To Past, Present and Future Journeys

Today, I celebrated my official last day with some of the most wonderful children I could have ever hoped to have. I journeyed with some of these students all four years of this leg of my career. Each one holds a special place in my heart and will be an inspiration as I move forward.

Four years ago, I walked through the door of an invigorating and motivating opportunity. I had been transferred to my current location after 3 years of working in a high school setting. I walked through the door not knowing what to expect. When I mentioned to colleagues where I landed, I got many a "We are so sorry. They are a rough bunch." But I was never one to listen to the status quo and when I met my first crop of children, I was impressed with their intelligence and hunger to learn.

That first year, a new worldwide initiative was started called Hour of Code. That initiative was started out of a necessity, a realization that over the course of the next ten years, employers would need 10 MILLION coding positions with a possibility of $15 BILLION in income to be filled by the 100,000 entered Computer Science majors at the college level. Someone realized that part of the problem was that students were not being exposed to coding prior to getting to college even though they used technology on a daily basis. Hour of Code was designed to expose students to coding both with online and offline activities so coding would not be a foreign concept to them later in life. That first year, I jumped on this opportunity for my students and my school was awarded the very first Hour of Code Award with a prize of $10,000 for the purchase of new technology.

Also, that first year, I went out on maternity leave right before state testing. I was the first of three to do so. In march, I gave birth to my third child, to whom I  lovingly refer to as my "Almost Pi Baby". When I returned to school, I was not given back the students I had been with all year. Instead, I was asked to take over for another teacher that had gone out on sick leave. I was given no curriculum or guidance as to what I was suppose to do with these students. So, I asked for use of the computer lab which hadn't been used much all year. I continued to show this new crop of students in grades 5th-8th what coding was and I taught them that computers can be used for something other than ridiculous YouTube videos and video games.

The following year, I was asked to teach the Math Enrichment class. I was told I could create the entire curriculum and I would have 5th - 6th grade. I continued the work I started my first year. I involved the entire school in the Hour of Code again. I engaged my students in game-based math programs and I introduced them all to something called "digital citizenship". That year I was also involved in the grand "Redesign Initiative" that put the blended learning I had started in my classroom as a full school initiative. Prior to my being at this location, computers were in a handful of classrooms and used to keep kids busy, not with any real intent or purpose.

The next year, the students I had in 5th grade my first year and 6th grade my second year were now 7th grade students sitting in my mathematics classroom. I had a familiarity with these students and their parents, but the journey we continued on exposed them to more possibilities. The worksheets that they craved were no longer an option. They had to think, problem-solve and design solutions on their own. They had to own their shared responsibility in our social media driven world. And though they struggled and fought me the entire way, they proved that they were better than the statistics everyone kept throwing at them and were beginning to soar on their own merits.

Which brings us to this year. I have had these beautiful, intelligent human beings for four years, four amazing and rewarding years. And it is with some sadness that I am letting them go. But it is also with pride that I send them off on the next leg of their journey. Pride in the knowledge that I have helped prepare them to be the best they can be, to strive beyond what they think they can do and be masters of their own futures.

This year, I took 18 talented students to the Regional PA Computer Fair. 12 of them placed in the top 3 teams and one of those teams placed 1st. That team moved on to States competing against some of the best and brightest in the state. Both my regional and state competitors did more than show the world how bright and talented they were. They were also exposed to new opportunities and possibilities for their futures. This microcosm of children that I had the honor and pleasure of calling my students is truly representative of all the students I have touched in my four years at this location. And I look forward to hearing how their journey progresses.

So, to the class of 2021, thank you for all that you taught me, for pushing me to always be MY best and for accepting me as one of your mentors these last four years. I love you and am proud of all you do and have accomplished.