"EXTRAS" ARE NOT EXTRA

The so-called "extra-curriculars" of my career have been among the most rewarding aspects of anything I've done over the course of 30 years.

As the coach of the chess team, I've built many, many lifelong friendships with students, and there's nothing that compares with the joy of working together and winning championships, and, years later, of sitting together and reminiscing.

After teaching for 20 years, I sat down to consider what I thought might be the 10 Greatest Moments of my teaching career so far. I wasn't sure what I would discover, but when the list was complete, I was surprised to find that only one or two of them had happened inside my classroom. Instead, the list was full of things that happened in other places. This taught me something--that the so-called "Extras" are not extra at all. For me to have an enjoyable career, the "extras" were critically important.

I now consider the 10 "mountain top" moments of my teaching career. Join me, if you please, and see if together we can learn anything.

10--Being selected to deliver inspirational speeches at 2 different Veterans' Days assemblies
9--Working with Cottage Grove's city government to ensure that young people will be involved in the running of the city, through the Youth Advisory Committee and the placement of a student as a non-voting member of the city council.
8--Designing and implementing the Human Resources Certificate of Advanced Mastery Program
7--Putting together and seeing succeed "mock trial" experiences for my Law classes
6--Taking the 2006 Chess Team to nationals in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
5--Field trips to see former president Ford in 1980, and future president Clinton in 1992
4--Being trusted to teach Ethics, and then successfully doing it
3--Taking the 1988 Chess Team to nationals in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and taking 4th place in the nation in our division
2--Leading busloads of enthusiastic students to the 1992, 96, and 2000 Model Political Conventions in Portland
1--Coaching the Lion Chess teams of 2003, 4, 5, 6, and 7 to five straight district titles and, at this writing, 48 straight league matches without a loss.

Wow. Out of those things, only a couple actually took place in my classroom. The others involved the so-called "extras."

The lesson here, is that at least for me, my career would have been much less rewarding, exciting, and fun if I had been one of those who was satisfied with staying in my room. Instead, I'm glad that I left the room and found other things to do with my students.

For me, the "extras" were anything but extra. They gave my career color and joy that I never would have experienced without them.