Tag: education

Posted in Challenge, Hope for Teachers

Homework of Hope

Posted on by Dear Teacher/Love Teacher

(c)DearTeacherLT2013

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:

  1.  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.
  2. 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.
  3. 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.

(c)DearTeacherLT2013

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.

Posted in Cheer Up, Friday Note, You Are Awesome!!!

Friday of Awesomeness!

Posted on by Dear Teacher/Love Teacher

Dear Teacher,

It is Friday!  You have survived the week.  No, you did not survive it…you thrived in it.  You made a difference in the lives of your students, even if they don’t know it yet or not.  You inspired.  You set mental fires.  You perspired…but it was worth it.  You got your students to think…and got them thinking more on their own.  Your students learned because your taught them how to learn.  You taught your heart out, and now your students can even teach others.

You hit milestones with somestudents.  You crossed educational thresholds with other students.  Some students reached the benchmarks set…some students surpassed them.  Because of this week, some of your students will never be the same.  Because of you.  You taught them to think, learn, love others, have compassion, believe in themselves, and the goodness that lies in the hard work it takes to reach goals.

Teacher, you did not just make it through the week, you made the week yours!  You took the week, you tamed it, and you made something awesome out of it.  Celebrate!  It is Friday!  You came, you taught, you conquered!  You awesomed the heck out of this week!

You are so awesome!  You are doing a great job!  Your work with your students DOES matter, and don’t ever forget that.  You are a difference maker!

Keep on teaching, Teacher!  I believe in you!

Love, Teacher

PS… Here is a little video I found this morning.  I hope it inspires you like it inspired me.

For more hope and encouragement: @DearTeacherLT (Twitter) and Dear Teacher/Love Teacher Facebook Page.

Posted in Challenge, Hope For Students, Hope for Teachers, Note to Teachers

Pride Comes Before…Success

Posted on by Dear Teacher/Love Teacher

Dear Teacher,

What effect does pride have on you?  No, not pride in yourself…though there can be power in that…I mean pride that someone else has in you.  What does it do for you to know that someone is really and truly proud of you?  How does it feel to hear that from them?  What good does it do your your heart, soul, and mind to have someone in your corner, cheering you on, beaming with pride?

Do your students have this in their life?

I am inspired to write about this because of my last class of the day yesterday.  As I looked around while they worked, and I had such a feeling of pride.  I am so proud of them.  I am proud of that class and all of my other classes.  They have risen up to meet my expectations this year…and I have very high expectations for my students.  I am really, and utterly proud of my students.  They are so AWESOME!

Can you look around at your students today and find things to be proud of about them?  I would challenge you to try.

And more than that, I challenge you to tell them.

As I looked at my class yesterday, it hit me that I am often struck by proud feelings about them but I do not say it often.  They should know how proud I am of them.  I need to tell them more often.  Pride changes things.  Pride helps you want to work harder.  Pride makes you strive for success.  I need to share how proud I am of my students, and in turn they will keep working hard for more success to make me even prouder of them.

I recently took on the task of writing a personal note to each of my students.  In it I tell them how proud I am of them and how awesome they are.  I have seen some changes in students just because of these letters.  They want to make me proud because I am proud of them.  Hope and pride is the light at the end of the tunnel.  My students are starting to see the light, and some are running for it as soon as they see it.  It is so cool to watch them run towards success and achievement.

Tell your students how proud you are of them today.  Write some quick notes.  Inject some hope into their lives by giving them some fuel that can ignite into the fire of success.  You are proud of them.  Let them know!

You are awesome, Teacher.  I am proud of you.  You do all you can to get your students to see and live up to (and past) their potential.  Keep on teaching, Teacher!

