It's Teachers Day

[Blues Man]

I've never been fired because I haven't worked for anyone else since I was in high school.

To say that teachers are somehow different from every other person is ridiculous.

Most people do not love their jobs
Most people are only putting in time and doing what they have to do

Teachers are no exception.

Of course teachers don't see that in themselves but then again no one does

So you think YOU are special for being self-employed and therefore happy with your job?

Where did I say I was happy with my job?

And unlike you I know there is nothing special about me.

I'm just your average guy who worked to pay his bills for decades and I didn't love my job more than anyone else.

I get all my income now from property rentals and believe me when I tell you I hate being a landlord

Why do you hate being a landlord?

This guy sums it up pretty well

Being A Landlord Tests My Faith In Humanity

So..as a Landlord, can't you control the people who rent from you? Just make them behave and do what you want them to do.

They are not my children

 

[Blues Man]

Good job teachers!!!

Holocaust study: Two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...g-holocaust-knowledge/?utm_term=.d4b1adad02c2

You can blame the teachers and educational system but the truth is the Parents are the biggest failures in today children's lives when it come to educating their children.

When schools have to take on the MAJOR responsibility for feeding kids and get backlash if they expect parents to keep up paying for those meals.......you know that parents are not parenting anymore.

Those crummy lunches aren't cheap, especially if you've got a few kids in school. And packing lunches is expensive, even if the kids remember to bring back their lunch boxes which they hardly ever do. I don't know that it has a lot to do with parenting if their weekly budget is strapped sometimes.

How expensive is a PB&J?

 

[OldLady]

Good job teachers!!!

Holocaust study: Two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...g-holocaust-knowledge/?utm_term=.d4b1adad02c2

You can blame the teachers and educational system but the truth is the Parents are the biggest failures in today children's lives when it come to educating their children.

When schools have to take on the MAJOR responsibility for feeding kids and get backlash if they expect parents to keep up paying for those meals.......you know that parents are not parenting anymore.

Those crummy lunches aren't cheap, especially if you've got a few kids in school. And packing lunches is expensive, even if the kids remember to bring back their lunch boxes which they hardly ever do. I don't know that it has a lot to do with parenting if their weekly budget is strapped sometimes.

How expensive is a PB&J?

I preferred Fluffernutters myself. I meant a comparably wholesome and hot meal.

 

[Blues Man]

Good job teachers!!!

Holocaust study: Two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...g-holocaust-knowledge/?utm_term=.d4b1adad02c2

You can blame the teachers and educational system but the truth is the Parents are the biggest failures in today children's lives when it come to educating their children.

When schools have to take on the MAJOR responsibility for feeding kids and get backlash if they expect parents to keep up paying for those meals.......you know that parents are not parenting anymore.

Those crummy lunches aren't cheap, especially if you've got a few kids in school. And packing lunches is expensive, even if the kids remember to bring back their lunch boxes which they hardly ever do. I don't know that it has a lot to do with parenting if their weekly budget is strapped sometimes.

How expensive is a PB&J?

I preferred Fluffernutters myself. I meant a comparably wholesome and hot meal.

There is nothing unwholesome about a sandwich

Generations of people have eaten sandwiches for lunch every day and they survived just fine

 

[OldLady]

Good job teachers!!!

Holocaust study: Two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...g-holocaust-knowledge/?utm_term=.d4b1adad02c2

You can blame the teachers and educational system but the truth is the Parents are the biggest failures in today children's lives when it come to educating their children.

Can we please not forget that most kids are just fine; they're reasonably well educated and no better or worse than we were at their age. I get so sick of the daily threads bitching about our young people. What a bunch of feeble minded old farts waving their canes and screaming "Get Off My Lawn!"

No, they are not learning today unless you are counting getting in touch with your feelings.

Most kids today grow up to being worthless wannabe white collar workers because society failed to tell them we need plumbers, electricians and so on.

So I disagree and when my old ass can still lift more than them, well I have an issue with that...

Most kids have no clue about economics, proper diet and so on.

So as you lecture me how well most of these kids are doing let me state I disagree...

The only thing good about this generation is they know how to take a selfie..

Also I tell old folks to get off my lawn because kids today are too lazy to go out...

What a load of horseshit.

 

[OldLady]

You can blame the teachers and educational system but the truth is the Parents are the biggest failures in today children's lives when it come to educating their children.

When schools have to take on the MAJOR responsibility for feeding kids and get backlash if they expect parents to keep up paying for those meals.......you know that parents are not parenting anymore.

