Teacher/Student conferences

I wish I could attend a parent/teacher conference and have a teacher tell me how our boys are doing. It is probably the one thing I struggle with missing out on because we homeschool. Well, maybe that and all the great awards kids are presented with at the end of the year. Because I'm pretty sure it would be a fun conference and I'm also fairly certain my boys would earn at least a couple awards. It is difficult because if I talk about what I see in them as their teacher, I may sound like I'm bragging as their mom. Plus, it would be nice to have someone confirm that we are on the right track--even though I think we are most days. Thankfully, I have an incredibly supportive and encouraging husband as well as family and friends that assure me I am not ruining them. ;)  

Due to these feelings, I decided to do a teacher/student conference. Here is what I will tell each of my students as we wrap up the year:

Michael - You are a great kid who is growing into a godly, young man. I see you searching for what God wants in your life and challenging yourself to live up to His call. You are a perfectionist and have learned a lot this year about accepting less than perfect from yourself, learning from it and then moving on. You are kind and compassionate with a quick smile. You love helping and loving on younger kids--even your younger brother. You are responsible and a leader who leads by example and can be trusted to follow the rules. You also have a strong sense of justice and it bothers you greatly to see something that is not fair--whether it has to do with you or not. I look forward to watching how God uses that in your life. You have risen to the challenge of 7th grade work....and it was challenging! You have learned how to study, how to learn independently and how to test well. You are joy to teach!

Jonathan - You are a great kid! You have a big and tender heart--for both people and animals. You are active and love to be with friends. In fact, you would choose to be outside with friends over just about anything else. But even though you longingly watched out the window to see who was playing outside while you had to do school, you worked hard and did your best until you were done each day. You make us laugh and keep me on my toes because I never know what type of "what if....." scenario you will present me with next. This year you have excelled in school. I was amazed at how quickly you picked up the math you were taught. And I loved to read whatever story your big imagination created. You are a joy to teach. I can't wait to see what God has in store for you!