Dear Teachers,
As we enter another school year, I want to take a minute to write you this note and let you know how much I appreciate what you are about to embark upon with my children.
But first, a little story.
My favorite, and most influential, teacher of all time was my 5th grade teacher, Miss M.
Now back in, gulp, 1978, on that first day of 5th grade, I wasn’t so psyched to be in her class.
She was strict.
She sat us in rows.
She laid down the law.
I’m not sure she cracked even one little hint of a smile in that first week of school.
She pretty much scared the crap out of me.
But over time, when she knew we were ready, she loosened up.
She softened.
She smiled.
She even gave us hugs.
She expected a lot from us, but she also encouraged us to be creative.
Every year she had her students do this project, and every kid in 5th grade knew about it.
If you were in Miss M’s class, you got to make weirdos.
Weirdos were basically brown paper bags from the grocery store that you turned into big, stuffed heads.
We could design and decorate them any way we wanted.
The weirder, the better.
And then, when they were all done, Miss M. hung them from the ceiling in the classroom.
Kids in other classes would walk by our room to check out those weirdos.
They were always jealous.
And we were always proud.
Miss M. always pushed me to work hard and to do my best.
Sometimes I thought she was a little picky.
But one time, I made a felt board as a project after reading a book.
I worked really hard on it. I was determined to impress Miss M.
And I did.
In fact, Miss M. thought it was so good, that she had me present it to a 6th grade class.
To kids who were older than me.
She set the bar pretty high. But I rose to the occasion, and I exceeded her expectations.
I felt so good about myself.
I bet she wouldn’t remember that felt board thing.
But 40 years later I still do.
And I’m not sure why, but we also watched the movie Brian’s Song in Miss M’s class.
I didn’t learn much about myself from that movie.
But I did learn something about teachers.
That’s when I learned that teachers are real people.
Because that’s when I saw Miss M. cry.
There was one other experience from 5th grade that really stands out for me.
Pioneer Day.
That wasn’t just for Miss M’s class. It was for all of 5th grade.
Pioneer Day was our big field day.
We dressed up like the pioneers did.
We had relay races and other athletic events.
And then there were other non-athletic activities.
Like the spelling bee.
It was such a fun and interdisciplinary day.
Every fifth grader looked forward to that day.
Why do I tell you this story?
Because I know that Miss M was able to enjoy teaching and we were able to enjoy learning.
She had some freedom.
And so did we.
She was allowed the flexibility to adjust her curriculum.
She taught me more about hard work, and discipline, and achievement than any other teacher I ever had.
Without ever sending home a single CMT practice prompt.
Or a bunch of math practice problems where I had to solve the problem.
And explain my answer.
Write it out in words.
And then write it out again in numbers.
And then write a complete story about it.
And then illustrate it.
Yeah.
As my third grader would say, back in the day, teachers could do their own thing.
They were allowed to make some things, I don’t know… their own.
Not anymore.
I bet Miss M. would hate teaching now.
And that is why I am writing you this note.
I know you can’t really change the curriculum.
I know teaching to the test isn’t what you want to do.
I know it’s coming down from up above.
I know you are being forced to teach this way.
I know that the school year you envisioned when you were a young graduate, and the one you are actually going to experience this year are not even close to each other.
I also know that parents can be one of the most challenging aspects of your job.
I know that before you give a kid a grade, you worry if you’ll get a call from an angry mom or dad, demanding you to change it.
I know there are adults who believe their kids before they believe the teacher.
So, just so you know, I know all kids lie.
Even mine.
Especially mine.
I know that what happens in the classroom, and the story that my children tell me, are not the same.
And so, to be clear, I’m on your side.
If my kids give you a hard time, that’s not okay with me.
Hold them accountable.
I’m all for that, and I’ll support you.
100%.
My kids know that school comes first.
They know that we expect them to try their hardest and do their best.
We are consistent with both of those messages.
Now, all that being said, I don’t care one bit about my kids’ test scores.
And I don’t want you to spend your day stressing over whether my daughter can solve a multi-step math problem in fourteen different ways.
What I do want is for you to use your strengths to help my kids find theirs.
I know your hands are kind of tied.
But if you took those standardized test practice prompts and math problems, crumpled them up, and used them to stuff 21 paper bags,
if I never saw one of those worksheets come home,
but I did see 21 weirdos hanging from your classroom ceiling,
well, your secret would be safe with me.
Great post. I am in absolute agreement. I think children would learn so much more if it wasn’t all about test scores. Unfortunately, the teachers don’t have much of a say in it.
I just retired from teaching for this very reason. That and the people I worked for and with were horrible. Testing has sucked the life out of teaching and it is nothing but stress for all involved. This is the beginning of the end of public education in this country and you can thank all those politicians who decided that teachers were the enemy.
