A Good Day

 I had the opportunity today to teach two seventh grade classes more about the American Revolution. I can’t say that I have a favorite class (out of the six) because I enjoy working with all of them, but I really appreciate the seventh graders because they are always eager to learn and ask questions. To start off, myself and Mrs. Muir asked the students questions to review what they already know about the war. Once we finished this, I taught the students a new lesson about the Revolution as it moved to the southern colonies. I had several grumbles when I announced that they would be taking notes. I made a cheesy comment about how I knew they loved to take notes which, gladly, got them to laugh a little. I took pleasure in my small success. They only had to take about a half a page of notes, which in my opinion is nothing, but to them, of course, is everything. After this, the seventh graders were then able to start on their homework for tomorrow. Overall, it was a great morning! In the afternoon, the eighth graders took an open note quiz based on the notes sheet that I did with them two weeks ago. I started to grade them (haven’t quite finished yet) and was pleasantly surprised to see that the majority of students are doing very, very well. This made my day, because I now feel like I have successfully taught them something.

Mentioning homework above, I find it very amusing how the teenage (specifically middle school teens) mind views the topic of homework. A seventh grader questioned today “Why do we even have homework? People’s parents just do it for them.” I don’t know about anybody else, but my parents have never once offered to do my homework for me. Maybe I should get new parents. I realized after a few minutes of attempted persuasion that trying to convince the young mind otherwise was going to be a lost cause. As a senior in high school, I’d like to think that I have developed an appreciation for learning. Despite the fact that I may not always want to do the work, I have come to understand the importance of homework, papers, and projects. They are a reflection of what we (students) have learned and an indicator for our teachers as to how well they have taught us. Hopefully, the student will one day come to realize what I am now reluctantly admitting. Yes, no matter how much I may not like to do it, homework really is beneficially for learning.