Welcome To The Classroom

It has been a while since I last posted. This year has been challenging but promising. I have learned a lot about myself; better yet, I have been reminded of things I already know but weren’t putting into action. When the school year started, I was not in a good place. I had a lot of resentment, anger, and frustration that was clouding my vision. Sadly, I took all of that with me into the classroom. I tried to be fun, happy, and excited for the kids, and I thought I was doing a good job masking how I felt. In reality, my students saw right through me. Yes, we had our good days, but most days, I wasn’t in a good place, and my students were affected the most.

In my class, I lean heavily on teaching life skills needed to succeed in whatever environment my students find themselves. One of these principles that I teach is reflection. Reflection is vital to understanding where we are, how we got to where we are, and discovering the areas in our lives that need improvement to help us be better. Here’s the problem: I know the value and importance of reflection. However, I wasn’t reflecting on myself. I was just angry and bitter. If I had taken the time to understand the “Why” behind my feelings and emotions, I would have been able to fix my problems so that I could be at my best for my students. Nevertheless, because of my lack of reflection, I was creating a significant problem for my students and the classroom.

It wasn’t until I sat down and started reflecting on my pedagogy and class that I realized that I was a major factor in why my students were not performing well or not caring about their learning. Even though I tried to stay positive in class, my lousy attitude rubbed off on them. Kids have a keen ability to see through our BS and look at the real us. Students are bright, and they can pick up on attitude and emotion better than we think they can. How hard we try to hide our frustration, anger, or irritation doesn’t matter. Students will still pick up on all of it.

Once I realized that I was the main reason my students were not doing well, I started to fix the problem – ME. I needed to deal with my anger, frustration, and irritation, or else I would be a disservice to my students, and that is the last thing I wanted to be. Once I fixed myself, I could be who my students needed me to be. I also started to have more fun with my students and enjoyed being in the classroom again. My students also saw the change, and they began to mimic my attitude and started doing much better in class.

I want to ask you some questions. How are you doing? It doesn’t matter what your career might be. Are you forcing a smile to get through the day? Are you feeling frustrated, burnt out, run-down? Are you trying to fake it till you make it? If you can say yes to any of these, then you need to stop, breathe, and take a minute to reflect. Maybe you are stressing over work politics. You may be walking through some valleys in your personal life. You may have lost sight of why you started doing what you are now. Whatever it might be, take a minute to stop, breathe, and reflect. 

One of the best ways to do this is learning how to detach. Many times, we tend to take things personally. When we do this, we get tunnel vision and can no longer see beyond the problem. The more we focus on the issue, the bigger the problem becomes. When we learn to detach, we take a step back and get a broader view of the situation. Yes, the problem is still there, but instead of focusing solely on the issue, we can now look for solutions or remedies to said problem. “You have to detach from those emotions—step back from them a little so they don’t control you.” (Jocko Willink). 

When we detach, we can take a breath and gain a better perspective. At that moment, we start to find clarity in what we are dealing with. We can begin to manage our feelings and emotions better. We can also start to let go of what we cannot control. If you can get to that point, you will see your problems, frustrations, and whatever it is that may be irritating you start to diminish. You will find it easier to take on a new attitude that brings joy and positivity. From there, you will begin to see a change in everything around you, and you will once again remember why you chose to do what you are doing in the first place.  

Our attitudes and actions are contagious. If we are not in a good place, we will project that onto others, no matter how hard we try to mask it. Take a step back and reflect on you. If you blame others for your attitude, you will never find peace within yourself. If you take ownership of your actions and attitude without blaming others, you will find relief. The only person or thing we can control is ourselves. It is no one’s fault that we act or feel in specific ways. We must dig deep within ourselves, detach from the situation or problem, and take ownership of our actions and feelings. When we can do that, we’ll find that freedom is right around the corner.