You said it all, Deb. Did we teach at the same school?
It is the beginning of the end of democracy when public education is made to fail.
Hope everyone enjoys plutocracy.
Deb, you are so right. I spent thirty-nine years as a public school teacher, beginning in 1972. For the first ten or fifteen of those years, I really enjoyed the job. Then, politicians discovered that they could make political hay by attacking teachers’ unions and creating a phony “crisis” in American public education. That, in a nutshell, is what has happened in education. when you mix education and politics, you get politics, period. teachers, instead of being regarded as creative professionals, are treated simply as expendable bureaucrats. This is not at all conducive to helping young people develop intellectually, and we see the results all around us.
I, too, retired from teaching because I saw where it was going. All our creativity was taken away from us. I was told that I was expected to be doing the same thing at the same time as every other teacher. After 39 years of teaching, I realized that that’s not why I got into this profession. Apparently the politicians and administrators feel that the way we learned and the way we were taught to teach the children was all wrong and that we, according to their standards, must not have learned anything while we were in school. I’m much happier not having to bend to their standards but I feel sorry for the children and parents who have to deal with teaching for tests.
Actually, the teachers have NO say in it, at all whatsoever. It’s sad.
Great post.
I am entering my 11th year teaching in 2 short weeks. It doesn’t seem like a long time but when I look back, SO many things have changed that it seems like a million years ago. Sadly the biggest problem I find is that my students that have now come through the whole NCLB culture just don’t CARE to learn anything. They just want us to give them the answers and be done. When I try to assign a cool project where they can be creative and have some fun sometimes 50% of the kids don’t even turn it in. It’s very frustrating but I can’t imagine doing anything else. Thanks for the support 🙂
To Nikki: I made it to 11 years of teaching, having retired 5 years ago. I too looked back and saw that a large percentage of my current students “didn’t care to learn anything”. If it required a struggle, “It’s too hard”. If it wasn’t completely understandable the first time they heard it, “I don’t get it”. If it took individual creativity, “I don’ know how”. The last straw was my yearly Christmas ‘fun’ unit. “A Christmas Story” has superb vocabulary, as well as an hilarious storyline. In order to watch the video segment each day (WITH snacks I brought) students had to fill out their vocabulary sheet, fill in the blanks for the great similes, metaphors and idioms. The last year I taught, instead of having 5-6 kids per period who didn’t do the homework, only 5-6 kids per period DID the homework! So, so, very sad. The current Federal takeover of education has completely ruined it for everyone (except those who financially profit from testing, textbooks, and consulting)
Many of our family members are teachers and they are so unhappy with what teaching has become…teach to the curriculum and no creativity. My sister-in-law’s goal was to get out of 4th grad in MA…which is the big testing year. She said her whole year was prepping for this test one test and she had a lot of pressure from the principal. She is now teaching 1st grade and in a very “happy place.”
Good luck teachers and students. Have a great year!
Thx Susie, I love my job and love love parents like you!
Love it!
I used to be a substitute teacher, and there was one mom who told all of the teachers and the principal that her son would not be serving any detentions. Ever. For any reason. Four un-served detentions meant a day of suspension, so this kid would act however he wanted, misbehave horribly, and then get a day out of school once every week or two as “punishment” for not serving the detentions he was assigned. I never understood why parents thought they were doing their children a favor by teaching them that the rules didn’t apply to them!!
In our county you can look up “Who’s in Jail”. If this former student is 18 now there is a good chance that is where he ended up with a mommy like that! 🙁
Parenting is a tough job. Some parents are too busy to parent their children. One can usually spot the children in class who lack discipline and/or structure at home. These parents kowtow to their kids, giving in to their every whim. Those self entitled kids sometimes grow up believing society owes them!
Thank you so much for this post.
I have been teaching for 17 years and I really appreciate everything you wrote!!
What a great blog! It reminds me of a very sweet teacher I had in the 5th grade named Mrs. Price. She had very white hair and very pink skin. I thought she was beautiful. She taught English and that was my favorite class. The other three teachers that taught Social Studies, Science and Math were like the three evil step sisters. They never smiled and always looked so mean, but Mrs. Price was like a soft comfy pillow. I loved Mrs. Price, even when she caught me chewing gum and made me wear It on my nose the whole class!
I also had an awesome English teacher in high school. His name was Mr. Watt and he constantly challenged us to use our imaginations. He made everything interesting and I loved English class because I knew he loved teaching it. Those two teachers forged my passion for reading and writing and I will be eternally grateful to them. Teachers make such an impact on our kids. So much so, that I wonder if they even realize how much.
Inspiring. I hate it when teacher has to stick to the curriculum while actually they could be more creative in teaching if they were given the chance to.
Well said. Couldn’t agree more.
Thank you so much for your letter. It means so much that a parent knows what we feel like and understands our frustrations.
