Scan teacher social media and you will see all sorts of gifts that teachers give to their students. Silver plated ornaments, copper plated ornaments, borax crystals, pencils with their names on them, chemistry themed cookies. The list goes on and on. Those are all great ideas. But they aren’t the best gift. The best gift you can give a kid at Christmas is a fan. A big, fat, raging fan. It’s you. I was just thinking through the kids who have graduated that came back to visit me this past week. They all had one thing in common, I was their fan. I hope by sharing a few of their stories, you will be inspired to give the kids in your classroom exactly what they need.
The Disney Girl
The Disney girl took honors and AP chemistry from me. She didn’t love chemistry at all. In fact, she is going to college while working at Disney World. She wants to be in the service industry. She is friendly and goofy (pun moderately intended). So why did she come to visit me? Because I was her fan. That is the whole reason that she took AP chem in the first place. I knew that she wanted to work with Disney. I knew that AP chemistry wouldn’t directly help in her future, but I also knew her glass ceiling. It is really high. She is super smart and able to take information from many different sources and angles and synthesize them together. The reason that she felt she had a fan was because she was valued even though she wasn’t headed in the direction of a science career.
Take a moment to think about a kid that might feel distant from you because they “aren’t a science person”. How can you value what their strengths? And the next step is so important. Tell them. Let them know that you see what they can do and are so excited to watch their unique brain work in your class. When they know that they are accepted, you show them what kind of a fan you are.
The Military Guy
The most surprising visit was military guy. I didn’t think he was going to be able to come home as he is stationed in Italy. He is over there jumping out of planes and protecting our freedoms. He has had a long journey to the military. He was an adopted kid. A black kid being raised in a white family. A physical kid being raised in an academic family. He has needed student services his whole academic career, so he always felt like “other”. But when he took my lowest level chemistry class, I became his fan. He could solve problems in strange ways. He refused to use my format. He always had to make it work in his head in his way. But when it did work in his head, he could do it. I feel safer knowing that there is a guy jumping out of planes in our military that can solve problems. He will make it work. Put him in a tight spot, and a solution will happen.
Take a moment to think about the kid that might be feeling like “other”. Every kid wrestles with feeling left out or different. Find their particular strength and celebrate it. Let them know that you are so proud of their ability to manipulate data in different ways. Will it drive you crazy sometimes? You bet. Are there reasons that you teach methods in a particular fashion? Of course. But can you see past your methods to the heart of the kid that is wrestling with your content and become a fan?
Striving Girl
One of the first kids to come visit me last week was striving girl. She worked for everything she’s ever received. She has wanted to be in the health and fitness world for a long time. And she will thrive there. She knew that she would have take chemistry in college, so she decided to take AP chemistry in high school first. I had a frank conversation with her. The odds of her passing the AP test were low. She knew that, but I had to be honest with her. She stepped into the class anyway. And she struggled. And she fought. And she was in my room every day asking for help. Every day. And she cried. And she wondered why. And through it all, I told her that I was so proud her willingness to tackle a big challenge. I got a very happy text from her this year. She has been tutoring kids in her chemistry class, because they are so lost. She said she feels like a genius. I am a fan of that for sure.
Think about your strivers. Think about the kids that work their tails off but will never be the “star” student. Become a fan of their effort. Tell them that a heart that is willing to work will always be a valued heart. Even when our content is hard, and for many kids in high school it is the hardest content they face, root for their heart and they will know you are a fan.
Super Chemistry All Star Guy
Every year for the past four years, the super chemistry all star guy has come back to visit. He is the highly functioning yet somehow slightly awkward guy. The one whose brain works on a different plane than most of ours. He was always a top chemistry student. He got a five on the AP test. And I wasn’t shocked in the slightest. This sounds odd, but Super Chemistry All Star Guy can be an easy one to overlook. You can think that because they are highly successful that they still feel seen. In fact, they can often hide in plain sight. Their performance looks on the outside like they have a fan. But inside, they are still just an awkward wobbly kid like the rest of them. So, I talked to him about his robotics team. I asked him about his summer job at a machine shop. We talked about how he started lifting weights and looks so much like an athlete now. We talked about that mustache and how it really deserves a gold medal in its own right.
Think about the Super Chemistry All Star kid. Are you seeing them as a whole, or simply as a gold star on your teaching report because they bring the test average up? See that kid as something more, and they will know they have a true fan, not a fair-weather one.
Foreign Exchange Vagabond
To be honest, I didn’t get an in-person visit from the foreign exchange vagabond. I got a bunch of texts and photos. He graduated a number of years ago, completed his high school, went to college, and now has an engineering career. But he still has to talk to his biggest fan, his old high school chemistry teacher. I met the vagabond as a sophomore. Honestly, he wasn’t ready to be a foreign exchange student. His English was so bad, he couldn’t really function. He would come into my room at lunch and we would sit in largely awkward silence. I would ask him a question, but he would stumble on the words and feel bad. So we just ate together. For three years. His English came along just fine. Now he won’t be quiet! But starting from eating in silence and ending in this photo all these years later. He knew he had a huge fan. He just won engineer of the year at his engineering firm. And he sent me a picture to celebrate with his biggest fan.
I appreciated his abilities. I challenged him in class. And he rose to the challenge. As a foreign exchange student, I became a solid point in his very fluid life. And I told him that I would be there for him because I am a fan. We missed each other last holiday season, and he is hopefully going back to Vietnam to see his family next year. But when the timing works out, I know he will walk through the door of his biggest fan. And talk my ear off.
Do you have vagabond kids? The ones that don’t fit? Find their strength and offer some solidity. It can be as easy as eating in awkward silence for three years. Tell them they are seen. Tell them they are valued. You can be the stalwart fan they have been looking for.
Sorry this hasn’t been a tactical blog. Or has it? You know what kids don’t talk about when they come to visit? Moles. Balanced equations. Limiting reagents. Acid dissociation constants. So if they is what you teach, why do they show up at your door? Because they are looking for their biggest fan. They are looking for the person that sees them and values them. They are looking for you.
Want to give you class the gift of engagement? Try our curriculum-driven classroom games. Teachers in 47 states and 8 countries have already shared the gift with their kids. Is it your turn?
Comments