I'm Thankful - Day 23

I'm a dork. A HUGE nerd. I'm aware of this. My coworkers are probably becomming aware of this.

Today, I am thankful for a little thing we like to call "Report Card Pick-Up Night."  Really, I'm thankful that the kids I teach have parents who care about how they're doing in class. I had a record 14 kids represented by parents and grandparents who want to see their children succeed. It was AWESOME!

I know I haven't been teaching long, but word on the street has it that most of the time, the AP and Honors parents are the heavyweight champs on nights like these, bringing in so many parents that they hardly have time to sit and catch their breath in between people. Ok, maybe that's an exaggeration, but it doesn't really feel like it. I was sitting with a whopping 5 parental sets when my department chair, who teaches AP, coincidentally, told me she had 10. A little wounded, I jokingly told her that AP doesn't count. She, very good naturedly, stuck her tongue out at me.  It's all in good fun. And for the sake of fun, I have a competition with a band teacher at all of these nights - there are two report card pick up nights and one meet-the-teacher.

Now, some may say I cheated because I told my kids that if they brought their parents, I woud reward them with cupcakes, but the point isn't really winning the game. It's about helping the kids.

So, I'm thankful that I had so many parents and grandparents come out to see how their kids/grandkids are doing. And, to be honest, I'm thankful that I beat Mr. P, the band teacher, just because it's fun.

By the way, only one kid came for the sole purpose of receiving her cupcake. So. . . woo hoo!