An Open Letter to the Class of 2014

Tomorrow I begin my ninth year of teaching. In preparation for my three classes of seniors, I wrote a letter which I will read to them and then ask them to write one to me in return with their challenges and joys, both academic and personal (if they choose). I've included it below as my first blog post in months. I feel blessed I chose a life path which allows me to press the 'restart' button every August.  It's actually a little thing called 'grace' ...............

An Open Letter to the Class of 2014

Dear Class of 2014,

Welcome to IB2 English! Some of you I know from World Lit 9, others from Forensics or Extended Essay or my passport while a large number of you are merely friendly faces from the crowded IA halls. I look forward to getting to know you in a new way and while I hope you enter into senior year with mainly excitement, I know other emotions are in there too! I read once somewhere that a teacher who doesn't feel some amount of trepidation on the first day of school probably needs to find another career .. thankfully, I feel a bit awkward and nervous reading you this letter as I stand before you today! However, this nervous energy transfers into excitement as I look out to see our class and the possibilities in store for us - to laugh, read, explore, and write. It'll be some work, but I will do my best to make it engaging and meaningful for you. 

I always knew I wanted to be a teacher. For awhile I thought maybe doctoring would suit me (mainly because I wanted to meet a good looking pediatric doctor like George Clooney's character on E.R.) and sometimes I dream about working a tiny coffee shop by the beach but then I remind myself that I'd actually have to MAKE the coffee, not just drink it and read books with the sea breeze in my face. However, what brings me back to classroom each year - this'll be number 9 - is you: it's your energy, your excitement, your willingness to try new things, to laugh at my jokes, to produce solid writing, and to ask challenging questions (because now that you're a senior, you just ask good questions! - it's magic!) I studied literature because I really love to read, and I hope to encourage a passion for it in you. If I can't do that, then I hope at least you don't hate at least one text we read this year. In my chosen career path, I have the opportunity to expose you to new ideas and my own experiences and at the same time, learn from yours. This is where the nervousness comes in .. it's a big job to sit in this room among such intelligent and interesting individuals and hope I can share something worthwhile with you. I humbly ask you to bear with me; I beg you to share something in return with me. 

My greatest challenge as an educator is to both be knowledgeable and prepared and yet create a flexible and cooperative space. While it's important to maintain a steady pace, it's also important to take time to remind ourselves that the IB is.only.one.test. and it will not determine the rest of our lives, I promise. It's important to me that you are GOOD PEOPLE - caring, curious, and creative people - when you leave the IA, and that you love the written word as a gateway to explore the world beyond ourselves. I hope we ask one another meaningful questions. I'm asking you to trust me with the hard questions and respect me enough to be honest in return. I don't mind saying "I don't know, let's see what we can figure out" but I hope you are willing to take risks, too, and ask yourselves the hard questions as well even if you don't want to know the answer. (Those are the hardest ones!) 

I want our classroom to be nurturing and demanding, respectful and filled with integrity, and most importantly, positive. Let's lift one another up, and know that when we have a bad day, there will be a classroom full of smart people to remind us that while what we do here at the IA is important, it's not the only thing this life is about. We have books to read, miles to run, pets to cuddle, shows to watch, electronics to (sometimes) unplug, and people with whom it's important to engage in meaningful ways. The list goes on and on ... let's not get too busy to forget about these simple joys. 

Thank you in advance for your engagement, risk-taking, and ability to make me laugh ... I am SO looking forward to sharing this year with you.

All my best,

Ms. Clancy

My black headband broke this morning on my way out the door for PD; I posted it to Instagram with a flip caption about the first day of school & bad omens. My sister-in-law Catelyn used her magical (crafty) powers to transform it from a broken accessory to a symbol of love. Grace, indeed.