<p>My son just finished middle school. Bright kid who is less organized than anyone wanted. Had a huge problem with required notebook checks. Just never had everything lined up the right way and was never neat enough. Huge impact on grades.</p>
<p>At the end of the year, his science teacher told me that he is one of the brightest kids she’s taught, but that his particular learning style is completely auditory. Said that when left to listen to the lesson, choose when and what notes to take and is able to discuss content, he will be one of the top students. However if forced to copy exactly from the board while teacher is speaking, she would lose him every time. She is a NYC public school teacher and I defy anyone to say that she isn’t dedicated and engaged with each student. She gave us priceless insight into our son and it would have been no skin off her nose to just say “unacceptable notebook presentation” and leave it at that.</p>
<p>I can’t say any of my kids has had a bunch of great teachers, but some stand out. The ones that were great understood not just my kids but ALL of their kids. They knew who was good at math and could work ahead. They knew who could go to a grade up (or two or three) for reading. They knew which kids needed “You can do better” on every other paper because they were lazy and not because that was the best they could do. They knew when a kid needed extra help with a topic. They knew when there was a problem at home that needed addressing. </p>
<p>The best ones weren’t the ones with the most teaching experience but definitely the ones with the most LIFE experience. Not that that translated into being older-just not naive or rose-colored glasses or thinking that all kids from all cultures learn the same way. They offered multiple ways for kids to learn the material, and involved the parents or caregivers in the process.</p>
<p>The worst ones might have been good on paper but for some kids were poison, like the one who had lower expectations of kids of color (including mine). Or the ones who thought that whatever a kid put on his or her paper was all they could do. Or the one who quietly steered immigrant kids out of her class. Or the one who corrected a research paper not just for standards but felt compelled to add personal comments that segregation “wasn’t all that bad”.</p>
<p>My youngest is at a school now where as far as I can tell ALL of the teachers are pretty darn good. Every one is tasked with helping the stragglers catch up and moving the achievers ahead. They need to understand diversity and what that means for teachers. We’re fortunate that it’s a 6-12 school so we’re set until she graduates. She plans to become a teacher, and these people are her role models. I should add that her goal is to teach low-income minority students because she’s seen those students being left behind far too often.</p>
<p>My daughter had the pleasure of having him as a teacher at that “bigger school on the other side of the city.” He taught my daughter physics and astronomy and sponsored the engineering team at the all-girls high school. Girls requesting his physics class had their names put on a list. </p>
<p>Same daughter also had a phenomenal AP Language teacher. The teacher assigned papers but the girls could turn in works in progress for comment and correction. For one major assignment due on a Monday, the teacher let the girls know she’d be available by email for questions all weekend. Daughter sent an email at around 6 on Saturday evening - something to do with quotations used in the paper. Teacher answered by 10. Daughter worked with it and then asked for further clarification around midnight. The teacher had answered by the time daughter got up the next morning. Expectations were high with a strong emphasis on learning. My daughter learned more as she worked out the suggestions/corrections ahead of time than she ever did by getting a paper back graded. Yeah, daughter would look over a graded paper when returned but with this teacher she did more than just look over it.</p>
<p>Individual attention made so much difference. One experienced AP Euro teacher made himself available before & after school, during lunch and by phone. The head of the small private school one D attended allowed her to progress at her own pace. When anxiety made even getting a class picture impossible, her teacher allowed her to hold the class pet.</p>
<p>The best teachers were able to show that they really saw her strengths and kept them in mind despite her challenges. It made such a difference to have had those experienced teachers.</p>
<p>Tom1944 my oldest recieved her MAT this spring, haven’t heard yet where she will be working in the fall.</p>
<p>Two teachers really stick out in my mind- both from high school. </p>
