Reflections: Teachers
Some
of our earliest experiences in life are with teachers. They guide us from
elementary school all the way through high school and on through college.
Whether our experiences with them were good or bad, they impacted our lives and
influenced our attitudes about learning.
My
first teacher was my mother. She taught
me how to be self-sufficient. Because I grew up in the country, I was fortunate
enough to learn how to live off of the land. My mother stressed the importance
of being able to grow your own food- something all good southerners know how to
do. She also taught me how to make quilts.
My
mother also instilled in me a love of reading.
Whenever it stormed and the lights went out, she would pull out this big
book of fairytales, light as many candles as she could, gather us all up, and
start reading. I loved to listen to the
stories of ‘Blue bead’, ‘Beauty and the Beast’, ‘The Little Match Girl’, and
the ‘Thumbelina’. Even though we were scared of the lightening, we were always
happy when it stormed because we knew our mother would read to us.
My
elementary school teachers made lasting impressions on me. As a matter of fact, one of the things that
happened to me in elementary school influenced me to push myself to always be
the best.
I
will have to admit that my elementary school teachers did have a hard
time. I was hyperactive and sitting
still in a desk just wasn’t something I could seem to accomplish for any long
period of time. I rarely made it to recess because I won’t be quiet, and I
simply couldn’t sit in those desks. By
the time I made it to the third grade, my reputation preceded me, and my
teachers knew what to expect. They stopped trying to get me to sit in desks all
day and begin to understand that a lot of my behavior was the result of boredom.
Unfortunately,
I did have one bad experience. One day
my regular teacher was out sick, and we had a substitute. The poor lady was stuck with me for 8 whole
hours. After she had had to yell at me
for the umpteenth time for not wanting to sit in my desk, she called me to
her. She then told me, “You, little
girl, will never amount to anything. You
will never graduate from high school!” Needless to say, I was devastated. I carried this lady’s words with me for the
rest of my life.
I
thought of her every time I was on Honor Roll.
I thought of her whenever I made an A.
I thought of her when I graduated with Honors from high school and
college. I thought of her every time I
won a writing contest. And, I think of her every time I stand in front of my
own class. I make it my business to
never discourage a child or destroy their dreams.
When
I reached high school, I had a wonderful English teacher by the name of Ms.
Jones. She was a tiny, very dignified
lady. She was very proper and very
strict. Because she taught several
different English and literature classes, I ended up having her each year for 3
years. She made us write until our fingers hurt, and we got to read a lot. Most of my friends hated her, but I loved
her. She always encouraged me to do my
best, and she inspired me to become an English teacher.
I
did have the privilege of working with my favorite English teacher just before
she retired. I was also fortunate enough
to tell her how much she meant to me before she died.
When
I became a teacher, I tried to model my class after Ms. Jones. I am not quite as strict, but I try to push
my students to do their best. I also
make it my business to expose my students to a wide variety of
literature-whether they like it or not.
I also make writing a priority because I know it is a skill that they
will need the rest of their lives.
Teachers
touch lives. They have been blessed to be able to mold the lives of countless
children.
