A Heart of Patience

You are tired.
You are stressed.
You are behind in the curriculum.
The weather hasn't let you have recess in a week.
There is a full moon.

They are messing with their shoelaces, wiping boogers on the floor, drawing pictures on their marker board instead of writing word wall words, asking if it time for lunch, asking if we have already been to lunch, raising their hand to not ask you a question but to tell you they got new shoes....that aren't staying tied, and they are asking if it is time for lunch.

It is only 10:00 in the morning.

There are so many things that happen in our lives that we have no control over. There are situations everyday that we go through that are stressful, sad, boring, draining, exciting, frustrating, irritating, happy, and so many more that put us on an emotional roller coaster.

And I think for us, this can be very hard because some teachers can be a wee bit of a control freak....you might know one or two, right? =)

As I began learning about Conscious Discipline around 5 years ago, this book gave me hives and an upset tummy.

And I'll be honest with you, I cried because this book shook my world up and basically said that so many things I was doing and had been taught in college to do and say were wrong. WRONG and actually the reason WHY many behaviors were happening.

I would say before I read this book that I had very good classroom management skills. When I had observations and appraisals, my ratings were always excellent...ugh, that is hard for me to even type! I have never used any of the color changing or clip moving type of systems. I have never been one for yelling or really even raising my voice. I really didn't even use bribery or threats about losing recess or other things (but there are times when those are discussed as consequences). So, I really didn't except this book to turn my world upside down, earthquake split my brain apart, and tornado twirl my heart around where I was not sure where to stand anymore.

Conscious Discipline is not about here are some ways the kiddos can behave with more kindness. The journey starts with yourself and really examining YOU and how YOU need to be the person you want others to become. These are just a few of the aha's from the book:

*No one can make you angry without your permission-page 23

*Children are either extending love or calling for love(help)-page 163

*How you respond to your child's upset teaches her how to respond to the upset of others- page 193

*What we say to children becomes their inner speech for the rest of their lives- page 177

All of those aha's for me reflect the need for me to have patience. Daily. Moment by Moment.

I cannot control the child or sometimes even the situation. What I can control is how I handle it. If I am to be the example that I want others to become, I need to be loving and patient.

I know I won't be perfect. I will make mistakes, raise my voice, or react too quickly out of frustrations or anger that I allow myself to feel and react to. When this happens, I always try to apologize to my kiddos. I tell them I am sorry for speaking harshly when I was feeling frustrated. I ask for forgiveness from my kiddos. This is something I have done even before Conscious Discipline.

This poem popped into my heart and onto the paper in about 5 minutes. Seriously. God puts the words on my heart.

I am going to post this in my classroom to remind myself to have a Heart of Patience.

I am joining a linky party and thought that this would be a great post to share on the link.

Here is the poem that I would love for you to read.

I pray for my heart to be a heart of patience.