Magical Moments

This week I was walking in the hallway alongside a third grade class on their way to gym.  One of the third grade students said, “Guess what Mr. Lyons?   The student had great excitement in his voice and a little bit of a shake in his body as if he was going to pop if he did not share his news immediately.  I responded back with an eager smile showing my willingness to hear his news.

“Today I was writing in class and -I had never written that much!  So I stopped, looked at it, and kept writing some more.  And, then I wrote even more.   (At this point the edges of his smile were approaching his eyes.)    I finished it.  Read it.  And it’s really good.  I didn’t think kids could write that long and that good.”

I immediately let this student know how proud I was of him.  

I recently heard Angela Maiers speak at the high school to parents (Blog post 9/5/2010 A Can’t Miss Presentation with Angela Maiers). Angela talked about how amazing it is to witness a child come to the realization that literacy matters.   Angela was correct-it is magical.

I see many of these magical moments daily.   Being a principal has so many incredibly rewarding components to the position.   One of my favorites is seeing the students’ smiles and the sparks of joy as they learn.