joy & brio

This is my journey of how I figured what "normal" really is. I took a job working with middle schoolers with special needs 2 and a half years ago. I had just finished my master's in special education and I had a lot of uncertainty about the job.  I wasn't sure if I was qualified and I really knew so little about children with special needs. At first, I felt like a failure as an educator. The kids were learning slowly, I was learning slowly, and it was taking some serious work to develop a connection with my students. I choose to keep doing my best everyday and worked hard not to get discouraged. After about a year into the job, the kids were still learning slowly, I was still learning slowly, but the connecting with my students was the easiest part of my job. I had learned to connect with a student who never looks me in the eye, I had learned to love and not fear a student who presented with aggressive behaviors when frustrated, I had learned to communicate with n...