What Teachers Really Want For Teacher Appreciation Week

I walked into my classroom this morning a bit groggy and bleary-eyed from a terrific weekend – a weekend not spent grading or lesson planning, but instead, spent with my daughter on a surprise early Mother’s Day weekend visit. There’s nothing easy about teaching first period English in junior high school – the only thing just a touch harder is teaching LAST period English – so I typically start the class with a bit of relationship building, often my best bit of comedy for the day.

“Wait – what are you all doing here today? It’s Monday of Teacher Appreciation Week – didn’t anyone tell you?” I quipped.

Moments of sheer panic washed over their face as they momentarily thought maybe they’d missed a sleep-in day.

“You were supposed to stay home today! But I’m really not surprised – you’re such dedicated, hard-working students, I know you wouldn’t want to miss a Monday with Mrs. Wolfe!”

Eyes rolled at this point.

“And I need to thank you all, for being on time this Monday morning – every single one of you,” I continued as they giggled and called out the names of the habitual sleepy heads. Another not-so-easy feat for junior high school students who would rather sleep than do almost anything else.

“Thank you for getting Teacher Appreciation Week off to such a great start. Now, as long as you’re here, let’s get to work.”

More eye-rolling, and a few whispers of “Wait – it’s Teacher Appreciation Week? I didn’t get you anything!” later, we were rolling along with our book v. movie analysis graphic organizers.

The day just kind of chugged along today, and aside from the coffee and baked goodies in the staff room, it was a pretty typical Monday in middle school. I kept thinking back to first period, and how much I love those moments away from the curriculum when I can really get to know the kids; as any middle school teacher will tell you, it’s all about having the kids connect with you before they connect with the content. I thought about what really keeps me going, year after year, when education is becoming more complicated and complex and when new teachers are shying away from the profession, and veterans are wondering how much longer they can keep walking through their classroom door with a smile on their face.

So parents, if you’re looking for a gift for Teacher Appreciation Week, I’ve got you covered:

1. Teachers want to hear how their teaching connects with their students’ lives.

Often, I’ll tell my students that when their parent asks them what they ‘did’ at school today, instead of saying ‘nothing’, they can explain they learned what dramatic irony is, or quiz their parents on the definition of pusillanimous, or ask them how the Reconstruction period connects with #blacklivesmatter in 2015. My students usually groan, roll their eyes a bit, and go on with their work. And honestly, I’m often left wondering how much they actually bring home to you. Did they tell you about our ‘essential question’ today, or that they learned the difference between dramatic, verbal, and situational irony? Could they share the staggering statistics they read about 21st-century slavery, and that their shirt was made in a country that utilizes child-labor? Do they have their ‘light bulb’ moments at the dinner table, or driving home from soccer practice? For Teacher Appreciation Week, I’d love to know what they tell you about our class and their learning – it would really make me smile.

2. Teachers want to have former students contact them.

Last week as I was sitting at my desk after school, one of my former students walked through my door. He was man-sized, which always means I need a moment to register them in their post-junior-high-aged body. I welcomed him back, asked how old he was and what he was doing. He told me 19, and that he was enrolled at the university. As I congratulated him, he said, “You know, I wanted to tell you that I’m actually going there because of your class. When you took us on that field trip to the campus and showed us around, I could picture myself there. It was because of you.”

I could hardly hold back the tears. Six years later, for him to come back to tell me that, made my heart swell. It made all the hassle of field trip forms, parent drivers, and permission slips worthwhile. For teachers, seeing our students growing up and turning into happy humans is all the appreciation we need.

3. Teachers want more time.

I have multiple student interns working in my classroom – not only is it good for young college students to see the power of teaching, but it’s equally beneficial for my students to have more ‘helpers’ and adults to see as role models. My interns help me with the most sought-after teacher gift of all – the gift of time. I don’t know an educator (especially my English teacher colleagues) who wouldn’t celebrate with the gift of more minutes to create curriculum, contact parents, grade papers, learn how to use new technology…the list is endless. Our teaching days are like the crack of a starter’s pistol at 8:00 a.m., and when the final bell rings 7 hours later, we’re lucky to have a moment to sit down before attending meetings, making copies, cleaning the room and checking email. And that’s all before we go home with our bulging bags of papers to grade – the other part of our job. For Teacher Appreciation Week, I’d love to have just a bit more time to make your child’s learning experience that much more exciting and relevant.

4. Teachers want to know they matter.

Above all, for Teacher Appreciation Week, I’d love to know that I’m appreciated. For some reason, teachers seem to be taking a huge hit in the media over the last few years. Most of the teachers I know didn’t start teaching because they wanted to make life harder for their students and their families. They didn’t start teaching because they felt it was their responsibility to become substitute parents, or to give failing grades or to do anything except make a difference in the life of a child. Teachers are service-oriented professionals who, for the most part, want to earn enough money to support their family, live in their community, send their own children to college and at the end of the day, know that their tired brains and stacks of papers to grade are worth it because they matter in the life of a child.

