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Think about the students who do well. Are you constantly giving them praise? What about those students who struggle? Or those with behavior problems? Do your praise remarks match those you give the accelerated students? If you are homeschooling, are your words encouraging and praise worthy to your children?
What if you had Thomas Edison as a student. As a teacher, how would you have helped him as one who struggled through his academic years?
Edison was considered “odd”. He certainly did not excel academically, at least while he attended school. More than likely, he was dyslexic. Edison also was not interested in toys, etc. that other children seemed interested in; he would rather tear apart and invent things. It is noted in his biography that the school addressed Edison as being “addled”. His mother became angry at how her son was being addressed, so she removed him from school and began the journey of homeschooling. I’m sure Edison’s mother did not dwell on the fact that she did not have all the answers, but one thing she did know was that she needed to encourage her son through the process.
It is clear that Edison’s hands-on learning style did not follow the traditional path of other students. Because he did not fit in, everyone overlooked that Edison was a pure genius! Look at what he accomplished in his lifetime! We all contribute to the long-lasting light bulb that gives us light in our homes, known as GE, as his biggest discovery. However, Edison also had over 1,000 patents to protect his inventions. He even has a statue representing his accomplishments residing in the Statuary Room at the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. No one can argue his accomplishments have changed all of our lives for the better.
But who is to be praised for Edison’s accomplishments? Edison or his mother? It was his mother’s kind and encouraging words that continuously inspired Edison to keep dreaming and excelling to heights rarely few of us can even begin to achieve. Just think what we all would have missed out on and how our lives would be so different if Edison chose to live up to the words “I am addled”.
So, I ask, what words have shaped you as a teacher? Are you holding on to encouraging words or do negative words frequently swim around in your head? What kind of words do your students hear from you on a daily basis? YOUR WORDS ARE POWERFUL!
Pause this week and listen to the words you are saying to others. “AM I WHO YOU SAY I AM?”
Keep in mind kind and encouraging words:
~ make one feel a sense of belonging
~ accelerate learning and focus
~ give a feeling of “I Got This!”
~ create motivation to work toward one’s highest potential
