Thursday's Thought

One of my favorite parents said to me on Halloween that it was days, like Halloween, that we teachers, at the Garden School, have the very best jobs! In some ways that's true. But from a place behind the scenes, it's really a whole lot of work.

What few realize is how hard the extras are to deliver with the high expectation of children, and the additional load of managing it all with a smile. Just caring for forty children for ten hours a day is a tough call in itself, but when the excitement gets high, and the children are wearing two sets of clothes, and are traveling, and eating out, it could get a little hairy, so the watchful eye can never take a break.

What if one child tumbles off the bus from five feet up, and breaks every tooth out and cracks his or her head on a sidewalk curb... one child accidentally steps on an elderly man's foot at the nursing home, and breaks it causing the man to scream in pain. A child's costume is covered in pizza and then torn in the bus door making his time at school a tearful hateful time. A child has to use the toilet and doesn't tell, and destroys his costume and embarrasses himself to the point he can't continue for the day.

These are the things that go through a teacher's head all day long. Fortunately, at the Garden School discipline is in full swing even on fun days. That means the word "NO" is a constant, and the little give or bend in the deportment can't give or bend. It's a high energy job for high energy people, an energy that must be maintained till the last parent leaves in the late afternoon. Teachers can't just turn the morning and afternoon over to the others. It's on every teacher's shoulders and there is no break.

So why bother?

The answer is the same every time someone asks. We bother because it's very important to children. It helps them learn about culture and others within their culture. It helps them socialize, and understand. It exposes them to things they would ordinarily, in other places, not experience at all. These outings and experiences will stay with them all their lives.

But that doesn't ease the stress or the strict government of the day. That's why summer is such a stress loading time. We take 40 children to the pool twice a week, and on Fridays we take them to many places including other cities. These are high stress days for teachers.

Next week we begin the play, and a new stress is on. Will they learn their lines? Will they be able to perform? How will they receive the play? Will they enjoy it? Can we make it really fun?

But from behind the scenes, I can honestly say that we have done a wonderful job this year teaching, and as I listen to four year olds count to one hundred and sixty en Francais, and when I know that the entire kindergarten is already reading, and are beginning to navigate with big numbers, and are learning vocabulary words most sixth graders wouldn't recognize, it does allow for some R&R during the day.

With much affection for all who make this project a successful one, I say, Thank you!