That's exactly how I feel about Pine Ridge and the school I work at. I absolutely love this place. Sometimes teachers get bogged down in the messiness of teaching itself-the curriculum, constant assessments, and the discipline. This school has such a sense of community. There are numerous cousins in each grade. All of the kids run around during school sports games. It's great. I can see several of my bus kids all at one event and their parents.
Today was one of the best days in a long time. I honestly just goofed off with my kids. For once I just let my teaching go for a bit and had fun with them. We sang camp songs on the way to morning mass. Yes, camp songs. We experimented with our geometric shapes and traced the flat surfaces. While it may have been chaotic they loved every minute of it. It was such a hands on activity that they almost didn't know what to do with it. We made a prewrite, first draft, final draft, and a title page for a book about leaves. They turned out awesome! The kids were exhausted after their day of writing so we had two half an hour recesses. That never happens. We played "around the world" with our sight words. We practiced our Christmas songs and watched a movie about Thanksgiving. I stopped worrying about what it meant to be a "good" teacher for a bit and let it all just flow. I let my creative camp counselor persona come back. It was glorious. We sang more songs on the way to the buses. The kids were giggling up a storm so we had to stop the line for a bit because they couldn't walk. They were busting their seams with laughter. God I love this place, my job, and my amazing kids.
I love teaching and seeing the kids grow up. Thinking back three months ago, I wouldn't believe that I could be at this place in my job right now. Tomorrow morning, I'm leaving on a Greyhound bus for Chicago to go back home for Thanksgiving. Truthfully I didn't expect to feel this way about leaving Red Cloud for a bit. At the end of the day I dropped my kids off on their buses. When I got to the end of the bus line, I had a moment of panic. I wouldn't see my little ones for six whole days. I immediately got back on each bus and asked for hugs from them. On one bus we have seven kindergarten kids. I got on and said, "I won't see you for a whole week." They swarmed me with hugs and a bunch of "We already miss you"'s. This is it. I'm turning into a real teacher. I don't know if I could ever work at a school anywhere else.
Red Cloud has become my home. These kids have become my own kids, all 20 of them. Amidst their laughter, tears, and questions these wonderful little ones have taught me what it means to truly care about a community and its' future. I want to see these kids graduate and go onto college. They deserve the best. So many of them come from unstable homes. But, my students are applying what they are learning in school. You can see their will to make the best of a situation. They will become amazing leaders of this community.
In less than 36 hours I'll be in Indiana. I'll be visiting with my favorite camper, Grace, and catching up on life. It's hard to believe that she's already 16. I still remember the days of sitting by the lake with her, eating pudding without utensils, sharing our hearts, pranking Wea, and knowing that we were put in each other's life for a reason. She makes me feel at home no matter where we are. Camp Tecumseh friendships are unique. They never seem to fade. It's hard to believe that we started our friendship journey when she was 12 and I was 19. Boy does time fly.......
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