Some of my students have diagnosed learning disabilities.
“You’re so smart!” I tell them. “Your brain figures out things in ways my brain can’t.”
B is one of those exceptional learners.
Rarely have I seen a student work as hard as she does.
She has problems with her short term memory, so she can ‘get’ a concept one minute and lose it the next.
Her parents speak Spanish at home, and she speaks English at school, so she is bilingual.
“Do you know how smart you have to be to speak TWO languages?” I often ask her.
She smiles, and that smile warms the world.
The other day, she stopped me in the hall and said, “I made something for you, Mr. Barton.”
She handed me a little picture she created of a beautifully colored, interestingly drawn cat and avocado.
I looked at it with wide eyed wonder.
“Wow!” I exclaimed. “B, you are so talented! The smiling cat and avocado make me smile. Thank you so much. It’s a treasure.
It is.
I’ve learned that children often turn to art if they have trouble expressing themselves through reading, ‘riting and ‘rithmstic.
They remind me to find the beauty, wonder and ingenuity in ALL people around me.
All in a normal day in public school.
No comments:
Post a Comment