Bank on it

Amanda Bank is a student who is strong academically.  There is no doubt in my mind that she will do well all year in my AP Economics class.  However, what I am finding out is that being strong academically does not mean you will be successful.

Amanda however, showed me her college essay the other day.  While she is a strong academic person she is quite the opposite on the athletic field.  While she might not be a strong athlete she likes to play.  She decided to try out for the cross country team basically because the coach did not cut anyone.

During her first year you could look at the back of the pack and find Amanda.  She wheezed her way through the season.  At the end of the year she was determined to be better.  She woke up in the summer everyday at 6:00 AM to run.  Again, this is a young lady with no aspirations of being great, just someone who wanted to do a better job the next year.

As the start of the season approached she was very excited.  She was in much better shape and thought that she would set a personal best.  Wow, would people be surprised.  Just as she was getting ready to show off her new fitness, she came down with pneumonia.  At first the doctor told her to rest for one week, but that soon turned into four.  As a person who had pneumonia I know that even when you get back it takes you a long time to return to full strength.

Upon return, Amanda realized she lost all of what she worked so hard for during the summer.  She struggled to run and every mile was killing her.  It would have been easy to quit, everyone would have understood.  That word is not in this young ladies mind.  She reset her goals and became determined just not to be the slowest runner on the team.

When counties came around she beat one runner on her team.  If this was Hollywood she would have won the counties.  In real life however, she showed us why we play high school sports.  To learn transferable skills, that carry on with us for life.  While be strong academically will surely help her throughout her life, her GRIT will make her a winner.

As we continue to try to figure out how to teach GRIT, we need to look at people who demonstrate it.  Any other stories of GRIT you would like to share.