Teacher Appreciation Week. It isn’t about gifts or treats, it’s about appreciating your teachers. As teachers, the most special recognition is the one given from the heart…a picture, a note, or a simple Dollar Tree memento given from a student.

Who was your Favorite teacher?

I had 3. Let me introduce them to you for Teacher Appreciation Week.

Mrs. Stiff, 6th Grade

Mrs. Stiff was my sixth grade teacher and she was a real-life Mrs. Frizzle. She didn’t have a magic school bus, but she should have. She would get us to do the craziest things:

• We were allowed to tear pages out of old Almanacs and tape them to the windows in the classroom to trace maps of places in our curriculum.
• We moved all the tables out for 3 days and covered the floor with plastic.  She gave us hunks of clay to design and create and she had a friend who fired the clay for us.
• We went on a field trip every month…we even went snow skiing.
• She believed in collaborative groups and partner-led assignments.
• She believed in PBLs, before PBLs were a thing.
• We would have done anything for her, including a 10-page research paper with sources.   (I couldn’t find a picture of her.)

We all knew we were lucky to have her (and not the boring teacher down the hall).

Teacher appreciation worthy!

Mr. Paige, High School English

What an amazing man!  He taught freshman English.

He was about 5 feet 3 inches tall and wore a suit every day.  He carried long pointer around the room and would put it in front of him like he was going to start tap dancing when he was walking around the room and teaching us.

He called me “loquacious” and I take that as badge of honor.

He taught me how to write a proper paper and I follow his method to this day.  He would also write a rubric of errors on the top right corner of your paper, so you’d know exactly what you needed to fix for the next time.

I liked him so much I decided to take his senior English class.

He was amazing and we all loved him.  Some of us were even able to have him again as seniors.  He retired a few years ago and lives in Richmond near his son.

From what we hear, he is doing well.  This year someone heard rumor that he had passed and the messages on Facebook starting pouring in detailing how he impacted all of our lives. His name always comes up at reunions.

Teacher appreciation worthy!

Mrs. B, High School Chorus

Mrs. Buckley was my high school chorus teacher.  She was such a great lady.

I could never write the right words to give her the proper introduction she deserved.

I used to skip History about once a month to “help in the chorus room” because you just wanted to be around her…and she’d write my an excuse for the History teacher the next day.

She was genuinely interested in our lives.  She listened to all our boy drama and our girlfriend fights.  She never judged, but gave opinions that were based in faith and our safety.

She was a confidante, a mentor, and a role model.  I watched her cry for us and celebrate with us.

She passed away unexpectedly my freshman year in college, and the phone calls flew through college campuses all over Virginia with the devastating news. I think of her so very often.

Teacher appreciation worthy!

teacher appreciation:  Who are yours?

What teacher made the biggest impact on you? Is there a part of them in your teaching?

If you click the link for the FREE -AR All-Star Teacher set, leave a comment below with your favorite teacher’s name.  Let’s honor them all!

Have a GREAT Teacher Appreciation Week.