May I share this with my daughter’s 5th grade teacher? My son had her for grade 1 and she’s a wonderful teacher. 🙂
I totally agree with what teaching has become. After 5 years I started to hate it so much that I ended up quitting and taking a $25k pay cut to now run my own preschool. The creativity and fun that I experience on a daily basis more than makes up for any money lost!
I am a mom of 4…on the PTA board.. Completely love your post!!! But as I read more and more posts and talk to person after person about common core and these standardized tests…can’t we get some kind of petition together across the board to oust this program and crapy tests and let our kids teachers have freedom back I their classrooms… There has to be a way!!! The more voices…the more power…right?
As a teacher, I felt tears spring to my eyes as I read this. Bless you! If only 50% of my evaluation wasn’t standardized test score results (run through some sort of weird statistical analysis which apparently cannot be explained to anyone who isn’t a statistician).
And the fire marshal won’t let me hang stuff from my ceiling, because it might block the sprinklers if the school spontaneously combusts.
But in my heart, I dream of the sort of classroom we all grew up in, WITH all the added benefits of new techniques and instructional tools in teachers’ pockets from another few decades of experience and research… and your article shines a beautiful light on that dream. Thank you!
Thanks so much for “getting it”. You get it. We need more parents who get it to show up and say to administration that teachers know best how to spark a love for learning in each child! If “weirdos” are the way to do it that’s what you do! I miss the days of baking, crafting, playing play dough and kids being kids. In kindergarten and first grade they are babies and we are asking them to compare and contrast texts they are reading! Some days it seems as everyone has lost the meaning of childhood.
Thanks for your wonderful message! It made me smile!
I could not agree more Jenn! I kept both my boys in transitional kindergarten not only for the extra year of maturity but also for the extra year to be a kid.
Love this. Just found your blog and it’s addicting. I only have a #1,2,3 but can relate to much of this. I take to heart your post on the summer project (for you). It’s easy to get caught up in that stuff.
Ah, yes. Mrs. Melloon was my fifth grade teacher–best one ever (besides yours, of course). We did a whole poetry unit and got to MAKE OUR OWN BOOKS out of all our poems. I still have mine. I remember so many details from her class, and so few from the rest of my elementary years. She just retired a few years ago. Well, the district said she retired. Mrs. Melloon said she quit. With all the testing and whatnot, she had no time to teach anymore. And she was meant to be a teacher, not a test administrator. I’m praying for all our teachers that despite the bureaucracy and the Common Core and every other thing that the “experts” will come up with, they’ll still get to be teachers.
I really appreciate you post! I just started my 13th year of teaching, and I’m trying to find a website so my kids can make their own “weirdos”! If anyone has suggestions, I’d really appreciate it!
I love the post. I am meeting with my son’s teachers tomorrow to set his 8th grade year off to the right start. I might leave this with them as I exit. Thanks.
There Are many groups to join and become active in for this cause. Google them and join their facebook groups
lace to the Top
Bad Ass Teachers Association
go Public Schools.com
Thank you. Really, really, really from the bottom of my heart. Because I wonder sometimes if parents like you still exist. Thank you. This makes my job a little easier.
Well said, i have returned to college at 40 to become a teacher. I was inspired to teachby helping in my childrens classrooms. The challenges facing teachers are complex to say the least. Unfortunately teachers are having to learn how to appease administrators rather than teaching our children how to become good citizens. Your words are inspiring and shared by most parents.
I made the decision when I decided to teach that I would not even consider the tests. I felt then, and still do now, that purpose of an education was to become an individual who could establish hallways between the rooms of info in the brain.
I want my students to be able to see the problem or issue as a whole, then be able to break it down into its recognizable parts …. to be able to learn for themselves. I want them to be able to recognize where they are short on info and know what and who to ask or where to go to get it.
That will never happen cowering from an exam.
My philosophy is that if I teach them what math really is, then the burden to learn is on them. I feel that anyone can easily pass a standardized test if these skills are mastered .. so I do my own thing bc I know what’s best. That’s why I was hired.
My results .. 11 years of almost consistent 85 – 90% passes in public schools. I don’t find that to shabby.
Loved the post!
I’m with you, Patrick. I teach the kids the standards, but in a way that is meaningful to both them and me. I do not spend the month of March drilling test-taking strategies into their heads – I continue to teach them how to enjoy reading, and how to become a better author. Last year, one of my 45 children failed to meet on his reading test, and 78% of them exceeded the test. They leave my room enthusiastic readers, and I always hope that enthusiasm will not be lost by teachers after me who do not find a way to be creative.
Thank you for writing this! If only more parents were like you! I hope you don’t mind that I have shared your post with my educator friends on my facebook page ‘Inspire Learning’.Thanks!
