I am retiring soon. I will miss many of the students and staff members, but it is the right decision for me. The computer lab was closed down due to social distancing rules, so I have been a classroom teacher this school year and summer. I loved being a classroom teacher thirty years ago, but now I feel like it is my past and not what I want for my future. I have not yet decided what I will be doing instead of teaching full time, but I am in no hurry. I am sure that when I am ready to return to work I will find something part time. I hope to be done with full time work, but I will see what the future brings when it happens.
Ms. Jeanne, the technology teacher, taught students with a wide range of abilities. Sometimes, it would take several years to get someone to gently touch the screen of an iPad to make something happen in a cause and effect or sensory app. No, iPads are not chewy/poundy toys. Other times, students learn to complete reading assignments and special projects on the computer with assistance and special scaffolding as needed. Regardless of the circumstances, I have many years worth of memories to make me smile.
Sure, most roses have prickles, but they are still beautiful. My students were a wide variety of roses. Most of them had prickles of one sort or another, but all of my former students brought joy into my life.
Jeanne Stork, Special Education Instructional Technology 