JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Here in New England, students went back to school for the first time this past Thursday or Friday. (I continue to maintain starting the year at the very end of August, near Labor Day, is the True and Right way to do it, but I acknowledge this is a the minority view in the US.)
Colleges and Universities are back in the swing; I taught my first class of the semester on Wednesday. This is my second September without one of my kids in school (Youngest graduated in May, '22) and it still feels weird to be off the great solstice of the parental year after a quarter century. Of course, Youngest is now talking about grad school, so...
Kindergarten through MBAs and Medical degrees, one constant figure is the teacher. I've had many in my life. My mother got a masters in education and supported her children for several years as a single mom after her divorce. Many of you know my late husband was a special ed teacher. But I want to call out some of my own teachers who helped shape who I am today.
Suzanne Ovitt: my first teacher after I arrived back in the US after almost four years living abroad. My parents were divorcing, I was off a military base for the first time in my life, and I was a wreck. Her gentle, supportive, caring presence got me restarted in my new life.
Al Marshall: I can't recall if Mr. Marshall taught me English in 6th, 7th or 8th grade. I do recall his enthusiasm for my writing. He took a poem of mine and tacked it up in the teachers' lounge with a note: Don't tell me kids in our school aren't creative. (I know this because my mom was a long term sub there.) He was the first teacher to lay the foundation for my belief I could be a writer.
Miss Sutton: I never knew my senior English teacher's first name - our small group of very bright smart-alecks called her Sutton Hoo. She was actually an adjunct of Syracuse University; we were getting college credit for her class and boy did she make us work for it. Each Monday we were assigned a current affairs topic. On Friday, we had to turn in a well-reasoned Baconian essay on it - five paragraphs, each with five sentences, the whole structured around topic, three arguments in order of strength, and conclusion. Typos, poor grammar and spelling errors were unacceptable. Miss Sutton prepared me for law school eight years before I thought about going.
Robert Ryan and John "Jack" Pavia: Professors Ryan and Pavia weren't just amazing teachers of history at Ithaca College, they also opened their hearts and homes to students. Prof. Ryan had regular dinners for the history majors, where he would produce gourmet meals that left his small kitchen looking like a food bomb had exploded. Prof. Pavia took us sailing on Lake Cayuga, and along with a great deal of information about Japanese history and literature, he imparted a piece of wisdom I have always remembered: A boat should be big enough for a cooler full of drinks."
I had started with the goal of a BFA in acting, but when I realized I was loving my history classes SO much more than those in voice and movement, I changed majors.
Finally, not my own teacher, but my kids': Nancy Ouellette. Mrs. Ouellette had all three of my children in her second grade class at St. Patrick's School and lived to tell the tale. She was a funny, compassionate teacher who handled loose teeth with aplomb (so many loose teeth!) and had a creative curriculum that blended science, mathematics and writing together in a way that kept her students engaged and interested in learning. She was Maine's Catholic School Teacher of the Year in '17, and rightly so. Mrs. Ouellette, I hope you're enjoyed a well-earned retirement.
How about you, dear readers? Who were the teachers who left their mark on your lives?
I remember Mrs. Sutherland who always listened, never raised her voice, and always let me get more than one book from the library. Anita Koral taught my children to listen, to follow instructions, and to know that learning could be fun. [And she let parents come in and read to the children.] Virginia Spandau, the school’s special ed teacher, was always strict but fair, compassionate and gentle, and able to handle any problem; she was always looking for what was best for her children. We used to put our classes together all the time . . . .
ReplyDeleteThere are teachers that either make or discover the child. My first child tried out for Band, wherein the world’s greatest teacher taught her music and empathy and respect, and when he gave her a loan of his precious soprano sax, the confidence to play an entire piece alone. You could hear a pin drop. The second child – learning impaired met a teacher in high school who taught him programming out of the curriculum. This boy was on hand at age 5 when a new computer went in (1986) and watched as the seller installed it and he immediately comprehended DOS and anything else that made computers work. Child 3 went to high school, took Art (easy course) in grade 10, wherein the most wonderful teacher discovered his artistic side – who knew. He is now in 3-d programming for movies, (not working due to the strike) and his art graces our walls. He hated to colour.
