story5160.xml

story5160.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

I am a fourth grade teacher. On that tragic day, September 11, 2001, I was working on the floor reviewing math with a small group of students. The rest of the students were working on math at their desk or at other places around the room. Just before 10:00, my assistant principal stuck her head in the door and asked me to meet her in the hall. I reminded the children to stop working and then stepped into the hall. The assistant principal seemed very grave. She quickly told myself and a few other teachers she has assembled that the Pentagon and World Trade Center Buildings had been attacked. She instructed us not to turn on the television because the coverage was graphic. Then, she hurried on to share with the next group of teachers. I turned, took a deep breath and whispered a quick prayer before returning to my children. As a teacher, we are sometimes very issolated from the world. The rest of the day, I got tiny bits of information from parents picking up their children. At the end of the day, I sat down with my kids and briefly shared with them what I knew. I knew that many of these kids go home to an empty house. My fear was that they would turn on the televison and be terrified. The mature discussion that followed amazed me and inspired me. These children provide a wonderful promise to our country's future and that is why I teach.