A Teacher's Gift

During this last Teacher Appreciation Week, as a teacher, I began to get a little nostalgic. As it happens, it is also our last Open Mic Night @4410 in Haymarket as the Journalism Adviser for Inside 15000 and I am feeling sad to be leaving behind all that I have learned from my students. The irony is not lost on me. I have learned from more from the students I have taught in the seven years since I began teaching high school, and the two years as a pre-school teacher. In those nine years, I have been blessed by an unusually high number of incredible students. I can even say that each of those 1,120 students have been special to me in some way, and I remember them all.

A Teacher's Gift

The greatest gift is to teach

not because the lessons I create,

the standardized test that don’t reflect what I preach,

or the assignments, papers and projects that drown me,

but because of what the students have taught me.

Hunger for knowledge,

compassion for their peers.

Open eyes,

Ears,

Hearts.

They have have changed the course of my life

160 kids a year,

seven years,

one thousand, one hundred and twenty changes small and large

Ms. Peyton ~

－ my brother died,

－ my father left,

－ that hurts my feelings,

－ why can’t I learn,

why don’t I understand.

－ I’m struggling,

－ I’ve met somebody,

－ my heart is broken,

－ I GOT IN!!!

－ I PASSED!

－ I’m presidential candidate for 2036!

I’ve learned to ~

be strong,

work hard,

kids do care,

there’s always another side of the story,

the lesson taken my have nothing to do with what I’ve taught

how to say no.

To stand up for what I believe,

I’ve learned so much by being a teacher.

I’ll never forget,

One thousand, one hundred, and twenty amazing lives who’ve taught me

How to be free