Going the Extra Mile - Caring
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Everybody loves someone who will go above and beyond what they need to. A person will always pick a service that is done better than a service done worse if they are offered at the same price. So, in order to make everyone feel comfortable even when thing get shaky, a struggle bus driver really needs to go above the standard of care. They need to do whatever they can to keep the passengers feeling safe and happy.
This is by far the most important part of my teaching career, in my opinion. When I sign my teaching contract I feel like I am signing a contract for the way I treat and care about my students. I feel like I make a promise to be there and do whatever possible to make sure they know that I love and care for them. Being in Mississippi, where I know next to no one and know very little about the area, has given me so much time to dive into the life of West Point High School. These students mean the world to me and I try to be a positive influence on them whenever I can. I try to be there for each of our extracurriculars as much as possible. I've attended band and choir concerts, soccer games, softball games, honors hour, and even a graduated seniors gender reveal party. The ones I am most involved in are basketball and football though. I follow the basketball team to every game and attend dinners they put on to earn money for their program. The football team is definitely the sport I'm the most engaged in. I follow the students to every game, home and away. At home games I am in the press box helping the coaches spot to record who makes each play. At away games when the press box is tiny, I go down to the field with the coaches and spot from the sidelines. The football coaches call me a "parent teacher." They say I attend the games and bring the kids goodies so much that at times it seems like I should be a parent even if I'm only a teacher. I bring the students brownies at important games and make goodie bags for the senior athletes with personal hand written notes about each students highlighting their strengths that will carry them far in life. Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday after school I stay for tutoring. The tutoring times are only supposed to be from 3:30-4:30, but I have students who have stayed till 5:30 or 6:00, when the building finally closes down. The students know I will work with them in any way after school to ensure not only that their grades are good, but that they fully grasp the material that is being taught. Aside from academics, I try to give each student a reason to smile every day. Any student at West Point will tell you Ms. Waddell is a goofy person. I will dance, sing, throw my hands up and run around my classroom all in the same class period if it means my students smile or laugh for even the brief time they interact with me. I stand at my door at the start of each class period to welcome each student with a smile. I take it upon myself to be whatever the students need. I've been a phone technician at a game when a student needed his screen protector put on. I've been a seamstress who saves a girl whose button popped off the front of her blouse and a football player who ripped the name off the back of his jersey. I've been a cobbler who fixes soles that are about to come off the bottom of sandals. I've been a witch doctor (as the kids call it) who treats scars with "some weird sticky stuff" (vitamin E, which can help reduce the appearance of scars if used regularly). I've been a nurse who performs minor surgeries, such as removing a splinter from a student's hand which had become infected. I've been a cheerleader when a student was down so low because of some family issues that arose. And I've been a coach or trainer, who despite what else is going on in a student's life is unwilling to let them give up on their work. I've been honored to be apart of two very special events at West Point High School. First, the seniors on the basketball team were asked to give their jersey to a teacher who has inspired them. The teacher was to wear the jersey to school the day of one of their games, attend the game and be recognized, and complete an interview with the local news station. In my first year teaching at West Point, one of my players came to my room with his jersey and his letter. Tears filled my eyes as I read the letter and the joy in my heart is still indescribable. My second heart warming experience was from this year. One of the students that took my physical science class last year, and then had me again this year for chemistry, is now a senior. He is a member of the basketball team and he came to me the day of senior night. He explained that his parents and family could not attend the game and asked if I would be his escort onto the court when his name was called. I always let the kids know how much they mean to me, but I never expected a student to ask me to be their escort. In a town as small as West Point, most students are related to half the other students and even some of the teachers. For an outsider like me to come in and be embraced by these students so willingly has been one of the most rewarding things about this career. |