DeleteI thank heavens that all our kids met these wonderful, kind and observant people and took time and discovered the best in them.
Miss Pilkington in fifth grade stands out for me because she was an artist on the side, and she came to my birthday party. (Such things matter to ten-year-olds.) Then, Mr. Chubb in sixth grade made the whole curriculum exciting. The schooll I was attending had 4th-5th-6th grades in one room, so you always ended up eavesdropping. And often the grades worked together. We had hands-on activities for history studies, we did group work, putting on puppet shows and plays to act out events. It was really terrific! After that, I would have to say Albert Scott at Diablo Valley College in Concord, CA was the most influential: He taught American History and Political Science. He was demanding, having us read a ton of books to compare and contrast events and interpretations and write reports analysing if the books were slanted. He really made us think, and in his last class, he riveted us by saying, "Democracy depends on you … and you … and you …," pointing his finger at each of us. He was the reason I majored in History when I transfered to UC Berkeley.
ReplyDeleteOh, my goodness. Think of all the citizens who take their civic responsibilities seriously because of Prof. Scott. That's a legacy.
DeleteI love this Julia! One day soon I hope you'll post that poem:). I remember Mrs. Covey from 5th grade. In high school, Mr. Dorhout was our fabulous music teacher, and Mr. Schneider, in drama. I didn't have a lot of talent, but they took every student seriously and we adored them!
ReplyDeleteWe had a "Mr. D" - Mr. DiAngelo - for high school choral music, Lucy. He was strict and devoted to the art and made us all want to sing like professionals.
DeleteLinda Roberts -- My very young sixth grade teacher who asked me why I sat indoors during recess when everyone else went out to romp.
ReplyDeleteLet's just say, I was miserable once a month, but I flipped that situation to dig into the classroom encyclopedias to research settings for my Man from UNCLE stories. I told her outright about the latter, but alluded to the former because We Did Not Talk About Those Things. She commiserated about that "sekrit" one shared by women and was stoked to know about the other.
She left to get married around the Christmas break, and the exuberant coach's wife who replaced her caught "Hermione" here woolgathering. That teacher called me out in front of the class for "plotting stories" in an uncalled for snide tone. Let's just say, I wasn't not listening AND causing a ruckus, like some of my other classmates. She got what she wanted from them and me, I suppose, by shocking all of us. But not without cost.
I've since processed that incident by writing a time-travel story that I'm going to have to self-pub if it sees the light of day.
I know we're supposed to be talking about the teachers who had positive impact but Coach's Wife provided a stark contrast with Miss Roberts, who forty years later tracked me down by snail mail to send me a lovely letter askig how my writing was going.
Hurrah for Mrs. Roberts! It really often boils down to ONE good teacher who believes and encourages to set a person on the road to being a writer/actor/musician/artist.
DeleteLike your teacher pinning up your poem on the teacher’s board, I had a similar experience. It was a very boring teacher in a very boring class in high school, where we had to write a paragraph essay about something dramatic or maybe weather – a very non inspirational topic. After they were graded the teacher read some of them aloud. He droned. He mumbled. He droned some more. He read several, and I thought in my head that mine was sort-of good, but he didn’t read mine. Then he said – and there is one more left..
ReplyDeleteIt was about a thunderstorm, wherein I described in vivid detail the beginning with the sprinkling of the rain, and the build up of the sound and fury, all the while describing my reaction to the weather while increasing the drama. The end of it went something like this – ‘there was a static pause, and then a great horrendous flash of light and noise…
I was dead…’
It was spell binding, and not expected. He actually expressed enthusiasm while reading it. I wish I had kept the essay, but I never forgot it.
What a wonderful, memory, Margo! This shows the power of a well-written tale, if it could transform your boring teacher into a riveting storyteller!
DeleteThat still sounds like good writing to this adult, Margo!