Very nice story, BUT (and sorry to be the one who brings the BUT, but…) let me tell you about my teacher. Not 5th grade but 6th. Let me tell you about Mr. O’C.
He was a friendly man, but his heart wasn’t in it. He retired 4 years later, and by all accounts costed through his last 12 years on the job. He had no control of the class, and each day was a slog, a struggle. Some of us cared and read and wanted to do well, but others in the class did not. I suffered from having a bad, lazy teacher, and so did my entire class. He focused on stories more than fact, on illustration rather than narrative. I have no doubt that Barry – the obnoxious kid with a photographic memory who disrupted most of the class once he understood the concepts – would probably write a story like yours – see it as an indealized time when kids could be kids. But I know, from discussing through the years, that other kids didn’t do as well. Other kids lost the love of learning, lost focus on what school was about, because we had a teacher that was not held accountable. (He was not the only bad teacher, and wasn’t the worst I ever had, but he was a bad teacher at a bad time for my and other’s development)
I am sure you don’t think teachers should be held to no standards, but you dislike the rules and regulations put in. What is the Alternative? Keep our fingers crossed for more Mrs. M.s, and less Mr. O’C.s? As the parent of a smart young girl, I like the fact that I know how she is doing, comparatively, to other kids. I like that she could read above her level, and do math at and then above, with effort and focus, her level.
She has not lost out on the Weirdo part of your childhood, because we do that at home, where a kid can be a kid. She can be creative and daring and learn to love so much more than learning. But, and call me crazy, I want my kid to learn in school. To do as well, no, better than I did in school. And if a teacher dares to hold her back, to be lazy, to think that things “are what they are” and certain kids just aren’t suited to kids, well I won’t keep it a secret and I am glad there is a way that they can be exposed, and hopefully (with a bit of effort from parents) removed from ruining any other child’s education.
I am glad you had a Mrs. M., but I am far happier that there are less Mr. O’C.s, and I will be happier still when there are none.
Hi John,
I’m sorry you had a teacher like that. And I agree; there are bad ones out there. But the truth is, most teachers whose hearts aren’t in it just don’t stick around for that long. I don’t think focusing on the tests is going to improve teaching, and there’s a WHOLE lot of research saying that tying teacher evaluations to students’ test scores really isn’t effective. What is effective is peer collaboration, mentoring, training… and that stuff still allows for the creativity of Mrs. M’s class. Most kids learn better when the learning is engaging, like Pioneer Days apparently were. And I don’t think anyone’s advocating for not learning in school, or 35 hours a week of weirdo-making.
Thanks,
Kara
John,
Although the teacher you described may have been poor, I can tell you as a teacher in his 9th year of teaching, that the problem is that standardized testing simply does not improve teachers that you describe. Not one bit. If accountability via standardized tests had been implemented to improve teachers such as the one you described back when, he simply would have included some more standardized test practice to “get by” and continued everything else that happened in his classroom the exact same way he did in the past. How do I know? Because that is exactly what is happening in similar classrooms throughout the country today. Standardized testing does not help improve teaching one bit. It makes it more difficult for good teachers to continue to be good, yet does nothing to improve the poor ones.
You asked for an alternative solution. It’s actually very simple. Let’s simply do away with all standardized tests and replace money spent on them with the hiring of more administrators or retired expert teachers to spend considerably more time observing teachers in their classrooms. Then, with no more time wasted evaluating/analyzing test data, teachers, administrators and experts can work collaboratively with them to assess, evaluate, and improve their teaching as the year goes on. If you, as an expert, actually spend enough time in someone’s classroom and are able to give a teacher ideas to improve their practice, 99% of them will make the effort to make improvements. In fact, if someone was in my room enough to do that for me, I would greatly appreciate the help that I was getting, rather than having to figure out everything on my own as I do now.
I appreciate all of you parents who are willing to voice your opinions to improve education. Sadly, as a teacher who is evaluated by standardized tests, it would be very hard for me to voice my opinion publicly, as it would be met immediately met with the opposition saying that I just don’t want to be held accountable. Frustrating, to say the least, when in actuality, I just want what is best for my students. The best way for it to happen is for you to organize enough parents/community members as you can to be the voice, and DEMAND politicians not waste one more cent of your tax money on standardized testing.
You are fortunate that you have a smart girl. She is fortunate that she has a supportive family. Many students do not. There has always been and always will be some level of accountability. What has happened in recent times has taken that accountability to the extreme. No teacher should feel that their whole worth is dependent on a test score. No student should be placed under the pressure that these hours of testing create for some of our youngest children. One of the major problems with the new evaluations for teachers is that everything came out at once and in some cases, new curriculum was not even in place before the new evaluations were required. It is unfair to both teacher and student to test on something that they can not prepare for. There are alternatives but they would most likely not make money for the big companies who create these tests and the text books that drive the curriculum. I sincerely hope that your child can continue to live up to the expectations of these new tests.
