Sometimes That's All They Need

I don't know about you but here in northwest Missouri we are finally breaking out of a record breaking cold snap. Delays, closures and online learning days were all around us. Between the weather, holidays and professional development days, this was our first full week in what seems like forever.  It was a struggle for several of our students as we worked towards day 4 and 5 of the week. I may have been struggling by Friday myself! Patience is key.

I was able to finish up the last few summative evaluations last Friday while a student slept on my office floor. The steady snore seemed to keep me moving at a consistent pace. I couldn't help but think about all the things that our students deal with outside of our walls that we have no control over. The lives that they have we will never fully know. Their schedule (or lack of), when they last ate or how much sleep they really got will always be a mystery to us as educators. One thing that I do know is that we have to meet them where they are when they come in  and try to get them to progress before they leave. To learn. Seeing that there may be an issue, knowing we can't fix it, and assuring the student that you are there for them while they are at school is all we can do sometimes. Sometimes that's all they need.

Photo Credit: "Teacher Helping Students Working At Computers In Classroom" by City of Seattle Community Tech is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0