It’s the calm before the storm. Or maybe, really, it’s the storm before the hurricane. It’s the week before the kids come. This week, you will decorate and plan and move furniture and make copies, the weight of expectations heavy on your shoulders and the overwhelm of to do’s at the forefront of your mind. This week you will work like crazy, wishing there were more time and wondering what this year will be like and who your students will be. Next week, children will fill these halls and sit in your classrooms, and they will look to you expectantly. The expressions on their faces will all be different, to be sure, but the emotions will have similar roots. “Will I fit in? Will they like me? Will I be safe here?” You -- yes, you -- hold the answers to their questions. While you are busy making name tags and creating seating charts, the world is entrusting you with its future. You are entrusted with the world. Each child you see on Monday morning is a piece of the collective future we will face. Each child who looks to you for acceptance and safety is a person who will make our world better or worse,...

  Teachers are my people. When I was a little girl, I played nonstop with a blackboard and chalk, and as an adult, I spent nine years teaching middle and high school English. I know teachers, and I love teachers. For that very reason, I have created something exclusively for anyone working in a school, and I am giving it away FOR FREE! Teachers need encouragement, so I have written a week's worth of devotions to inspire them and motivate them in the midst of their difficult jobs. To receive the devotions directly to your inbox, simply click on this link! Be sure to enter the email address where you wish to receive them. You'll get the first email Monday, September 19th, and they will continue throughout the week! Feel free to share this post with any teachers you know. Let's spread a positive message throughout our schools!  ...