Sorry you had a teacher like that. It seems odd that one single school year could impede the learning of everyone in that class. People not just kids are usually resilient. One the best things a parent can do is empower their child to go to school equipped to handle any situation. I have been teaching for 15 years and have not met any lazy teachers. Some are better skilled at dealing with the problems children have or create in a class. Better community support from parents and governments are needed. Get involved, be helpful, volunteer. Get to know the teachers. We are not babysitters. Parents are often too busy to invest. Stop hating teachers, they spend way too much time with our most precious children. Many if not most are not all loved and expected to learn like yours. Principals need to be in classrooms more to see what is happening for the good of everyone. Not because staff needs to be disciplined. They usually have no idea what is going on and are busy with too many meetings full of adults who have never worked with children. Standardized testing has its place. What it is truly a reflection of is the kind of socio-economic and cultural demographics in a school district. Not sure this is fair to anyone. Standards in education are important as is inclusion. Hope everyone gets to make a weirdo and has it marked!
Dear John,
Do you think teaching your smart daughter how to answer multiple choice questions on a test and to read and regurgitate information in a test essay is really the best way for her to learn? Because as a teacher in a test grade (3rd grade and above) there is no more time for class plays, poems, inquiry based learning or otherwise.
As a teacher, a hard working teacher- I know not all others are and there needs to be better ways to hold those teachers accountable. But standardized tests are not the answer.
Which do you think will develop a life-long learning desire in your smart, young daughter? Sitting and filling out worksheets 8 hours a day or learning engaging material that might be on a standardized test? Which do you think will ingrain the ideas of form and function, geometry, rudimentary architecture and mechanics and MAKE THEM STICK? Creating a “weird-o” or filling out worksheets?
The idea is that -everything- has something that can be taught and that filling out worksheets and listening to lectures constantly isn’t the best way of getting young, smart children to grasp the concept. Making “weird-os” is not just fun and games and filling out worksheets isn’t the only way to teach.
Is your last name Kasich?
One “bad” teacher in 12 years is not too bad. I had great teachers except in 5th grade and for some reason I went home crying every day because of Miss Jack. She only lasted a year in that school but I think that experience helped me to put up with some nasty bosses and other mean folks during
my life.
THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart! I didn’t know parents like you still existed but you are everything that is RIGHT about the teacher-parent partnership.
I’ve had too many parent-teacher-admin conferences that begin with the parental words, “I don’t understand why I was called to the school, my son/daughter never does this/is a perfect angel at home. What did you do to make him/her act like that?” It’s also at this point that I hand over my notes to the VP and politely excuse myself out of the meeting.
God Bless you for caring enough about your kids to hold them accountable and teach them that the world does not revolve around them. You are a blessing to any teacher and to your children!
THANK YOU!!! I have been teaching now for 17 years. I am struggling this year to find my joy in teaching because of all of these unfunded mandates! I can not figure out how to get it all completed everyday. I sat and cried as I read this post….I had the same kind of teachers when I was in school…..this is one of the reasons I went in to teaching. I wanted to give children those amazing experiences I had as a student. The way things are now…..it is so hard. Your post gives me hope that everything I do and all the time I spend planning and grading is not for waste. I have had wonderful students in my class every year….but I often wonder if I have given them as much as they need. Keep up the posts….I know I will need them this year!
Amanda McKinney
Chattanooga, TN
How great, thanks for this wonderful post. Happily, for every parent who is quick to blame the teacher, there’s another like you who realizes supporting the teacher in holding their child accountable is really the kinder and better thing for their child in the long run. I’m fortunate enough to teach music, but even I have felt the strain of being forced to include things in my limited time with the kids that have nothing to do with music to help prepare for the test. Still, I know how lucky my kids are to receive any instruction in the arts at all when so many schools have cut these programs in favor of more test prep. Gotta keep on fighting the good fight though, because we all want these kids to look back and remember making their own “weirdos” when they are parents themselves one day.
Susie,
I’m a middle school science teacher and we had open house last night. A parent had printed out this post with a little note that said “I couldn’t have said it better if I tried.” I had to look you up and just say THANK YOU!!!! People like you make me realize that I’m here to inspire, not to prep for a test and I still try hard everyday to do just that.
I will now be following your blog because I love your writing. Thanks again!!!!
Thank you for writing this and for sharing.
While I do get along with my students and we work hard, I always remind them that business is business and personal is personal. Just because we get along well does not mean that they will be given an A+ and be allowed to coast.
The standards? Eh. In 20 years, a lot has been implemented and changed only to have something else implemented and changed in its place. I teach the students what they need to know and help them refine their skills to be the best that they can be.
