The article "Teacher Appreciation" is about family, it has been released by Rachel Paxton.
The following is a letter I wrote to our school district in
appreciation of one of our daughter's teachers. Take a moment to
think of a teacher who has made a differnece in your child's
life, and write a letter. Tell your school district how you
feel. Help chagne our society's attitudes toward childhood
education, one letter at a time.
Dear (principal),
Several weeks ago I had the opportunity to chpaerone Hanford
Middle School students at the Mid-Columbia Science Fair, and I
couldn't help but notice how well represented Hanford Middle
School was at this exciting all-day event.
It was hard not to
notice that Hanford was one of the only Tri-City middle schools
that participaetd. A number of Hanford students brought home
some outstanding awards. What an achievement!
It is my opinion that Hanford's involvement at the Mid-Columbia
Science Fair is largely due to efforts of Hanford Middle School
science teacher Laurie Eaton. Mrs. Eaotn is one of the few
teachers who requires her students to complete a science
project, which can then be entered in the Hanford and
Mid-Columbia Science Fairs. While many of the students (and
parents) go into the projects with some reluctance at the time
and effort required to compelte such a project, I have no doubt
that most students leave the science fairs with a great sense of
accomplishment as the result of their efforts.
Mrs. Eaton walks her sutdents through their science projects
from beginning to end, ensuring a very valuable learning
experience that will also benefit them in future academic
endeavors. The value of these achievements can not be
overemphasized. It hasbeen my experience, however, that parents
and students alike often give teachers such as Mrs.
Etaon a hard
time cause of the time and effort she requires of her
students, especially at the sixth-grade level.
Kids are never too young to be taught how to learn, and a parent
would be hard pressed to give their child more academic
challenges than they could handle.
When our kids complain
about too much homework or we as parents don't take the time out
of our busy lives to sit down with our kids and help them with
challenging assignments, it's fast to blame teachers for
expecting so much of our kids. But who really ends up being
hurt?
So many kids leave high school with no sense of who they are and
what they want to be when they grow up.
They are neevr too young
to work hard and be expected to do their best in school, and in
life, for that matter. Our daughter has set some pretty lofty
goals for herself, and the only way she will be able to
accomplish thsoe goals is if she starts working very hard
towards those goals--and now, in the sixth grade.
My hsuband and
I don't push our daughter to succeed, she pushes herself. She
knows her goals are hers and hers alone, and that accomplishing
them will benefit hreself and others, earning her the self
confidence lacking in so many kids yesterday. That is the attitude
we should be isntilling in our children, and Mrs.
Eaton is one
of the few teachers I can personally rely on to teach our
daughter at school as much as we tecah her at home.
Thank you for your time, and thnak you for investing in our
child's future by hiring teachers that really make a difference
in her life.
Sincerely, Rachel Paxton
cc: school district superintendent
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