This year has been so different from any other year that I have taught.

I mean we went on Spring Break and never went back!

The things happening in the world have drastically affected education. Our teacher hearts broke the day they announced that schools would be closed through the end of the year. Believe me, we would rather it be this way than risk a single of our kids or co-workers getting sick. But, this is the time we as teachers look forward to every year.

We work the first half of the year teaching routines and procedures. It takes until Christmas to get everything flowing right. After Christmas break we have to get them back on track. Sometimes it seems like we will never get there, but we somehow always do. This leads us to our golden time with our students. This is when we have solidified our relationships with our students. We have truly become a family.

As a class family we look forward to all of the fun end of the year things we get to do together. Like field trips, field day, more fun units of study, etc. This year we don’t get any of that. It’s not just about that though. As I said, this is the time we truly become a family. The kids that enter our classroom each day truly become OUR KIDS. We miss them. We miss making sure they’re okay, seeing them learn, and watching them grow.

It is sad that these moments were taken from us.

I hope that once all this is over with, people remember how much teachers truly care about their kids. You will rarely meet a teacher who is just in it for the paycheck. It’s always about the kids.

With state testing being cancelled for this school year, I hope that state legislatures realize that we don’t need mandated testing for students to learn. Teachers don’t need them to tell them what to teach. We know what our kids need and it’s not teaching to a test.

I hope we never take for granted any school day, the hugs we get from students, the conversations with co-workers, or the daily hustle of it all.

I can say without a doubt I would much rather be teaching in my classroom than doing distance learning and I can’t wait until the day we get back to normal.