To my teachers, with love...

With every year of teaching that passes, I have a new appreciation for my former teachers.  Little things that as a student never cross your mind are the "norm" for a teacher.  As I gathered up textbooks today and took them back to the book room, I realized that I have no idea where the book room is even located at Central.  It certainly wasn't something I ever thought about.  I never wondered where the books were kept or whose responsibility it was to keep track of them, organize them and put them away.  As I prepare my year-end packages for the office, I realize just how much paperwork my teachers had to do....just in case I wanted to look at the final and contest the given mark.  After spending 5 hours correcting my science final, I had to enter all the marks, post the marks, submit the marks, and then approve the marks.  Seriously.  This isn't a short process.  Then, as I spent time calling parents and tracking down students, I realized how much time my teachers spent making sure that we were kept on the right path.  We only have so much control over that and although we can't keep everyone there, it is a battle we continue to fight because we see potential in the students that we engage with everyday.

So, for all the times I didn't say thank you, I want to say it now.  My teachers may never know the impact they made on my life, but I am completely aware now of their sacrifice.  Mr. Verity would be pleased to know that I haven't ended up sitting on the corner of Caribou and that, yes, that calculus class has come in handy.  I'm thankful to Miss Brodie for being so adamant that we learn proper grammar and writing techniques because I have never used it as much as I have in these last 5 years.  I'm thankful to Mr. McKinnon for being a great conductor and for having expectations of us in rehearsals.  Those are the same expectations I have of my students.  I'm even more grateful for the countless hours he spent after school so that we could have extracurricular music groups, especially now knowing that it means he gave up countless other hours to prepare and plan all the other tasks for which a music teacher is responsible.

I've often wondered where my grade 3/4 teacher has ended up.  I wish I could give her a hug and thank her for thinking outside of the box.  Miss Bell was the greatest teacher I've ever had and I wish I could tell her.  When you're 8, you don't know it.  I know it now.  She may not have been a conventional teacher, but I learned a lot from her.  I remember so much from her class and that has made an impact on me as an adult.

So thank you.  Thank you for giving of yourselves so that I could be the person I am today.  Thank you for seeing value in me, even when I didn't see it in myself.