I would like to thank 
The event that inspired this blog was a very special phone call I received just yesterday from a former student.
For over 30 years I was fortunate to work as a Special Education Teacher.
I can never remember having to drag myself out of bed to go to work.
For thirty years I taught students that had difficulty fitting into the regular education classroom
Back when I first started teaching, the students I taught were given the tag, Socially Maladjusted.
Years later that tag was changed to Emotionally Disturbed.
The last couple years of my employment at Cliffside Park Middle School, the tag for the students I taught was again changed, this time my students would carry the label, Non-Specific Learning Disorder.
The truth of the matter is that not one of these labels, that stigmatized my students, really did much except make them stick out like a sore thumb.
Rather than explain what the label was supposed to signify, I will just give you my view of the common threads that seemed to be a part of everyone of my students background.
My students all came from broken families.
They were all lacking an authority figure in their lives.
They all needed someone they could trust.
They all needed someone to have their back.
They all needed to feel like they belonged.
They all needed to experience success.
They all needed to be respected.
They were all so vulnerable.
Acting out and being removed from mainstream classes was their way to avoid failure.
It was always easier for these children to be labeled as disciplinary problems rather than stupid.
Acting out was a form of revenge against a system that had failed them.
Acting out was a way to feel powerful as they could make most teachers come to their knees in frustration.
I had a way with these great kids.
I would start the year with about six to seven students, but by the end of the year the number would reach 12 to 15.
Every teacher knew that if they made a stink about how a particular student was making it impossible for them to teach, Mr J would gladly take them.
I loved these children.
The first day they would be placed in my class, my very first statement would always be the same.
I don't listen to what the other teachers are saying about you. I don't read what it says in your IEP (Individualized Educational Plan) as far as your behavior goes.
When you start with me your slate in wiped clean.
I would never yell at these kids. You want to make the situation worse, yell. Most of my students were street wise and tough. They would rather die than be embarrassed in-front of their peers.
Being respectful, compassionate, truthful, and more than anything else, being available, made these wonderful kids feel like they could succeed.
A few of my students I took to our farm here In Upstate NY.
Besides all of the standard courses that I was responsible for teaching, I taught a Survival Skills Class.
Passing this class would give you the opportunity to go on a very special adventure with me.
All students that passed the rigors and educational components of the Survival Class would spend a week in the wilderness, hiking part of the Appalachian Trail with me.
We would be dropped off at Stokes State Forest and hike to High Point, NJ.
We would be on the trail for five days. Our backpacks would come in at about 50 lbs.
I have been told many times that my experiences while employed as a teacher would make for a great book.
I could fill a book with unbelievable stories of joy and sorrow that I experienced while going to work every day to a place I loved.
Over the years, I learned as much from my students as they learned from me.
Once our relationship was established, their loyalty to me was something to behold.
In 2012 I was presented with The Governors Award for Teacher of the Year in Cliffside Park NJ.
To this day, many of the guys I worked with, and are now some of my closest friends, get together for the holidays and recall stories of the good old days.
This job I had was so special, and to this day I feel as though I was one of the fortunate ones who went to work everyday with a smile on my face.
STUDENTS DO NOT CARE ABOUT HOW MUCH YOU KNOW, UNTIL THEY KNOW HOW MUCH YOU CARE.
Hope you enjoyed! thebigsweed