Those crummy lunches aren't cheap, especially if you've got a few kids in school. And packing lunches is expensive, even if the kids remember to bring back their lunch boxes which they hardly ever do. I don't know that it has a lot to do with parenting if their weekly budget is strapped sometimes.

How expensive is a PB&J?

I preferred Fluffernutters myself. I meant a comparably wholesome and hot meal.

There is nothing unwholesome about a sandwich

Generations of people have eaten sandwiches for lunch every day and they survived just fine

I know that. Again, I was comparing it to a wholesome hot meal including vitamin rich fruits and vegetables, rib sticking carbs and some protein.

 

[Admiral Rockwell Tory]

Good job teachers!!!

Holocaust study: Two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...g-holocaust-knowledge/?utm_term=.d4b1adad02c2

You can blame the teachers and educational system but the truth is the Parents are the biggest failures in today children's lives when it come to educating their children.

When schools have to take on the MAJOR responsibility for feeding kids and get backlash if they expect parents to keep up paying for those meals.......you know that parents are not parenting anymore.

Schools CHOOSING to feed children is just another reason to hate public education.

If you think kids are not being fed, call the cops.

Your elected officials made that decision. Take it up with them, dumbass!

 

[Admiral Rockwell Tory]

"Real world" of teaching:

In every elementary school in my district we now have to routinely evacuate classrooms because of kids losing their marbles and hitting, biting, kicking, and throwing things. I'm sure Weatherman has the easy answer for this, right Weatherman? What is it?

Why don't you start a school with all your accumulated knowledge and we''ll just see how many sign up to teach there and bring their kids there? Make sure you have almost five year olds who are still not toilet trained.

Maybe teachers should demand proper discipline policies in schools rather than fatter paychecks.

Teachers never strike for helping children, just themselves.

That is not a negotiable item. Your school board is responsible for disciplinary policies. Teachers are not.

Also, strikes are illegal in almost every school system in this country.

You make my point. Everything is negotiable. Especially matters concerning what goes on inside the classroom. Teachers just don’t care.

The day teachers were allowed to unionize was the day teachers stopped putting children first.

What part of "That is not a negotiable item" did you not understand the first time, dumbass?

Oh, I forgot you had years of experience as a teacher's union member just like the rest of us? Wait, what?

You weren't?

Doesn't that make you an incredible dumbass for making a claim as you did?

Saying teachers have no ability to establish policy of the safety of students simply highlights my point of how teachers are the problem, not the solution.

You’ll only strike for yourselves, never for the safety and well-being of the students.

Disgusting.

Politicians and teachers are the only professions that congratulate themselves for doing a crappy job.

You still cannot read! Teachers in all but a few districts in this country are barred from striking by law.

A few years before I began teaching, teachers in Florida went out on an illegal strike. Teachers who participated were fired, their teaching certificates revoked, and they were unable to get jobs in other states because of that. I heard this directly from teachers who were there and you would likely call cowards because they didn't strike and lose their ability to make a living.

Your ignorance is truly telling. You seem to make massive assumptions, and then when you are proven wrong, you utterly cling to your lies. Why?

 

[Unkotare]

Good job teachers!!!

Holocaust study: Two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...g-holocaust-knowledge/?utm_term=.d4b1adad02c2

You can blame the teachers and educational system but the truth is the Parents are the biggest failures in today children's lives when it come to educating their children.

Can we please not forget that most kids are just fine; they're reasonably well educated and no better or worse than we were at their age. I get so sick of the daily threads bitching about our young people. What a bunch of feeble minded old farts waving their canes and screaming "Get Off My Lawn!"

No, they are not learning today unless you are counting getting in touch with your feelings.

......

That’s ridiculous, of course. People like to emote rather than think in these ‘discussions.’

 

[Vastator]

Good job teachers!!!

Holocaust study: Two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...g-holocaust-knowledge/?utm_term=.d4b1adad02c2

Can you blame them. Questioning details of the Holohoax is forbidden in government funded acedemia...

 

[OldLady]

Good job teachers!!!

Holocaust study: Two-thirds of millennials don’t know what Auschwitz is
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...g-holocaust-knowledge/?utm_term=.d4b1adad02c2

Can you blame them. Questioning details of the Holohoax is forbidden in government funded acedemia...

Enough.
I have entertained about anything in this thread, but I'll be damned if we are going to bring in the Nazis. This is a thread for appreciation of good teachers. If you didn't have any, go bitch about it to your local school board, not here.

