This week I started a new teaching job at an after school program. Usually when I'm the new adult, I am nearly suffocated by children wanting to be my best friend. But this time, it's different. Granted it's only been three days, but most of the kids hardly look at me. They're nice kids, but it's almost as if they don't know what to make of me -- like they're sizing me up. And a lot of them are just 5 years old ... I just couldn't figure it out.
Then today it all made sense. A few Kindergartners were drawing with colored pencils at a table, and I didn't recognize them so I walked up and knelt down to introduce myself. I told them my name, and said that I'd be there every day. "Every day?" a mousy brown-haired girl asked. Then she challenged, "You're not going to be here every day. Some day you'll leave." This took me aback. So this is why they have been so guarded. "Yeah," the boy with white-blond hair next to her chimed in,"and some days you'll be sick, and other days you won't come because you're on vacation." Damn! These kids had been through this before. "You're right," I said. "One day I will leave. But I hope I can be here for a long time." They didn't seem phased, and ducked their heads to continue coloring.
No comments:
Post a Comment