Parents, put down the Starbuck’s card, and instead, please try one of these ideas for Teacher Appreciation Week. I guarantee they’ll be the best present that teacher ever received.

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

More Posts - Website

Follow Me:

I went on a ‘release’ day today – that’s teacher talk for when we are allowed to leave our classroom to do something besides teach students. It’s kind of a silly word to use, isn’t it? Just think of what being ‘released’ from something implies – that you’re somehow in a situation unwillingly (like jury duty) and someone else decides that you can be let go.

Not such a positive way to think about teacher training…but being ‘released’ is the only way to collaborate with colleagues, learn new skills and strategies, and plan for how to improve my teaching and make the overall school experience better for all students.

So I spent the day with two wonderful, hard working, experienced colleagues at a workshop for AVID teachers – AVID is a program for supporting kids to achieve their dreams of going to the college of their choice, and I’ve been running and teaching it since 2008.

I believe in the power of AVID, and the possibility that all kids have to achieve anything they set their mind to.

Spending the day with these two women is empowering; they are kindred spirits, women who themselves graduated from top universities, have decades of teaching experience, are mothers and partners and creative spirits…

and they spend most of their day, their nights, and their free time thinking about, creating for and innovating to provide the best education possible for their students. For OUR children.

It made me think about teachers and teaching in another way – in a very human, raw, open manner. It made me think there are at least 5 things you probably don’t know teachers are thinking:

1. Teachers believe in possibility – for all children.

When I first started teaching, a wise mentor told me that she believes every child wants to be successful – they just don’t always know how to get there. When we walk into our classrooms each day, each period, each hour, we believe in the possibility that every child in that room can not only learn, but can grow into an individual with the potential to change the world. We know that not every day will be amazing, and we know that sometimes it takes years for our lessons to sink in and bring a child to another way of thinking; we also know that some days we get it so right on that children have a moment that they believe in the possibility of their future, too.

2. Teachers think about their teaching all the time.

I haven’t met a teacher yet (in 25 years) that isn’t automatically programmed to see an opportunity to share something magical that they discover outside the classroom, to seize a book or materials that spark their creativity and will certainly enhance their classroom. We do it on vacation, when we’re walking the dog, or when we’re listening to the radio. Sometimes teachers have even been known to go away on vacation together and TALK ABOUT TEACHING! As much as we would often like to, teachers generally are on the lookout for any way to make learning more meaningful, more exciting, more relevant – all the time.

3. Teachers think about their students outside of the classroom.

Some of my worst – and best – days of teaching come home with me. Those are the days that I question myself, days that linger in my mind, nagging me to solve a problem, find a new way to connect, or search for something that will make my students laugh or question or want to do their very best. Oftentimes I’ll call a teacher friend for advice, or search the internet for hours for new lesson ideas, or intriguing video clips, or for photos that will make them smile. It’s impossible for me to not think about my students, even long after they’ve left my 8th grade classroom.

4. Teachers think about how to do more with less.

In my 25 years of teaching, I’ve watched education budgets shrink, salaries stagnate, classrooms remain ill equipped for today’s learner, and teacher work days disappear. I’ve also watched class sizes increase, healthcare costs rise, new technology arrive and waves of popular curriculum pedagogy come and go. Today, I have more students, more preps, more demands, and more work hours. I also have less money, fewer classroom assistants, fewer supplies, less ‘free’ training and less free time. I honestly spend more hours than I should trying to figure out how to streamline curriculum, how to get volunteers into the classroom to help connect with kids, and how to balance my work life with my home life.

5. Teachers believe in the power of relationships.

We know that if a child, a teacher, and a parent share common goals and the belief that success is possible, great things can happen. Teachers believe in building relationships with children first, then building curriculum. In middle school, where I reside, it’s nearly impossible to teach content if students do not first develop trust, respect and feel safe in the classroom. We know education starts at home. We see the power of early childhood education, of families that read to their kids, and parents who stress the value of education. Teachers want to be allies with parents, not enemies. We believe in the power of relationships to create magic for our children.

And maybe you’re sitting back, reading this and thinking I’m exaggerating. Maybe you think that not every teacher thinks this way. And you may be right. Like any profession, teachers share a wide variety of perspectives and philosophies.

But what if you’re wrong? What if you give teachers the benefit of the doubt, and assume they made teaching a career not because of the high salary (ha!) and summers off (ha! again – we just do our year-long job in 10 months!), but because we really do believe in your child – in all children – and we are here to serve?

