Lessons Learned and Cherished by Deborah Roberts

Author:Deborah Roberts [Roberts, Deborah]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Disney Book Group
Published: 2023-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

In grade school my fifth-grade teacher was Miss Falbo. She was a round, dark-haired Italian woman who was barely taller than we were. She was tough, and a complete authoritarian, but she still managed to exude warmth. We knew she had a heart and she looked after us. Miss Falbo was like a parent you didn’t want to disappoint. With one look she could express You know better. The story I’m about to share may sound extreme, and whenever I tell it people react with shock. But to be clear, I’m not upset about it, because I know this incident changed my life for the positive and pointed me in the right direction.

When we took a test in Miss Falbo’s class, we’d hand our paper to our neighbor, who would check the answers. Miss Falbo would read out the names of students in alphabetical order, and whoever corrected that student’s test would say the grade out loud. If you did badly on a test, everyone knew it.

There were weekly spelling tests, and if 100 percent of the class got a perfect score, we would all be rewarded with two Girl Scout cookies. In fifth grade, getting two Girl Scout cookies was about the equivalent of someone giving you two million dollars.

It was the day of the spelling test, and I took pride in myself for being prepared. The words we are supposed to spell are read aloud, and one of the words I hear is “troubled.” When the test is over, I give my paper to Amy. When it’s her turn to tell Miss Falbo my grade I’m stunned to hear “Ninety percent.” I’m thinking this is not possible, I knew every word on that test! I’d soon learn what the problem was. I heard “troubled” when the word was “trouble.” The bottom line was that I was wrong. Now I am in a state. I’m hoping someone else misses a word so I’m not solely responsible for the entire class missing out on cookies. We get to the last kid, Adam, and I hear “One hundred percent!” My heart sinks—I’m going to be destroyed at recess.

Miss Falbo looks at me. “Listen, I’ve decided today I’m not going to make the entire class suffer because of you. I’m going make you stand in the hallway while the rest of the class eats their Girl Scout cookies.” I get up and walk to the door, thinking don’t cry don’t cry don’t cry. I close the door behind me and put my face up to the tiny little window to watch the class eat their cookies. When they were finished, I was invited back into the classroom. I saw no upside in the moment, but that walk to the hallway was early grit. There was something about Miss Falbo. We all knew she was an exceptional teacher. Tough yes, but that was because she had high expectations for all of us. I also believe she knew what she was doing. Sending me out into the hallway was the work of a master teacher—she knew I could handle it.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.