College. Four and a half years of my life (up to this point). Hundreds of credit hours. A variety of classes. Thousands of assignments. A burden of dollars. Lots of tears (out of every emotion: sadness, anger, joy ect.). Have I ever wondered why? Absolutely! Have I ever questioned why I return ever semester? Of Course? But, yet, I still do. I still work hard in my classes to earn respectable grades. I still sacrifice time with friends and family so that I can finish up a big project. I still stay up later than I care to admit, loosing precious hours of sleep. I still push through, even when my "to-do" list is never-ending and I am fried in every dimension (mentally, physically, emotionally). I still work exhausting hours so that I can fund my education. Have I wanted to quite? Throw in the towel? Give up? You bet...but I don't. I can't. I need to be a teacher. be fearless in the pursuit that sets your soul on fire Let's take a moment to remind back to when I was a little girl growing up. Being the youngest of four big brothers (yes, I am the only girl), I grew up playing up playing "war," digging trenches, building rafts, and participating in backyard football and ice hockey. Barbies were replaced with G.I. Joes. Disney movie were exchanged for Star Wars and Lord of the Rings.
fully understood at that young age, but this was the spark that ignited a passion that has me where I am today. Fast forward a couple years, several grade levels and we have sixth grade Abby and the amazing (I didn't realize it) subject of math. My education was in a little different situation...something called homeschool, normally not a problem, except I was a horrible (and I mean horrible with a capital "H") students. Don't believe me? Well, what if I told you I didn't do my math homework for a solid month. Yup! My mom taught me a lesson every day, assigned homework, but I didn't do it. Well, you know as good as the next reader that math builds on itself. I will never forget the day when my mom went to teach me a new lesson. For some reason (maybe because I haven't done my math homework) I was just not understanding the concept. In response, my mom asked me to grab my homework notebook. You can imagine my shame as she flipped through the empty pages of homework. I got it such big trouble and as a consequence, had to complete every skipped assignment. As I worked day after day to get caught up, I found myself actually enjoying the math problems. Yes, I was having fun...the content made sense so there was satisfaction in completing my homework (imagine that). This was when I caught hold of another passion. One that resulted in me bringing my math
Which brings me back to where I am today...a "Super" senior by status but none-the-less pursuing my great passion. As this semester has progressed, the "why" has only grown as I have experienced real world classroom life in my Teacher Assisting placement. There is nothing that warms my heart more than teaching these second grade students, especially when they have that all-too-familiar lightbulb moment in math when they understand, the isle when they see math really isn't such a horrific subject.
This is why I keep coming back. This is why I push through. This is why I am fearless... because my heart is set on fire when I am in a classroom teacher math.
1 Comment
John Golden
12/2/2017 08:01:23 pm
Oh, do I love this. Your commitment and passion come through. Plus, the 6th grade pic is priceless. Is 'should' the word you want in the last line? I can almost see it, but it feels like 'heart'.
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AuthorMy name is Abby Niemiec and I am in the midst of my final year as a undergraduate student at Grand Valley State University. I am a double major in Mathematics and Education, with my minor focusing on Elementary Education. Within this blog, I will be sharing mathematical ideas, perspectives, thoughts and much more! Stay tuned...and enjoy the read! Archives
December 2017
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