I have taught in the central Arkansas public school district for six years now, with so many students, I have lost count. I have been fortunate to work with students struggling with the material. They, with my encouragement, went on to make C's in class, that I then treated them as if they had won the Congressional Medal of Honor. I have also worked with some of the very brightest students, whom I have pushed beyond their regular intellectual limits, and then thrived on the high expectations I had for them. Those students would typically go on to make A's in my class. However, if they begin being sloppy with their work, I've reminded them of their unique gifts, which encourage me to hold them to such high expectations, and that anything less than their very best is a waste of my time and theirs. My goal as an educator is to help students realize their potential, and then work hard to achieve it.