DeleteMiss Nolan in 5th grade who introduced us to A WRINKLE IN TIME and THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA.
ReplyDeleteOh, clever Miss Nolan. Those books have made more of us enthusiastic readers than any others, I suspect.
DeleteThis is a fun trip down memory lane. I loved Mrs. Girard, my third grade teacher. She read Charlotte's Web out loud to us. My eighth grade teacher, Mrs. Beal, was fair, firm and fun and sent me off to high school with confidence after a disastrous 7th grade year. If kids broke the rules, she had us write sentences on the chalk board, but her sentences were extremely long and used phrases like "my dilatory conduct". In high school, there was Mrs. Bousquet, my English teacher senior year. She really worked to enhance our vocabulary and we had some really interesting discussions. Mr. Scheele taught chemistry and he really made it fun. He called me "too much" because a jillion is an extremely large number. The year I was in his class was the year Pioneer Square was redesigned in downtown Portland and they were selling bricks in the new square to members of the community. Mr. Scheele decided to sell bricks in a corner of his classroom that we could decorate however we wanted. I can't remember what he did with the money, but it was a fun idea.
ReplyDeleteYou've had a whole Bouquet (pub intended) of terrific teachers, Gillian.
DeleteI have mentioned my 7th-9th grade English teacher Mrs. Shields before. She supported my love of reading mysteries and encouraged/taught me to write book reviews. I still use her format when reviewing books. My 7th-9th grade geography teacher Mr. Preece further confirmed my love of exploring the world via maps and by studying various cultures. I knew that I wanted to be a geographer when I was 10, and he was a great mentor.
ReplyDeleteWow, Grace, I'm not sure if they have geography teachers anymore! The Maine Millennial's sixth grade teacher, Sister Carol, was very dedicated to geography, though, and between her and Ross drilling with flashcards at home, the MM went to our state National Geographic Society bee as a finalist.
DeleteJULIA: I didn't know that US geography programs were in decline. Canada's system has some British roots, so geography is still a mandatory subject in high school and several universities offer geography/ environmental studies programs like the one I took at the UofWaterloo.
DeleteTeachers can be more influential than parents, despite their relatively brief appearance in our lives.
ReplyDeleteMrs. Adams in seventh grade, who also conducted the choir. She invited the girls in her class who sang funerals and weddings on Saturdays to her home afterwards--she just lived a block from church/school--for a grownup luncheon. We all wanted to be our best around her.
When I was getting my advanced life insurance designations I had an early Monday class with a local pension attorney. He taught me as much about how to teach as he did about pension vehicles. Despite the early hour his packed class of adults were riveted to his lectures about what could have been a terminally boring topic. Best teacher of my life.
Two of my daughters--14 years apart--had the same brilliant English teacher whose AP classes prepared them both for college and grad school. I didn't realize it was the same woman until parent/teacher night because she'd gotten married.
The other daughter's Biology professor at The Citadel was amazing, and the reason she has a PhD in Microbiology. In her sophomore year he invited her to be his research assistant while studying penguins in the Falklands over Christmas break. Her paper the next year was the reason she was later offered a full ride graduate study at University of Miami. Paul Nolan, who just passed away too soon a couple months ago, encouraged her to the point that he traveled to Miami to be there when she defended her dissertation. And until his death he was a cherished part of not just our family, but so many others.
What a wonderful collection of teachers, Karen. And I agree - especially for kids who have troubled home lives or indifferent parents, one good, caring teacher is often the adult that gets them through.
DeleteAl Marshall (teacher) "took a poem of mine and tacked it up in the teachers' lounge..."
ReplyDeleteJulie - curious about the poem!
I remember my high school home economics teacher (Mrs. Hanks). She was a sturdy big woman with a pleasant smile. We put aside any doubts we couldn't make something because she was never judgemental and she just focused on teaching how to do something and then helping each of us. With no experience we knitted sweaters, sewed full length coats with lining and handmade button holes. I learned that focusing in on taking each project step by step and not worrying about how it will turn out helped in other aspects of life.
