Sunday, October 21, 2007

Favorite Teacher

Let's think back...way back! Think of your favorite teacher. Back in the 70's, mine was Ms. Saucier. In 10th grade she taught me how to type (on an old manual typewriter...do you remember typewriters?). Because I kept looking down at my fingers, she used to threaten to put me on a typewriter with no letters or numbers printed on the keys (and she really had one of thoese freaky things!)! When I was in 11th grade, I also took her bookkeeping class...I was not really interested in bookkeeping, but I figured since she was a nice teacher, this class would be an easy A...WRONG. It was tough, but she was patient with us all. I'll always remember her high standards (for herself and her students), and her positive attitude. She taught me a lot about growing up and being responsible, even though I can barely balance my checkbook today!

Who was your favorite teacher and why was this teacher your favorite? In which grade were you?

2 comments:

Shelly said...

You know, it's funny, generally when I think of teachers I had, I immediately come up with the teacher I hated the most==the one that I went into education because of, my first home ec teacher, Ms. Scott! I knew more than she did in many ways--in fact when it came to cutting out patterns, sewing them together etc, she had all the students come ask me instead of answering them herself. Here she was, a home ec teacher that knew NOTHING of sewing--not even how to sew on a button. Yet she was supposed to teach 18 weeks of it and teach US how to sew. So as a freshman in high school, I taught my first class. It wasn't just her lack of knowledge of sewing that made me want to go into education. During the semester of cooking classes she told us things like--"You're out of sugar? No problem, substitute the same amount of salt instead!" Can you imagine what the band parents thought when they came to the Christmas band concert and were eating "sugar cookies" made from the home ec room? Or that she told us to put Correlle ware straight from the refrigerator onto an electric eye on high! I vowed I would become a home economics education major, finish my degree, and then go replace her in her position! Well, I got the degree, I was a home economics major (for the bachelors and first masters degrees); however, I never went to replace her. I would have had to have a second major to be able to enter the DOD employment base. Instead I taught 3 years of home economics in Louisiana and then I've taught the past 20+ years teaching special education (my second masters degree) here on the coast. Do I regret for one moment to go for a teaching degree? Not now; but my year of student teaching I SWORE I'd NEVER teach again! Boy was I young and naive! Never say never.

As far as my favorite? I had so many favorites I don't know that I could pin any of them down as "the" favorite. But the reason was almost always the same--they loved what they taught, made it interesting, and they loved the students they taught--even the ones they hated having in class as they were a royal pain in the butt to keep focused and doing their work. Their love of their subject matter showed in the way they had the excitement for it and how they taught it to us--making it alive and meaningful--even when we couldn't possibly conceive of it being anything but boring. Their love for all of their students just showed through--they had favorites, but their favorites weren't treated any different from the rest. We all were special in their eyes. We were all seen as people first and students second.

I suppose that is one reason I enjoy teaching my special kids so much. To me, they are children first! All of their disabilities, their illnesses, their inabilities to cope, adapt, survive without someone else doing almost everyhting for them, everything that isn't KID FIRST all comes after that. Do I love all of my students? Yes, my reputation goes all the way to the district office where anyone in the sped office knows that I "spoil every student that comes into my room and those that are in the other classes that I sometimes work with. No one kid is singled out--even though there are some that have taken ahold of my heart and will never let it go--even after their deaths.

Mrs. Ashe said...

Our special kids DO grab hold of our hearts, don't they? I believe God puts them in our lives to TEACH US unconditional love, humility, thankfulness, and patience, just to name a few
things!