The other day I volunteered in Teacher Friend’s classroom.
We have been trying to get together for weeks but for one reason or another it has just not worked out.
Finally the day has come.
I hop in the KIA and head out to South Philly where Teacher Friend’s school is. Conveniently there is a Rite Aid with a parking lot where I can illegally park. Amazingly, there are six open spots.
I park.
As I am walking over to the school, memories are coming back of teaching in a classroom. As I open the door I am hit with old-public-school-building smell. This smell is kind of a mixture of old wooden items and floor wax. I remember it well.
I go up to SECURITY AGENT. I tell her, “I am here to volunteer in Teacher Friend’s classroom.”
“Ok.” SA says. “Go to the MAIN OFFICE.”
I KNEW that was coming.
I walk down to the Main Office to check in with them. I tell them, “I am here to volunteer in Teacher Friend’s classroom.”
“Ok.” MAIN OFFICE PERSON says. “Go up to the second floor.”
I think: Wow. That was pretty easy.
I go upstairs and knock on TF’s door. She gives me a big smile and turns to her second grade class to let them know I am here.
They are very excited. When you are in SECOND GRADE a special visitor is a real treat.
Also TF is very grateful for the help because I am her friend and because teaching is extremely exhausting.
I walk in. I feel like a celebrity. Al the children say: HELLO!
I say HELLO back.
Now we go to the rug. TF asks if the children have any questions for me.
“K” raises her hand. “Are you a teacher?”
“Yes.” I say. “I used to teach in NYC and now I teach yoga here.”
“NYC!” the class says.
A boy’s hand goes up. “How come you came here?”
“Well, I got married to someone who lives here.” I say.
Another hand goes up. “T” asks, “What grade did you teach?”
I answer, “I taught first, second and third grade. And art.”
“OOOOOhhhhh ART.” they say.
The questions keep coming:
Do you have children?
Where do you live?
I am waiting for: How old are you?
But it doesn’t come. Yet.
Next we move on to identifying patterns. We are working on the white board. TF is drawing patterns and the students are trying to figure out what comes next.
- > ** > > *
“I know!” says a girl in the back row. “It’s star!”
“Yes!” I say.
She smiles.
TF has told me to jump in when I want to. So I do. I ask the students to see if they notice any patterns around their classroom. They look around.
“E” raises his hand. He points to the border pattern on the board. “Right here there is a rainbow pattern. See? Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple. Then red, orange, yellow again!”
“Good noticing!” TF and I say. And then I ask, “Do you notice any others?”
And they do! They find the rainbow on the rug. And patterns in their number grid on the wall.
It is all very exciting.
Now it is time to move onto math. I take a few students into the hall to work with manipulatives. We are doing a worksheet on money. Each student has a bag of play coins.
NOW I am REALLY having a memory. Teaching money was not easy. Trying to help children who struggle in this area understand that a quarter is worth 25 but we call it a quarter. Which is also worth 15 if you are using a clock. And really when everything else they are learning is based on units of 10 pretty much, now they must integrate THE QUARTER.
We lay our sheets down and open our money bags. “K” perks up right away. “I know this one!” And he lays down his play money to match the picture shown. One quarter, two nickels, one dime, and a penny. This involves matching the look of each coin to the pictures, laying them down and then adding them up. It’s a lot of skills at one time for a person who is seven.
“46!” he says.
“Yes!” I say.
He smiles a very big smile.
We keep going. My two other students are moving a little more slowly. But “K” is going along swimmingly. Sometimes this happens and then the faster student overtakes the more slowly processing students. I try my best to intervene so everyone gets a chance to solve and feel successful. I do the best I can with all the bathroom breaks asked for, questions on if I am coming back, how old I am, how many children I have… I remember many struggling students looking for an ESCAPE.
And then it is over. We are done and I go back into the classroom. It is time for the students to go to lunch and for me to get on my way.
“Bye!” I say.
“Bye!” they say. “Are you coming back?”
“Yes.” I say. I will be back next week.
Now I get a bunch of smiles.
I walk out of the building.
I think: That was fun.
And I also think: But I am glad I do not do it all day long.
Teaching is a beautiful, exhausting, heartbreaking and wonderful calling. Do you know a teacher, reader? Maybe today you can thank that person for what they do. It is not easy.
Thank you teachers.
Thank you.
Dedicated to all the teachers out there working everyday to serve their communities. Thank you for your service.
Summerhead 