Listening to him talk about math was like entering an alternate universe. This place was full of excitement, creativity + experimentation…nothing like the black and white worksheets I was used to. Instead of boring work like solving for X, we created 3D graphs, puzzling out shapes likes ice cream cones and clowns by using multivariable equations. Once everyone had calculated a perfect design, we printed them out and hung them in the hallway: a mathematical gallery sprang up to usher us to class.
Watching someone who passionately loves their subject matter talk about French literature, statistics or anthropology is enlightening. The material almost doesn’t matter when you can watch someone’s eyes light up and their every animated gesture convey their fascination. Pi Day, or 3/14, is the perfect day to nerd out and send a huge thanks to teachers who have changed our lives.
Because teachers like this exist–tons of them. My high school calculus teacher was one of them. So was my senior year French teacher, whose memory trick for French literary terms I still remember (could you forget “AHA! VIVID PERVERTS COMPACT CRAPS”?). So were my elementary school kindergarten teachers, who taught us to read and encouraged us to believe in leprechauns by setting up mysterious villages strewn with gold coins and clovers while we were out at recess.
My mom is a teacher, and I can tell you firsthand how much time she spends working at home. Our back porch (among other rooms) is full of books she has painstakingly chosen and saved for students of all ages. She learned how to make digital stories so she could help her ESL students share their life stories in a new language.
Teachers do an amazing service to our communities. Children spend years in their classrooms, learning from these men and women who often work long after the typical work day is over. They are role models who are remembered years after the classroom experience. One of the best things I’ve learned from these great teachers is curiosity. They’ve instilled in me the understanding that I can always learn more, keep exploring and continue to challenge myself at any stage of life.
So, on this merriest of holidays, make sure to thank a teacher–and of course, enjoy a big piece of pie!
Special shoutouts to Beka, Kristin and Torrie, three lovely bloggers who also happen to be teachers!
The post Happy Pi Day! An Ode to Amazing Teachers appeared first on Jaybird.