We’re celebrating Teacher Appreciation Week this week! The National PTA established the first full week of May to honor teachers in 1984. I asked my World Book colleagues to think about what they appreciated most about teachers they have had. Here is another of their memories about favorite teachers:
- My favorite teacher was Miss Rottman from 4th grade. I enjoyed her class when I was in it, but later I also grew to appreciate her teaching style. In an era when children were being pushed from all sides to grow up quickly (as is perhaps even more the case today), Miss Rottman treated us like the children we still were. She read to us a few times per week from The Mouse and the Motorcycle or one of the sequels. There was no test, we were simply expected to listen and enjoy the story. Miss Rottman had a particular flare for teaching geography. To this day, I can remember a large number of South American and European capitals, especially those that fit well into her singsong mnemonic (Bo-ga-ta, Co-lom-bi-a/We love you!). Miss Rottman's class was the peaceful calm before the storm of middle school.
There seems to be a theme among all the memories about favorite teachers. Check back tomorrow to see if that’s true.