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12 replies

Go home and give your kids a hug and kiss

coach2709coach270910,000+ posts
I am a high school history teacher and have been for 13 years. I like to think I'm fairly decent at it and I've been able to help some kids along the way. I'm the teacher who doesn't complain about having certain kids in class. I'm there to teach history and I have no need to see any reason to complain. I've been living a spoiled life.

I had to spend today with our severe and profound kids because the male teacher's aide in there is out this week for surgery. These are the severely disabled kids - confined to a wheel chair, limited to no mobility, not able to take care of themselves etc..... There is this one kid who has Down's Syndrome and he has to have a male teacher with him at all times due to his acting out. I was voluntold by my principal I was going to spend the day with them. Needless to say he had a few bad moments today and I got some scratches on my arms and my wrist is pretty sore but with my physical help he was able to do his normal routine.

I doubt I can truly put into words that adequately express how my perspective changed today. I've always been good to "those" kids and would talk to them in the hallway. But I've only seen the good side of them. Today I got to see the whole picture and my heart goes out to them and the people who choose willfully to help these kids as a vocation. Seeing how disadvantaged these kids are and thinking of all the things they will never accomplish or experience will really weigh on your heart. But then as you are dealing with them they look at you and smile it fills you with such.......I don't really know what to say so I'm going with hope and goodness. But it could go from one extreme to another in the snap of a finger. I can honestly say I will never want to do that job in my life. I don't see how those who choose to be in it last.

The purpose of this is to hopefully make you realize that no matter what you kid does they will still have the chance to fix whatever screw up they have. Be very thankful your children are healthy and while baseball is important to everyone on here be thankful that if you have another kid who doesn't want to have any part of baseball they are healthy enough to succeed in anything they do choose is important to them.

Please forgive me if I've worded or phrased anything that may offend someone who has a special needs child because that is truly not my intent. Today opened my eyes to another aspect of life that I'm very thankful nobody in my family is a part of.

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude. Thomas Jefferson

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TPMTPMHSBaseballweb Member since 2003
quote:
Originally posted by J23:
Nice post Coach.....savoring our graces in life is something we don't always take the time to do. My hat is off to you and others who take the time to help those less fortunate. I too work in a similar field with disadvantaged.....the rewards are truly amazing when you see their success.

J23


Good post, I worked with those with disadvantages when I taught in school. It's a difficult road but a worthwhile and satisfying as well.
Lots of lessons learned and lots to appreciate.
Low FinishLow Finish500+ posts
quote:
Originally posted by coach2709:
I am a high school history teacher and have been for 13 years. I like to think I'm fairly decent at it and I've been able to help some kids along the way. I'm the teacher who doesn't complain about having certain kids in class. I'm there to teach history and I have no need to see any reason to complain. I've been living a spoiled life.

I had to spend today with our severe and profound kids because the male teacher's aide in there is out this week for surgery. These are the severely disabled kids - confined to a wheel chair, limited to no mobility, not able to take care of themselves etc..... There is this one kid who has Down's Syndrome and he has to have a male teacher with him at all times due to his acting out. I was voluntold by my principal I was going to spend the day with them. Needless to say he had a few bad moments today and I got some scratches on my arms and my wrist is pretty sore but with my physical help he was able to do his normal routine.

I doubt I can truly put into words that adequately express how my perspective changed today. I've always been good to "those" kids and would talk to them in the hallway. But I've only seen the good side of them. Today I got to see the whole picture and my heart goes out to them and the people who choose willfully to help these kids as a vocation. Seeing how disadvantaged these kids are and thinking of all the things they will never accomplish or experience will really weigh on your heart. But then as you are dealing with them they look at you and smile it fills you with such.......I don't really know what to say so I'm going with hope and goodness. But it could go from one extreme to another in the snap of a finger. I can honestly say I will never want to do that job in my life. I don't see how those who choose to be in it last.

The purpose of this is to hopefully make you realize that no matter what you kid does they will still have the chance to fix whatever screw up they have. Be very thankful your children are healthy and while baseball is important to everyone on here be thankful that if you have another kid who doesn't want to have any part of baseball they are healthy enough to succeed in anything they do choose is important to them.

Please forgive me if I've worded or phrased anything that may offend someone who has a special needs child because that is truly not my intent. Today opened my eyes to another aspect of life that I'm very thankful nobody in my family is a part of.


I nominate this for post of the year.

In the grand scheme of things, this makes you recognize how insignificant baseball really is. So your son will never play college ball. That's not a huge issue compared to what these kids face.

Some of these kids will never walk without assistance. Some of these kids will never be able to have any type of emotional relationship with someone special.

Sure, baseball is great, and I love baseball, but we all need to realize that these things are far more important.
T TDad10+ posts
No offense taken Coach. My wife and I travel a different road than most people. Not a bad road, but certainly more hilly, more curves and more obstacles to travel a mile than most roads. We truly appreciate the aides, bus drivers, and teachers that support and educate our our child and all the special needs kids. So thankyou in a small way to you and all those who volunteer.
fillsfanfillsfan1,000+ posts
A very nice post Coach. My wife was a special education teacher for over 30 years. She taught kids with all kinds of special needs. She always talked about how hard it was, but also about how rewarding it was to help and make a connections with these special individuals.

She retired a few years ago but still has a few pictures on the fridge of some of her students and keeps in touch with a few on facebook.

It's amazing how connected a child gets to someone who shows them respect and patience, and a little discipline when needed. One of our local supermarket has hired a few of my wife's former students. These men are now 30-35 years old but every time they see my wife they stop what they're doing to talk with her and have the biggest smile on their faces you could ever see. And so does she.
OFC586DadOFC586Dad100+ posts
Great Posts. Coach2709, Thank you for providing us all with some much-needed perspective.

Thanks to everyone who has the patience and kindness to work with special needs kids - you are truly doing wonderful things every day, and should get more recognition and appreciation for what you do. We know 2 families with special needs kids and I've seen how important the support that the teachers, bus drivers and aides provide is to these kids and their families. Your contributions to these kids lives are immeasurable.
CoachB25CoachB25Honorary "Old TImer"
There but for the Grace of God go I. I always tell myself that when I come across kids that have special needs of any sort. When my child was born, her heart stopped. We waited for the Doctors to do their work and prayed to God like we had never prayed before. The result was that she pulled through and we were told that it would be four years before we would know the extent of any damage if there was damage. In a lot of ways, we were so protective of my daughter. Then, she was declared "normal" after going through a battery of tests. Thank God!

During my teaching career, I too was asked to teach in a special classroom. I was a permanent sub for a couple of hours a day in a Down's Syndrome classroom. It broke my heart each day to see these young children battle through life. Yet, they were so eager to please and worked so hard. I too believe that during that year, I grew as a teacher and person.

Coach, thanks for the OP!

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