Oh, the Places You'll Go...

This year, I decided to put my favorite Dr. Seuss quote of all time on my 6th grade language arts class syllabus.  I told my students that it was going to be our class motto this year.  I told them that before I went over any rules, procedures, or curriculum, it was vital that we discussed this quote...

I read it out loud, and then I looked around the room at my new students for the year.  I explained that my job as their teacher this year was to give them the guidance, instruction, and tools that they need to be a successful learner.  I also explained that their parents' jobs were to love them, push them to be respectful and get good grades, and to guide them as they become young adults.  Then, I explained that NONE of that makes ANY difference if THEY don't have the internal drive and determination to be the best they can be.  I gave them that super cheesy idiom, "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink."  I wanted them to begin this school year realizing that they are the ones who will single handedly make the choices and decisions that will make or break their lives as they go through middle and high school, college, and then their careers.  They need to be confident.  They need to be positive.  They need to be great.

Not only did this little quote give my students a confidence boost, and get them excited to start their 6th grade year, but it also gave me a much needed reminder of why I became a teacher in the first place.  Sometimes we need to take a step back from the test scores, standards, and data, and we need to remember that we're the ones who get to witness these amazing children make those choices and decisions that will make or break their lives.  We get to help them through, teach them the skills they need, praise and celebrate them when they succeed, and help them pick up the pieces when they fall.  It may be frustrating at times, and we occasionally may want to give up, but in the end, I wouldn't trade it for the world.  I am proud to be an educator.

If you had a bad day today, and you need a little pick-me-up, or you just need a little positivity in your life right now, watch this video of Dr. Seuss' Oh, the Places You'll Go.  Be careful, you might feel so inspired, and warm and fuzzy inside, that you'll go out and do something fabulous and crazy! Don't say I didn't warn you :)