Moments that Make it Worthwhile

This last week has been one of many highlights that remind me of why I really love teaching.  Last Wednesday, our choir embarked on its annual choral trip, this year to Banff, AB.  After some pretty crazy days of wondering whether or not we'd even be able to go (what with all the pending strike action and such), I was pretty happy when the school board and the government made plans for negotiation, thus saving us from striking (at least for now).

The choir spent an incredible 2 days in Banff learning from an amazing conductor and clinician, Scott Leithead.  Scott directs a choir in Edmonton called Kokopelli (you should check it out here).  If I lived in Edmonton, I'd go to every concert they have....heck, I'd audition for the choir.  I learned so much from Scott in those 2 days and my students have told me numerous times how much they enjoyed our clinics.  Scott has spent an incredible amount of time in Africa and taught both Concert Choir and Honour Choir a couple of African pieces that we are hopefully going to add to our final concert program.  I loved hearing the African music again and while it made me smile, it also made me long for a concert with my babies.  I'd give anything to hear Ritah sing Mwijje again.

Amazingly enough, we took 104 students to Banff and had no major problems.  In fact, several of the shopkeepers commented on how polite and well behaved our students were.  That made me so proud.  The trip wasn't perfect, but I couldn't have been more pleased with how my students behaved.  They are still the chatty bunch they've always been, but as they began to absorb what Scott was sharing with them, they seemed to pull together and sounded better than they ever had.

One of my students commented on how much she enjoyed our clinics and I said I hope to be like Scott one day, and she just looked at me and said "Miss A, you already are".  This from a girl who isn't afraid to share what's on her mind, is in grade 12, and really loved the previous director, a teacher she'd had for 3 years of choir.  I could have cried.  Coming into a new position is always difficult, but being a choir director makes it even harder.  More than anything, you need to make sure your students trust you with their hearts and their emotions.  If they don't, you'll never achieve music that not only has technical requirements, but pieces of their heart held out to you.  I feel like the time on this trip helped me to connect with a lot of my students in a new way.  Time spent on the bus visiting, going up the gondola, singing karaoke, hearing their stories of bike rides around Banff - it all helped me to get to know them just a little bit better.   Already, I see a difference and we've only been back at school for 3 days.

Tonight, one of the groups from the Entrepreneurship 30 class organized a talent show (which Jodi, Michelle and I sang at...we were pretty awesome, but ya know...whatev :).  I was absolutely amazed at the talent of the students.  Some of them I teach, some I'd never met before.  Michelle leaned over and said that it should be called 'Hidden Talent' because we'd never have known these kids could do this if it hadn't been for this night.  One of the guys played guitar like the boy from August Rush (great movie, by the way...you should watch it).  He was incredible.  Another guy played guitar and sang - sounded a little bit like John Mayer with his smooth style and light falsetto.  Two of my students sang together and I was blown away by how well their voices blended and the harmonies they created.  There was a duo that did improv narration and it was well timed and very funny.  One of my students - a boy that struggles with attendance and commitment - turns out to be an amazing beat boxer.  Literally, I was blown away.  With each student that came on the stage, I was amazed by the talent I saw in them.  That's part of what teaching is about.  Discovering hidden talents.  Every student has them, the question is whether or not I will dig deep enough to find them and then be willing to push the student to develop that talent. 

I'm grateful for these moments because there are days when I wonder why I bother and then I'm reminded - this is why.  The faith these students had in themselves tonight and on our trip is what makes teaching worthwhile.  They found value and they valued others.  They discovered that they could do it.  That's pretty much what every teacher hopes for.  It's been a good reminder.

Scott, clinician extraordinaire