Do you teach?

Your words have echoed through my mind for several weeks now. It has been hard to shake. It has put many of my lessons into question and prevented me from blogging. (Link to original post here)

My team teachers have heard me mention it a few times many times.  It has been the subject of my jokes for weeks. For example, I joked that for Halloween I wanted to be a teacher.

Clip art from mycutegraphics.com

It has haunted me from the inside out. I have finally come to the realisation that it was not just my job you were questioning but who I am. 

I teach

I do teach.

I spend countless hours researching, reading and finding ways to educate, captivate and reach teens.

I have given time from my own family to give to my students.

I have had arguments with my spouse over time spent in the classroom, educational sites (Twitter, Pinterest), and in my home office.

I have spent my own dollars on classroom decor, books, and materials.

I rarely eat a full lunch in the staff room as I can be found snacking while I am marking, coaching or gathering materials for the next lesson.

I reflect on new ways to improve lessons for the next day, next unit or next month.

I plan trips based on the needs and desires of not only the curriculum but the interests of my students.
I think about my classroom, my students and my lessons on the weekend, the breaks and in the summer.
Teaching is always part of my day.
Every day.

When I really think about it, it is hard to separate the teacher from the mother, the wife, the friend and from the core of who I am.

I am a teacher.

I am me.

The answer to your question is more than a simple yes, because I am more than a teacher.

What I do can not be separated from who I am. 

A teacher from the inside out. 

Now and forever.