Welcome back teacher appreciation week, and specifically, teacher appreciation day. As a teacher, I appreciate many teachers I interact with all the time. I work with some wonderful people who genuinely care for kids. I also have the pleasure of interacting with some incredible educators on a daily basis. All of that is great, but in truth, I am not writing about appreciating teachers… I have done that in the past quite a bit.
Instead i want to write about why I appreciate being a teacher. There is no greater opportunity for me than to be in education. I genuinely love what I do. In a time of year and in a time in history when being a teacher is fairly stressful, I can think of nothing better than to remember what I love most and appreciate about my job.
First, I love working with kids. They are unpredictable, excited, goofy, fun, and resilient. Kids can do nearly anything! Getting to spend my day with young people as they grow, learn, make mistakes, and develop into amazing people is a privilege that I do not take for granted.
Next is the moment. The moment is what most teachers love most about teaching. It is what I love most about working with young kids. There are so many times during the year that kids “get it” and it is one of the most rewarding experiences for me as a teacher.
Then, parents. Yes PARENTS! While parents can be the source of a lot of complaining by teachers, I do enjoy many of my parents. These are good people who care about their kids. There are the only people who care about their kids more than I do and when they do recognize your effort, your care for their kids, it is incredibly gratifying.
I appreciate having administrators that care about kids. Being an administrator is a difficult, thankless task. While teachers are working on the ground level, administrators are the ones making all of this possible. They have one of the most difficult tasks, making teaching and learning possible.
Finally, and I could name many more things about teaching I love, is other teachers. Yes, teachers can get negative, they can also be frustrating at times, but overall they are incredible, dedicated individuals that make an incredible difference in peoples lives. Teachers are generally amazing people that dedicate their lives to children.
Education is a wonderful pursuit. Teaching is a challenge that few can take on and do well. I am grateful for that opportunity. So for teacher appreciation this week, I just want to say thank you to all of the people that make it possible for me to teach and to experience all the things about education that I love.
Here are 5 links to blogs celebrating teachers that have made a huge impact on my life.
https://creatingsuperheroes.wordpress.com/2014/05/05/haapy-teacher-appreciation-week-teachers-part-1-17365×2/
https://creatingsuperheroes.wordpress.com/2014/05/06/teacher-aapreciation-teachers-part-2-18365×2/
https://creatingsuperheroes.wordpress.com/2014/05/07/teacher-appreciation-teachers-part-3-19365×2/
https://creatingsuperheroes.wordpress.com/2014/05/08/teacher-appreciation-teachers-part-4-20365×2/
https://creatingsuperheroes.wordpress.com/2014/05/09/teacher-appreciation-part-5-21365/
The Teacher's Journey 