Nontraditional Wedding

If future-me had been able to transport herself to my side and whisper, “In 20 years, you will still be teaching, but it will be over the internet,” I would have looked incredulously at the three bulky desktops in the back of the room (whose dial-up was loud and performance was slow) and thought future-me must be a loony tune. “And, in 20 years, during a global pandemic, you will attend a wedding for one of these first graders, but it will be on Zoom.” Now I would probably have suggested that future-me zoom back to where I came from.

Future-me was obviously correct.

Being invited to a wedding (or any special event) serves as an important reminder that relationships are everything. Jordan didn’t invite me to his wedding because I taught him sooooo much, but because of how much fun we had laughing and learning together that year, and because he felt completely valued and loved.

Which brings me to what is really on my heart today. I keep hearing various laments about this new school year and how “Students are so behind!” It makes me want to yell, “Stop!”

We just made it through something extraordinary. What if, instead of starting with a deficit mindset, we all come to school as victorious survivors? Already the tone of the year changes.   

The beauty of so much of what we do is that concepts, skills, and strategies are repeatedly taught, modeled, and practiced, and get more complex as children grow. We always begin where they are, and we will do the same thing this year.

I can’t even imagine what our lives will look like in 20 years. But I know not one of our students will invite us to a special occasion because this was the year that we caught them up. So, let’s take a breath and do what we do best: build relationships, take time to have fun, laugh, and get lost in a great read-aloud every day. Let’s get back to the joy of asking questions, making discoveries, and learning together, which I will never take for granted again.