I took an early afternoon shift swap at the clinic, drove straight to Lincoln Elementary, and signed in at the front office. The hallway smelled of floor wax and construction paper, and cheerful student artwork lined the bulletin boards.
Mr. Henderson’s classroom was quiet, smelling faintly of dry-erase markers and old books. He stood behind his cluttered oak desk, smiling warmly as I stepped through the doorway.
“Please have a seat, Ms. Kelly,” he said, gesturing to a small child-sized chair opposite his desk.
“Thank you, Mr. Henderson,” I said, sitting down gingerly. “Your email sounded urgent. Is everything alright with Maisie?”
“Actually, I asked you here to discuss a remarkable shift in her demeanor,” Mr. Henderson said, adjusting his glasses. “Last year, and during the first few weeks of this semester, Maisie was withdrawn, hesitant to participate in group projects, and spent most of her recess sitting alone near the library doors.”
I held my breath, bracing for the other shoe to drop.
“However, over the last two weeks, something has clicked,” he continued, pulling up a digital grade and behavioral log on his monitor. “Not only has her academic engagement skyrocketed, but she intervened when another student was being excluded from a kickball game on the playground. She walked right up, invited the girl to join her team, and shut down some derogatory comments made by a few other students.”