 

[Dick Foster]

I liked this op ed in my local paper this morning; it sort of gets to the heart of what a good teacher can do. Hope you all had at least one Mrs. Krikorian.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Be sure to thank a teacher this week
George Danby | BDN
By Todd R. Nelson, Opinion guest contributor • May 6, 2019 9:58 am

For many of my teaching years, I’ve carried a poem by Sharon Olds in my heart. Every day, in every school, I saw examples of the fulfillment of its ancient history and prophecy of the future. “Mrs. Krikorian,” the teacher who was an “amiable giantess with the kind eyes” begins:

She saved me. When I arrived in sixth grade,
a known criminal, the new teacher
asked me to stay after school the first day, she said
I’ve heard about you. She was a tall woman,
with a deep crevice between her breasts,
and a large, calm nose. She said,
This is a special library pass.
As soon as you finish your hour’s work —
That hour’s work that took ten minutes
and then the devil glanced into the room
and found me empty, a house standing open —
you can go to the library.

Who was your Mrs. Krikorian? Can you hear the voice of your past teacher who took you in? Who looked past your rap sheet and outward appearances, who touched your potential with a knowing look or kind word? Who was the gentle giant or giantess in your life; who gave you extra time in the library?

I remember mine by their tone of voice. Mrs. Tapley, Mr. Williamson and Mr. Stevens all had a kind of perfect pitch, a resonant voice, stature and bearing. The effect of their pedagogy and curriculum still appears in my adult writing, my math skills, spelling or geographical literacy. Long division still confounds me, through no fault of Miss McCormack. I have a good working knowledge of the Earth’s surficial features. I can spell pretty well.

But what I learned from them is not the most important memory — and a clue as to what matters in schools. Their attitude and feeling toward me and toward their academic subject created the expectation for learning, a deep sense of aspiration. That’s a supreme educational standard.

Good teachers make children feel cared for, understood, challenged and appreciated. Of course, we also remember their moments of righteous indignation, mock ire and appropriately-timed withering glances! I can still hear Mr. Stevens, my fourth-grade teacher, scolding Vicki for making a sixth trip to the pencil sharpener to drop yet another note on Caroline’s desk. I do not remember his lesson, per se. Nor would Vicki, but surely she too can remember his tone. Its value was the true lesson.

By their tone, I knew my teachers were powerful, or not; knowledgeable, or faking it; sincere, or going through the motions. Looking back, I know that learning occurred most spontaneously, deeply, and lastingly for me when their tone synced with my developmental timing — and allowances were made for the unique tenor of any given day. It was then that I allowed myself to be taught — or conspired with my teachers to learn in spite of myself.

This is the fundamental transaction of good schools as well as authentic teachers: creating an atmosphere in which students learn because their teachers know them intimately, have their trust and ingeniously adapt information and skills.

It is my humble hope to think that I have affected a few of these transactions as a teacher and administrator. I can be certain of precipitating a few individual breakthroughs (“So that’s what this poem means!”); confident of training young writers in some key skills (with help from E.B. White); and hopeful that I’ve recruited, hired and supported teachers with a gift for getting the tone right. It would be my tribute to Mr. Stevens to think that I had, in fact, struck the right tone for just a few of my students and colleagues, just as he did for me. It’s my standard for even considering myself a teacher.

And whose Mrs. Krikorian are you?


Todd R. Nelson is a retired teacher and school principal in Penobscot. May 7 is Teacher Appreciation Day.

It's too bad that most teachers today aren't worth spit and do more damage by playing at social engineering rather than doing their jobs and teaching. I guess they are more concerned with their unions and keeping themselves in comfort than doing their jobs. Sure there are exceptions but those are far too rare and far between.
We would do well to get rid of public education as we know it and let the free market sort them out. I have a sneaking suspicion that if mom and or dad had to sit down and write out a check every month for Jonny and Susie to go to school they might actually give a shit about getting their moneys worth.

 

[OldLady]

I liked this op ed in my local paper this morning; it sort of gets to the heart of what a good teacher can do. Hope you all had at least one Mrs. Krikorian.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Be sure to thank a teacher this week
George Danby | BDN
By Todd R. Nelson, Opinion guest contributor • May 6, 2019 9:58 am

For many of my teaching years, I’ve carried a poem by Sharon Olds in my heart. Every day, in every school, I saw examples of the fulfillment of its ancient history and prophecy of the future. “Mrs. Krikorian,” the teacher who was an “amiable giantess with the kind eyes” begins:

She saved me. When I arrived in sixth grade,
a known criminal, the new teacher
asked me to stay after school the first day, she said
I’ve heard about you. She was a tall woman,
with a deep crevice between her breasts,
and a large, calm nose. She said,
This is a special library pass.
As soon as you finish your hour’s work —
That hour’s work that took ten minutes
and then the devil glanced into the room
and found me empty, a house standing open —
you can go to the library.

