Dear Teacher,
As a fellow teacher, I would be remiss not to give you a little homework. What is a teacher without an assignment to give? This is, in a sense, happy homework. I hope that you will give this challenge a try!
Let me give just a little background. If you have been reading for the last couple of weeks, you know that this blog was born out of a project that I gave myself. I challenged myself to write a personal note to each of my students. As I wrote, I found myself wishing I had someone to write me some words of encouragement. I realized that most teachers probably felt the same way, so I took on the grander challenge of trying to encourage as many teachers as I can…that can’t be hard. Cheering up and giving hope to an entire group of people in potentially one of the most discouraging careers. Piece of cake. 🙂
What I found though all of this, is that giving hope gives me hope. It spurs me on to bigger and greater things. Helping you helps me be better. Talking about your awesomeness helps me feel a little more awesome. This has led me to another challenge at school. I hope to write an encouraging note to every teacher in the next two weeks before school gets out. I want my school to have a climate of hope and encouragement. Maybe I can be one of the catalysts for this!
That leads me to your homework assignment. I want you to be a part of spreading the awesome around. I want to help facilitate you as a catalyst of hope and encouragement where ever you are. I know you can do it! You can because you are awesome!
The Assignment:
- Random Acts of Awesome: I want you to pick three fellow teachers and do something randomly great for them. Write a note. Bring them coffee. Watch their students at bus holding. Surprise them with awesome and then tell them it is because of how awesome you think they are, and then tell them to pass on the awesome. You can do this even if you are out of school for the summer already. Take someone to lunch.
- Share a Post: I have had a lot of feedback about how this blog has encouraged people. I want you to share this encouragement with as many people as you can. Part two of your assignment is to pick your favorite post of this blog and share it somewhere. Share it on Facebook with people you know need it. Tweet it. Share it in an Edmodo group or email it to teachers at you school. If you were encouraged, it will probably encourage others.
- Tell Me About It: The last step of your assignment is to come back here and tell me about it. What did you do? What was the reaction? Did it spur on others to join the encouragement revolution? The stories will very much encourage me and I can’t wait to read them. If you do not want to post your story here, you can email me: dearteacher@outlook.com.
I was going to say that the assignment is due Friday, but take as much time as you need! I can’t wait to hear about it!
Teacher, you are awesome. Go out there and be awesome to others!
Keep on teaching, Teacher!
Love, Teacher
For more hope and encouragement: @DearTeacherLT (Twitter) and Dear Teacher/Love Teacher Facebook Page.
Dear Teacher/Love Teacher 
I make students do a calorie count for a five day period. Then ask them to reflect on it
Thank you for your response! That sounds like an interesting homework assignment, but I am not sure how it relates to the post.
I emailed two new teachers in my building and told them they were doing a great job and that they were awesome. I congratulated them on completing their first year of teaching. The 3rd teacher, I visited her room and told her in person that she was awesome, etc. It felt good to do this and I am so glad I did. Thanks for the homework assignment. We should all do things like this more often, since the praise and thanks we get as teachers is so little these days.
You get an “A” on your homework, Teacher Laura! Great job! Encouraging others does bring us encouragement and fires us up to do it more often and be more positive with our students and other teachers. There is enough negativity in our profession. We need to fight to stay positive and be a source of the positive. You are awesome, Teacher Laura! Email me at dearteacher@outlook.com if you would ever like to guest blog and pass on the encouragement to other teachers through this blog. You could even just tell your homework story, if you would like. Keep on teaching, Teacher Laura!