A special guest on Fiction Favorites is Rave Reviews Book Club board member and Membership Director John Fioravanti. This is a stop on his The Heart of Teaching Tour. John Fiction Favorites is yours.
Thanks, John I’m grateful that you would be my host of this sixth post of THE HEART OF TEACHING TOUR, and to Nonnie Jules of 4WillsPublishing who arranged it all! The full lineup for this tour can be found @ http://wp.me/P43s9i-2g
“It would take me several more years to learn that the most valuable thing I could offer students who confided in me was a willingness to listen and caring support.”
Excerpt from John Fioravanti: A Personal Journey To The Heart of Teaching.
In a previous post, I talked about the fact that I had felt the desire to help others as far back as I can remember. It became a major motive when I decided, as a high school student, that I wanted to teach in a high school one day. I did not have an easy time of it, emotionally, during my teen years, so I readily identified with troubled teens and hoped I might be of some help to them. Unfortunately, in this respect, things didn’t turn out the way I had anticipated.
The problem wasn’t with the students; it was with me. As I developed rapport with my classes and students felt comfortable in my classroom, I found that sometimes a student would seek me out in my classroom at noon or before school in the morning. Often they shared friend problems or family issues, and in my enthusiasm to be helpful, I would try to fix their world. Even now, as I type this, I’m shaking my head in disbelief. I honestly believed that these students wanted my advice, to tell them what they should do to solve whatever problem they were experiencing. How intellectually arrogant is that? My heart was in the right place, but my head certainly wasn’t!
The truth of my folly became apparent one day when our Vice Principal came to my door. At this time I was the Student Activities Council teacher advisor, and had been for a couple of years. Once I made it into the corridor, he asked me to meet with some distraught former students in his office. He said he would take over my class and I was to stay with our visitors for as long as necessary. Wow! What was this all about? Several possibilities crossed my mind as I walked the short distance to his office. I wasn’t ready for what greeted me when I arrived.
Stepping inside that office, I was swarmed by at least a half-dozen sobbing grade 11 kids who had been my Student Council seniors the year before. I hugged them all, two at a time, before we sat down together. I didn’t know that one of their friends had been killed in a car crash the day before. I knew the boy, but not very well. The sudden revelation of this tragic news, combined with their distress, served to put me into a slight state of shock. My mind raced, What can I say to these kids? How can I make them feel better? How can I fix this? It suddenly dawned on me, that there would be no “fixing” this!
So I sat quietly and listened intently to their expressions of grief. I did not admonish them when they railed against fate for their tragic loss. I nodded in silence as they wept openly – as if to tell them that their tears are good. I honestly didn’t know what else to do! There was a war going on inside between my desire to fix the situation and my natural instinct to just sit still and let them pour out their grief. After about 45 minutes (seemed like hours), the Council President from the previous year stood, thanked me for “being here for us”, and led the rest of the group out. There were more hugs on their way out the door.
“Thank you, sir, for being here for us.” I fixed nothing, but that is not my role. This tragedy, and these grief-stricken teens, gave me one of the most valuable lessons in my career. For this, I will always be truly grateful!
Author Bio:
John Fioravanti is a retired secondary school educator who completed his thirty-five-year career in the classroom in June, 2008.
Throughout his career, John focused on developing research, analysis, and essay writing skills in his History Classroom. This led to the publication of his first non-fiction work for student use, Getting It Right in History Class. A Personal Journey to the Heart of Teaching is his second non-fiction work; it attempts to crystallize the struggles, accomplishments, and setbacks experienced in more than three decades of effort to achieve excellence in his chosen field.
John’s first work of fiction is Passion & Struggle, Book One of The Genesis Saga, and is set within Kenneth Tam’s Equations universe (Iceberg Publishing). He claims that, after two non-fiction books, he’s having the time of his life bringing new stories and characters to life!
At present, John lives in Waterloo, Ontario with Anne, his bride of forty-one years. They have three children and three grandchildren. In December of 2013, John and Anne founded Fiora Books for the express purpose of publishing John’s books.
