For the last two years, I've been a multi-lingual teacher at a middle school in Ohio. I love my job and I have so much respect for my students who work so hard to learn a second, third or fourth language. I've attempted to learn a few different languages throughout my life, but I've never had much success. My personal failure definitely contributes to the respect that I hold for my young scholars who outshine me in their capacity for learning languages.
When new multilingual students transition into our middle school and my classroom, I always keep a watchful eye over them. They have so many hurdles beyond aquiring a new language - from learning new educational expectations and cultural norms to forging new friendships in a foreign land. For some kids, this transition can be overwhelming and frightening, and can almost swallow them whole. When this happens, it breaks my heart. I attempt to do everything I can to take care of their lost spirits. I try to pair them up with friendly students, I write them personal letters in their first language (Thanks Google Translate 😊), I reach out to their families and I try to be a constant support through a difficult time.
Sometimes, these attempts work - and sometimes they do not. Over the last year, my heart has been heavy for one particular student. She speaks Chinese, and there is not another Chinese speaker in our building. She is hesitant to speak in English or Chinese, and she often breaks down in tears. Our amazing bilingual aide also tries to support this struggling student, but she is often pulled to other buildings with other students, so she can only offer her support on a very limited basis.
Recently, I discovered that a new 8th grade girl from China moved into our district. I spoke with her teacher, and we were able to arrange a Google Meet during the school day, so that the girls could connect. Imagine my surprise, when 10 minutes into the conversation, I hear my sweet student laughing. I glance over to see the biggest grin, as she shares stories and laughter with a new found friend. Today, for the first time in nearly a year, we had a breakthrough and my sweet student found her smile. My prayer is that this can open a whole new world for her and that with time her smile will become a permanent fixture.
For now, we'll keep these Google Meets going, and I'll do all I can to remind my student that together we can always find her smile.
Thank you for sharing this special story! My heart goes out to your student and it's so nice that she now has someone to connect with. Have you read Emily Francis's book If You Only Knew: Letters From An Immigrant Teacher? It's an amazing book!
ReplyDeleteI have not, but just added it to my list! Thank you!!
DeleteI was sooo happy to see her start to smile when they had been talking for a few minutes! (I almost texted you: "today's slice?!" and then got busy and forgot! lol) And to even hear her laugh?! What a HUGE win! Your love for your students is so evident in this post, in your classroom, in your teaching, and when you talk about them. I'm so happy we were able to make this happen, and I loved reading how it seemed from your side of the screen! I was almost going to slice about this too, but then my 4yo did something extra adorable, so this got added to my ever-growing "possible slices" list!
ReplyDeleteGirl, great minds think alike! I cannot thank you enough for helping to make today happen or for all of your guidance with my deep dive into blogging! My only wish is that I could work with, talk with and learn from you more often! ❤️
DeleteWOW! This is amazing, and YOU are an amazing teacher. I am so glad you were able to make this happen for your student! :)
ReplyDelete