One More Day

YAY!! One more day of student teaching! One more day and I will FINALLY and officially be a college graduate! It has taken long enough to get to this point. However, I would not change a thing on my path that would have made me get to this point sooner.

So, all my students know that tomorrow is my last day. The past two weeks have been getting harder as I have been trying to prepare myself to leave...and to let you know I don't think I have done a good job at preparing myself. Just thinking about it makes me get all teary eyed. I have been with these students (and I think of them as my kids) for 12 weeks now. I saw them all walk in on the first day of school like deer caught in headlight. Scared, curious, eager, an empty vessel wanting to be challenged and filled with knowledge. In the past 12 weeks, I have seen each of them grow and make progress... some in leaps and bounds and some in baby steps, but progress none the less. Today three of my students were bawling because I was leaving. I told them there were no tears allowed until tomorrow. But I had to turn my back when I finished saying it to wipe away my tears. I love my kids. I don't think I am ready to move on yet, but I have to.

You know, it's scary to think that you can single handedly be responsible for someones future. Sometimes I doubt myself and the gift I have been given to be a good teacher. Not to sound boastful, but I know I am good teacher. I have the evaluations to prove it. I have a cooperating teacher that brags about me to every other teacher. However, I always wonder if I am doing all that I can. Where can I improve? What can I do different to make sure each one of them understands what is being taught? Are my lessons enough to challenge those that need to be challenged but not too much to leave those that struggle hanging? I worry.

So now as I am getting ready for tomorrow, I have endless possibilities ahead of me. I have to opportunity to (hopefully) make a difference in another group of students lives. I have been applying EVERYWHERE and have had a few nibbles on my bait. I won't be staying here in Las Vegas for now, but I may be back in January. But Las Vegas is only one of my options. I know I will end up where I should be and where I will be needed most. I will keep yall posted on the happenings of where I am heading on my next adventure in my life!