This past Teacher Appreciation Week, I was reflecting on the appreciation I have for my role as an educator. In my last post, I discussed a few of the challenges of a career in education. Now, I want to point out some benefits.
In a profession often misunderstood by outsiders—“You teach [insert any grade level]?! I could never do that!”—it’s important to stop and reflect on the rewarding, sometimes forgotten, benefits of teaching. Beyond lesson plans and copy machine meltdowns, being a teacher is also a journey of personal fulfillment. I’ve experienced countless inspiring moments that fill me with thankfulness for my profession, fellow teachers, and students.
Teacher Friendships
Teacher friends are like no other, and fellow teachers understand you like others can’t. I loved the camaraderie found among educators at my school (one with limited resources), and I made lifelong friends there because we had to band together and help each other out. We focused on sincere collaboration instead of competition. If the boat was sinking, we knew we were all going to drown. We helped each other fill the proverbial “holes” in the hull and scoop the water out. The veteran teachers passed down valuable information, including efficient classroom organization tips, tried-and-true lesson plans, and classroom management gems. Sometimes (if you were lucky) they even shared their hidden stash of printer paper. The next-door-neighbor teachers helped to sustain your sanity, brighten your day, and balance your mood, or at least relieve your bladder when you had to leave the classroom momentarily. I can’t forget the ones who informed me during morning door duty that there were donuts in the front office. Legends.
I once went to the food bank to pick up classroom supplies, part of an awesome teachers’ aid program provided to assist Title 1 schools, and I ended up bringing home 40 lbs of pork and a few hundred pounds of potatoes, apples, and lentils that I knew my students’ families needed. The food bank workers loaded it into my car, but I couldn’t unload it myself. There were multiple 50 lb bags of potatoes. The burly athletic coaches came and carried the food into my classroom without a second thought. Teamwork! How the students got the food home is another story. Imagine 7th graders walking down the halls all day carrying 10 lb bags of apples!
Student Growth
I am most grateful for seeing students grow. Whether that’s in their concept of self, confidence in their academic abilities, attitude about school and friends, or in their dreams for the future. Watching students grow and change in positive ways is an unexplainable gift.
Once, our principal decided to try moving the roughest, toughest, nothing-to-lose, problematic student from an on-level class into one of my Pre-AP classes. We were uncertain how this would turn out. I was nervous. Sure enough, soon after this student was given more challenging work in an environment of high performers, he fell directly in line. He began to mimic the fortitude and drive, along with the attitude, of high-performing students. It was just what he needed. He transformed from the student who regularly arrived to class tardy, loudly disrupting learning, to the student who told the rest of the class to ‘BE QUIET!’ when it was time to listen.
Personal and Professional Growth
As an educator, professional and personal growth often happen simultaneously. I am sure there are many of you out there who have lived the shock of finally having written and organized all lesson plans and class materials after years of developing plans on the fly, become comfortable with your subject matter and craft and, BAM, you are now teaching a different subject. Or, for some, a different grade level. I was a social studies teacher and later abruptly moved to English to help impact test scores in hopes of raising the school performance rating. Professionally, I was on the move again, with a learning curve and an entirely new plan to create, with a subject to re-familiarize myself with. I knew I was being forced to stretch, to grow, and to learn, which is something I ask my students to do daily. New challenges keep me humble and acutely aware of the learning process.
In another instance, I was asked to cover In School Suspension (ISS), a position usually occupied by strong, intimidating teachers for one period every morning. It was my job to ask the kids assigned to this consequence for bad behavior to clean up the cafeteria after school breakfast. “WHAT!?” I tried to say no thank you a few times, but the principal at the time supportively let me know that I was going to do it anyway. And so, I did. And I would not take the experience back for anything. I learned so much about our students’ lives and understood more than ever how they felt. It helped me empathize, have compassion, and understand what their hearts and minds were going through each day. It benefited my instruction time because I related more to who my students were. I could think of different and better ways to teach them.
After finishing my duty for ISS in the morning with “The Breakfast Club,” a group of rotating beloved students with behavior issues, even the resource officers would ask me to address misbehaving kids. The officers knew I had learned how to meet combative or explosive students exactly where they were, and that the students would (eventually) respond. The experience with ISS taught me how to cultivate an unbreakable rapport with some of the toughest students out there and, for that, I am thankful. It has consistently served me in my teaching for years.
Community Support
I taught in an area of the country that truly valued its teachers. They’d put signs outside their homes for teacher appreciation: “We ❤️ our teachers!” The signs reminded us of our community support, which is so important. It fosters a relationship and morale with educators and, in turn, strengthens the deep commitment teachers have to their work. Educators are sometimes offered special deals at local businesses or discounts on phone plans. They may receive supplies or donations from parents and businesses, and they often get support from community volunteers. One sweet moment I had was standing in line at a deli with my school ID around my neck, waiting to order a sandwich in my precious 9 minutes of lunch break.
A woman in line said, “Do you teach at so-and-so school?”
“Yes, ma’am,” I replied.
“Her lunch is on me!” she declared to the cashier.
She thanked me for being a teacher and for everything we do for our students and bought my lunch. It was such a kind and generous gesture and made me feel a true sense of belonging.
Love Notes
From Thanksgiving turkeys with messages of gratitude to random, no-reason post-it notes pressed onto my monitor or whiteboard, there’s nothing like a sincere message from a child you’ve impacted. I still have a file with all the beloved notes students have written me. When I stumble across them again, I read them with a happy heart and know why I became a teacher. Keep those notes!
Meanwhile, I know that even after Teacher Appreciation Week has come and gone, it’s always a good time to thank and be grateful for YOU all! Cheers to the teachers who let the drama roll off their backs, embody the curiosity of a forever learner, and focus on the fulfilling parts of their busy and boisterous days. Thank you to every type of educator who lays their heart on the line and shows up each day to inspire, teach, and even maybe grow.
I simply wanted to shine a light on the gifts we can appreciate in ourselves, as well as the cherished moments that we gain from the work that we do.
Be sure to check out these resources to inspire your students:
