Perseverance

This post is late as I have had to truly persevere with my class through events that teens should not have to face in their young lives.  It has been a great month of learning and sharing ideas about how to persevere when we are faced with adversity.  January was definitely the right month for my class to work through many issues with a focus upon perseverance.  We faced many challenges and had to work together and learn how to continue forward with our heads high and a focus upon continuing on.  

Over the Christmas Break one of my students tried twice to commit suicide and was hospitalized for several days.  I only learned of these events upon my return to class on January 9th.  During the second week of  classes she attempted again and was under suicide watch at our local hospital for a week.  I was allowed to visit with her several times and had many deep conversations.  Perseverance was one of the topics that we discussed while I sat on the side of her hospital bed with a security guard positioned just outside the door.  During one of my visits I brought my tablet and together we watched Jesse Cockney's video. I want to thank Jesse for giving me one more tool that I could use to open up a conversation with my student.  She identifies with Jesse as she also belongs to the first nations community.  

My class also had to deal with the expulsion of another classmate due to a violent incident which caused severe physical injuries to others.  These events happened on the last day of school before our Christmas Break and so had to be dealt with at the school level and board level upon our return to school in January.  Again, perseverance was key in helping my class work through many issues.  

As you can imagine, the life lessons that are a part of Classroom Champions are extremely important and relevant to the young people in today's classrooms.  I am extremely grateful that such a program exists, as it reinforces to our students that they do matter.  Having an Olympic  mentor who takes the time to send videos made just for them and to video chat is a priceless gift. And yes, sometimes teachers also need a lesson and help with perseverance.

I would like to share with you a folder with some of the ideas about perseverance that my students shared with me.  I have not included the more personal reflections due to privacy issues and the events that we are currently working through together..  

Here are some perseverance reflections.