He Gets It!

I experienced one of my first "success stories" in the world of teaching. I have a particular student; we'll call this student W. W wasn't sure if he/she liked me in the beginning and, to be honest, I wasn't sure if I liked him/her. We just didn't exactly hit it off. And I have this student during two periods of the day. :)

One day this week I was helping W study for a quiz that I would be giving the next day. W was struggling to understand the "power of a power" rule with exponents. We did several examples together and eventually I wrote out a more detailed explanation for W. Something clicked and W finally said "Oh! I get it!" Music to a teacher's ears for sure! In addition to that, it was a positive moment for me and W. A moment I was concerned we might not experience, but it happened!

I could hardly wait to grade W's quiz the next day. The very first question on the test required using the "power of a power" rule. And W remembered!!! W wrote out my explanation just the way I showed him/her and he/she got the answer correct. Their quiz score was also very good. I haven't passed back the quizzes yet, but I showed W his/her quiz during the next period and emphasized how proud I was of him/her.

Will this moment of small victory influence W's behavior next week? Maybe not. Will W ever remember the "power of a power" rule again? Maybe not. But it was a small victory for me and W. I'm going to enjoy it while I can :)