Who was your Mrs. Krikorian? Can you hear the voice of your past teacher who took you in? Who looked past your rap sheet and outward appearances, who touched your potential with a knowing look or kind word? Who was the gentle giant or giantess in your life; who gave you extra time in the library?

I remember mine by their tone of voice. Mrs. Tapley, Mr. Williamson and Mr. Stevens all had a kind of perfect pitch, a resonant voice, stature and bearing. The effect of their pedagogy and curriculum still appears in my adult writing, my math skills, spelling or geographical literacy. Long division still confounds me, through no fault of Miss McCormack. I have a good working knowledge of the Earth’s surficial features. I can spell pretty well.

But what I learned from them is not the most important memory — and a clue as to what matters in schools. Their attitude and feeling toward me and toward their academic subject created the expectation for learning, a deep sense of aspiration. That’s a supreme educational standard.

Good teachers make children feel cared for, understood, challenged and appreciated. Of course, we also remember their moments of righteous indignation, mock ire and appropriately-timed withering glances! I can still hear Mr. Stevens, my fourth-grade teacher, scolding Vicki for making a sixth trip to the pencil sharpener to drop yet another note on Caroline’s desk. I do not remember his lesson, per se. Nor would Vicki, but surely she too can remember his tone. Its value was the true lesson.

By their tone, I knew my teachers were powerful, or not; knowledgeable, or faking it; sincere, or going through the motions. Looking back, I know that learning occurred most spontaneously, deeply, and lastingly for me when their tone synced with my developmental timing — and allowances were made for the unique tenor of any given day. It was then that I allowed myself to be taught — or conspired with my teachers to learn in spite of myself.

This is the fundamental transaction of good schools as well as authentic teachers: creating an atmosphere in which students learn because their teachers know them intimately, have their trust and ingeniously adapt information and skills.

It is my humble hope to think that I have affected a few of these transactions as a teacher and administrator. I can be certain of precipitating a few individual breakthroughs (“So that’s what this poem means!”); confident of training young writers in some key skills (with help from E.B. White); and hopeful that I’ve recruited, hired and supported teachers with a gift for getting the tone right. It would be my tribute to Mr. Stevens to think that I had, in fact, struck the right tone for just a few of my students and colleagues, just as he did for me. It’s my standard for even considering myself a teacher.

And whose Mrs. Krikorian are you?


Todd R. Nelson is a retired teacher and school principal in Penobscot. May 7 is Teacher Appreciation Day.

It's too bad that most teachers today aren't worth spit and do more damage by playing at social engineering rather than doing their jobs and teaching. I guess they are more concerned with their unions and keeping themselves in comfort than doing their jobs. Sure there are exceptions but those are far too rare and far between.
We would do well to get rid of public education as we know it and let the free market sort them out. I have a sneaking suspicion that if mom and or dad had to sit down and write out a check every month for Jonny and Susie to go to school they might actually give a shit about getting their moneys worth.

Well, you have learned your Breitbart lesson of the day, that's for sure.

A little short on the appreciation bit, I'm thinking....

 

[Unkotare]

I liked this op ed in my local paper this morning; it sort of gets to the heart of what a good teacher can do. Hope you all had at least one Mrs. Krikorian.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Be sure to thank a teacher this week
George Danby | BDN
By Todd R. Nelson, Opinion guest contributor • May 6, 2019 9:58 am

For many of my teaching years, I’ve carried a poem by Sharon Olds in my heart. Every day, in every school, I saw examples of the fulfillment of its ancient history and prophecy of the future. “Mrs. Krikorian,” the teacher who was an “amiable giantess with the kind eyes” begins:

She saved me. When I arrived in sixth grade,
a known criminal, the new teacher
asked me to stay after school the first day, she said
I’ve heard about you. She was a tall woman,
with a deep crevice between her breasts,
and a large, calm nose. She said,
This is a special library pass.
As soon as you finish your hour’s work —
That hour’s work that took ten minutes
and then the devil glanced into the room
and found me empty, a house standing open —
you can go to the library.

Who was your Mrs. Krikorian? Can you hear the voice of your past teacher who took you in? Who looked past your rap sheet and outward appearances, who touched your potential with a knowing look or kind word? Who was the gentle giant or giantess in your life; who gave you extra time in the library?