Everyone's favorite high school teacher was the Hollywood handsome, dashing, charming and young Mr. Louis Villar. He wore aviator glasses had a killer smile. He was our Spanish teacher and just arrived in our Navy island town from Cuba. He later left the school after marrying a high school cheerleader. He was asked to translate for drugs purchased by a group of my high school classmates (note: I was not living in the town anymore and in no way involved) in Tijuana. After this group of star athletes and popular kids became the #1 crime organization by the local FBI they had successful drug smuggling operations for almost 10 years before they were caught and arrested.
Holy cow, Anon, I want to read a whole novel about the dashing Mr. Villar and the high school drug lords!
DeleteHi Julia, yes it was quite a story. The Coronado Company run by high school kids and their Spanish teacher ran the most successful drug smuggling operation of its day.
DeleteMike Wallace did a great story about them on 60 Minutes. If anyone is interested here is the two links (Part 1 and Part II).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K18hJj-Xja8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnqW4GPT4ZQ
Sorry you'll need to copy and past the links into google. I don't know why it's not highlighted to click on automatically.
DeleteIt's not you, Anon, it's Blogger. It doesn't accept links and has limited html ability in the comments.
DeleteThanks Julia! Was confused but know why now!
DeleteI had many wonderful teachers, but one that stands out in my mind is Jan Kindy. She was the head of the English department at my high school and I took a few classes from her. She was supportive and encouraging in every way. My favorite memory, though, was when, in either my Junior or Senior year, I took an English class from a newly hired teacher. (A coach, naturally.) He went to her and said he thought he had a case of plagiarism. She asked why, and he said "No high school student writes a paper like that one." Upon hearing it was me, she looked over the paper and told him that indeed, that was my writing. She had read enough of it to know. And then she had the kindness to quietly share the story with me.
ReplyDeleteI had to laugh at "a coach, naturally." Ours usually taught Health, and I had a very good one who slipped in a LOT of important info on sex. I can't see English as being a good fit. Thank heavens for Ms. Kindy.
DeleteThis is an interesting topic for me. I say this because I despised school at least from junior high onward through the end of high school. And in complete opposition to Julia's post, it was at least in part because of teachers who were gaping a-holes. And actually, I could go back to fifth grade with a list of teachers who were awful to the point of memorable.
ReplyDelete5th grade - He was just a run of the mill jerk.
6th grade - Here's a teacher who would say I didn't turn in an assignment yet not be smart enough to cover up the graded paper of mine that he threw in the trash next to his desk. I guess that would be one of my earliest mysteries solved, no?
7th grade - I had a homeroom teacher who threw me out of class 17 times across the school year for such offenses as opening a door and then the very next day I got tossed out for refusing to open the very same door! And it wasn't just me either, he set a school record for throwing kids out of class 217 times! Once, I got to school 5 minutes before school started. I was in the office by 8am. The principal called home and said, "Mrs. Roberts, I have Jay in the office." My mother said in exasperation, "He JUST GOT THERE, what could he possibly have done? That's it, clear a room I'm bringing the boxing gloves." To which the principal said, "Are you kidding? Jay would kill him."
High school was run of the mill annoying the first three years. There was nothing overtly awful until senior year. And then it went off the rails with an English teacher I didn't even have class with. She started in on me one day for having headphones on as I entered the building. As she's going off on me for that, she was breaking the rules by drinking soda in the hallway during school hours. The rule said no one could, not just students couldn't. So then I resolved to set the teacher up the following day. And it worked to perfection. She was proven to be a liar on top of her already established reputation as a witch to her male students. And yet I still got in trouble and when the Vice Principal (who I actually did respect) said I would have to serve a detention for another "offense" (which was tied to the first incident) I refused. When told I would be suspended if I didn't I said, "Fine with me, I'll go to work tomorrow and make money." The VP wasn't happy about that response and despite the fact she was told not to call my mother (I was 18 by that point), she did. My mother asked what happened, I told her and she said, "Have fun at work tomorrow." She also knew the teacher who started the crap with me as she was the ex-wife of a cop that worked with my father. I got back to school the day after suspension and got accused by the attendance officer of skipping a class the previous day. I looked at him and asked him, "Aren't you going to accuse me of the other 6 classes I "skipped" yesterday too?" He looked at me dumbfounded and said, "What do you mean?". At this point I blew up and said, "I was suspended yesterday. I missed ALL my classes, don't you FN people talk to each other?"
