At the beginning of the year most teachers spend time going over classroom expectations with students. One of the ‘hot topics’ has been making a chart or poster of things that are in a student’s control. 
The premise is that if students can recognize that some things are out of their control, they can then regulate their response. The outcome hopefully produces a more self regulated classroom where students are proactive, not reactive.
While I think this a great exercise for students, isn’t it a great exercise for teachers as well? There are many aspects to teaching that are out of my control (class size, which students I get, schedule, and so on). I can choose to be reactive and complain or be discouraged but realizing there are many factors that go into running a school, I may not see the big picture.
Teaching is hard, doesn’t it make sense to work at having a positive outlook regardless of the circumstances? Students pick up on your attitude toward school, make sure it’s worth catching!
"Teacher, teacher!" 