I remember mine by their tone of voice. Mrs. Tapley, Mr. Williamson and Mr. Stevens all had a kind of perfect pitch, a resonant voice, stature and bearing. The effect of their pedagogy and curriculum still appears in my adult writing, my math skills, spelling or geographical literacy. Long division still confounds me, through no fault of Miss McCormack. I have a good working knowledge of the Earth’s surficial features. I can spell pretty well.

But what I learned from them is not the most important memory — and a clue as to what matters in schools. Their attitude and feeling toward me and toward their academic subject created the expectation for learning, a deep sense of aspiration. That’s a supreme educational standard.

Good teachers make children feel cared for, understood, challenged and appreciated. Of course, we also remember their moments of righteous indignation, mock ire and appropriately-timed withering glances! I can still hear Mr. Stevens, my fourth-grade teacher, scolding Vicki for making a sixth trip to the pencil sharpener to drop yet another note on Caroline’s desk. I do not remember his lesson, per se. Nor would Vicki, but surely she too can remember his tone. Its value was the true lesson.

By their tone, I knew my teachers were powerful, or not; knowledgeable, or faking it; sincere, or going through the motions. Looking back, I know that learning occurred most spontaneously, deeply, and lastingly for me when their tone synced with my developmental timing — and allowances were made for the unique tenor of any given day. It was then that I allowed myself to be taught — or conspired with my teachers to learn in spite of myself.

This is the fundamental transaction of good schools as well as authentic teachers: creating an atmosphere in which students learn because their teachers know them intimately, have their trust and ingeniously adapt information and skills.

It is my humble hope to think that I have affected a few of these transactions as a teacher and administrator. I can be certain of precipitating a few individual breakthroughs (“So that’s what this poem means!”); confident of training young writers in some key skills (with help from E.B. White); and hopeful that I’ve recruited, hired and supported teachers with a gift for getting the tone right. It would be my tribute to Mr. Stevens to think that I had, in fact, struck the right tone for just a few of my students and colleagues, just as he did for me. It’s my standard for even considering myself a teacher.

And whose Mrs. Krikorian are you?


Todd R. Nelson is a retired teacher and school principal in Penobscot. May 7 is Teacher Appreciation Day.

It's too bad that most teachers today aren't worth spit and do more damage by playing at social engineering rather than doing their jobs and teaching. I guess they are more concerned with their unions and keeping themselves in comfort than doing their jobs. Sure there are exceptions but those are far too rare and far between.
.....

Upon what do you base this ignorant drivel?

 

[Moonglow]

I liked this op ed in my local paper this morning; it sort of gets to the heart of what a good teacher can do. Hope you all had at least one Mrs. Krikorian.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Be sure to thank a teacher this week
George Danby | BDN
By Todd R. Nelson, Opinion guest contributor • May 6, 2019 9:58 am

For many of my teaching years, I’ve carried a poem by Sharon Olds in my heart. Every day, in every school, I saw examples of the fulfillment of its ancient history and prophecy of the future. “Mrs. Krikorian,” the teacher who was an “amiable giantess with the kind eyes” begins:

She saved me. When I arrived in sixth grade,
a known criminal, the new teacher
asked me to stay after school the first day, she said
I’ve heard about you. She was a tall woman,
with a deep crevice between her breasts,
and a large, calm nose. She said,
This is a special library pass.
As soon as you finish your hour’s work —
That hour’s work that took ten minutes
and then the devil glanced into the room
and found me empty, a house standing open —
you can go to the library.

Who was your Mrs. Krikorian? Can you hear the voice of your past teacher who took you in? Who looked past your rap sheet and outward appearances, who touched your potential with a knowing look or kind word? Who was the gentle giant or giantess in your life; who gave you extra time in the library?

I remember mine by their tone of voice. Mrs. Tapley, Mr. Williamson and Mr. Stevens all had a kind of perfect pitch, a resonant voice, stature and bearing. The effect of their pedagogy and curriculum still appears in my adult writing, my math skills, spelling or geographical literacy. Long division still confounds me, through no fault of Miss McCormack. I have a good working knowledge of the Earth’s surficial features. I can spell pretty well.

But what I learned from them is not the most important memory — and a clue as to what matters in schools. Their attitude and feeling toward me and toward their academic subject created the expectation for learning, a deep sense of aspiration. That’s a supreme educational standard.

