Dear Students,
We are nearing the end of the year and it seems like all we want to do is be outside and not focus on the books. We teachers are all fighting custody battles over you trying to get last minute things done (I will be fighting hard for some of you this week)! I know this time of the year is especially difficult on you. I know that you are dreaming of summer days and a little less responsibility. I am feeling it as well. I am not wanting to be in the classroom and the last thing I want to focus on is writing and grading tests. This month of May is going to pass before our eyes and we will be in the summer months.
Before we get there, I wanted you to know a few things. I know it sometimes feels like teachers are out to get you and we are analyzing your every move. The truth is that we care about you. If we are hard on you, it is because we want to get the best out of you. We want you to reach your full potential. I know that many of you don’t like being pushed out of your comfort zones because I don’t like being pushed out of my comfort zone. In fact, when I was in high school I didn’t go out of my comfort zone very often because I didn’t like it. Here is the secret though, you grow so much more when you are pushed out of your comfort zone. You learn way faster and you remember deeper than you would have if you weren’t feeling the discomfort. It is just downright good for you to step out of your comfort zone.
High school can be a hard time in everyone’s life. There are many pressures especially with all of the activities we see you all participating in. Some of you get home really late from games and are expected to be ready for a test the next day. Some of you work late shifts and still need to be able to do your homework after work. We know that you guys are over-committed to many different activities. Pressure is high and times can be difficult. We don’t want to add any more burdens to your life. We want to be adults in your lives that enhance your life rather than add to the stress. I know that we often do add to your stress.
There are a few things that I don’t care about as your teacher. I don’t care if you win homecoming king or queen, break records with your athletic abilities, get a great ACT score and earn a high GPA, or if you drive the nicest vehicle in the parking lot (or in our case, the street). It’s not that these things aren’t good things or things to be celebrated, but they are not necessary for me to like you or respect you as a person. The things I do care about from you are that you are respectful, kind, compassionate, and that you live with integrity. When you leave our school, I want people to wonder where you came from because they are so impressed with the way you live your life. I want you to be good husbands and wives and good parents. I want you to be dependable employees and good citizens in your future communities. I want you to be people that cares about others.
Some of you may have made some mistakes in your life. I don’t want you to think that the teachers don’t care about you because of a mistake or many mistakes. The truth of the matter is that we adults have made many mistakes in our lives as well. Some of us are still making them. 🙂 What I care about as your teacher is how you deal with the mistakes after you have made them. Living with integrity means that you apologize when you make mistakes and turn from them. We care about you guys no matter what you do. That doesn’t mean we think your behavior was acceptable, but it means that we don’t stop caring about you when your behavior is unacceptable. We don’t want you to hide in shame. We want you to face your consequence, learn from it, and move on.
You may wonder why I am writing this. I write this because I want you to know that you are cared about. You have many adults pouring into your life, and I want you to be encouraged to live a life that’s worth living. We don’t want to see you get sucked into activities that are not life giving. We want you to have the brightest future that you can. I don’t think anyone gets into the teaching profession without the passion to enhance their student’s lives. So students, you are cared about, you are seen, and we hope the best for you. In this last month of school, let’s be quick to forgive and work hard even if we are not motivated to. Let’s go into summer happy that we finished our school year strong and know that when you come back in the fall, you come back to plenty of adults who care about you.