<p>I had one that got me over my fear of public speaking. He is a brilliant teacher who just had a way of making things fun. He also has cerebral palsy and adult-onset stills disease. Yet every single day, he came in beaming. He got everyone- even my ex who HATED school and HATED showing up (he was dead last in our class rank)- to engage in the classroom. I have no idea how he did it, but he did. I still talk to him on facebook all the time. He started the Pay It Forward program at our school and I still know people from my class who do it. They’ll do a favor for someone and just tell them to pay it forward. </p>
<p>My other was a Spanish teacher that I was with for two years. She was the first one to notice what I was going through in high school with depression, eating issues, etc. She was the only one who noticed my extreme weight loss and negative change in attitude. She basically cornered me one day and made me tell her what was going on. I broke down and told her and she convinced me to get treatment. I don’t know what would have happened to me if she hadn’t convinced me to get treatment. I was down to 120 lb (at 6’) and still dropping weight. </p>
<p>I have many, many more. I think I was fortunate to have awesome teachers in high school. I really can’t think of any from my Catholic school though that I remember trying to help me.</p>
<p>Both of my kids had teachers who understood that my kids were flying under the radar screen for different reasons. The best teachers understood my son’s music time commitments and didn’t penalize him. For my daughter, they understood that she didn’t like to be the focus of the class but was an outstanding student anyway. Oddly, it was the same two teachers who “got” my kids, and we all still keep in touch with them.</p>
<p>The junior math teacher at my daughter’s high school was really cool. He realized a lot of students were under pressure with lots of homework every night. He told them if they ever needed the extra time just email him. My kid usually stayed up really late to do homework. I’m so glad she had this option because it allows her to go to sleep a little bit early and do the homework following day when she was more awake.</p>
<p>My 19 year old son to this day talks about his 4th grade teacher. It was a man. To a boy, that’s HUGE. A role model other than dad or grandpa - a rarity! This teacher also had very creative ways of engaging boys academically. He ‘got’ the way boys were often bored by reading materials created usually by women and for girls. He made all kids go out for drama, boys in particular. He made everyone perform short Shakespeare scenes. He lured the more reluctant boys with scenes that also involved fighting He taught even reluctant readers to love books by introducing them to quality anime and superb, original graphic novels. He was a walking encyclopedia of the best, most engaging books and movies for kids. Most weren’t award winners because he found too many award winners too politically correct or didactic for kids. He knew kids wanted drama not lessons in their pleasure reading. He’d take groups of interested kids, often on weekends, to see Miyazaki movies which in turn got them interested in Japan, in Asia, in totally different cultures. He’d have these totally serious discussions with them about these movies and books. </p>
<p>I wish every child had a teacher that influential.</p>
<p>I am over 60 and I still remember Mrs. Schneider, my 7th grade social studies teacher. I was one of the two top students in the class, but for every page that the other student would write on an exam or a paper, I probably wrote three. Mrs. Schneider took me aside and showed me Ted’s paper and then mine, and pointed out how my extra words did not add anything at all to what I was saying. She taught me to get to the point, and not be verbose. She taught me that every word I use should have a reason to be there.</p>
<p>When I was in college I was fortunate enough to take several classes with a renowned poet, who reinforced the above lesson, challenging every word I put to paper.</p>
<p>My son had several excellent teachers who stood out, but his 5th grade math teacher would be at the top of the list. He was one of several exceptionally gifted math students, and this teacher took these kids aside and accelerated them. Thank goodness! His AP Physics teacher and AP Western Civ teacher also stood out, and they motivated several of my son’s classmates to become high school teachers themselves.</p>
He taught even reluctant readers to love books by introducing them to quality anime and superb, original graphic novels. He was a walking encyclopedia of the best, most engaging books and movies for kids. Most weren’t award winners because he found too many award winners too politically correct or didactic for kids. He knew kids wanted drama not lessons in their pleasure reading. He’d take groups of interested kids, often on weekends, to see Miyazaki movies which in turn got them interested in Japan, in Asia, in totally different cultures. He’d have these totally serious discussions with them about these movies and books. </p>