To read an article in Teachers of Vision magazine
about the struggling student's self-identity go to
https://magazine.ceai.org/stories-identities.
The Tender Heart of a Struggler
Did you ever fall out of your chair when you reached down to pick up a pencil, but because one leg was tucked under your body you lost your balance and landed on the floor? And to make matters worse, because you disrupted the class, you lost your recess privilege?
Did you ever feel like you were the stupidest person in the room?
This is how our strugglers feel as they try to manage their lives with dyslexia, ADHD, and a wide variety of other issues, including personal problems of health or home.
What is happening in the heart of this child? Frustration, a feeling of “I’m a bad person,” sadness, hopelessness, and anger. When you confront him, and he droops his head and lowers his shoulders, that’s a sign he’s losing the battle. Not just the academic battle, but the self-worth battle. The battle of the heart.
How do we address that?
When I found the picture of the lamb, I knew I had to use it for this section of my website. Through the years in my classroom, I’ve seen struggling students who act like little wolves. They get into trouble, they don’t finish their work, they disturb other children, and they lash out in anger. Yet underneath all that annoyance, if I looked at their faces and saw the droop in their shoulders--I knew that they are hurting, and often they didn’t understand why.
Jesus lovingly ministered to people with hurting hearts. In fact Peter, a fisherman who was chosen by Jesus, did impulsive things like jump out of a boat and blurt things he later regretted. Hmm. A bit of ADHD there?
Jesus said in John 10:11, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” (NKJV)
What an attitude for a leader, a shepherd, a parent, a teacher.
I’ll end with these familiar words from Psalm 23.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside the still waters.
Or in the words of a struggling student: My teacher places me where I can see the board up close, or where I’m near her so I can get help, or in a quiet, safe corner with wiggle room because she knows that’s what helps me stay on track.
She makes sure I’m located where I have easy access to tools I need like graph paper for math so I can keep my columns straight, or an extra ruler for the times I can’t find mine.
He restores my soul.
My teacher acknowledges and encourages my gifts such as my hard work ethic, or art, or music, or helpfulness, or kindness, or determination, or creativity. She celebrates my victories, even the small ones--especially the small ones. She gives me hope and reminds me of my potential. She makes me feel worthwhile and loved.
He leads me in the paths of righteousness . . .
She catches me being good and gives me a thumbs-up, a smile, or a kind word.
So, instructor, my prayer for you is that God will bless you as you work with your strugglers. Your job is hard, and tiring, and so very, very important.
You can make a difference.
The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you.
And be gracious to you;
(Numbers 6:24-25 NKJV)
I’ve provided this picture here for you to screenshot and post on your phone wallpaper, computer screen or as a printed paper to remind you to surround your struggler with love as exemplified by the Good Shepherd.
Connie A. Williams, Author of Ants Across the Page, a book that deals with the hurting heart of a struggling child, written from the child's point of view.
about the struggling student's self-identity go to
https://magazine.ceai.org/stories-identities.
The Tender Heart of a Struggler
Did you ever fall out of your chair when you reached down to pick up a pencil, but because one leg was tucked under your body you lost your balance and landed on the floor? And to make matters worse, because you disrupted the class, you lost your recess privilege?
Did you ever feel like you were the stupidest person in the room?
This is how our strugglers feel as they try to manage their lives with dyslexia, ADHD, and a wide variety of other issues, including personal problems of health or home.
What is happening in the heart of this child? Frustration, a feeling of “I’m a bad person,” sadness, hopelessness, and anger. When you confront him, and he droops his head and lowers his shoulders, that’s a sign he’s losing the battle. Not just the academic battle, but the self-worth battle. The battle of the heart.
How do we address that?
When I found the picture of the lamb, I knew I had to use it for this section of my website. Through the years in my classroom, I’ve seen struggling students who act like little wolves. They get into trouble, they don’t finish their work, they disturb other children, and they lash out in anger. Yet underneath all that annoyance, if I looked at their faces and saw the droop in their shoulders--I knew that they are hurting, and often they didn’t understand why.
Jesus lovingly ministered to people with hurting hearts. In fact Peter, a fisherman who was chosen by Jesus, did impulsive things like jump out of a boat and blurt things he later regretted. Hmm. A bit of ADHD there?
Jesus said in John 10:11, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” (NKJV)
What an attitude for a leader, a shepherd, a parent, a teacher.
I’ll end with these familiar words from Psalm 23.
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside the still waters.
Or in the words of a struggling student: My teacher places me where I can see the board up close, or where I’m near her so I can get help, or in a quiet, safe corner with wiggle room because she knows that’s what helps me stay on track.
She makes sure I’m located where I have easy access to tools I need like graph paper for math so I can keep my columns straight, or an extra ruler for the times I can’t find mine.
He restores my soul.
My teacher acknowledges and encourages my gifts such as my hard work ethic, or art, or music, or helpfulness, or kindness, or determination, or creativity. She celebrates my victories, even the small ones--especially the small ones. She gives me hope and reminds me of my potential. She makes me feel worthwhile and loved.
He leads me in the paths of righteousness . . .
She catches me being good and gives me a thumbs-up, a smile, or a kind word.
So, instructor, my prayer for you is that God will bless you as you work with your strugglers. Your job is hard, and tiring, and so very, very important.
You can make a difference.
The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you.
And be gracious to you;
(Numbers 6:24-25 NKJV)
I’ve provided this picture here for you to screenshot and post on your phone wallpaper, computer screen or as a printed paper to remind you to surround your struggler with love as exemplified by the Good Shepherd.
Connie A. Williams, Author of Ants Across the Page, a book that deals with the hurting heart of a struggling child, written from the child's point of view.