The start of something great.

I have to tutor at the high school for one of my classes this semester. I started yesterday. I wasn't sure if I would like it. Teenagers and migraines don't always mix well. I think it's the beginning of something fantastic though.

Yesterday I walked in not knowing what to do. I ended up walking into the algebra classroom. The teacher asked the students if anybody needed help, and one guy sitting in the middle of the room raised his hand. We'll call him Andy.

Andy and I worked through some equations together. He was solving the equations faster than I was! He'd had a quiz on the material in class that day and failed it though. I asked him what was up, and he said he just freezes up on the tests. He said he gets it. He takes notes. He even told me that the teacher told him once when he asked if she could slow down that when he gets a degree he can teach the class how he wants. Ouch.

I asked Andy (who is in tenth grade) what he wants to do after high school. He said he wants to be a lawyer. That's a pretty big dream, if you ask me. Especially for a kid who's spending time in after school tutoring. I wonder if Andy's algebra teacher knows he wants to be a lawyer. I wonder if Andy's teacher knows he's a whiz at solving equations. I wonder if Andy's teacher knows he cares enough to show me his quiz he failed and ask me to help him work through it with him.

I almost cried while I was talking to Andy. Just because I could see how smart he is and how much he cares. I wanted to go show his teacher all the problems he had just worked and say, "Look! He can do it! He's a smart kid!"

But I can't do that. I can only hope that when I'm a teacher, I take the time to actually get to know my students and to encourage them. I hope that I remember Andy's test anxiety and big dreams. Thanks, Andy.