Over the years I have learned alot through my work with children but if I could name one of the most important things to remember it would be this: You must celebrate the little moments to appreciate the big moments.
I have been working really hard on this reading room at my primary school. Between ordering books, receiving donations, cleaning and preparing resources I have been up to my head in work. My counterpart and myself have been wandering the school attempting to find anything we could put in our room to make it kid friendly. Its been a fun little treasure hunt we have embarked on and it lead to some big winners today. We found two old tables that were the perfect height for our little readers, a teachers table with plenty of room to work and the BIG treasure, an old gymnastics mat that will now be in our new reading area. It was piled under tons of books and filled with dirt but I was determined to clean it up and make it work.
After unloading the new books I received from Darien Book Aid (thanks guys!) and rearranging the room, I really felt like the area was starting to take shape but was still worried about if the kids would really enjoy this "nontraditional" set up. This is where the beauty of my job comes into play...
The lunch bell rings and I felt like I was back in the Midwest on a farm herding cows. In a matter of two minutes I had 20 children in my little room jumping up and down ecstatic at all the new stuff. They were like children in a candy store, admiring the new pictures on the walls, the new books and furniture lining the walls. After settling them down I got myself caught up in helping a student with her math. I look up a few minutes later and nearly burst into tears. I saw four children at the easel with magnetic letters making word families I had just taught them moments before; I saw three children admiring the new books I brought in while trying to determine which to read first; I saw 6 kids with their shoes off lounging on the new reading mat peacefully reading books to themselves; and a group of girls quietly coloring pictures as they smile from ear to ear. I was truly in awe as I watched kids chose to come to my room instead of running around the school like mad men for an hour.
It's these small moments that make me cherish what I'm doing and realize just the gift I have been given.
This truly is "The hardest job you'll ever love"
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