Good teachers make children feel cared for, understood, challenged and appreciated. Of course, we also remember their moments of righteous indignation, mock ire and appropriately-timed withering glances! I can still hear Mr. Stevens, my fourth-grade teacher, scolding Vicki for making a sixth trip to the pencil sharpener to drop yet another note on Caroline’s desk. I do not remember his lesson, per se. Nor would Vicki, but surely she too can remember his tone. Its value was the true lesson.

By their tone, I knew my teachers were powerful, or not; knowledgeable, or faking it; sincere, or going through the motions. Looking back, I know that learning occurred most spontaneously, deeply, and lastingly for me when their tone synced with my developmental timing — and allowances were made for the unique tenor of any given day. It was then that I allowed myself to be taught — or conspired with my teachers to learn in spite of myself.

This is the fundamental transaction of good schools as well as authentic teachers: creating an atmosphere in which students learn because their teachers know them intimately, have their trust and ingeniously adapt information and skills.

It is my humble hope to think that I have affected a few of these transactions as a teacher and administrator. I can be certain of precipitating a few individual breakthroughs (“So that’s what this poem means!”); confident of training young writers in some key skills (with help from E.B. White); and hopeful that I’ve recruited, hired and supported teachers with a gift for getting the tone right. It would be my tribute to Mr. Stevens to think that I had, in fact, struck the right tone for just a few of my students and colleagues, just as he did for me. It’s my standard for even considering myself a teacher.

And whose Mrs. Krikorian are you?


Todd R. Nelson is a retired teacher and school principal in Penobscot. May 7 is Teacher Appreciation Day.

It's too bad that most teachers today aren't worth spit and do more damage by playing at social engineering rather than doing their jobs and teaching. I guess they are more concerned with their unions and keeping themselves in comfort than doing their jobs. Sure there are exceptions but those are far too rare and far between.
We would do well to get rid of public education as we know it and let the free market sort them out. I have a sneaking suspicion that if mom and or dad had to sit down and write out a check every month for Jonny and Susie to go to school they might actually give a shit about getting their moneys worth.

Well, you have learned your Breitbart lesson of the day, that's for sure.

A little short on the appreciation bit, I'm thinking....

I had a teacher in electronic math class that was a good cusser but knew how to motivate people that may of had any doubt they could not do"it".

 

[OldLady]

I liked this op ed in my local paper this morning; it sort of gets to the heart of what a good teacher can do. Hope you all had at least one Mrs. Krikorian.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Be sure to thank a teacher this week
George Danby | BDN
By Todd R. Nelson, Opinion guest contributor • May 6, 2019 9:58 am

For many of my teaching years, I’ve carried a poem by Sharon Olds in my heart. Every day, in every school, I saw examples of the fulfillment of its ancient history and prophecy of the future. “Mrs. Krikorian,” the teacher who was an “amiable giantess with the kind eyes” begins:

She saved me. When I arrived in sixth grade,
a known criminal, the new teacher
asked me to stay after school the first day, she said
I’ve heard about you. She was a tall woman,
with a deep crevice between her breasts,
and a large, calm nose. She said,
This is a special library pass.
As soon as you finish your hour’s work —
That hour’s work that took ten minutes
and then the devil glanced into the room
and found me empty, a house standing open —
you can go to the library.

Who was your Mrs. Krikorian? Can you hear the voice of your past teacher who took you in? Who looked past your rap sheet and outward appearances, who touched your potential with a knowing look or kind word? Who was the gentle giant or giantess in your life; who gave you extra time in the library?

I remember mine by their tone of voice. Mrs. Tapley, Mr. Williamson and Mr. Stevens all had a kind of perfect pitch, a resonant voice, stature and bearing. The effect of their pedagogy and curriculum still appears in my adult writing, my math skills, spelling or geographical literacy. Long division still confounds me, through no fault of Miss McCormack. I have a good working knowledge of the Earth’s surficial features. I can spell pretty well.

But what I learned from them is not the most important memory — and a clue as to what matters in schools. Their attitude and feeling toward me and toward their academic subject created the expectation for learning, a deep sense of aspiration. That’s a supreme educational standard.

Good teachers make children feel cared for, understood, challenged and appreciated. Of course, we also remember their moments of righteous indignation, mock ire and appropriately-timed withering glances! I can still hear Mr. Stevens, my fourth-grade teacher, scolding Vicki for making a sixth trip to the pencil sharpener to drop yet another note on Caroline’s desk. I do not remember his lesson, per se. Nor would Vicki, but surely she too can remember his tone. Its value was the true lesson.

