My patience is running out.
posted by Sarah @ 1:24 PM
9 Comments
Friday, February 27, 2009
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9 Comments:
As I read this article, I wasn't sure I was going to agree with the author. Some of it, maybe the way it was written, I am still not sure I agree with. However, for the most part I do agree. I know that throughout the week and day, I sometimes have challenging moments, sometimes hours. I have had staff say to me that they don't have that kind of patience. I am not sure I do either. I do however, see my role in my classroom as a facilitator of student learning. To me, this means I have to work with my student's needs, which can be challenging, but where they are at the moment. As the author spoke about, I need to have an understanding of where my students are coming from. Once I have that understanding, I may run out of energy, or the knowledge of what to do next, but I should not run out of patience.
Mike, that's what I see in you and in so many of our staff members. We may use the word 'patience', but we really mean 'understanding'. That's why I LOVE being a part of this staff. Everyone thinks about the child first. I know I do my very best to approach each student as a child, a human being. I can tell thousands of stories about how our staff has taken the high road and responded to what's best for kids.
I too like this line of thinking. I have noticed in myself how strongly my own feelings affect my ability to interact with challenging kids. I find that if I can just hang onto the feeling memory of liking the child, then I am not nearly as reactive to what they are doing or saying, even if I am not sure why it is happening.
I once worked with a first grade teacher who repeatedly told her students " You can't wear out my patients!" (in a very kind and humorous way) In the four years that I watched her teach, I never once saw her frustrated or exasperated with her students. She truly loved and understood her students even at their neediest. I liked the term "understanding" that MB used. I also agree that we have an exceptionally kind and understanding staff that responds to our students with care and patience. I do love it here!
This is why I think teachers are "born" into the profession. Effective teachers understand there students needs and know how to motivate them. There is a partnership in the learning experience. Sometimes it can be difficult to truly understand our students and the willingness to try can be exhausting, but the result is worth the effort!
I have never equated patience in a negative manner. And like Mr. B I can't say that I agree with this essay. We could rewrite it with a positive slant and the word would be seen as an asset. And yes understanding would be in that revision.
I am really glad that I am teaching 4th grade and have a daughter in 4th grade. It really helps to understand the age these students are and what they are going through having my own. When I assign homework I think about is this something Clarie can do and will she get it. I have never in my 16 years of teaching gone through the same stages with my child as my students are going through.
I really liked this section. I really feel that it is not worth it to get frustrated with your students especially over the small stuff. Showing lack of patience does show lack of understanding inmost cases. I think about certain students that have been a challenge for me this year and how I handled things differently with them. When I could see myself about to lose my patience I would think of why they were behaving a certain way. It's important to remember that kids come to our classroom in the morning with a lot of baggage. We have don't necessarily know what the morning brought to them or even the evening before, and we can be the ones to show how understanding we are to them.
I think that having "patience" or "understanding" is a huge part of our job as educators. I don't think it's bad to tell the kids that you are on the verge of running out of understanding....I think the more we keep our kids involved in what we are thinking the better. I think it's a skill they need to pick up on and the more we tell them what we are feeling the more they will understand how to read people.
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