It's the Thought that Counts

I've been back to work for 4 days. I'll blog on my experience going back to work in another post. One of my students, A, labeled the troublemaker by his previous teacher and my substitute, and therefore sits by himself in the back of the room, is actually not a troublemaker. He just gets labeled and is misunderstood. Sure, he can't keep his mouth shut and can't keep his hands to himself, but overall, he's a good kid. I think he just needs someone to give him positive feedback and love him. Instead of barking at him all the time as he has experienced, I like to talk to him, get to know him, encourage him, and just give him a chance.

This morning, A ran up to me thrusting a weird flat object in my hands. I can see that he used binder paper to wrap something up. He said, "Mrs. Light, this present is for you. I went everywhere to look for something just right, and I finally found it at Target. I hope you like it." The rest of the day, he kept telling me he hoped I liked it, sharing clues as to what it is. Sometimes, I joke at how I get odd and lame gifts from the Dollar Tree when some of my other teacher friends who have students from wealthier families get showered with lavish, expensive, and wonderful gifts. But quite honestly, I rather have a gift like the one from A. Something insignificant and not worth much, crudely wrapped in binder paper. Because I know it came from the heart and that I showed enough love, compassion, and just gave him a chance that he would go "everywhere to look for something" to show me how much he cared about me too.