At this point, even though I really had no plans to continue with the educational system after high school, I was now OFFICIALLY done.
Now, you can say maybe it was me. And you wouldn't be totally wrong. But if I'm right, I'm standing up for myself and no one, not even teachers are going to get a free pass to give me crap. And believe me, if I actually did something wrong I actually did apologize to the teacher and/or serve the detention. And that was because I respected the teacher and knew I'd earned whatever punishment I got. So it wasn't that I was just a bastard who didn't want to take accountability or something. Plus when my parents found out, if I was in the wrong I'd get in trouble at home too.
In counterpoint to all that, there were teachers I liked for a variety of reasons. My first grade teacher Mrs. Pina, who came to school on Halloween dressed in a full Darth Vader outfit! As a little kid who adored Star Wars (this would've been the year or the year after the first movie came out), she hit a home run with me for that.
DeleteIn 2nd grade I started catholic school for three years. I had Miss Dale and she was nice. Of course it was weird the next year when she was suddenly Sister (I can't remember the name she had then).
4th Grade - I had Mrs. Grace and she was great! Years later, when I read that she'd passed away I was actually legitimately sad to learn the news.
9th grade - I had Mr. Jordan for English. He bore a passing resemblance to "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and had the take no nonsense attitude to go with it. I did very well in his class plus I scored points when he showed The Honeymooners in class as part of an assignment and I was the only student falling out of his desk laughing. Also, Mr. Burke for 9th grade social studies.
10th grade - I had Mrs. Ledwell for English. She was pretty cool and a good teacher I thought. Plus she liked some of my writing assignments. Once, she actually took an essay I wrote on who I admired the most and used it show her Honors students how to properly write the essay. Also, though I had to prove to her I could do it, she let me write a term paper examining the implications of the song lyrics of the heavy metal band W.A.S.P. but hey I got a great grade on it so I must've done something right.
Of course, the best teachers I ever had were my parents. And my basketball coaching mentor Tony Dias. They may not have had the degree saying "Teacher" but no amount of sheepskin could quantify what I learned from them.
Not all of the best teachers have degrees, Jay - everything I know about art, and it's a lot, came from my mother, who loved it and exposed me to the whole history of art through visiting museums and reading books.
DeleteYou do make an excellent point - teaching as a profession can also attract tin pot dictators. I've more often seen it in older women who should have been in a different profession altogether, but who came of age at a time when women were teachers, nurses or secretaries, period.
secretaries; librarians period.
DeleteSchool starts next week where I live, contrary to Julia's belief that it should start before Labor Day, which I think is just weird. For me, back then, colleges didn't start until almost the end of September.
ReplyDeleteMy second year of teaching was in NC and we had barely unpacked from our move when my neighbor told me I needed to be at the school the next day! What! It was still August. (Not sure if I ever mentioned it before but that neighbor turned out to be the the other half of the most amazing coincidence story. She was the other teacher in the home ec. department. We were like babies, she from SC and I from NY. All she had been told was that the other teacher was coming from NY; when she saw our license plates she gambled that I was the teacher! I had been told nothing about anything.)
(Here's another coincidence for you. Just now I had to go put the laundry in the dryer and when I came back my screensaver was showing my first grade class picture!)
I had some great teachers but none was truly memorable, at least not in a good way, but that's a subject for another day. The teacher I felt the fondest for was not my teacher, although she taught both my brother and my sister and then she was still there for my son and my daughter. Mrs. Gallup was known far and wide as the best Kindergarten teacher ever! People were very sad when she retired, especially me because that meant she would not have my youngest. I've wondered if the fact that she had no children of her own had anything to do with all the love and energy she put into teaching "her kids."
