there on time, do quality work and make the effort to quit thinking like a student and begin thinking like a teacher. I am happy to write that this is exactly what they did. By the end of the semester, they had established a trust within their cadre and a love and support system for each other that will continue throughout.

They know the importance of establishing this same community in their future classrooms and they know about the power of their words. Somewhere along the way, they also learned about keeping the dignity of a child, teaching kids to write with the help of researching great gurus, writing their own lessons, sharing ideas, and maybe even a thing or two from me. They were like butterflies ready to take off and as hard as it was, I had to let them go! I know they will fly high and add beauty to this world, and I know they will remember to ask themselves, "Where are my feet?"

I am so very fortunate to still be able to live my dream of being a teacher. There have been many who have come before this group and there will be 19 new ones in the fall. I feel so blessed to cross paths with students and attempt to help them along the journey that I have taken and continue to take.

Yes, I am definitely the lucky one.