The Good, the Bad, and....the Polka Dots of Back 2 School Night

     Tonight was Back to School night; my one chance for the year to meet and greet my precious students' parents! Oh, as always I was so excited and eager to make a good impression. I had read a fantastic article earlier this week highlighting 3 key goals for hosting parents at B2S events. The author did a great job giving tips to make the night successful, but the first goal about showing love and support for the students resonated within me so much that... I kind of got stuck there.
       I am convinced that the tone set in the classroom for the 10 minutes you have with parents matters! All parents want to know that the teacher believes "their child" is just as wonderful as the parent thinks they are:) Wanting to make quite the impression, I scoured Pinterest for hours looking for the perfect "classroom happy". I finally settled on polka dots (my classroom's main theme:)

I polka-dotted bulletin boards, 

 

water bottles, 

m&m's and even my office worker ( ok, it was her hair bow). 

Clear packages filled with M&Ms and covered in custom wrap

Still reflecting on the previously read article, I thought of 1 Corinthians 13:1, the scripture that says you can do and be all kinds of wonderful things, but if you do not have love, you are but a noisy gong or clanging cymbal.
     To not be mistaken for a noisy gong, I really went all out and I am cracking myself up (to keep from groaning aloud) as I reflect on the night's presentation. Wanting to be sure to convey how wonderful I thought each child was, I am afraid I acted more like one of those hippie chicks at the airport handing out peace and love bracelets rather than a seasoned professional very capable of leading children through the two courses I am slated to teach.
     I honestly don't even remember even telling them my name, much less the fact that I actually have taught the courses for the past umpteen years with great student success. Or how about the fact that I have a degree or two and employ a variety of teaching strategies to meet the needs of each of the students?   What did I say? " I am LoVinG getting to know each of their children. The students are off to a strong start and working hard. I am always available to help and I fully expect their children to do great!" All of which are true, but I wish I had a do-over to add the...err...stuff that would probably reassure the parents that their children were being taught by a competent teacher. But since there are no do-overs, I trust that God will make up for my inadequacies and the parents, at least, will fondly remember the LoVinG teacher that supplied a light snack at B2S night:)

What was above the ECA, you may wonder? Of course... I "heart" ECA

Update:  Ok, it was killing me.  I sent a follow-up email this morning to all of the parents introducing myself and the classs.  I feel much better:)