Substituting

I put in a half-day in a fifth grade class yesterday--substituting.  It was at the school I retired from so I knew some of the people.  It was nice to see old friends, but there are lots of new faces there too, including the principal.  All in all, it was not really the same school.  The students, however, are pretty much the same.  

These kids were the same age as my oldest grandson so I kept trying to visualize him there.   I only spent 3 1/2 hours in that classroom, but I already picked out a couple of students with bright, interested, smiling eyes, a couple of smart, serious thinkers, and at least three who really need reading practice.  These are only my first impressions, but it did remind me how much I enjoy working with kids.  The district/state/federal mandates are usually time consuming and useless.  The students are the important parts of education.

I believe the relationship students have with  good teachers cannot be underestimated.