Gratitude

I wish you and your families a wonderful holiday filled with family, friends, gratitude, and laughter! 

Yesterday was a very special day in Room 235. Many family members of the students in our classroom joined us to hear each student give a speech about what they are thankful for. The students have been working diligently to write and rehearse their speeches. I think anyone who was witnessed this yesterday would agree that their public speaking skills were nothing short of amazing. All too often, we are rushing around in our lives. The students reminded us yesterday that it's important to take a moment to be reflective and feel thankful for all of the good in our lives. Thank you to everyone who joined us for this special event yesterday. I certainly have a lot to be grateful for this Thanksgiving!


Our special day continued after the speeches. Our class filled up the compliment jar, so their prize was to have a special guest come teach a lesson. I invited my favorite teacher in to teach the class. My father, who taught in Burlington for many years, taught a lesson about setting goals, overcoming obstacles, and appreciating the things we have in life.  He did this by using Travis Roy's book Eleven Seconds. If you're not familiar with the story, here's more info. Mr. C asked the students to close their eyes and think about a goal they want to achieve 20 years from now. He timed them for eleven seconds and then we talked about how short that time felt. When Travis graduated from Tabor Academy in 1995, he gave a speech on his 10 Rules of Life. Students broke into groups, read the rules, and we talked about what each rule meant. We were blown away by their insight and maturity when discussing each of these rules. When asked what their biggest take-away was from this lesson, one student replied, "It doesn't matter if you change on the outside, you will always be the same on the inside." Big thanks to Mr. Conceison for spending time with us yesterday!