Friday, June 21, 2013

Teacher/Parent: Everyman/Everywoman?

The roles of teaching and parenting are limitless roles--there's limitless potential for what we can do, yet there's limited time and energy in a day.  So as parents and teachers we do our best always choosing one task, focus, activity over another to best coach, motivate, and support our children and students.

In this new age of recognizing that learning is an ongoing process rather than one score, one test, or one event, the challenge, in many ways, is even greater.  We feel the responsibility to check all the boxes, meet all the needs, and serve every child well--we want to see all of our students succeed in all areas.

But, the reality is that children develop in many different ways.  Some have a burst of success the year that they are in your class--they surge, grow, and meet all standards with strength.  Then others, meet some standards, but not others.  It is similar in the home, there are years when one child has tremendous success and achievement, while another struggles.  Usually though, it's not one end of the spectrum of success or another, but a series of hits and misses on the road to learning, developing, and growing, and as my own parents would often say, "That's life!."

The challenges, missed marks, and goals unmet are the seeds for growth and change. The successes are affirmation for processes in place, processes within your charge, and processes in place in the grades before you and the organizations that surround our children and students.

As a teacher and parent at times I feel like I'm called to be "everywoman," but the reality is that we work as part of a greater team to support our children and students well, and when we work we essentially support and encourage these children with our best effort, skill, and experience on the journey of life--a path of highs, lows, and steady growth.