Saturday, May 17, 2014

Saturday Sayings: Grace



Back in the olden days when I gave spelling tests and each child was tested on the same words, I was doing the best with what I knew.  When my writers were locked into one piece a day because I had to look at what they wrote, I was doing the best with what I knew.  When I was providing math strategies instead of allowing my mathematicians to solve problems in ways that made sense to them, I was doing the best with what I knew.  

I could go on and on.  Over my twenty years of teaching, naturally I've left a trail of constantly changing practices.  As the sayings goes, I was doing the best with what I knew.  The main thing is that I was doing my best.  I'm reminded to give myself a break when I think about the kind of education I provide my students now compared to twenty years ago or even only five.  I'm beyond grateful that my best continually expands and becomes better.  

It also reminds me to give others a break.  I will admit that it's easy to be critical when I hear of certain practices that are occurring in classrooms.  I'm required to show others the same grace that I show myself in light of the changes I've made over the years.  I often envision the teaching profession as a long path that seems to have no end.  It's scattered with teachers but all at different points.  They're all moving, some faster and some slower.  Then I spot myself.  I can see how far I've come.  I look back to where I used to be and there are many teachers at that point.  I must show them grace.  I can also look ahead to where I'd like to be and I see many teachers up there as well.  I hope they show me grace. 

I know that the moral of Allington's quote is that our students are impacted by our best.  Wherever we happen to be on the path of this profession, our best must constantly become better.  The more we know, the better off our students will be.  And along the way, we can show grace both to ourselves and others.  



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22 comments:

  1. This is so good, Mac. This makes me want to see your book published--and published in the way you envision it. Stick to your stubborn guns.

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    1. Laur, I'll stick to them. Surely someone out there will think I've got something worthwhile to say.

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  2. Each week I look forward to your Saturday Sayings...this one is especially powerful! Thanks for writing these...
    kcahcrim@comcast.net

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    1. Christine, this means a lot to me. Thank you for letting me know.

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  3. This so resonates with me. I have changed my teaching so much over the years in the hopes that with new information and education that I am moving towards better teaching practices. We are all at different places in our journeys- as long as we are moving forward and not standing still then we are headed in the right direction!
    Lori
    Conversations in Literacy

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    1. Lori, you no doubt have so blessed your students with the way you continually strive for your best.

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  4. Great point, Tammy. And applicable to so many area of life. I know I'm guilty of being too critical of others sometimes--teaching styles, parenting choices, etc. It is a good reminder to look at myself, where I've come from and where I'm headed.

    Crystal

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    1. Crystal, I'm guilty too. I needed this probably more than anyone else.

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  5. Beautifully written!
    I've been sitting on a bench beside my path for awhile, but I just went to an amazing workshop so now I'm inspired to make more changes in my own teaching again :)
    Grade ONEderful

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    1. Barb, professional development like that sure does opens our eyes to better teaching practices.

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  6. "I'm required to show others the same grace that I show myself in light of the changes I've made over the years." This means so much. I work hard to let people grow as they need to. I hope people will do the same for me. Thank you for this reminder.

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    1. Kimberley, I can see you being very good at this. I surely need the reminder.

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  7. Great post Tammy. I struggle with this all the time, especially this year. It is so so true that we are constantly changing and need to commit to always looking forward to best practices. But what do we do when coworkers don't care, don't look into best practices and do the least amount of work possible??! It makes my heart hurt for the kids.

    Kelli

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    1. Kelli, While I was typing this, I was thinking of the people who, like you mentioned, are stuck in misconceptions and don't do much about it or try to better themselves. They are out there. I guess in those situations, we can only continue to worry about our own kids and what's going on in our own classrooms. Frustrating, huh?

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  8. Thank you. I needed this. I have not been showing the grace that I should be showing. And I needed this reminder. Now I need to act on the reminder.
    em
    Curious Firsties

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    1. Em, I think most of us are in need of more grace.

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  9. So true! I was cleaning out my garage a few weeks ago and came across some paperwork from one of my first classes. I had LEP kiddos and I know I did not know what that meant back then-I know I didn't do anything different for them. We have to keep trying new things and learning new strategies-if I ever stop doing that I know it will be time to retire! :)
    NotJustChild'sPlay

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    1. Miss Trayers, yep when we find ourselves in the same spot on that professional path, we know it's time to hop off.

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  10. I went through some boxes from my first teaching job last weekend that had been tucked into my parents attic and forgotten about. All of the things in those boxes I threw away. My teaching practice has changed so much that my old materials are useless to me. This is my favorite Saturday saying so far.

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    1. Tara, I'm glad this one resonated with you. It feels good to purge that old stuff that doesn't mesh with current practices, huh?

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  11. Good one, Tammy! I need to extend grace to myself sometimes, and to other teachers who do things differently than I do.
    Sara

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