Archive for July, 2011

22nd July
2011
written by Michelle

 

…some days end in tears.

Yesterday was one of those days.* My 6th grade class had been unusually difficult. Of course, it wasn’t the whole 6th grade class, just a handful of pre-pubescent boys with emptied out plastic pen containers, perfect for shooting spit wads. I was trying to teach the difference between “do” and “does” and they were trying to teach their compañeros how to make weird burping noises while shooting wads of paper.

boys. boys. boys.

• • •

{doesn’t matter what country or language. spit wads and burps are universal }

• • •

I made them stay after class and gave my best “if-you-do-that-again-talk” in my angry (spanish) teacher voice. I signed their agendas. Wrote notes to each of their parents. And watched them leave one by one.

The door closed. And the tears came.

There is something about being a teacher where one bad day can make you feel like every day is a bad day. If you’re a teacher you get this, right?

I believe teaching is a calling. Good teachers are called to be teachers because they have a love for students and a passion to teach. But teaching is a unique profession where you spend hours and weeks with a group of kids, investing  day-by-day for 10 months of the year, sometimes with few tangible results.

I find it’s hard to measure sucess as a teacher.  And maybe this is true for other professions as well. Counselors, pastors, parents and social workers probabaly feel something similar. But that’s why one bad day, one discouraging class, or eight spid-wad-throwing-boys can make you doubt and question  and occasionally cry.

I’ve always said good teaching involves meeting students where they are at, in order to challenge them to get where they could be.

I guess my struggle is how do I meet 6th grade boys where they are at?

suggestions welcome.

have a wonderful weekend!

*note: even though many of you are currently enjoying summer break, in Guatemala our “summer” doesn’t start until October. So in US school-calendar terms we’re in about the equivalent of “March” right now : )

20th July
2011
written by Michelle

I’ve been a little blog absent lately, but my friend and author, Paul Angone at All Groan Up, just published an article I wrote a while ago.

•  •  •

“Dating by definition is awkward.” Has there been truer words?

Michelle Acker – the guest postee on All Groan Up of Do We Have the Wrong Expectations as Emerging Adults completes the guest post two-fecta with this fabulous piece about the woes and joys of dating.

If you’ve ever dated, Eharmonied, or “grabbed some coffee” with the opposite sex to only to wonder the entire time if you’re even on a date, you will be encouraged from the recently engaged Michelle Acker.

•  •  •

you can read more here:

http://allgroanup.com/featured/why-i-did-not-kiss-dating-goodbye-guest-post-michelle-acker/