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Knowing thy IMPACT

One day I'll get around to sharing the story about how I applied for and got my new job. I have to say that it most certainly is 100% credited to my Heavenly Father and his plan for my life. Often we don't see the things we need in life until things are put into our path that lead us in a different direction. For the purpose of this post I wanted to share some thoughts being on the outside of the beginning of a new school year. This is mostly for my teacher friends and those who start teaching this year so if you get bored, please do yourself a favor and stop reading.

Being a teacher is a tough gig. Daily we make thousands of split-second decisions and impact people in ways we will never fully know the extent of. John Hattie once said, "know thy impact." Each day you'll strive to be better than the day before. You'll hope and pray that your babies (students) will learn something more than just "things." We'll hope and pray that they learn how to be a good friend. We'll hope and pray that we can help them find ways to cope with things that are out of their control. We'll watch them become tiny members of society full of enthusiasm and charisma. We'll cry when something is hard for them to deal with at home. We'll watch them finally master something hard that they've been working on for months or even years. We'll get to laugh with them when something silly happens. The babies will know us, their teacher, better than most people will ever.

We will try our hardest to keep up with the things the state and district wants us to do. We know that in the end we do what's best for students and that is a powerful thing.

I won't have babies of my own this year and that breaks my heart. I'll watch from the outside as their teachers love them and build lasting relationships with them. I used to train superheroes, and now I get to train their teachers into being superheroes. At the start of this school year-whenever that may happen, know that being a teacher is the greatest calling there could possibly be. If you're a teacher reading this, remember that you are making a difference. If you're a parent reading this, thank you for letting someone else love your baby. Thank you for letting someone else know the love that comes from your child. Thank you for allowing teachers all around the world the opportunity to, "know thy impact."

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