Love, Teacher

For more hope and encouragement: @DearTeacherLT

Posted in Challenge, Choose Positive, Hope for Teachers

The Choice

Posted on by Dear Teacher/Love Teacher

Dear Teacher,

Last night, someone shared the Positive Teacher Pledge on an Edmodo.  This really spoke to me.  I know that I need to strive to be more positive in my classroom.  There are times that we all get lured to the dark side of negativity, if we are honest with ourselves.  Though, I have seldom thought about the choice between being positive and being negative.  It is a choice, however!

Every day, every hour, every second, we make a choice between giving into the stress that weighs us down on teachers and acting out of stress or in the opposite direction of the stress.  Often times, at least for me, I let the stress make the choice and it is usually in the negative direction.  I need (we need) capture every second of the day with our students!  We don’t have many seconds with them, in the span of their lives, so we need to make each one count!  We can’t afford to have many “bad seconds” with our students.  We are setting them up for the rest of their lives!  We have to take that seriously.

Today, will you…

  • Let your exhaustion show or be upbeat (or at least pretend to be energetic)?
  • Let that crummy email or phone call show or save your frustration for later and say something nice to a student who needs it?
  • Complain about a coworker or do something to encourage him or her?
  • Gripe about administration or ask them if there is anything you can do to help them today?
  • Get irritated with a student who is driving you insane or pull him or her aside, say something positive, and give a reason to do better today?

The list could go on forever, but I think you get it.  Lets try to make positive choices today!  We are worn out, beat up, and empty…but we have to keep moving.  You can do it, Teacher!  You can be positive today!  You are awesome!  I believe in you so much!

Keep on teaching, Teacher!

Love, Teacher

For more hope and encouragement: @DearTeacherLT

Posted in Get Psyched!, Mondays, New Day

Rock Star

Posted on by Dear Teacher/Love Teacher

 (c)DearTeacherLT2013
(c)DearTeacherLT2013

Dear Teacher,

Ten

You are a rock star waiting in the wings of the stage for your moment in front of the crowd.

Nine

This is Monday…your big show.  This show sets up every other show this week.  Mondays mean more than any other day.

Eight

You are ready.  You’ve got this.  You are rested and ready to go.

Seven

You have planned and prepared.  You have nothing left but to execute your lessons.  You can do this.

Six

No matter what the day brings, you are a professional.  You know what to do.  Get ready and get out there and do it!

Five

You know your best laid plans will be mostly derailed by lunchtime, but you are ready.  You have back up plans.  You have a system in place.  Don’t think about what can and will go wrong.  You do have this.  Don’t worry!

Four

Breathe in.  Breathe out.  It is almost go time.  The students are ready for you.  Get your mind ready for them.

Three

No matter what happens today, you are awesome.  You know that you are.  Through all of the monitoring and adjusting, remember to be the awesome that you are!

Two

Get amped up!  Get psyched!  You live for this!  Get your teaching game face on!

One

Ready or not, it is time to go!  You are a teacher.  Teach like you know it.  Teach like your mean it!  You were born for this!

Image: Wikipedia

You are awesome!  You are believed in!  Go out and teach like you know you can!  Keep teaching, Teacher!

Love, Teacher

For more hope and encouragement: @DearTeacherLT

Posted in Hope For Students, Hope for Teachers, New Day, Picture Note

New Day/New Week

Posted on by Dear Teacher/Love Teacher

(c)DearTeacherLoveTeacher Photo 2013-05-19 08.41.25 PM

Dear Teacher,

Was this your week last week?  I know at my school, behavior seems to decline shortly before summer and teacher stress increases in response.  Tomorrow is a new day.  Monday lets last week go away and you get to start all over again.  That goes for you…and for your students.

Remind yourself of this tomorrow morning.  You have a fresh start.  Remind your students, too.  They have a blank slate week.  Inspire them to do more with this week than they did last week.

Be hopeful.  Make the students wonder what happened to you over the weekend!  Make hope your goal tomorrow.  Inspire your students to greatness.

You are awesome!  I know this week will be better than last week for you.  Go out there and make that true!  Keep teaching, Teacher!

Love, Teacher

For more hope and encouragement: @DearTeacherLT