A Reminder of What's Important...

Every now and then, in the teaching life, we get lucky and former students let us know that we mattered... I got an email today from a former student -- not one I'd kept in touch with, but one who was a great, fun student in class. She used to make my classes more fun because of her intelligence and energy and willingness to take risks. Here's a piece of the email.

Coming to [college] has made me realize how very few good teachers there are in the world. Thank you for being one of them, although now you're a principal...hopefully helping to make more of them.

I've been living in the life of the mind a lot this summer, thinking about a lot of the abstract parts of school design and teaching and learning, and as we start a new school year, and as we talk so much about reinventing school and curriculum design and 21st century learning, it's important to remember this -- The success of what we do is measured by the difference we make in the lives of the students in our charge. It starts with the care we show them. It starts with the joy with model for them. It starts with the relationships we develop with them.

And, as the new school year starts, as we all get back to working with our students, let's remember that every now and then, we get lucky and students tell us what we mean to them... but even if we don't. My hope for all of us this year, as we deal with the stumbling blocks and craziness and frustration and exhaustion that comes with teaching is that we all remember this:

We are the lucky ones. We get to teach.