A Lesson on Gratitude From My Students

Dr. Cathy Coker

Gratitude means taking time to remember the good things that have happened to you in the past, whether it is an event, a person, a good thought you had or resolving conflicts with others.

As a teacher we have many of these moments when you have a classroom full of seven-yearolds. Sometimes these moments are good and sometimes they are not so good.

For Example:

On Friday October 14, 2022, three of my students got into a dispute in class which led to the three students sobbing with remorse for what they did to each other. In times like these I get so frustrated with them when they are mean and rude to each other at such a young age. I teach 2 nd grade and that day they made each other cry alligator tears and in turn I too wanted to cry. But I knew this was a lesson of gratitude for us to learn.

Children are great at letting go of their hurt feelings, but on this day, Izabella taught me a lesson. When I asked the boys to apologize to each other Izabella commented that she needed time to reflect on what had just happened. I am grateful for what I learned from Izabella. She said6 to me when I asked her to forgive her classmates for being unkind to her and to each other. She responded, “I will need three days to let go of my hurt that is in my heart before I can forgive him.” One of the boys called her a “snitch”, which hurt her feelings because she was standing up for another student.

hurt and the only thing that help me through my hurting heart was Netflix and ice cream. I learned that time away from those that hurt you is what we need. She spoke up first and said to Ken that she forgave him, and in response he apologized and accepted her apology and they gave each other pinky promises to never bully each other ever again. Ken talks a lot about Izabella every chance he gets.

hurt and the only thing that help me through my hurting heart was Netflix and ice cream. I learned that time away from those that hurt you is what we need. She spoke up first and said to Ken that she forgave him, and in response he apologized and accepted her apology and they gave each other pinky promises to never bully each other ever again. Ken talks a lot about Izabella every chance he gets.

I don’t know if its love or not at such an early age, what I do know is that he has to change how he shows others that he likes them. He likes her and I pray that they never break their pinky promise. I am grateful to have learned that time away from those that hurt you helps heal the wounds of words from your peers. The best part of being a teacher is seeing how a child forgives and forgets the wounds of their peers. May we learn from our students to have an open heart for our peers. If you ever get bullied at work, tell them and then let time and Netflix heal your heart! I love being a teacher.