A Blog by Chicken Wrangler Sara

I have been blessed to teach both private piano students and classroom music for the last 16 years. I’ve known that I could not keep both jobs forever. The schedule is too demanding. Every year I ask God what I should do.

This year, He made it clear to me that it is time for me to leave the classroom and focus on my family and my private students. It was a difficult year but there are always challenges in teaching. This year, however, the challenges began to overtake the joys. It is time to step away.

My principal asked me to reconsider and talk to him again at the end of June. I agreed although I do not anticipate changing plans. I did not say anything to the students. Perhaps that was cowardly, but I prefer to think of it as self-protection.

I am the only music teacher they have had for 6 years so saying goodbye would have been difficult.

I had an idea back in April for a project to celebrate Earth Day. The students were planting flowers in the flower beds along the sidewalk. I suggested we all paint rocks to put along the edge – like a caterpillar. It didn’t happen during April, and I was determined to get it done. I thought it would make a great memory for years to come.

So, on my last day of teaching music, I painted rocks with all 133 of my students. They each chose whether to paint the rock blue or yellow. When they dried, the students could write or draw on them with permanent markers. Then on their way to dismissal, they could put their rocks in the flower bed.

It turned out nice.

I had enough rocks for the teachers to paint one. When we left on the last day, I was the only one who added to the rock caterpillar.

 

It was important to me to leave a lasting memory as my final project.