First snow delay this morning! Wow, totally unexpected. But of course, the kids are all wired now. It certainly makes for an interesting start to the day and week!

Last week ended with parent teacher conferences Thursday. I saw 36 parents of the 67 students I teach. Not a bad turnout. I think now with PowerSchool, and parents having constant access to their child's grades, we see fewer inherently. That is unfortunate because there are so many other things I would like to talk to parents about other than grades.

Typically, most of the parents I want to talk to, don't show up. However, this year, I did get to have some great conversations with several parents. It is wonderful how supportive and concerned most parents are about their children and their education.

I have to admit I love conferences, even though the sitting there all day is tiring. I love hearing comments that this is the first year a student has done well in math, or that I am a large part of the reason their child is having a great 7th grade year. It is reaffirming that all the time and effort I put forth is appreciated.

I love talking to parents about how great their kids are. I love sharing stories of their sense of humor, kind deeds for others, as well as academics successes. Parents love their child unconditionally, but the reassurance that someone else feels the same can be so comforting. I had one mom tell me her child has never felt smart before this year. He has always thought he was dumb, treated as such by teachers. That breaks my heart.... he is an amazing kid. He has a huge attendance problem, is frequently tardy to school, does not always make up his work... but those are parenting issues. When he is here, he is engaged, on task, very knowledgeable about a variety of topics, and wants to do well. I love having him in class. I shudder to think that teachers have damaged children this way, year after year...

But then.. there are those students I do not connect with, I know. We cannot all reach all of them, despite our best of intentions.