Some of the kids in this area have already been back in school for nearly a month. Makes it easier for working parents to find childcare, but wow.
DeleteKaren, I think we need to emulate the French. Everybody gets the entire month of August off!
DeleteJudi, I think school should start after Labor day, and when my kids were young, that was still the M.O. in our area. Now the "instruction days" requirement has pushed many schools into doing silly things - my local high school, Bonny Eagle, had classes on Thursday, but everyone had yesterday off and won't be back, of course, until Tuesday. It used to drive Ross crazy.
Delete+Sorry, Julia, if I misread your comments up top!
DeleteCalifornia schools used to start September 10th the day after admission day. They have added so many school year vacations like ski week fall and winter, two week Spring break, school starts a full month earlier, in the second week of August. Child care nightmare with all the additional school holidays. No one can vacation in August, totally ridiculous!
DeleteGordon Burstein, Abraham Lincoln High School Des Moines, Iowa, was a social studies teacher I never had but he was the debate coach who worked with our small team and took us away every weekend. (those were not my happy years - capped by being stood up to the senior prom) He also coached the chess club. He taught me to think before speaking but speak, to argue using reason, not emotion, to protest every injustice. Those have stood by me a long time. I hope I remember him longer than ____ ______, my absent date (though he may have led me down the trail to murder mysteries.
ReplyDeleteMaren, I laughed out loud at the absent date leading to murder mysteries. I think being stood up at senior prom definitely deserves a mysterious death.
DeleteJulia, Love your classic illustrations. Mr.Little, my senior year high school English teacher, still comes to mind. He was kind yet exacting and I had a major crush on him. He influenced my love and appreciation for literature and, more than any teacher, encouraged me to major in journalism in college. I headed off to the Newhouse School at Syracuse and embraced those years. Great teachers alter lives.
ReplyDeleteThey do! And Judy, I almost went to Syracuse. I got accepted in the College of Visual and Performing Arts, but it was just a little too close to home - my folks lived in Liverpool, one of the towns bordering the city. I went to Ithaca instead, a comfortable hour and twenty minutes away.
DeleteI had some good teachers but I don't know if I ever really had a favorite. aprilbluetx at yahoo dot com
ReplyDeleteThat's okay, too, April!
DeleteMrs. Hill, 6th grade "B" class (the "A" class were the 'smart' kids). She had a shelf of her own books--easy French and Spanish language primers included. I was fascinated by these--I tried so hard to figure out the rules. I wrote a play, and she produced it for the other 6th grade class, then we took it on the road to the kindergartners :-). She encouraged my interest in all things archaeology--reading projects, science projects, etc. She gave me a detention assignment for writing on my desk--to write a poem on paper. I was never in the "B" class again. My undergrad advisor--Mr. Smith--is still a mentor to this day. So many others in middle school, high school, and college. I have been very fortunate! Oh, and a special shout-out to the late, great Miss Purcell. She taught American history and English to generations of students in our community. Thanks to her and teachers like her, I made the transition to college work easily.
ReplyDeleteThat's another thing I have to thank my Miss Sutton for, Flora - when I got to Ithaca, all incoming freshman had to take a writing test. A huge percentage had to then go into a writing comp class. Not me! You can't overstate the value of good prep that readies you for college.
DeleteI had an exhaustive but great English program at my California high school. I took the English entrance exam required by the University of California and passed. I also earned three semesters of English class credits. I did not need to take any English classes as an undergraduate but was able to complete two majors Business Finance and Computer Science.
DeleteLove this post, Julia. Teachers shape their students in so many ways - good and bad. My fave was by far my media professor in college - Professor Huwiler. He just believed I could do anything and I’d never had that validation before. I’ve never forgotten him or his confidence in me.
ReplyDeleteJust having an adult you respect value you and what you have to say/write is such a boost, isn't it, Jenn?
