Those moments

when someone catches you off guard and says "thank you" are just the best, aren't they?

So the scoop is:

I recommended, for the Student of the Month award, a student that I thought in the beginning of the school year would be my biggest female challenge. She could stop you dead in your tracks with a glare like no other. She could dig her heels in and make you want to pull your hair out while waiting for her to move on an assignment. She could hang out in the bathroom for three hours at a time until she felt like coming back in the classroom.

She is bigger than me, sometimes louder than me, and let me be honest- not even my toughest male student will walk near her if something sets her off.

YET- somehow over the period of two months there has been a breakthrough! I have seen her on time, attempting to work harder on her math, and never battle me when I need her to do something over again- well, a huff, and a stomp- but nothing like the "let's throw everything off the desks b/c I ain't doing the work attitude!" She has turned into someone different- a little more approachable. So when I made her student of the month, I was pleasantly surprised when her father called me and said "thank you" over the phone many times. Now I wasn't the only person in her life to see this through- I asked him for help and he was willing to so what he could to help. The hardest part of the phone call though was when he said, " So I heard that you are not coming back. That is not good. You need to come back."

Oh my. I was quick to share that I want to see more of this beautiful state and that she will have a great teacher next year ( let's hope:) It is always hard to break ties- but it always feels good to get that thank you!