Kids

I've been thinking a lot about all of the sweet children I've worked with over the years. From my senior year of high school to post bachelor's degree....I've worked with a lot of kids!

I've calculated it and it's about roughly...

520 children.

Those are children that I've worked with personally, not just in passing. I was their teacher, therapist, mentor, friend...

That's SO many kids!! In seven years...that's a lot of kids to get to know and to love!

I really have loved the children I've worked with too.

I know there are plenty of other people like me who love what they do, but I can't help but remember the negative nancy teachers who hated coming to their job. They thought the kids were annoying....and they were just so tired of working with kids.

I switched jobs a lot throughout my college years, because my class schedule changed from year to year. Sometimes I'd have morning classes, sometimes evening or afternoon etc. So that may have helped with the "getting tired" thing....but all the same, I loved working with the kids that I did.

From the beginning of my teaching experience I've always encountered autism.

Every job I've had or experience I've had with children, there is always at least one autistic child in the mix.

I love autism!

You might wonder how I could say that, because it can be such a debilitating thing for both the person and the family involved.

So I guess I should rephrase that.

I love the children I've worked with who have autism!

They challenged me in ways I never thought possible in education.

Their personalities are HILARIOUS, so so funny, even if they can't talk.

They are the sweetest kids. A lot of people with autism have somewhat of out of body experiences where they can't really control what they are doing/their emotions...but man, when they are sweet, they are the sweetest!

I wish people didn't shy away from special needs people so much.

I think society tells us it's rude to shy away from it (which it's true....it is very rude), but in people's heart of hearts they still turn away.

I had the experience the other day to witness a friend of mine have the most disgusted look on their face when another friend said: "I know there's an opening in the special needs class at that school maybe you could go be an aide?" Because the first friend needed a part time job.

The look she gave broke my heart. Seriously, do people not know how incredibly blessed they would be if they worked with such precious kids?

Oh man.....

I wanted to call her out on it and tell her how offensive that was to me and that she has no idea how her life would change for the better if she did something like that.

Buuuut....I'm not like that to step up and say things out of my comfort zone.

I've been thinking a lot about those 520 some odd number of children I've worked with and how they have grown up so much since I've seen them.

Working with children is hard. It's not like adult co-workers where you can stay connected with them. With children, the school year ends and there they go....they're gone from your life.

I often wonder where all of those children are now.

I've worked with every situation you could probably imagine....

Homeless children, children with fabulously rich families, single parent families, multi-generation home families....black, white, Latino, Asian....learning disabilities, special needs, children who are two grade levels above what they should be....

I wonder if that little homeless boy that I knew four years ago ever got out of that situation he was in.

And I wonder if that cute little girl I taught in pre-school - who was brighter and wittier than any little kid I knew - but had a huge temper, ever grew out of that. She'd be in first grade now!

I wonder if that autistic boy who I worked with for almost three years is doing okay with his struggling single mom.

I just wonder....

With so many kids I've known, I'd love to know how they are doing. Even the one's that didn't have any "problems"...the sweet little shy kids from good, well-off families....the ones who reminded me so much of myself when I was little. I wonder how their lives are.

Well, my current little student, who I love more than any other students I've ever had is waking up, so I better go get her. I love my little baby! Being a mom is the best.