By their tone, I knew my teachers were powerful, or not; knowledgeable, or faking it; sincere, or going through the motions. Looking back, I know that learning occurred most spontaneously, deeply, and lastingly for me when their tone synced with my developmental timing — and allowances were made for the unique tenor of any given day. It was then that I allowed myself to be taught — or conspired with my teachers to learn in spite of myself.

This is the fundamental transaction of good schools as well as authentic teachers: creating an atmosphere in which students learn because their teachers know them intimately, have their trust and ingeniously adapt information and skills.

It is my humble hope to think that I have affected a few of these transactions as a teacher and administrator. I can be certain of precipitating a few individual breakthroughs (“So that’s what this poem means!”); confident of training young writers in some key skills (with help from E.B. White); and hopeful that I’ve recruited, hired and supported teachers with a gift for getting the tone right. It would be my tribute to Mr. Stevens to think that I had, in fact, struck the right tone for just a few of my students and colleagues, just as he did for me. It’s my standard for even considering myself a teacher.

And whose Mrs. Krikorian are you?


Todd R. Nelson is a retired teacher and school principal in Penobscot. May 7 is Teacher Appreciation Day.

It's too bad that most teachers today aren't worth spit and do more damage by playing at social engineering rather than doing their jobs and teaching. I guess they are more concerned with their unions and keeping themselves in comfort than doing their jobs. Sure there are exceptions but those are far too rare and far between.
We would do well to get rid of public education as we know it and let the free market sort them out. I have a sneaking suspicion that if mom and or dad had to sit down and write out a check every month for Jonny and Susie to go to school they might actually give a shit about getting their moneys worth.

Well, you have learned your Breitbart lesson of the day, that's for sure.

A little short on the appreciation bit, I'm thinking....

I had a teacher in electronic math class that was a good cusser but knew how to motivate people that may of had any doubt they could not do"it".

I'm still trying to work that one out, Moon.

And what is "electronic math?" Isn't regular old foot pedal math bad enough?

 

[Moonglow]

I liked this op ed in my local paper this morning; it sort of gets to the heart of what a good teacher can do. Hope you all had at least one Mrs. Krikorian.
* * * * * * * * * * * *

Be sure to thank a teacher this week
George Danby | BDN
By Todd R. Nelson, Opinion guest contributor • May 6, 2019 9:58 am

For many of my teaching years, I’ve carried a poem by Sharon Olds in my heart. Every day, in every school, I saw examples of the fulfillment of its ancient history and prophecy of the future. “Mrs. Krikorian,” the teacher who was an “amiable giantess with the kind eyes” begins:

She saved me. When I arrived in sixth grade,
a known criminal, the new teacher
asked me to stay after school the first day, she said
I’ve heard about you. She was a tall woman,
with a deep crevice between her breasts,
and a large, calm nose. She said,
This is a special library pass.
As soon as you finish your hour’s work —
That hour’s work that took ten minutes
and then the devil glanced into the room
and found me empty, a house standing open —
you can go to the library.

Who was your Mrs. Krikorian? Can you hear the voice of your past teacher who took you in? Who looked past your rap sheet and outward appearances, who touched your potential with a knowing look or kind word? Who was the gentle giant or giantess in your life; who gave you extra time in the library?

I remember mine by their tone of voice. Mrs. Tapley, Mr. Williamson and Mr. Stevens all had a kind of perfect pitch, a resonant voice, stature and bearing. The effect of their pedagogy and curriculum still appears in my adult writing, my math skills, spelling or geographical literacy. Long division still confounds me, through no fault of Miss McCormack. I have a good working knowledge of the Earth’s surficial features. I can spell pretty well.

But what I learned from them is not the most important memory — and a clue as to what matters in schools. Their attitude and feeling toward me and toward their academic subject created the expectation for learning, a deep sense of aspiration. That’s a supreme educational standard.

Good teachers make children feel cared for, understood, challenged and appreciated. Of course, we also remember their moments of righteous indignation, mock ire and appropriately-timed withering glances! I can still hear Mr. Stevens, my fourth-grade teacher, scolding Vicki for making a sixth trip to the pencil sharpener to drop yet another note on Caroline’s desk. I do not remember his lesson, per se. Nor would Vicki, but surely she too can remember his tone. Its value was the true lesson.

By their tone, I knew my teachers were powerful, or not; knowledgeable, or faking it; sincere, or going through the motions. Looking back, I know that learning occurred most spontaneously, deeply, and lastingly for me when their tone synced with my developmental timing — and allowances were made for the unique tenor of any given day. It was then that I allowed myself to be taught — or conspired with my teachers to learn in spite of myself.