Parents? The ones who are pro-active and not re-active are the best to work with. Just love having a parent who is still babying their 7th or 8th grader (instead of putting the responsibility on the child) and allowing him or her to slack until the report card comes out, and the parent believes the child. Where was the child’s homework assignment written down and then completed? Why did they have 11 out of 15 assignments that were late? Where was the phone call from the parent when I wrote, “Please contact me to discuss your child’s academic progress.”? Really wish more parents were like you. Involved, realistic, honest.
My son is grown. We’ve already been down this road hundreds of times and I still recognize when a student is pulling the wool over my eyes.
Wishing you the happiest of school years with your children. May they find more Miss M.s and less Mr. O’C.s.
I remember Mrs. M. Whe in 5th grade I didn’t lilke her. I would go as far as to say I hated her at that time. She wouldn’t le tme get away with anything. As I got older and looked back at that time I realize she was one of the best teachers I had BECAUSE she wouldn’t let me get away with anything. I even had the opportunity to thank her for being the teacher she was.
As a parent and a teacher, this piece really speaks to me. My daughter is entering kindergarten, and on my “parent survey,” when asked what my hopes were for this year, I said that I just wanted my daughter’s love of learning not to be crushed. I am afraid a focus on the tests tends to do just that.
THANK YOU!
Thank you.
Thank you so much. I cried as I read this because my 5th grade teacher (Miss Bronk) had such a huge impact on my life. We had a poem a week to memorize (if we wanted) as well as a painting a week to memorize (if we wanted to). She read to us EVERY DAY! My mom read to me, but by 5th grade I was reading on my own, but I loved every minute of Miss Bronk’s reading. She used voices! Here is a short list of books she read to us; The Borrowers, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, Mr. Poppers Penguins, Caleb and Me, Caleb and Me Again, The Trumpet of the Swan and Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle. I have read all of these books to my own children.
Sorry for the reminiscing. I am also a teacher, so thank you for your words. I hope other moms feel the same as you do.
<3
Here’s another teacher voice chiming in to thank you for your thoughtful post. I do miss the days of thematic units and ongoing art projects, but I have found that there is still some room for creativity in teaching. A lot depends on the team with whom you work, and luckily for me, my team is amazing. We have interactive science notebooks and create social studies projects and thinking maps. We also use whole brain teaching methods, which are amazingly engaging and fun for both kids and teacher.
It’s not like the old days, but it’s not horrible either. School can still be fun for kids, depending on the teacher’s familiarity with different approaches and willingness to try new things.
The main point of your post that got my little teacher heart pumping was the part where you understand that teachers are not out to get your kids. We call with concerns in order to help your child, not to make you feel defensive or like a bad parent. Thank you for understanding that. Now if we could only get everyone else to see that point!
BB
As I begin my 23rd year teaching middle school English language arts, I continue to do what I have always done: BEST PRACTICE. If I continue to do what is best for kids’ learning, their scores will reflect that, period. If I teach to the test, the kids will be good test takers, and not much more. I’m willing to risk repercussions in order to do what’s best for kids. We teachers need to stay willing to take risks, really care about kids, and have the guts to do the right thing for our students.
Thank you. As a teacher, I thank you. I hope your kids get to find their weird this year, and I hope I have the latitude to let my students do that as well.
Wonderful. But a truly great teacher’s hands are NEVER tied. Content is content and there are a million ways to be creative in the classroom.
I am going to print this out and give it to my son’s kindergarten teacher. My son started and there are 30 kids in his class.
I liked your post. Being a teacher is a calling and we must support good and caring teachers. We need to make the general public aware of the plight of the modern teacher.
Greg Meyer
Yes, teachers have their hands tied with the testing. But the tests assess the standards, which are put in place to measure that the kids are learning what they need to know at each grade level.
If a teacher takes that to mean that they can only use worksheets and drills to teach the kids the standards, shame on that teacher.
It’s in the hands of the teacher to take those standards and use them to guide really effective and innovative lessons. And a great teacher gets kids to learn those standards with excitement, not from the book.
The tests are flawed, I agree with that–but the teachers can still use other methods of teaching to get those kids to learn!! I believe in our teachers!!!
I teach grade 4. Last week as I was prepping my room and making a fun beginning of the year activity for the kids, my principal entered and said our grade 6 math scores were too low. There goes the fun activity *sigh 🙁
Thank you! Your post was shared by a colleague on her FB page. I’ve been teaching 25 and this is the first year I feel like a deflated balloon in a box with a lid.
I’m so glad to read this but I have to agree with some of the other posters. I teach HS Algebra in an inner city school and while I do have to teach the standards, I incorporate a great deal of creativity into my classroom. I also had the opportunity this year to participate in writing curriculum over the summer so I was able to infuse my fun factor into some of the lessons.
