by Lindsey Ralls (Summit Christian Academy)
 On Tuesday afternoon I asked one of our new teachers how his first day went and he said it was awesome. I asked him the same question the next day and his response started with “well…”. On day two, as Bible class began, he realized that his printer wouldn’t connect and the projector wouldn’t turn on. We’ve all been there. Everything you were about to do has gone out the window and suddenly you need a plan B. Grant told me that he began by asking the class if they had any general questions related to what they had covered the previous class and one student asked the question of what translation of the Bible they should bring to class. Rather than quickly respond with “ESV”, Grant took the time (because now he had it!) to walk the class through the history of Bible translations, how some are more closely connected to others, and why we have all of these translations. He and his seventh graders spent nearly an hour dissecting and discussing an in-depth topic…all because Grant embraced the mishap of his computer not working. I was instantly reminded of two things. The first thing I thought of was the quote from CS Lewis about education being less about cutting down jungles and more about irrigating deserts. Grant irrigated deserts. He took the time to help instill wonder rather than cut the discussion off with a quick answer. The second thing I thought about was the Law of the Teacher from The Seven Laws of Teaching (Gregory). Grant clearly knew his material. What an encouragement for us as teachers to truly know our material so deeply that we can have this kind of discussion when a student asks us an unexpected question. Thanks Grant for being an excellent example of what it looks like to embrace the mishaps and turn them into wonderful teachable moments. |
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Practical Paideia 
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