A Good Day

I had a really good day at school on Friday; one of those days that reminds you why you are teaching to begin with. It started first thing when I went into Benjamin's classroom and deposited his ghost eraser in front him. Not a word was exchanged; but volumes was said. Remember the Cheshire cat of Alice in Wonderland? Benjamin's face exactly, just a smile, that took over his face.

I have thirty students on my role who are at-risk readers; almost all of them are making some progress. But what really defined my day was a little boy named DeMarcus. I call him impish; his classroom teacher has him behind a barricade. He is a handful and loves to color outside of the lines--if you know what I mean. I've had trouble with him following directions; he likes to buck the system. Last week he completed a beautiful back-flip, in the hallway, as the group was walking to my classroom. If you remember anything from your school days; back-flips in the hallway are not acceptable.

So this week I tried something new; I held his hand as we walked to my room. His hand was limp in mine; these children (from the projects) are not used to tender touches. Friday as we were walking, I felt his fingers wrap around my hand, just slightly-but progress was made. There is something that I don't know if his classroom teacher is aware of, DeMarcus loves to read and he loves books. He doesn't have books at his house, that's just the way it is. I asked him if he would like to borrow some books for the weekend; and now I have a friend for life.

I really had a good day!