Any teacher who has lost their vision of fun and creativity needs to move on to another career. We cannot allow dittos and worksheets to replace real interaction and learning.
God bless parents like you!!
~A 14 year teacher!!
All I can say is Thank You. I am sitting and crying because someone still gets it.
This is why my children go to a charter school where parents & kids have voices and where teachers have freedom. They think outside the box. There is a joyous atmosphere! Imagine that. The school district here (and most other places) considers charters a necessary evil yet there are thousands on waiting list. They constantly grumble against them instead of working on their own failures. There was just an article in our local paper where the district was questioning the “success” of charter schools because the test scores in some were stagnant for a few years. How about the fact that kids love their school and are proud of their school. How about kids wanting to be there and having teachers that love their jobs? Does that count for anything? The state of schools will not change until the school boards, districts, ALL of those leading from on high and YES, even the teachers unions change or dissolve themselves. Sadly, it seems all they care about is money. They hate charter schools because every child that goes to a charter means less money in their pockets, even though if all the charter schools dissolved, the district would not be able to handle the influx of students. And yet, charter schools successfully thrive on much less money than the district schools. There is no common sense in school districts that refuse to change their ways. I am so grateful I live in a community that has multiple charters where parents and children have choices. And as one who has been involved in school choice on some level for 12 years I will be blunt and say when it comes to this issue, time and time again the school choice initiatives receive backlash and have to fight against Democrat in local positions of power.
You hit the nail on the head. As a parent of elementary girls and as a 2nd grade teacher, I couldn’t agree more. I struggle with whether I should stay everyday at the same time I am worrying what my own children are being subjected to in this system. I cried when I read this for several reasons. Shoud be read at every school board meeting across the country.
Love the sentiment and the anecdotes, but sweet bejebus, that double-spaced, breaking even single sentences into multiple lines thing needs to go…pronto.
Sorry, anon.
That’s
just
my
style.
I love this post! I just started my 3rd year teaching, and I expected when I entered the teaching profession that I would be teaching in the same kind of environment I was taught in. I teach 8th grade, and the kids expect everything to be handed to them on a silver platter. I once had a student tell me, “I don’t have to do this assignment because I know you can’t give me a 0.” Our school system does not allow us to put a 0 into our gradebook based on the whole “No Child Left Behind” system, and the kids know it. Our kids, at our school, know they can fail a class and still move on to high school. I have heard discussions among kids about which class they are choosing to not work in this year because they know they can fail it. I wish parents would be more involved in their child’s education, and support us, as teachers, and the time we devote to their kids.
I have taught for 20 years in elementary title one schools. It is a true mission of the heart and is a very tough environment. I love teaching and the kids but dislike all the political involvement. If some of the public would actually see what goes on daily in our schools, they would be shocked. Some of the behavior is almost surreal. It is rare that you even hear supportive comments.
Thank you for your support and kind words.
Thank you. I used to do the toothpick bridge project. The kids got $1.5 million and had to spend $800 a day for glue… We tested them for the strength the day we let out for Christmas Break. They had a great time. We also made tetrahedral kites and flew them outside. We had mystery day where they were placed randomly (or not) into a group and got 42 popsicle sticks and a hot glue gun – project had to be finished in the class period. We hid the results and no one was allowed to tell what they did. They made helicopters, airplanes, the Twin Towers, out houses – it was a blast. Team building activities for sure. Now I just teach math… get everyone ready for the seemingly never ending tests. Fun now is tossing markers to grade papers – the big deal is learning to catch them one handed. How sad.
Oh My, Oh, My!!!! This is too fantastic! Thank you so very much for this letter/post! I wish that ALL of my parents were as awesome as you! And you are so right about parents being the most difficult aspect in my career. Don’t get me wrong, I have had some parents that were just as fabulous as you seem to be, BUT- I have also had some that have taken “crazy” to a “whole nutha level”! Haha! This is great…and I have most definitely shared this!
Thank you for understanding. Seriously. Thank you.
Love this post…had my own 5th gr. teacher who was wonderful and did crazy things we loved…have been teaching for 17 successfull years. Love stories like these as good teachers can relate and see the importance to being creative and being unique and not crumbling under the pressure of the new common core and standards and testing..I feel if you can find a happy medium of being creative and teaching the new standards, you have succeeded as an educator. We must be held accountable for standards and love that the nation is coming under one set of standards so hit them and do it well how ever you can. But we must teach them and be tested on them. As a parent and a teacher I do hope my children can be held accountable for what they need to know, and just hope it can be delivered in a way that makes learning fun, unthreatening and effective manner. Standards are made for a reason and we need to teach them, how we choose to deliver them is up to the teacher and I know teachers are teachers because they are unique and creative. MY hope is al teachers can live up to the potential to make learning fun and meaningful. Hanging weirdos sounds like a great start!! I think I am going to make weirdos next week!
