Every time I volunteer at their school I am always very impressed by their work ethic, their kindness, and specially their patience towards all the different types of personalities they deal with daily.
What is it that makes them great? Here are a a few things I noticed that they do, that inspire me to try to be a better parent, and soon a better educator to my children (We are home schooling for 6 months, more on that in a later post):
1. They listen to the kids- They take the time to stop, look at the children in the eyes, and are genuinely interested in what happened to each of the kids. From listening to the stories about "their grandma's dog who is named after a gun" to what each of those children did over the weekend, and who got poked by whom. They listen with kindness, and their full attention.
2. They are patient- Today I noticed my son's grade 2 teacher was "reminded" by at least 2 or more kids that she needed to do the attendance, after she had done it. Each time, she thanked them for remembering this important part of school, and smiled at them, at no time it felt like she was annoyed at all. How do they do that?!
3. They keep their voices down- At church we are taught to listen to the still small voice, the teachers that my kids have had so far exemplify this so well. This is how I believe God talks to us, in a still small voice.They, our Woodbine teachers, do not yell, at least I have not heard them yell, and for the most part the kids respond to them.
4. The smile a lot! Thank you for doing this Mrs. L-J and Mrs. Ellis, and Mrs. ES, Ms. Parker, Ms. K, Mrs. Part, Mr. Wolfe and so many more of you!
5. They prepare- A lot of preparation goes into all the work our children do daily. All those papers we parents photocopy represent hours of research of ways to teach our children about Math, Science, Community, and so much more.
6. They put my mind at ease, they emphasize the positive in my children, while giving me tips about how to help my kids succeed.
7. They spend time with the kids, and have fun with them. I imagine that a classroom full of active 2nd graders, and 6th graders is not always fun, but boy I hear nice things. "Mom, Mrs. LJ dances on tables, is funny, and nice", "Mrs. Ellis remembers our birthdays and has special birthday gum for us."
So for me volunteering is so much more than just photocopying, cutting, and gluing. It is a chance to see my kids in action at school, to see what, and how they learn, and to learn from those very skilled individuals. Oh, I know they are not perfect, but today as I reflected on them, they came pretty close! Thank you Woodbine!
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