I am...

I had to write this poem for Education100 a few weeks ago...

I Am

I am compassionate and helpful.
I believe that children are the future.
I wonder if my students will like me, or think I'm crazy.
I hear the giggles of kids as they learn something important through humor.
I see a classroom of kids looking up to me, waiting for the next example.
I want to help make the world a better place.
I am compassionate and helpful.

I pretend like I am a little girl every day, to escape stress.
I feel like schools don't have passionate teachers anymore.
I touch the hearts of my past teachers by taking examples from them.
I worry that I might be that one teacher every kid thinks is crazy.
I cry when I see parents belittling their children in stores.
I believe that I can make a difference in those kids' lives.
I am compassionate and helpful.

I understand that not every kid is going to like me.
I say never give up what you want most for what you want right now.
I dream about a day where I can see my students graduate.
I try to help every child that I meet.
I hope that I will be an important part of many lives.
I believe that education is the biggest investment in the future.
I am compassionate and helpful.

It seems like everything I am coincides with everything that Esmé Raji Codell is too. If you haven't read her book, Educating Esmé: Diary of a First Year Teacher yet, I suggest you get it. It's only like a 200 page paperback that'll take you maybe three hours to finish. It's really worth the ten dollars or so, depending on where you get it. It really helps to exhibit the problems inherent in the education system today. You can read more about her at her wesbite, http://www.planetesme.com/.