Today...

So today had some moments of greatness and some moments of not so greatness.... But over all, I'm laying here in bed feeling like it was a pretty successful last wednesday with the kids. My lesson was awesome and it really proved to me how important it is to know your kids and know their limits. I pushed my kids today and they responded with enthusiasm and excitement... Can't ask for anything better than that now can we? I really was proud of how far my lessons have come from the beginning of the year and I think (...maybe?) I am beginning to grasp the important balance between performing for the kids on the fly and having a solid plan behind me to structure the conversation. Balancing being able to change lessons depending how the kids react to keeping with what the lesson says exactly is one of the hardest parts of being a teacher I think, one I hope to adjust everyday for every lesson. Other awesome part of the day? Having awesome thought provoking conversations with my fellow interns... All in unexpected ways but all making me realize how much this group of people impact my life and will continue to for a while... Despite our ideas of different experiences and thinking we know certain things about schools or other classrooms... Until we experience either teaching for real or anything nearly as difficult... The truth of it is.... now this is a big secret so don't share it ok?.... well, teachers (read: EVERYONE) don't know everything... we don't know everything about every subject ( i learned a new word today: lattice), we don't know everything about everyone (I learned that one of my co-interns figured out a cool pattern I never would have seen if not for her eyes and her knowledge) and we don't know everything about ANYTHING.... The great part about living in this day and age is that we are discovering new things all the time... I am preparing my kids for jobs that DO NOT EVEN EXIST YET.... The best part about all of this?.... It's ok. It's ok to not know everything. It's ok to be surprised once in a while and most importantly, it's ok to be who you are. So own what you know and recognize the gaps in your own knowledge... I promise... It's OK