Imagine what a transformation we could make. Just imagine…

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

More Posts - Website

Follow Me:

Choice.

If I had to choose one word I’ve used over and over in parenting and teaching, it would be choice. I learned early on as a parent that simply saying ‘no’ over and over had no lasting effect; if I really wanted something to happen – especially with any sort of chance that it would happen the way I wanted – I needed to give choices.

Embed from Getty Images

It went something like this: “What do you want to wear today? You can choose either the red leggings and boots, or the red dress with tights.” Or with my son, “I haven’t decided what to make for dinner tonight –  would you rather have pasta or chicken?” Now, when they don’t respond to my texts or block me from some sort of social media, I feel 100% comfortable saying, “Ok, you can keep me blocked/don’t respond to my texts  and pay the monthly charge for your bill, or you can respond and I will continue to fund your phone.” That one always works.

Choices like these gave my kids a voice, and practicing that on something simple when they were little meant when they were teens, and we had to grapple with the big stuff, they were used to the process. They knew what it felt like to make good – and bad – choices. They understood logical consequences, and sometimes even unintended ones.

As parents, we are obligated to teach our children about choice from an early age. Kids need to know that their life is full of possibility, and certain choices will make doors open and opportunities appear – or disappear. Teenagers are bombarded with choices to make, some small, but at 15, 16 and 17 many are huge and can have lasting impact on their future. Should I post that online? Do my homework or go to bed? Drink and drive? Text and drive? Have sex? The list is endless, really. How do kids know how to trust themselves, how to weigh options and make good choices if they’ve never had any practice?

Giving my middle school students choices has really evolved for me over the years. As a beginning teacher, I felt insecure offering too many choices-I was afraid that if I didn’t set down the rules, chaos would break loose. In reality, when I started giving kids more choice about what they did and how they did it, management mostly became a breeze. Oftentimes I’ll give choices about what they need to do for a particular grade, or what order they need to tackle different parts of a task. As long as they get to the end result that I’m expecting, giving them choices about how they get there allows students to learn how to manage their time, how to push themselves (usually – but not always) and to take a route for learning that makes most sense to them.

Last year, when my daughter was navigating the stressors of senior year and college applications, I found myself repeating and reminding her that all her hard work paid off in all the choices she had between colleges. I tried to keep mum on my strong feelings about one school or another, and let her not only weigh the merits of each college, but also let her listen to her heart and choose the school that felt right.

Ultimately, I think choice is what makes humans stronger. Choice builds character, empowers people, and provides a barometer of how we navigate the world. Having choices teaches us how to be decisive, how to weigh options, but also to listen to ourselves and trust that we can follow our instincts instead of following the crowd. Sometimes, just knowing that we have choice – that every day we choose how we approach the world, how we treat other people, how we spend our time and what we work for – is enough to make the day just a bit brighter, just a bit kinder, just a bit more full of possibility.

This post was inspired by Barracuda by Christos Tsiolkas, a novel where former Olympic hopeful Dan destroys his swimming career and his attempt at redemption after prison. Join From Left to Write on September 30th as we discuss Barracuda. As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.

Related articles

• Barracuda by Christos Tsiolkas review
• Girl Power at Eighteen
• Travel with mamawolfe: College Tour of Oregon and Washington
• When Life Doesn’t Turn Out The Way It’s Supposed To

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

More Posts - Website

Follow Me:

As I was driving home after a 13-hour day last week, it occurred to me that I had just hosted my twenty-fourth Open House. And boy, was I tired.

Yep-I’ve been teaching middle school for that long. I started teaching long before I had children – I wasn’t even married yet! I started teaching before cell phones, in a ‘technology school’ which boasted a cutting edge sort of network for computers, and we all had to learn how to email. When I went home, I used DOS to create spreadsheets for grades, and couldn’t even imagine an instance when my students might contact me at home after work on it.

Times have changed, but my love for my job hasn’t. I think I have a dream job. Some people think I’m crazy for teaching 7th and 8th graders for this long. They call me things like ‘saint’, and tell me how grateful they are for me – and that they could never ‘do what I do’.

To be honest, they’re probably right. It takes a certain kind of craziness to do what I do every day. to give you an idea, imagine walking into your job and being bombarded from the moment you open the door. Yes, I’m a question answering queen. I hear explanations, excuses, and sometimes even legitimate questions about what happened inbetween the time they last saw me and the moment I stopped gulping down my thermos of coffee. And then the day begins. From 8:00 until whenever I can crawl out the door (usually between 4 and 5), I am surrounded by kids in the throes of puberty. They are self-conscious, funny, silly, frustrating, and thought-provoking. They make me a better human, and most certainly a better parent.

