Each year I had sent out letters to parents at the end of the school year. Copied in below was one of them.
To
2nd Grade Parents of Mr. Coleman’s Class,
As
we come to the close of an amazing year of growth, achievement, and thrilling
learning I am compelled to write a few words to all the parents who made
possible this fantastic journey. During
the reminiscing and review of the photographs I took during the year, I was
struck primarily with acute disappointment; it seemed no matter how many
hundreds of moments I captured I could never accurately represent all the
excitement and big breakthrough moments that happened daily in our
classroom. The kids exceeded established
expectations of what 2nd graders should and could do in terms of critical
thinking, maturity, study habits, perspective, self-control, and wisdom. The support and input from the parents has
been the foundation for this exponential climb.
Everyday I tried to push each student and myself to make lessons and
activities unique and memorable. The
atmosphere we created together became something other teachers, students, and parents
talked about, and we thrived on being a special class others wished to be a
part of. The students earned privileges and
undertook adventures others openly yearned for.
In
many ways I am not a good teacher when judged by fellow teachers and the tiered
education system. I do not want my
students to have the same opportunities and experiences as their peers. I want a 2nd grade year that is
superior and impossible to replicate or emulate. In the philosophical underpinnings of education
there rages debates over the merits of being a “friend” with students or being
a “teacher.” I think of every one of my
students as my son or daughter, and as such I am uninterested in seeing them
become merely competent, obedient, or reach some consumer oriented pinnacle
where they are celebrated for making “informed choices” in their purchasing and
consuming patterns (look where those orientations have taken the country!). With all honesty and sincerity, I want your
child to be better than all the others, and I want to be the best teacher he or she will ever have. I saw everyday with your
child as an artistic performance, and my stories, my humor, my hard sell on
education, my authentic relationship, and ever-rising standards were meant to
see just how far we could go.
And
far we did go. Our effort to do more
than the bare minimum was astonishing: our writing abilities were better than 3rd
and 4th graders I have taught at other schools, our empathy to each
other and our family was astonishing. I
hear positive parent feedback and feel the support, but I wonder if parents
really know the depth and breadth of the scholarly disposition many students
developed this year. Students asking
thoughtful questions, complimenting each other on new ideas, actual spontaneous
applauding when a friend gets a tough new concept, offering to help, or
outright defending each other if someone was unfairly reprimanded. I told parents at the start of the year I
would undoubtedly make mistakes with each and every child. I made hundreds of mistakes and took great
pains to point them out to the students, for humility, and for a model of
self-correction and revision. I
admonished them, “we all have our struggles, I do, you do – that is what we are
here to work on. This is the place to work on those struggles.” They completely understood what I was saying;
self-analysis and change that many adults would fear facing.
I
know parents spend long hours doing the hard work to build strong students with
positive feelings about school. I am
very aware that I am a relatively small nine-month period in the education of
your child and that before my class you have taught your children for those
formative years and that after my class you will continue being the primary and
most influential teacher for decades to come (yes, decades). I have appreciated the many parents who
volunteer for field trips, class parties, special events, and who show up daily
to help with whatever reading workshop activity we are exploring. I respect parents that spend the time to
write me notes, call me, talk with me personally, or send in gifts to show they
understand the effort I put into my students.
The Teacher Appreciation Week this year was one of the most heartwarming
and generous; in lieu of flowers (that die L) I was awash in Diet Dr.
Pepper, peanut butter cups, and real food every day. The notes and gifts from students were so
numerous I felt that I could never thank everyone. I would be completely unable to have the
successes, and I would not be able to meet the inevitable struggles of
teaching, if it were not for the parents who are right there with me, involved
in the nurturing and growth of children.
Daily. Weekly. Constantly.
The
reality is that during the school year I spend more time with your children
than mine, and they made the exchange worth it.
When I look at the pictures I want for my sons to have so many of the
qualities I see the kids in my class exhibit: kindness, intelligence, and determination. There is no comparison - these are the best kids – but word such truth carefully among friends with kids the same
age. It is a shock to see what your
children have done with this year.
Thank
you for sharing this chapter of your child’s life adventure.
Mr. Coleman
