Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Teacher Volunteering, ME?

My first day volunteering for my kindergarten teacher friends! I did some assisting with stamping worksheets that will go home for the first 5 weeks! I was in an inner pod room while I stamped the papers for the parent signatures on the homework pages. It was really nice to hear the children's voices and the teachers teaching (setting class rules and helping the children to remember every few minutes, ha). It was great to not have to be in the room doing what they were doing, though I could walk right through the process in my mind; having done it the passed 34 years!


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I pray for the teachers and the daily workload that has been placed upon all American Educators. The older teachers have weathered many storms over the years, while the younger are building stamina to do so. You can already see the toll taking place on today's younger teachers. They are counting the days for the weekend to come and the rest it will bring. This didn't occur with "yesterday's" teachers until recently when the ever increasing workload became heavier than it ever has in the past. To show the workload they are now under, I came across many of my other grade level teacher friends asking me to come and help them out if I possibly could! It was almost like a cry for help that I, myself, am very familiar with!


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Pray for America's teachers and the new evaluation they are coming under which will promote (what the news has reported will bring about) 80% of our school systems becoming "D" and "F" schools; not due to the lack of teacher ability, but lack of teacher support for the unacceptable challenges the political system is forcing upon the educational demands of our students who are neurologically impaired, juvenile delinquents, and children whose language is not English! Their goal of "All Children" being college material is just not realistic when teaching children that will be a 7 year old their entire adult life due to neurological deficiency. Their same goal for juvenile delinquents are not realistic; and even worse, they support the irresponsible parent and child over assisting the public school system with these unacceptable behaviors. Children who don't speak English are doing good if they get 30 minutes help a day, the rest of the day they are on their own and teachers held accountable if they don't learn.


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I pray daily for the teachers and capable, willing students who participate and cooperate with their eagerness to learn. May our classrooms again become this atmosphere of joy and no longer that of the teachers attention being continually diverted to student conflict, special need students' outcries, and those speaking to one another in their own language due to not understanding English.


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The government's will to "please" all of these people rather than correcting the problems is making it a failing system. The politicians are too concerned with getting votes from these people instead of correcting the problems with their children being in specialty schools, delinquency facilities, or language schools . In correcting it, they know they will lose votes and possible election (or re-election) to government positions.


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Our capable, willing, and joyful students should not be punished by this governmental system due to them losing out on learning because the teacher is having to continually deal with so many political born issues in the classroom before any teaching can begin.


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I say, GOD BLESS AMERICA'S TEACHERS! There's many things politicians could learn if they were forced to go back to school (let them teach for nine weeks in the classroom; I dare say they wouldn't last a week!)


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I thank so very much all of the parents who have brought their children up to respect them. In doing so, they respect their teachers.

3 comments:

Bonnie said...

Amen to all of the above Susan! You are spot on! I have missed so much I did not know you were back at school volunteering. Must be nice to not have the pressures you use to have while on salary!

God bless you dearly for all those years of devotion! I love teachers, myself. They shape the future of this world one day at a time.

Love you,

Bonnie

Janet said...

Hi Susan

First off thanks for all the prayers. I have not heard in the last few days how he is doing.

You are such a blessing! I bet the teachers and the parents appreciate your help. There were so many cuts here too and I just wonder how the teachers are able to handle it all. And then the kids behavior in this generation is not okay. It is just unbelieveable how kids talk to teachers. I wish they would take the sports away and concentrate on the learning.

Thanks for making a difference in so many lives.

Blessings & Love
Janet

Nellie's Cozy Place said...

Morning Susan,
Know your friends must be thrilled that you are
coming in to help, and know it must be much more fun being on that side of things and not having all that pressure.

You are so right about all that is happening in the school system, and I do pray for our teachers as I know so well from you and other teachers at church the pressure they are under.
It is really hard for teachers to even teach today because they are too busy picking up the pieces of the lives of children who come from such brokeness.
As you say thank the Lord for parents who are
bringing children up to behave appropriately and to respect their parents and those in authority over them. What a blessing that is to our teachers and our world.

Thanks for all those years of service to all those children you have impacted over all these years............I know you left a sure mark of goodness on them, and taught them well.

So what days are you volunteering??? I am sure you are such a blessing to your friends....at least you can help take the load off a few teachers.

Love ya, Nellie