You know that kid, the one that sneaks in the door each morning trying not to be seen?
I see you! I greet you each morning, trying to get you to talk. Sure, I am the school administrator and I get you are not a fan. That is ok, still wish you would talk. Every day you walk in the school, always on time and zip passed me as if I am not even there. Occasionally a staff member gets a smile out of you, but you continue your journey at a brisk walk. I must confess; I don’t see you in your daily interactions with other teacher and your peers. Your heads always down, why? I hope you are not sad. I wonder if you have any close friends. I sure hope so. I think I need to stop you and visit with you for a bit, just to check in. To let you know I appreciate you made it to school today.
How many times have we seen students like this? Those students who are no trouble at all and are very quiet. These are the kids that get passed over sometimes. The super quiet kids who do everything they are told and are never in trouble and at times lack acknowledgement from adults. We don’t mean to do that; they are just quiet good kids that we think are alright. How do we know they are alright? I worry about this a lot.
One of my first years teaching down in Texas, my principal at the time did a cool activity at one of our staff meetings. Each teacher was given different colored dots. One color represented a close positive relationship with a student, and another color dot was used for an average but not as close relationship with a student. The final color dot was for students we did not know much about. Then we had to take our dots and place them on a list next to a student’s name we felt met that good relationship, an average relationship, and students we did not know well. This visual exercise was an eye-opening experience I will never forget. Kids we missed or passed over was sad. We had a great staff; truly amazing people and I know without a doubt they never intended to miss these precious kiddos. It was a reminder of the important role we take on every year. I have the luxury of being in a small school, where we know all our kids. Yet still there are a few we miss. Watch for the quiet, well behaved students who try to go unnoticed. Go out of your way to make them feel welcomed and valued.
Do you have a student trying to be missed?
If you really thought about it, how close are you with all your students?
Take a moment and jot down things you know about your kiddos.
How are you showing you appreciate each student in your classrooms?
I hope this post speaks to you and makes you think of those kids. Have a great week and as always, I look forward to your feedback.