THANK YOU! It is nice to see that some parents out there feel this way!
Thank you! That’s the kind of teacher I try to be!!!
Thank you for this! I try hard to balance teaching the way I know it needs to be done and the way that I know I have to in order to keep my job. Thank you for being a good parent and supportive of your kids and their teachers. Have a great school year!
Thank you for this. It made me cry a little (and yes, I cry occasionally in my class when something touches me).
I want to be that teacher, and I think I am sometimes. It’s who I am as a person. BUT, I have 170 8th graders in six classes rotating every 45 minutes. Not even bringing in the complications brought about by testing, changing standards, data, data, data, that is simply too many students in too short a time to truly connect with and inspire. It’s painful to me.
Sadly, too many parents do not think as you do. Too many show they care about their children by doing exactly the wrong things – like allowing them to have their way all the time, smoothing over any little bump or problem, protecting and isolating them from real life, and not saying NO when they should. I also like that you know there are two sides to every story, and the student only side is a biased version.
I am the teacher who kids contact in the summer about what they are reading. I’m the teacher who years later kids thank. And I am the teacher who is tired and discouraged and about ready to quit.
Please keep spreading your message. Especially with politicians and school administrators.
At the beginning of the day, I shut my door and teach. Some days we read the story and answer the questions, somedays we make comic strips of fables, some days we do creative writing, some days we work on projects that require creativity and demonstration of learning. I’ve been dong this for eight years in a state and at schools that really value their test scores, and no one has ever said ‘you can’t do that.’
The testing box is only as big or as little as you make it.
Thank you so much for writing this! As the president of our local board of education, I was asked to welcome the teachers back to school. I read this (gave you full credit :D), it is EXACTLY how I feel. Thank you!
Beautiful post! As a teacher with 19 years of experience I teach children not only the curriculum, but confidence, manners, thinking skills and many other skills. They are all much more important than a test score. I also instill in my students that they always need to do their best and be proud of what they can do. It is the politics which is ruining education. The politics is not always in an office downtown- this is what demoralizes so many teachers.
As a education major, I dropped out because of all this crap. I switched to a mathematics major without a teaching credential because I don’t want to be a teacher anymore. Some of the best teachers I had, I failed their classes because of the tests! They were great teachers, I was a fairly good student, and I was still failing their class and this was before the age of test, test and test some more so you can be ready for college at the age of 7. It’s insanity. We opted for K12 and their online public school this year and there are SEVEN separate “literature” units (5-7 lessons each) that are pure test prep with scantron sheets and everything. We are refusing these tests for our kids and I’m not even gonna bother with the “prep”… Teachers should be allowed to teach! It’s what we pay them to do! We do not pay them to administer high-stakes tests. Nobody goes into teaching with the “I want to proctor eight exams a year!” goal in mind. They want to teach, we need to let them teach! Nobody should be reduced to the number of correct answers on a test, be it teacher or student.
Beautiful! I got into teaching 8 years ago just when all of the regimented curriculum was put into place. I really try not to just teach to the test but it is very hard when 50% of your evaluation is based on test scores. 🙁 I’m so tired of all day acronyms and standards and data. Sometimes I’m a little scared when the kids use their art supplies that someone will walk in and think we are just goofing off when we need to be preparing for the almighty test. Sad!! Test scores are such a joke sometimes anyway. I was excited that most of my kids this year coming up from their previous grade were proficient or advanced. And then I saw their class performance and realized that they are setting the standards way too low on that test. Another way that states are able to look good on paper while in reality many are not very proficient. Good for my evaluation I guess but bad for students/parents as far as knowing their real “level”.
Thank you!! I’ve been a teacher for 27 years, and a parent for 25. The one thing I know is that I have always done my best and I have always expected my children, and my students, to do the same.
Something we must keep in mind: the tests are standardized, but the children are not. Everyone does not learn the same way, that’s why teachers have to be able to teach a variety of ways. These test results are imperfect, and are being used improperly. Something has got to be done before the entire system “breaks”.
Your children, and their teachers are so lucky to have someone who truly gets them.
Loved your post. As the wife of a high school teacher, we have seen the change coming for years. There is something we can all do about it, though. There are groups forming against Common Core all over the country. If all parents (and teachers) get educated on this issue, then call school board members and other officials, change can happen. We are not locked into this as the government would have us think.
Love this! As a teacher, you hit the nail on the head! I wish more parents felt this way-how can we change this for future generations?
Why do people really argue back and forth on blog comments? I am teacher and really appreciated this post. Just take it for what it is people- a thank you to teachers, and a way to say that testing is not the end all in education. Why people feel the need to throw crazy comments back and forth is beyond me. Anyway, I thought this was very well-written and on point! To each his own, but I’m with you!