When I first received my Fulbright grant, my dad sent an announcement to my hometown's local newspaper, The Daily Hampshire Gazette. My kindergarten teacher saw it, clipped it out, and sent me a card to congratulate me! My kindergarten teacher ya'll! She taught me in 1989! It is so many things to me! It's so sweet, thoughtful and kind. It also feels so symbolic in a way. I just got my credential to teach elementary children and did so in hopes of inspiring my young students to grow into conscientious and activist-minded adults. And the here I am, moving to Mexico to work with teachers-to-be, striving to improve my Spanish and learn the nuances of Mexican culture so I can better educate and support those future students of mine. Being an educator is very rewarding, yet also a practice in trust. You work with 25 students nearly every day for the majority of a year, and you must trust that you did your very best for each of them as they move on to the next grade, not knowing who you will hear from again. I am so grateful that Mrs. Timmerman saw that little paragraph in the paper because part of this Fulbright belongs to her, too. She taught me the skills that were the building blocks to everything. The taught me phonics and and the meaning of numbers, which have led to a love of reading and writing and a desire to pursue a master's in math education. And she taught me the most important of all social skills: sharing, communicating my feelings, and empathy. Where would any of us be without our kindergarten teachers?
This is so sweet. So great to see you connecting to your past in this way and getting inspired by it throughout your life.
ReplyDeleteAs I look at my classroom and read this, I am just glad that the cycle continues from student to teacher to student to teacher to student to teacher and on and on. Life Long Learning!
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