Contacts:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fiora-Books/516763875088924?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/FioraBooks
Website: https://fiorabooks.com
Book Purchase Links:
Amazon USA: http://dld.bz/dCm6v
Amazon Canada: http://dld.bz/dCm64
Amazon UK : http://dld.bz/dCm6P
Amazon Australia: http://dld.bz/dCmBB
Chapters/Indigo Canada: http://dld.bz/dCp5A
Barnes & Noble: http://dld.bz/dCp5E
“This tour sponsored by 4WillsPublishing.wordpress.com.”
Fiction Favorites 
John, that was a wonderful story from John… He’s so right. Most often people just need to be heard, to vent. They don’t tend to want someone to “fix” anything and the fixing can come across as judgmental.
That was on lucky school to have him as a teacher.
For someone who went to a podunk, rural Georgia public school, I had fantastic teachers. Lately i give them a nod (though they’ll never know about it, and in fact most of them have likely passed on) by naming some of my characters for their surnames. Hixon, and Bullard are examples from my current serial.
Hugs to you both. Wishing John the best with this book. 🙂
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Thank you very much for your kind words! I think that naming your characters after some of your teachers is a very fitting tribute. If I may suggest, if you did locate any of these people, thank them – they’ll light up like Christmas trees. You’d be amazed at how little this happens for a teacher.
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Thanks for the visit Teagan
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Nice comment. Thanks for stopping
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Reblogged this on Legends of Windemere.
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Thanks for the re-blog
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You’re welcome. 🙂
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What you do for others by just being there and listening to them means more than anything else you could have done. Bless you for your kindness to others. That takes a special person to do what you did. Best wishes with your books!
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Thank you for the visit and kind words
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Thank you very much – I appreciate your kindness and your comment!
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Thank you very much, Mr. Howell, for hosting a fellow Hoser from Canada on your blog today – it is an honour to be here!!
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And an honor to have you.
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Thank you, John, for the introduction to John Fioravanti and his wonderful books.
You are a nurturing and interesting man, John Fioravanti. ❤ Amazing too.
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Why, thank you very much for your kind words!! I’m glad we had a chance to meet here on John’s site.
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You are welcome Tess. He is quite a guy.
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You are more than welcome. 🙂
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This is a moving story, John. When I read your book, there were places that moved me to tears. I wish you all the very best in your life and writing career. 🙂
John, thanks so much for hosting John today 🙂 … The two Johns!!
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Thank you , Harmony, for sharing that. You are a good friend and I appreciate your support!!
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Thanks for the visit Harmony
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Thanks for the visit
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You have a real giving soul, John. That’s perhaps the greatest gift of all. Thanks for sharing. John Howell, thank you for hosting Mr. Fioravanti on his incredible tour.
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Thanks for the vist Beem
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Thank you, Beem – that’s a lovely comment – most appreciated!
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Hey John, you have a lot of energy on your tours. I wanted to wish you well because I won’t have time to stop in tomorrow as I will be away. I have your book and can’t wait to read it. Good luck to you and 4WillsPublishing for doing a fabulous job.
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Thanks for your support, Shirley – and enjoy your event in New Jersey!
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Another great post, John and another life lesson on the importance of being there to listen because that’s what shows how much we care about students and all of those who come into our lives with grief and seemingly insurmountable problems. Your teaching career continues for all of us. Best always! 🙂
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Awww, thank you, Bette! You’re too kind! I really appreciate your support each day of this tour!!
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Hi, John Howell. Thanks for hosting John’s HEART OF TEACHING TOUR. p.s. Just finished MY GRL and loved it! 🙂
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My pleasure. Thanks for the visit.
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Teaching is also learning, as you found out John. I learned more teaching than I learned becoming a teacher. That’s the truth. 🙂 Thank you P.H. for hosting.
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Sorry John W. Thank you for hosting. 🙂
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🙂
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