We all have people we respect. When we ask students about who they respect, they come up with names of famous athletes and other famous individuals for all kinds of reasons. Many of them will say their teachers or one special teacher. They appreciate their teacher for a number of reasons including, “they are nice”, “they help me”, “they let us have…”. But showing respect for the teacher can be more difficult for them to understand.
Talking to our children about how to respect teachers is important for parents to do, and not just from the point of view of “not getting in trouble”. Showing respect for them can be done by listening in class, not calling out, by waiting to be called on to answer, following the rules of the classroom, completing assignments, asking for help.
All teachers appreciate students who have good manners in school and who work well with them, but they especially appreciate when a student takes the time to say thank you. For some of us we wait till we are older and then go back and say thank you, but everyday is an opportunity for our children to learn the value of a sincere thank you for what our teachers do for our children everyday. I encourage all parents and children to take the time to think about and then thank a teacher for the value they add to our lives. They make a big difference in our lives and saying thank you is important for them and us.
Each year Balanced Life Skills recognizes the teachers in our community by inviting them to visit our school and their students. In addition Mr. Joe a few years ago started the Grants4Teachers Fund in Anne Arundel County, where we provide grants for creative individual teachers and fill the needs of some in the County. If you are interested in helping this cause out you can learn more about the work we are doing through the Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County.
Here are a couple of photos of our visiting teachers in 2011.