LEsson #8: The wet shoe

Written by:  Jennifer Appel  
Based on the stories told by:  Paul Dowdy

I am sad to say that this is the last story of the summer.  I have loved telling my father’s stories and learning from them again.  I am excited to start a new school year with this renewed energy that these stories have brought back into my life.  I hope that you have learned as much as I have and take some of these ideas with you as you enter a bright new school year!

“Without patience, we will learn less in life.  We will see less. We will feel less. We will hear less.  Ironically, rush and more usually mean less.”
​Mother Teresa

​My dad was one of the only men in his school so he was frequently called upon often to check on the boys restroom.    On one occasion, he received a call from a teacher who was concerned about a student who had gone to the bathroom and had not returned.  He had been gone for about 20 minutes and they were concerned that he was causing mischief in the bathroom or was really sick.  So my dad headed to the classroom and told the teacher he would go to the bathroom and see if he was okay.

As he entered the bathroom he noticed the student was standing at the urinal and was singing as he relieved himself.  You could tell he was taking his time and enjoying his time in the bathroom. The young boy obviously didn’t hear my dad enter the bathroom, so he wanted to make sure that he knew he was behind him.  He walked closer to the student and called him by his name. As I said, the student had no idea my dad was there, he was having too much fun singing. He was so startled when my dad said his name that he suddenly spun around to look at my dad but unfortunately was not finished with his “business”.  So when he turned, he didn’t stop peeing and it landed all over my dad’s shoes. 

This is a situation that my dad learned a valuable lesson from, it is best to show PATIENCE when confronting a student.   If you don’t show PATIENCE you may have wet shoes and a lot of clean-up!

Do you REACT to a situation instead of showing PATIENCE?

How can we show PATIENCE for students who demonstrate avoidance or insubordination?

What have you learned from an Award Winning Principal that you can apply to your school this year?

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About the Author

Jennifer Appel is a teacher at Enterprise Middle School.  She has been teaching for 20 years.  Her passion for education comes from growing up in at education driven family (4th generation) and wanting to help and serve others.  She is now driven to create an environment where all students are able to learn and become passionate about serving others.  Jennifer can be contacted through email at awardwinningculture@gmail.com.  You can follow her on twitter at @jennifermappel.  Follow AWC @awculture on instagram @awardwinningculture.  Follow Wildcat Nation on instagram @emsleadership.  #WildcatNation #AwardWinningCulture
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Paul Dowdy is a retired elementary school teacher and principal.  Paul was in education for more than 40 years.  Paul created cultures of excellence at every school he taught at or lead.  Paul was also an adjunct professor at 3 different universities in the state of Washington and a regional director for Heritage University.  Paul has shared his stories all around the state of Washington in the form of presentations.  He's passionate about children and that reflected in all of his work as a reading specialist and his study of the brain and how that drives instruction.  Paul is not on social media...but can be reached near any body of water that's conducive to shadow casting! #FlyFishing