Joy In The Midst of Struggles

Looking back on the last six months of this year it has been filled with the unknown, ups and downs, but has truly been the best six months of my life. I keep thinking back to that first week of student teaching and doubting myself about being able to teach a 5/6 grade SDC. I was so focused on the position of being an RSP teacher and that was all I wanted. Then i get placed in a SDC and i was like oh no i can't do this. Well boy oh boy am I glad I stuck it through and trusted the plans of the Lord. These students of mine have truly become my children. I mean how can they not be? you are with them from the crack of dawn into the afternoon. You are there for every struggle, melt down, happy moments, and moments where the light bulb goes off. These kids have accepted me and see me as any other teacher and I could not have asked for a better class. Additionally, I was able to sub other classes during this time and even those kiddos accepted me and treated me with the respect of any

The past two school days I have subbed a first and second grade class and boy is it a different experience but i loved it so much. Some of the students asked me "why do you talk funny?" I used to run away from this question and be like uhhh well...... However, now it shows me how much I have grown to accepting my disability and realize kids just accept me for who i am. so now the conversation goes like this: student: "you talk funny" me: "i know right" student: giggles...why? me: well i was born this way student: oh okay see one thing i have come to realize is that kids are just curious. they are not saying it to be mean but they are just curious. and once you explain to them then they take it and move on. simple as that. they just wanna know this same day there was a substitute aide in the classroom. I met her one time before and she told me an interesting thought. she was like "i just love how the kids accept you like anybody else and they