Originally Posted by Sunchimes:
There is absolutely nothing wrong with feeling that way. My child of choice would be a 2-4 yo smart girl. I have always been a teacher, started at the high school level, and keeps dropping. ;-) I loved teaching the little one who just headed off to pre-k. It was a joy seeing her learn and made my job worthwhile.
Then, her baby brother turned out to have some issues, and this was my introduction to special needs. I didn't choose to do it, I just couldn't term him-I loved him. I'd had him since he was 6 weeks old. If I'd been asked if I wanted to do it, I probably would have said, 'Not really". But, I wasn't asked and so I jumped into the ring and started learning about special needs. And, at 60 years old, I found what I was meant to do. Now, I am a special needs daycare-all of my kids are in the ECI program.
Sometimes, for any of the reasons you mentioned, I wish for a room of smart, typical kids. Sometimes, I look longingly at themes and coloring pages and folder games on sequencing. But then, my ASD child will, out of the blue, sit down in the floor and play with a toy appropriately, for the first time ever!!! Or the child with motor issues jumps and both feet clear the floor!! I may not see them "get excited when they learn a new concept", because they don't know how stupendous it was, but I know. And their parents know.
Honestly, I've shed a lot of tears in the 1 1/2 years I've been working with special needs kids, but most of them have been happy tears when I see positive results for something I taught them.
There may come a day when I won't be a special needs provider. When I have an opening, I take the child who needs me. I thought my last space would be taken by a typical child because I couldn't find a special needs to take the spot. But suddenly, out of the blue, here she came. When the oldest goes off to PPCD in a few months, I'll hope for a special child. They may or may not have needs, but I know they will be special either way.
There is room in the teaching profession for all of us. I think you covered it quite well. I can't think of anything I would add to your post.
Beautifully said.