I leaned against the door frame that separated the two rooms.\u00a0 I looked to the left and then to the right.\u00a0 On my left was a commercial kitchen\u00a0complete with a deep fryer and convection oven.\u00a0 To my right was a classroom.\u00a0 This was to be my domain for the school year.\u00a0 I was in another new, unforeseen situation.\u00a0 I had attended classes during the summer and added another certification to my teaching certificate.<\/p>\n
My students were freshmen girls identified as potential dropouts.\u00a0 They were a diverse group before the word diversity became a buzzword. \u00a0I had to file forms reporting ethnicity. I reported an equal number of (1) black; (2) white, Hispanic origin; (3) white, non-Hispanic, non-Asian.\u00a0 We looked good on paper.<\/p>\n
They were getting along well.\u00a0 They had willingly participated in my cutesy ice breakers and get acquainted exercises.\u00a0 They were becoming friends.\u00a0 Before this school day ended, I would observe how cohesive they had become.<\/p>\n
It was the end of the day on Friday of the first week of school. A mandatory pep rally would end the day.\u00a0 I was pleased with the first week.<\/p>\n
The girls drifted in somewhat louder and more relaxed than usual.\u00a0 They only had to get through a brief class and a pep rally before their weekend began. I finished my planned lesson and asked for questions.\u00a0 The only question was, \u201cDo we have to go to the pep rally?\u201d \u201c<\/p>\n
Yes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another question followed.\u00a0 \u201cCouldn\u2019t we just stay here with you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. I will be going to the pep rally too.\u00a0 Why don\u2019t you want to go?\u201d<\/p>\n
The answer puzzled me. \u00a0\u201cAww, ma\u2019am, you know.\u00a0 We don\u2019t mean nothing to them. Nobody will know but you if we don\u2019t go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Almost involuntarily I heard myself utter, \u201cThem?\u201d<\/p>\n
They shot back, \u201cYou know, the smart, popular kids.\u201d<\/p>\n
I was literally saved by the bell which rang before I could formulate a response.<\/p>\n
I was\u00a0pondering this exchange as I climbed the stairs to the hallway in front of the gymnasium.\u00a0 The vocational classrooms in this new program were directly under the gym.\u00a0 I thought how apt the name given this area was. The students had dubbed it the dungeon.<\/p>\n
I stood at the gym entrance observing as the activities began.\u00a0 Students were allowed to sit wherever they chose \u00a0rather than in designated seats. Most of them wanted as near the middle of the bleachers as possible. I noticed my students on the two topmost rows near the end of the rows.<\/p>\n
I eased into the second row on the same end.\u00a0 There was no one near me.\u00a0 I was watching the cheerleaders\u00a0 intently when I sensed someone behind me.\u00a0 Then I took a sidewise glance and saw some girls beside me.\u00a0 After a few minutes, there were girls on the other side of me.\u00a0 By the closing yells, they were clustered around me.\u00a0 There we sat like a mother hen and her chicks. \u00a0Was I their security blanket?<\/p>\n
Their presence brought a heaviness to me.\u00a0 It was as if each girl had placed a brick on my shoulder as she came close. I realized the biggest task before me was not to teach them the skills needed for work in a commercial kitchen.\u00a0 I was confident I could do that.\u00a0 I needed to give them the confidence they needed to move forward feeling a sense of pride in their personal worth. I wanted them to feel comfortable enough to sit in the middle of \u201cthem.\u201d\u00a0 I wanted them to \u201cmean something\u201d to themselves.\u00a0 Only then would the weight be lifted from my shoulders.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I leaned against the door frame that separated the two rooms. I looked to the left and then to the right. On my left was a commercial kitchen complete with a deep fryer and convection oven. To my right was a classroom. This was to be my domain for the school year. I was in another […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[118,119,120,121],"class_list":["post-500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1972-to-1987","tag-developing-self-worth-in-students","tag-drop-out-prevention-classes","tag-students-feeling-isolated","tag-students-felt-they-were-not-valued-by-popular-students"],"yoast_head":"\n