Teaching has taught me to create strong boundaries, to protect my personal life and value my job as a mother just as much as my job in the classroom. There’s been a few times I quit teaching – both because I started to feel that I was spending so much time with other people’s kids, I was going to end up with problems with my own.

Back in the early nineties, before I had kids, every year one of my 7th grade students got pregnant. It shocks me then the same as it shocks me now-especially when I think that that child could be having their own child by now. I so clearly remember the first time one of my girls, Tiffany, brought in her baby to show me. She had always been one of those students I worried about, and I guess my intuition was correct. I can still see her round, freckled face, tousled blonde hair and bright blue eyes as she pushed her stroller forward so I could take a look at her baby. Thinking back, I can’t remember what I said. I hope it didn’t show the shock and concern in my heart.

There are still days when I question what I’m doing. I wonder if I made the right choice all those years ago. Maybe I should have gone to law school, or taken a shot at writing. I’ll teach until it isn’t fun anymore, I remember telling myself. And then what? Teaching is my dream job for a multitude of reasons…but mainly because when I’m feeling sad, or thinking I cannot teach that novel one.more.time., something like this happens and makes me remember it’s all worth it. I’m sure lawyers don’t get notes like this.

This post was inspired by the novel The Divorce Papers by Susan Rieger. Young lawyer Sophie unwillingly takes her first divorce case with an entertaining and volatile client in this novel told mostly through letters and legal missives. Join From Left to Write on March 18 we discuss The Divorce Papers. As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.

Related articles

• FLTW: Why Everyone Should Try Therapy.
• Review: The Divorce Papers by Susan Rieger

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

More Posts - Website

Follow Me:

Helm (PSF) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s funny how life circles itself around you sometimes, isn’t it?

This morning my freshman AVID students discussed the quote, “A community is like a ship. Everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm.” It was one of those inspirational quotes printed in their daily calendar, meant to encourage critical thinking.

As usual in my classroom, things didn’t quite go as I expected. In small groups, I asked them to talk about what they thought the quote meant, and how they could apply it to their AVID experience or their life in general.

First, I heard several kids asking what ‘helm’ meant. Didn’t expect that one.

“It’s something you wear on your head,” I overheard one boy explain. “Like helmet.”

Well, not exactly. I do like that he’s looking at the word, though.

“I think it’s the front of a ship,” said another.

“No, it’s being in charge,” a few responded.

Now we’re on the right track. Something the person in charge wears on their head on the front of a ship. Sigh.

When we came back together, they began to share. Eventually, we talked about why it would be important to be ready to take charge, or to be prepared to step up. We talked about how communities need to have leaders, but that everyone needs to feel heard and be able to contribute.

I felt good as they went into their tutorial groups, and noticed a spark of understanding in their eyes. Their discussions were animated and thoughtful; it really seemed like they have learned to depend on each other for support.

Less than an hour later, the true meaning of the quote as it applied to my life became visible.

One of the absolute benefits of my job is my colleagues. Teaching isn’t an easy job, and teaching middle school definitely isn’t for the faint hearted. The constant rollercoaster of being around hundreds of teens experiencing puberty can send the toughest personalities over the edge at times.

That’s exactly what happened today. Someone hit their tipping point and came to me for support, lips quivering, eyes welling with tears.

Without hesitation, I listened. I empathized; I knew precisely the complete overwhelm they were experiencing. I felt the anxiety, the vulnerability, and the fear.

I took the helm. I did what I knew how to do. I tried to envelop them with safety, trust, and a sense of importance. I got help, and took action.

I actually didn’t think twice about it, and then I went back to my day.

Hours later, after the kids left for the day, they thanked me. Their message of relief, trust and belonging broadcast clearly how much my actions mattered.

Photo credit: planeta

And when they breathed their sigh of relief, spoke their words of gratitude, and expressed their sense of belonging, I knew. Really, it’s the reason I’ve stayed there as long as I have. It’s the people, the relationships, the community.

We realize that we don’t always have to be the one steering the ship; our shipmates are right alongside, ready to step up. They help us avoid the icebergs, clean up after a storm, and sing when our spirits need a lift. They are always ready to take the helm.

It’s funny how life circles around itself like that sometimes, isn’t it?

Related articles

• Not Empty Vessels: 21st Century Learning and the Common Core
• Life Lessons from Mikaela Shiffrin: What a Real Winner Looks Like

Jennifer Wolfe

Jennifer Wolfe, a writer-teacher-mom, is dedicated to finding the extraordinary in the ordinary moments of life by thinking deeply, loving fiercely, and teaching audaciously. Jennifer is a Google Certified Educator, Hyperdoc fanatic, and a voracious reader. Read her stories on her blog, mamawolfe, and grab free copies of her teaching and parenting resources.

More Posts - Website

Follow Me: