Have you ever wanted to run a marathon? Have you thought about it, but then thought it’d be impossible? Well – I’m here to tell you that literally anyone can run a marathon that wants to! I’m walking proof of that! If you have a desire to run one – I highly recommend you take on that challenge! It’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made…there is nothing like crossing that finish line when it’s all over.

A group of us are planning on running the Marine Corps Marathon in October! We’ll be spending the weekend in D.C. and the more people we have  the better! We’ll all be training together as well. Training usually begins about 20 weeks out from the marathon – so we’ll be starting training for this toward the end of May. If you have questions on training plans and how they work – just ask me or research them online. It’s a lot easier than you think!

Are you interested? Registration begins April 1st and usually the marathon fills upin a week. You’ll be able to register here! If you’re seriously considering it – leave me a comment on this post or e-mail me at douglasasmith53@gmail.com.

DO  IT!!! I’m looking forward to hearing from YOU!

¹NOT MANY of you should become teachers, my brethren, for you know that we [teachers] will be judged by a higher standard and with greater severity [than other people; thus we assume the greater accountability and the more condemnation].

James 3:1

What Makes a Great Teacher?

Great Teachers are Passionate -great teachers love what they do and it’s evident to everyone that sits under their teaching. Passion spreads like wildfire – teachers with passion caused me to like the subjects I hated. Passion makes all the difference in the world.

Great Teachers Recognize the Importance of Being a Teacher – great teachers are constantly aware of the fact that they can change a students life forever.

Great Teachers Challenge their Students - the best teachers I’ve had – I hated at times because they challenged me, caused me to give my best effort, and stretched me to be all I could be.

Great Teachers Believes in Their Students and Their Students Know it - This isn’t about talk – it’s about action. If a stranger asked your students if they think you genuinely care about them – what would they say? If you don’t believe in the potential of every student – you need to find a new job.

Great Teachers Do Not Treat Everybody the Same – they recognize that students all have different strengths, weaknesses, learning styles, and learning curves. Great teachers find out what their students needs are and coach them individually.

Great Teachers Go Out of Their Way - they don’t just pay attention to the students that raise their hands every question or that are the most popular, or even the brightest. They go out of their way to make sure every student feels loved, respected, and that they can do anything they put their minds to.

Great Teachers Want Their Students to go Farther Than Themselves -Teaching is ultimately about the legacy you’ll leave. The ultimate question is: Will my students better equipped for life than I was at their age because of the invested I’ve made in them. Am I enabling them go to farther than I did? Than their parents?

Great Teachers Reproduce Who They Are – Great teachers don’t just read facts and theories out of a textbook and expect to change a students life. Students will forget most the theories and principles you teach them, but they’ll remember who you were, what you stood for, and your character. Remember that more is caught than taught and that everything you do and say will have an impact on a student.

Great Teachers Bring Real Life into the Classroom - I’ve heard the quote, “Those that can’t do, teach, and those who can’t teach – teach gym.” While that is meant to be funny – it has some truth to it. If you’ve never done what you’re teaching – get around professionals that have done it and get as much knowledge from them as you can so you can bring real life into the classroom. Bring them into the classroom and have them give you credibility. Nothing is worse than teaching something you’ve never actually done or attempted.

I got some of these thoughts from some great comments in this post... Thanks guys!

What are your thoughts? What makes a great teacher?

¹NOT MANY of you should become teachers, my brethren, for you know that we [teachers] will be judged by a higher standard and with greater severity [than other people; thus we assume the greater accountability and the more condemnation].

James 3:1

The Significance of Being a Teacher

I want to focus this week on what makes a great teacher and what makes the bad ones. I don’t want you to limit you’re thinking in this series to only think of teachers as people who instructs in a school or university. I will be focusing more on those types of teachers but in reality, we’re all teachers and we’re all teaching something everyday to someone. If you carry influence in someones life you’re a teacher and I believe you’ll benefit from this series – so here we go!

I want you to think of a few of the teachers that have made a positive impact in your life. Think about how your life is different today because of the investment they’ve made in your life.

Now think of a teacher who has a negative impact on your life. How has that impact influences who you are and how you live today?

When asked who were some of the biggest influence’s in his life other than his father, John Maxwell’s linsisted that his 5th grade teacher was one of the most influential people in his life. Why? Because she was the first person to ever tell John that he was a leader. He is now 62 and he still thinks about the impact that teacher made in his life in 5th grade with just a few words.

Zack Blair shared a story about how his 6th grade teacher told him that he was going to be a failure in life and how that stuck with him for years. I’ve had very similar experiences when I was in middle school. Negative things spoken into my life that stuck with me and developed a belief system in my heart that I made decisions from. In other words, every decision I made came from believing that I was a failure in life.

I wanted to shared these stories to show you how significant the role a teacher is. As a teacher you’re literally helping mold and form people into the people they will become 5, 10, 15 years down the road, possibly even the rest of their lives! Every word you speak, every minute you spend with someone, and everything you do has an impact on your students. The impact will either be positive or negative, if you don’t recognize this – you’ll never be a great teacher.

The truth is that your position and role as a teacher automatically enables you to be a life changer. Whether or not you change someones life for the better is entirely up to you. I’m going to share some principles over the next few days that I believe if a teacher will take them and apply them – they’ll constantly be influencing students to become better than they are.

Check out this video – I hope it sparks a vision in your heart on taking the role of a teacher seriously. People are depending on us to be the teachers God called us to be. They’re counting on us to be a difference maker in their lives!