So technically, it isn’t my first year teaching.  But I think it’s beyond useful to have a reminder of why you went into teaching in the first place, to have something to fall back on when you will inevitably question your chosen profession.  I don’t know if similar doubts arise in other career fields but I know the doubts of an educator all too well.  I also know the joys, the laughter, the proud moments – and that’s what keeps me (if not most of us) in this field.  During my graduate program, I wrote myself a letter and I’ve read it three times already.  Whenever I get frustrated and notice that I’m being very hard on myself, I turn to the letter.  I’m grateful that I had the foresight to write one. Perhaps it should be a required element of all new teachers.  Because you will have tough days and you will doubt yourself.  You need that reminder of why you chose teaching to begin with.  If you don’t have one, it’s never too late to write one.  Or simply watch this video.  It helped reaffirm things for myself this morning.  This school year hasn’t yet started for me but it was refreshing to kick off my transition from break to school year with this kind reminder of why we do what we do.