10 Things Your Teacher Wants for Teacher Appreciation Week

This week is teacher appreciation week! I treated myself to a much needed pedicure to show myself some appreciation, and my school’s administrators are treating teachers to lunch tomorrow. For me, that’s more than enough. I have thought more about planning out the rest of the year than worrying about just how much I am appreciated this week.

Today I had one of my favorite administrators in my classroom, and he asked my students what they had done to show their appreciate of me during the holiday week. They were surprised to hear that it was teacher appreciation week, and wondered why I hadn’t told them so they could appreciate me appropriately. I joked that it wasn’t my style to demand their appreciation, but they encouraged me to tell them what I wanted. This post was born from that request.

10 Things Your Teacher REALLY Wants for Teacher Appreciation Week

1. Happy Students
I love when my students come into class and greet me with a, “Hi, Mrs. McNally” and a smile. Please say hello and be happy!

2. Engaged Students
I work hard to come up with lessons to enhance your knowledge and skills. Participate in the lessons all week, and give me your undivided attention.

3. Compassionate Students
Be nice to one another. I like you all and you all should like one another.

4. Funny Students
If you can follow all my above requests and make me laugh, you will have the happiest English teacher in the world!

5. Food
Gifts of food are delightful at all times of the year. Tacos are appropriate for teacher appreciation week as it coincides with Cinco de Mayo.

6.  A Parade
I would love a parade worthy of a Super Bowl winner or Stanley Cup champion. Some of the things I get you students to do, trust me. I deserve it!

7. A Massage
Not from you. A gift certificate will do. Grading is stressful!

8. Food
You all know how rough lunch C gets. I’m starving! Better bring buffalo chicken dip to go with the tacos.

9. Jewelry
Back to the Super Bowl and Stanley Cup… don’t they get rings? Yeah, I’m thinking a big ring will do just fine.

10. A Thank You
Sometimes a kind word is plenty.

 

I kid, I kid. I don’t need food, a massage or jewelry to know my students love me and appreciate me.

 

Saying thank you to your favorite teacher is a great way to show your appreciation. If you’re still in class with that teacher, greet him with a smile, be nice to your classmates, and work hard while you’re in class to really show you care.

Nice Matters

making-one-person-smile-can-change-the-world

This morning, after dropping my twins off at the babysitter’s, I was walking to my car when a neighbor was walking past with his dog. He was frowning and didn’t look very happy to be out and about at 7am. He glanced over at me and I greeted him with a smile and a bright, “Good morning!” I didn’t think much of it, as it’s a pretty standard procedure for me to greet anyone I see. As I pulled out of the driveway and went along my way, I had to drive past the man. This time, I noticed he was smiling from ear to year. A few moments before that, he had looked miserable. Had my smile and words changed his perspective?

I attended a small college of national distinction in the hills of West Virginia- Bethany. What struck me about Bethany when I toured as a high school senior was that everyone seemed so happy. Professors welcomed us into their classes to show us experiments they were working on (I still remember the fruit flies and how the professor explained their breeding habits although I have long forgotten his name). Students smiled and said hello as we passed through the corridors of Old Main. Everyone made eye contact and greeted you with a smile as you passed. I actually wondered out loud if they had placed these people just for the tour, but our guide assured me that was just how people acted in that cheery little town. People were just generally nice and kind. Although this wasn’t my only reason for choosing to attend Bethany College, it did influence my decision. Bethany’s outlook on strangers also changed the way I went about my day for the rest of my life.

I always say hello and good morning when I pass colleagues in the halls. It’s funny to me how many people will put their head down and not acknowledge someone passing just feet away from them. I’m as guilty as anyone for getting caught up in my own troubles and problems, but sometimes one little interaction can change your whole perspective. If I’m having a rough morning, a bright greeting from a colleague may change my mood and leave me walking away with a smile. It’s only fair that I give that back whenever I can.

I try to greet as many of my students as I can by name in the hallways with a hello, a smile, and a question about how their English class is going this semester. Some of my students seem mortified that their teacher spoke to them in front of friends, but most leave walking away with a big smile. I hope they pass that smile and kindness on to someone else as they go. I really believe that a kind word can change a day for the better, like a harsh word can send a day into a downward spiral. I believe niceness matters.

I really have no idea if it was my words that perked the man up this morning, or if he was just amused by something his dog did. But it really made me remember that a simple greeting and a smile can change a person’s world.

My name is Stacy, and I’m more than a teacher.

What happens to teachers after the last bell of the day rings? Do we crawl into a coffin hidden in the front of the room, sleep through the afternoon and evening, and rise again with the morning sun to teach once more? Do we travel hours away from our school to live in a remote community alone and far from students? Oh, I know! We  go home, lock the door, and never leave again.

Last week I made a pit stop at the bank before heading home. Shortly after beginning my transaction, one of my students got in line behind me. I didn’t notice him right away but when the teller called me by my first name, he spoke up.

“I’m going to start calling you Stacy,” the student announced.

I was a bit caught off guard and I wasn’t sure what to say at first. I always try to be relateable to my students. As a coach, my players all knew that my name is Stacy and often would refer to me as Coach Stacy. I use twitter with my students and my first name is clearly seen there. But for this student, my first name was a mystery. It seemed that when he learned my first name, I became more than Mrs. McNally. I became relateable to this student as a person outside of my classroom.

How did I miss this student? How have I not made a connection with him outside of the walls of my classroom? Why was he so shocked to see me beyond JMHS? I know about his life. I know where he works, his educational history, his work habits, his writing styles. I know the type of music I can find on his iPhone and the friends he talks with at lunch. I know where he prefers to sit in class and even his favorite way to eat chicken nuggets. I was successful in getting to know this student, and I’m confident he can tell you about Mrs. McNally. But last week at the bank was the first time he met Stacy.

Stacy and Mrs. McNally have a lot of the same characteristics, but they’re different too. We are both outgoing and outspoken. We both love to laugh and have a good time. Mrs. McNally and Stacy both like to dress up and look nice, but Stacy is much more likely to be in a volleyball t-shirt and sweat pants than Mrs. McNally’s typical heels and dress clothes. Mrs. McNally wakes up at 5am each day to have herself ready for work and to take the boys to daycare. Stacy can sleep in and lounge in bed all weekend with a good book. Mrs. McNally’s classroom is decorated in zebra and bright colors. Stacy’s home is more reserved and favors a country decor.

Some teachers may believe they need to keep their school persona and their personal life separated. I understand the need to keep my personal life personal, but I need to merge my two different people into one person in the classroom. It’s okay to let your students see a little more of the real you within your room. They can know you shop at the local Kroger and bank at the same place as they do. Our students will connect with us and work harder for us once they see that we are more than teachers. We are mothers, we are little league coaches, we love the same things as they do, we both order the same burger at the same burger joint, and we even know all the words to their favorite song. We can connect with our students on a fundamental level as people and still maintain the professionalism we all need to have by letting our walls down just a little. Let your students see the you behind the teacher, and I think you will see your connections become more meaningful.

 

I’m going to give it a shot! Let’s see if Stacy and Mrs. McNally can coexist in New Wing 2 South and form one really amazing person.