DeleteMy favorite teacher of all time was in fifth grade, Mrs Zeigfinger. She was so much fun. And totally different from your "typical" 1950s teachers. Her hair was strawberry blonde (not her natural color), she wore hoop earrings, colorful clothes, and sandals. She was in her thirties or early forties and was a hoot! Our class had so much fun and learned a lot. I really enjoyed teachers who read to us in elementary school. Hello Secret Garden! Like Jay I also had some real duds here and there. The most infamous was she-who-will-not-be-named; I do not wish to invoke her spirit. She actually would scream at students who displeased her. I wonder if she was bi-polar or had multiple personalities. She could be sweet as pie and then turn on a dime and shriek at you. Parents complained to the principal who would send the vice principal (a really nice man) to investigate and catch her in the act. She evidently had a sixth sense and knew when he was in the vicinity as she was never caught. I've always wondered how many serial killers were produced in her class.
ReplyDeletePat, your Mrs. Zeigfinger sounds a lot like everyone's favorite science teacher, Ms. Frizzle!
ReplyDeleteI always loved the teachers who made it fun for my kids in the early grades. My philosophy as a parent was that I didn't care how much they learned, I wanted them to be excited about learning and happy to go to school every day.
Julia, that's exactly it--teachers who fill endless hours in class and after with work, work, work make learning a drudgery--especially in the early grades.
DeleteMrs Ogden who saw that I was not working’up to my potential’ and encouraged me in many ways. She introduced me to the Dramatics Society where I found a whole new world in the high school theater group, met many new people who became friends and I became involved in the back stage workings of the plays that were produced. They were done at a very high standard and even included the flying equipment and an original Nana costume for a production of Peter Pan.
ReplyDeleteSeveral members went on to become professional actors.
The whole experience fostered a lifelong interest in the theater.
Miss Tiews, an English teacher, who was known for her high standards. She required an essay every week and, for you authors, she insisted on a word count to be listed at the end and commented
if we went over it. She was a stickler for punctuation even including the period at the end of the sentence. She did have a lighter side. She did a very dramatic reading of the three witches in Macbeth. She also encouraged me when, out of desperation of coming up with no subject for my weekly essay, I attempted to write something amusing. On it she wrote I detect a note of humor, don’t stifle it.
I was very fortunate in having a lot of teachers with very high standards for learning many subjects including English grammar, geography, both US and world wide. I still remember all the names and capitals of the provinces of Canada, the countries of Central and South America and the United States, both states and capitals.
One of my best teachers was not one by profession. He was my brother who had the highest standard for my learning a myriad of things. He introduced me to literature he thought I should read, corrected my grammar when necessary and in general was always challenging me to learn.
He was one of my greatest influences and I miss him.
Mrs Thomas, my high school Latin and French teacher, loved and respected her students as if we were her own children. I was heartbroken when I heard that she died.
ReplyDeleteDebRo
Helen Everett, the gym teacher, who offered love and advice when I didn't feel the need for advice or the belief that I was lovable.
ReplyDeleteMrs. Drumm, third grade, who had an entire unit on airplanes, the physics of flying, the names of airplane parts, and each child built a model airplane out of balsa wood, which also involved using a skinny-bladed saw.
ReplyDeleteMr. Fisher, high school journalism teacher and newspaper staff adviser, who saw my passion for writing and made me Cub editor, which meant I was in charge of the last edition of my first year in high school).
And Mrs. Carven, my older son's third grade teacher. The kid was (and is) brilliant and introverted, and in second grade the teacher gave them worksheets and expected them to sit in their chairs. He kept getting distracted and falling off. I almost lost him to school but knew homes-schooling wouldn't work for the two of us. Mrs. Carven, in her last year of teaching, addressed the kids as "Mr. Hutchison-Maxwell" and "Ms. Wegrzyn." She turned off the overhead lights, put on classical music, and sat cross legged on a desk as they worked. She brought Allan back into the fold of organized learning.
