As I was purchasing supplies for my classroom at one of our local teacher supply stores, I couldn’t help but get a chuckle out of all the “Superhero” supplies. You can buy notepads, bulletin board headers, borders, stickers, and a million other supplies with pictures of superheroes. I love that because the superhero theme can be used as a springboard for many lessons. Kids of all ages relate to heroes and it makes for a really fun year!
It also made me think of one of my all-time heroes, my third grade teacher, Mrs. Moore. Mrs. Moore changed my entire attitude about education from a vehicle strictly for socializing with my friends to a world in which the acquisition of knowledge was not just encouraged but expected. She had a way of making learning so relevant and fun that a person couldn’t help but become engaged. I remember working for rewards as I learned my multiplication facts and I remember learning to write in cursive. I remember her patience with me when I shared everyday in “Show and Tell” for almost a month that, “Today my mom is going to have a baby” and the smile of relief on her face the day I finally reported that my baby sister (a month overdue) really had been born! Her compassion and enthusiasm shone through in everything we did that year and she made me feel like I was the most important person in the room everyday, and yet looking back, I see now that she treated every child in the room exactly the same way. There were no differences among us….not race…not gender….not socioeconomic standing…..We were all equal, and I remember thinking that I wanted to be exactly like her.
I want to be a Mrs. Moore. I want some child to someday say, “I want to be exactly like her!” But more importantly, I want some child to feel like he or she is the most important person in the room EVERYDAY!!