You are Appreciated!
It is teacher appreciation week and mother’s day to boot, so I thought it in season to a do a little reflecting on both, mainly appreciation.
First, shout out to all the mothers, teachers, and everything in between. It truly takes a village to raise a child, and it takes a community to nurture both.
As a new mother, and a teacher for some time, I have a unique as well as shifting perspective on both of these roles. Aside from the negatives, there’s so much to appreciate about moms and teachers.
Ofcourse, as a teacher, I can tell you a million things to appreciate about being a teacher. I still remember my favorite teacher with a similar type of awe and candor as my mother. We all have “the one teacher” who was like this. Most of us teachers, were inspired to become a teacher because of this “one.”
The other great thing about being a teacher is along with teaching content you purportedly love and aim to convince students to atleast complete, along with loving it, you are a constant encourager along the way. The trait of being an encourager are the types of people we all need.
As many people say, teaching is a work of heart. It’s different every day, and every day you cast a spider’s web of what you hope will catch and inspire students. It inevitably gets knocked down everyday, but it might be the only profession where that’s not the ultimate fail or success. What matters is, are the students succeeding? Are they learning? Do they feel supported, encouraged, and inspired? If so, that’s a win. Same with being a parent.
Teaching is also the only profession, where every day, you can try again. No child is perfect, and neither are parents or teachers. And neither is my lesson plan.
A few other great things about being a teacher, in honor of teacher appreciation week…
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You will never be poor, but you also probably won’t ever be rich.
You will always have a job.
You can always make a difference wherever you are.
You will stay young.
You will be near to the people who are struggling to grow up, but who also are young enough not to be jaded.
Similar to being a mom, what I appreciate about my students is often the same as how I see my son. Everyday, no matter how tired I am, he wakes up with enthusiasm, wonder, and resilience. I am in awe about how much he grows and learns each day.
I wish we could all hold on to this energy thoughout life and in every profession. The world would be a better place for it. The same goes if everyone was a teacher, even for a little while.
Last but not least, a quick shout out to @kaylinwrites who brings it all together in her poem, “My daughter wants to be a teacher…”
In today’s world, I can’t imagine a more important lesson for us all, “how to speak kindly, how to disagree, how to include, how to be human…”
