September 11, 2001 We Will NEVER Forget!

I'll never forget when Lauren  came in my class and told me that the kindergarten teachers were watching TV in their pod because a plane hit one of those "tall towers in New York City."  I questioned her asking how could that happen- I remember asking, "How could the pilot not see those towers?". Assuming it was an accident involving a private aircraft, I began my day with my fifth grade class.
But not for long.  Phones began ringing. I was teaching at Apollo (without walls), and I could hear phones ringing all over the main building.  Before long, we (the teachers) were gathering at the edges of our classrooms where we could all discuss the information we were getting from the "outside" world.  We would teach a little, then huddle and talk, and pray, and teach some more.  (At one point during the day I thought the rapture would happen any minute, and I was getting excited.) But the day dragged on. We tried not to show our emotions to the students, but they began to "catch" on that something wasn't right. Having so many BAFB children at our school, we knew we couldn't explain the situation because they may become very alarmed.
Then the parents came to the school and began to check out their kids. The students that remained knew something was terribly wrong and wanted answers. Answers we did not have. I remember being told at one point that President Bush had landed at Barksdale Air Force Base.  I couldn't and didn't believe it! But it was true!
Fast forward nine years- Imagine trying to explain or "teach" a class of fourth graders who were infants at the time ( I know b/c Nate was an infant) of the attack about the events of 9/11.  With the exception of the military kids, many had no idea of the severity of the attack on our nation just nine years ago. I realize that they are young, however they are our future. Our children must know about the events of September 11, 2001, and how it changed our lives forever! They must know that we live in a nation where ordinary people became heroes that day!  I tried to explain to my own kids and my students that those Americans didn't wake up that morning and just "decide" to be a hero.  Those character traits were already developed.  I have a poster in my classroom that says, "Character- who you are when nobody is watching!" Those heroes had determination, loyalty, and devotion to their families and their country!!! It began to develop when they were children and continued to grow as they became adults. I'm sure they had no idea how things would unfold on the we will never forget, but their character was ready to handle any crisis with dignity and power. As I "preached" in my classroom yesterday- Iron sharpens Iron.  My prayer for my own kids, as well as my students,is that they will choose to cultivate friendships where they hold one another accountable and build each other up- hopefully possessing the same character traits as those who selflessly died on our behalf on 9/11/01.  WE WILL NEVER FORGET!!!

Here are a couple of the poems I wrote for my boys to recite at our American Heritage Poetry Contest. The first one is about Todd Beamer and the last one about Pat Tillman.

Pics of My Boys Reciting Poems about American Heroes!