Patience is a virtue...

The end of this year has been difficult...well, realistically, my first period class has been difficult all year, they are just becoming increasingly so. The end of the year for students that struggle might as well be their time to fly big, make their name known...be the final fish in their little pond. I can't say that I have been the most patient...I mostly want to throttle them. Sometimes teaching is a much bigger job than actually teaching...it is coaching, instructing, defining...it's not always about the content. It seems, more than often, I am coaching behavior, encouraging brave academic risk-taking, instructing about volume and tone, defining success and the route to get there. Sometimes I feel frustrated...I am frustrated that I can't get through to some...frustrated that I can't convince others of their value and worth... This year my frustrations seem bigger...maybe this is because I know that I, too, am moving. I am leaving the familiarity of my hom