From the Other Side

I’m surrounded by teachers. I always have been. My mom taught for many years from Kindergarten all the way through 12th grade. My mother in law is a special education teacher, my sister teaches French to high schoolers and her husband teaches math to high schoolers. My brother and his wife are (or were at one point) employed by the local school system. My sister in law even has degrees in education and my husband just finished a two year teaching stint for a federal agency! Really, I’m the oddball out that went with science then Photography (although now I’m seriously considering a teaching career). I did teach science in a co-op for a couple years, if that counts.

The point is, I see teaching from the other side. I see the long hours outside of the actual school days making lesson plans and grading papers and meeting with parents and problem solving (lots of problem solving—a teacher can make anything work!) I see the personal funds spent to make learning fun rather than just a task to be dealt with. I see the passion that teachers have for teaching and for learning, as they try their best to impart that passion to our kids…and I see the love. I know the love because I’ve seen it from the other side. These teachers LOVE your kids. For those hours every weekday, your babies are their babies. (Ngl when I was growing up sometimes I’d be jealous of the kids in my mom’s class, because I felt like I had to share her with them…and they never got grounded!).

On the flip side, there are forces at work that are seeking to make teaching harder and harder these days, leading to frustration, overworking, understaffed and crowded classrooms, and other struggles for teachers…yet they still show up everyday with passion and love. Ask any one of them and they’ll tell you that they’ll stay —not because the pay is amazing, the atmosphere is awesome, and the world around them is super supportive of teachers, but because they love teaching and they love your kids. There is a quote that says “Teaching is the one profession that creates all other professions” so whatever it is you do, whatever you boast to know, whatever you invest in, you were once inspired…by a teacher.

So that being said, if there is a teacher in your life, make sure that you tell them how much you appreciate them this week with a call, a note, or an email. I’ve seen it from the other side. I know that it will mean the world to them.

Now a shout out to the teachers in our lives!

Organized, fun, patient, and the very best person to be my daughter’s first ever teacher in school! Mikah has had the privilege of having Mrs. Ware as her teacher for both first AND second grade! I worried a little sending Mikah to school, knowing that she has some neurodivergent struggles, but I watched my girl grow so much academically, socially and emotionally and I know that it has a lot to do with how her teacher runs her classroom. Mikah needs organization and order as well as the motivation of being in a classroom to succeed, and her teacher facilitated all of that for the past two years. Mikah is a straight A student and we are so proud of her achievements. Thank you Mrs. Ware for creating a nurturing environment and working so hard to grow little minds! When she pretends to play teacher at home with her siblings, YOU are who she pretends to be😅 ❤️

I can’t even put into words how terrifying it was for me to send Zechariah into public school this year for 4th grade. Would his teachers be patient with him, or would they just give up on my boy? Mrs Phillips showed me this year that I couldn’t have been more wrong! She went above and beyond to make sure not only that Zech felt safe and loved, but also that he had the opportunity to learn at his own pace (I wondered if he would be able to learn anything, honestly, because of the the amount of social pressure). Throughout the year she was an integral part of planning and problem solving for my little man…and he has grown so much throughout the year because of it! Thank you Mrs Phillips for your beautiful heart and for the gift of listening to what a student cannot say!

All I have to say is, I wish Mr Herndon had been MY fourth grade teacher 😅 He is probably the most pleasant person I have ever met. Calm under all circumstances, engaging, and patient. He’s exactly what Zech needed in 4th grade. He understands my son’s learning differences and goes out of the way to make sure he is still involved in the classroom activities. Thank you Mr Herndon for you creativity and your clear love for teaching!

One of the most special people in our lives, Mrs Becky, has been Zech’s teacher for the longest. She encourages him (and me) everyday and she is never short on hope for what she accomplishes. She has become so close to our family that we couldn’t even imagine life without her! She has helped me brainstorm countless ways to make Zech’s life, (emotional, social and academic) richer. She’s at every IEP meeting, and she truly loves Zechariah exactly the way he is…and he loves her back. Thank you Mrs Becky for always being there for Zechariah—thank you for believing in him and most of all, loving him.

Mrs. Rita came to me. She had been watching my son in church school for years and she saw potential and knew that she had something special to offer. Mrs. Rita comes once a week (takes time out of her day for an hour!) to teach Zechariah a curriculum to help him integrate and connect his neurodivergent mind with a neurotypical world. We have seen growth with her lessons and we are encouraged by her positivity about all that Zech is capable of. Mrs. Rita, you have been an angel sent by God to our family and we appreciate you so much for pouring into Zechariah!