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A Round of Applause for Small Steps

   The start of spring brings a lot of things: warmer weather, longer days, greener trees, and beautiful flowers. In the world of education it also brings the dawn of testing season. In classrooms across the country, it brings lots of review, and of course lost of review games. On Friday, we were playing a review game that covered some of the reading terminology we have learned this year. Before we started the games, I split my kids up into teams, and explained that each round would have a winner. I reminded them about the importance of good sportsmanship, and being happy for each other, even if their team did not win.
    I thought that surely by the end of the first round, their competitive juices would be in full force and we would have to pause the game and have a repeat conversation. Instead, this group of third graders fed me a slice of humble pie. As the winning team of the first round was displayed on our Smart Board, the rest of the class burst into a huge round of applause and starting saying things like, "Good job!" "Way to go!" "Nice work!" I was just stunned. Three more rounds were played, and at the end of each, the same thing happened. At the end of the game, I told them that I was proud of them for knowing their reading terminology, but I was even MORE proud of the way that they chose to treat each other. 
    I've been feeling overwhelmed lately thinking about all of the dreams and goals I have for my life and future. I find myself constantly questioning whether or not I am doing enough to work towards those dreams and goals. This experience this week reminded me of two things. First of all, just like my students were cheering for their classmates just for winning one round of a review game, we have a Heavenly Father and a Savior who are cheering for us as we take a step towards reaching our full potential, no matter how small. Second, it often seems like we are SO far away from where we feel we should be. In reality though, if we are striving to improve just a little bit each day, and treating others around us with kindness, love, and respect, we are doing just fine. 
 

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