What good and interesting memories you're bringing back to me with this back-to-school question, Julia! I had some boring and bad teachers, but no bullies, thank God. But I also had a LOT of good ones from first grade on. My favorite, surprisingly enough, was my ninth-grade algebra teacher--surprising because I found algebra very difficult and discouraging. This teacher, Mrs. Armstrong, was very strict and could lose her temper and yell at the class, but she was so lively, energetic, and good at explaining things that she could make anything interesting. A couple of times, she took a class for a colleague who had to miss school, and she made English and history more exciting than the official teachers. I realized then that being a good teacher doesn't have as much to do with the subject as it has to do with the personality of the teacher.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I'm here at Bouchercon in San Diego, meeting quite a few JR Writers and readers--such a treat!
ReplyDeleteTop teacher was Mrs. George 5th grade. I think everyone adored her. She had the whole class to her house for a picnic after school got out for the summer. I seemed to always like my English teachers including crotchety old Mrs. Christianson in 6th grade. She recited poetry with a passion. She read my essays to the class. I liked most of my math teachers too, especially Mr. Baker in high school. He didn’t put up with any crap from students.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I could not stand was Mrs.Tarwater’s perfume. In my mind it was just that —tar water.
I had some teachers I really didn’t like too, but I learned to just make the best of it. No real inspiring moments but no scarring ones either.
ReplyDeleteMy kindergarten teacher was so good that I decided to be a teacher, and most of the teachers after were equally wonderful. Mrs. Smith in 8th grade helped me feel like a real writer, and had us act out scenes in JULIUS CAESAR, helping me out of my shy shell. She was also the district's publicity person, writing newspaper articles. I was lucky to have so many good teachers, including Howard Schwartz at UMSL, storyteller, writer, collector of folklore, and possible the best I've ever seen at drawing out reluctant, insecure scholars. I used some of his ways with my own students.
-- Storyteller Mary
Wonderful topic, Julia! No WiFi in San Diego so here I am commenting several days late!
ReplyDeleteFirst teacher was my Mom who taught me to read the comics in the newspaper.
When I lost my hearing before my second birthday, I had a wonderful teacher in Pat Cowan Elwood. She graduated from one of the Seven Sisters colleges. I started school after my second birthday. Pat was originally trained to teach Deaf children in an Oral setting. The turning point in her life was when she travelled to India with her husband who was getting his PhD in ? Public Health ? He was fluent in Sign Language while she did not know sign language. Travelling by train in India, they had a Deaf porter. Pat noticed that her husband could communicate with the Deaf porter in Sign Language, while she could Not communicate with the Deaf porter. She decided to learn Sign Language when they returned to the USA. She was my first teacher at Knolls in Tara Hills. Very fortunate to have Pat because I was able to continue talking with my Voice while learning Sign Language. My parents learned Sign Language. In order for a Deaf child to be accepted into the Knolls program, the Deaf child's parents or guardians were REQUIRED to learn Sign Language and be involved (volunteer at the school, etc). My Mom remembers my coming home speaking in a Bostonian accent.
My Catholic school teacher Mrs. Beard looked like the actress from That Girl. She taught me how to read and write. She Never allowed Bullying in the classroom.
There was a wonderful teacher at the public school, Miss Priscilla, from the Phillippines and we did morning stretches before class. I could use the FM system in class and I could "hear" some of the words she said when she covered her mouth during speech practice. She also was fluent in Sign Language,
So many wonderful teachers over the years, My 6th grade teacher, Leslie Ladd, graduated from a Seven Sisters college too. Originally trained to teach Deaf children in a Oral Setting, by the time she was my teacher, she was fluent in Sign Language. Leslie also introduced me to mystery novels and my grandfather sent me Nancy Drew mysteries every month that year. When I got my Cochlear Implant, Leslie and her husband were there on my Activiation Day. I stay in touch with Pat, Priscilla and Leslie.
Mainstreamed full time in high school and all of my teachers were wonderful.
Wow! Another long essay here. I was blessed to have so many wonderful teachers, despite a few rotten apples. And I forgot the names of these few rotten apples.
Diana
I had SO many wonderful teachers I couldn't decide what I wanted to be when I grew up, so I earned a Masters degree in mathematics and music and write for the love of it. I am still in contact with some of those teacher today.
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