This is the fundamental transaction of good schools as well as authentic teachers: creating an atmosphere in which students learn because their teachers know them intimately, have their trust and ingeniously adapt information and skills.

It is my humble hope to think that I have affected a few of these transactions as a teacher and administrator. I can be certain of precipitating a few individual breakthroughs (“So that’s what this poem means!”); confident of training young writers in some key skills (with help from E.B. White); and hopeful that I’ve recruited, hired and supported teachers with a gift for getting the tone right. It would be my tribute to Mr. Stevens to think that I had, in fact, struck the right tone for just a few of my students and colleagues, just as he did for me. It’s my standard for even considering myself a teacher.

And whose Mrs. Krikorian are you?


Todd R. Nelson is a retired teacher and school principal in Penobscot. May 7 is Teacher Appreciation Day.

It's too bad that most teachers today aren't worth spit and do more damage by playing at social engineering rather than doing their jobs and teaching. I guess they are more concerned with their unions and keeping themselves in comfort than doing their jobs. Sure there are exceptions but those are far too rare and far between.
We would do well to get rid of public education as we know it and let the free market sort them out. I have a sneaking suspicion that if mom and or dad had to sit down and write out a check every month for Jonny and Susie to go to school they might actually give a shit about getting their moneys worth.

Well, you have learned your Breitbart lesson of the day, that's for sure.

A little short on the appreciation bit, I'm thinking....

I had a teacher in electronic math class that was a good cusser but knew how to motivate people that may of had any doubt they could not do"it".

I'm still trying to work that one out, Moon.

And what is "electronic math?" Isn't regular old foot pedal math bad enough?

It's mostly algebra with electronics thrown in to actually show you what that formula is for...
When I ran a company I would trick the employees into having to think. Some took offense...

 

[Blues Man]

When schools have to take on the MAJOR responsibility for feeding kids and get backlash if they expect parents to keep up paying for those meals.......you know that parents are not parenting anymore.

Those crummy lunches aren't cheap, especially if you've got a few kids in school. And packing lunches is expensive, even if the kids remember to bring back their lunch boxes which they hardly ever do. I don't know that it has a lot to do with parenting if their weekly budget is strapped sometimes.

How expensive is a PB&J?

I preferred Fluffernutters myself. I meant a comparably wholesome and hot meal.

There is nothing unwholesome about a sandwich

Generations of people have eaten sandwiches for lunch every day and they survived just fine

I know that. Again, I was comparing it to a wholesome hot meal including vitamin rich fruits and vegetables, rib sticking carbs and some protein.

So a turkey on whole wheat with lettuce and tomato and an apple I would say a brownie of a couple home made chocolate chip cookies but the kid would probably be kicked out of school for that kind of contraband

As I said millions of people eat a sandwich for lunch every day and have been doing so for generations and did just fine.

We eat too much in this country anyway

 

[OldLady]

Those crummy lunches aren't cheap, especially if you've got a few kids in school. And packing lunches is expensive, even if the kids remember to bring back their lunch boxes which they hardly ever do. I don't know that it has a lot to do with parenting if their weekly budget is strapped sometimes.

How expensive is a PB&J?

I preferred Fluffernutters myself. I meant a comparably wholesome and hot meal.

There is nothing unwholesome about a sandwich

Generations of people have eaten sandwiches for lunch every day and they survived just fine

I know that. Again, I was comparing it to a wholesome hot meal including vitamin rich fruits and vegetables, rib sticking carbs and some protein.

So a turkey on whole wheat with lettuce and tomato and an apple I would say a brownie of a couple home made chocolate chip cookies but the kid would probably be kicked out of school for that kind of contraband

As I said millions of people eat a sandwich for lunch every day and have been doing so for generations and did just fine.

We eat too much in this country anyway

Why are we arguing about this? I forget.

 

[Blues Man]

How expensive is a PB&J?

I preferred Fluffernutters myself. I meant a comparably wholesome and hot meal.

There is nothing unwholesome about a sandwich

Generations of people have eaten sandwiches for lunch every day and they survived just fine

I know that. Again, I was comparing it to a wholesome hot meal including vitamin rich fruits and vegetables, rib sticking carbs and some protein.

So a turkey on whole wheat with lettuce and tomato and an apple I would say a brownie of a couple home made chocolate chip cookies but the kid would probably be kicked out of school for that kind of contraband

As I said millions of people eat a sandwich for lunch every day and have been doing so for generations and did just fine.

We eat too much in this country anyway

Why are we arguing about this? I forget.

You said it was too expensive for parents to make lunch for their kids