Today was my last day teaching middle school kids. Never in my life have I experienced such a bittersweet day, and I'll tell you why.

The 8th grade students in the first two periods wished me luck. A couple even wanted to give me a hug and thanked me for being there. This was surprising because I didn't teach this class very often- only a few days here and there. It was heartwarming to see that I did have an impact on their lives and that they were going to miss me.

The 7th grade honors students were the hardest in which to say goodbye. When the class started I still had to go over their exams with them. I was even called to another room to talk to another teacher. Little did I know that it was a trick to get me out of the room. When I came back, I finished going over the exam and at that point my teacher encouraged the students to speak up. That's when they surprised me with cupcakes, several thank-you cards and a gift. The gift turned out to be microwave popcorn! Our last lab activity was popping popcorn for science so this was a sweet gift from them. The whole class was so charming and magical I was almost in tears. Several kids were shocked at this and shouted, "I didn't want to make Mr. Rada cry!" which made me feel all the more emotional about it. We spent the rest of the period talking and relaxing. I had half of the same students for the next period so we decided to spend the time playing games and talking. It was wonderful.

The biggest surprise was the later class- the regular 7th grade science class. I've always found these students a challenge to wrangle into paying attention and I didn't know at the time if I was really affecting them. I was absolutely surprised by a request they made the day before- they asked if they could have a party for me on my last day. I told them I don't have stuff to bring to make it exciting, but several of them said they would take care of that. I had no expectation that they would bring anything, being 7th graders, so I was still planning a regular lesson with them. However, I didn't want to disappoint them too much, so I bought a bunch of cookies from the cafeteria to share. By the time that class arrived, I could tell that those students certainly pulled through as they brought in chips, candy, and pop to share with everyone. Not only that, but my teacher brought in a whole bunch of cupcakes decorated in the shape of a snake. We enjoyed the candy and food and just talked about random things. This group was really rambunctious but they made the day special with this wonderful surprise.

To top it all off, my teacher planned on giving me a double-layer chocolate fudge cake and was going to share it at the team meeting, but we didn't get to share it as time ran out. I ended up taking it home and I plan on sharing it with my sister and my Dad.

I ended up with so much from that experience. I miss my students already and I'm even questioning if I really want to teach chemistry. I loved teaching 7th and 8th grade so much! However things go, I know I'll make the right choice when I come to it.