It was the week before Easter. With a class of eighteen third grade students, I was working with two students in a mathematics skills small group, while the other sixteen students were working on individual work. A downpour began. It started as drizzles, and then the raindrops began increasing in size and number. An alert sounded from overhead. “Please go out in the halls – this is a tornado drill.” As a teacher, I was not trained in what to do incase of a tornado; they’re not common where I live. So, I was thrust into thoughts of my elementary years… “Get to a wall, duck, and cover.” Trying to stay calm and in control of the situation, I lead my children into the hallway to “duck and cover.” When we got all of the students quiet, the county-mandated drill shortly ended; it was time to resume class. We returned to our classroom and continued on our previous work. All of a sudden, a student burst out in tears. With all the thunder, lightning, and rain, he was concerned about the safety of his mother working in an old historic home. Never the less, all my children began showing signs of fears. I told them that I would keep them safe at all times and tried to use words of comfort. My students slowly began migrating towards my reading table, where I was teaching. I had a group of twelve students, where there is usually enough room for only six. I kept telling them that they would be ok and to try to think of something else… you know, “magical things.” My heart went out to them and their concerns. In the midst of the chaos, one of the student leaders began reciting the Lord’s Prayer. The other students chimed in – each student would one line and the next student would follow with the next line. Through all my words of comfort, the ultimate comfort came to the children through the simple prayer that Jesus taught us to pray. Now, I don’t teach at a private school, I teach at a school labeled low socio-economic – my students do not come from wealthy families. Some of my students do their homework by candlelight because they are unable to pay their electricity bills, some of my students are caught in a world where their fathers are “locked up,” some of my children are left to fend for themselves, however, some of my children are lucky (really blessed) enough to have a family striving to do what is best for them. At this moment of fear, no matter what background they came from – students were united in prayer. This day reiterated that my job comes in loving these children and praying for these children. The Ultimate Comforter is our Lord and Savior, and the foundation we lay down for the children of the world is what WILL prevail in the end.
You know, I also learned that some of the best lessons students can learn are from each other.
