As I sit down to write this, I look at the calendar and notice that it is the middle of January. We have been in school for approximately 15 weeks. In this short period of time, I have witnessed several amazing changes in the lives of my students. They entered school in September with bright-eyed eagerness to see their friends and meet the challenges of a new school year. As they acclimate themselves to the daily grind of the first marking period, the students morph into various social groups to navigate through the ever popular hormonal season where boys meet girls, and plans are made for spring break, prom, and graduation.
I am very fortunate to have a wonderful bunch of students. They are truly the highlight of my day and I look forward to coming to school each day to challenge them. I am a high school music teacher in a music department where there is very little down time during the day. Although, we are only scheduled to teach 5 periods a day, our music students are required to come down and attend group lessons on their instrument. Due to the particular nature of my schedule, I make myself available for my students any period that I am not officially teaching in a classroom.
From 7:30 through 2:30 and beyond, students come down to the music wing to take instrumental lessons. The other day, I left my first period class feeling quite ill. I spent the next hour in the nurse’s office. For the remainder of the day, I was doing everything in my power to fight through a stomach bug. It was the reactions of my students that day that were truly inspiring.
Knowing that I was not in my study hall during third period, the news of my poor health quickly spread throughout the music students. By the time I was returning to my class, students were coming down the hallway to ask me how I was feeling. It was really amazing to have so many students inquire about me. It truly shows just how close-knit our music department family is when students not only look out for each other, but look out for the teachers as well.
The following day, I took time away from school for doctors appointments. Generally, when a substitute teacher covers for a music class, they receive worksheets to hand-out to the class leaving students with the feeling of having a “period off”. I am very fortunate to know that in our music department, this isn’t the case. We have the privilege of working with our musicians from 9-12th grade. By the time the students reach the upper grades, they are taught how to conduct and run the rehearsals. Knowing that I was going to be out of the building, I spoke with some of my older students who in my absence helped the substitute with the orchestra rehearsals.
What inspires me the most about situations such as these is the simple fact that we as teachers show up for class each day and pour our hearts out to our students. We come in early. We stay after school. I often wonder how much of the lesson the students actually take away with them when the bell rings. The simple fact that my students joined together while I was ill was a testament to the dedication they have to the music program, and to each other. Students demonstrate the collective feeling of leadership in taking charge of their education, not because a teacher told them to do it, but because they wanted each other to sound good in the group. I didn’t realize how much of a family our music department developed into until I heard of the care and concern that my students had for me and their desire to produce music in my absence. This mutual respect between teachers and students is truly inspiring.
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