Teacher Appreciation

 Lessons from my teachers: I'm trying to limit it to one lesson per teacher, but for some of them I just have to add more!

Nursery School, Mrs. Keyes:

If you're going to bring in a juice can, know how to open it.

Kindergarten, Mrs. Topus:

Go jump rope in the hall.

First grade and life: Anna Lea Smith:

Rats are pet-worthy.

You can't be perfect at everything.

Always observe the world around you.

We can be as loud as a lion or as soft as a lamb.

Invite everyone or don't do it at school.

You can come back and visit.

Have that second scoop of ice cream.

Solving puzzles can be a useful skill.

It's okay if you can't tie your shoes.

If you're going to have a hole in your pants, please hope you're wearing panties...especially on a field trip.

Folk songs can be gruesome...but fun.

We'll sing in the sunshine, then be on our way.

(I'm limiting myself here to lessons from first grade, but even in her 90s, Anna Lea still inspires me daily.)

Second Grade, Mrs. Aliano:

You can make an apple look better if you put lime juice on it.

Third Grade, Mrs. Schroth:

Sometimes people lie to protect a person they care about.

Fourth Grade, Miss Neifeld:

Book rhymes with nook.

Fifth Grade, Barbara Collins:

Be kind to your teacher's eyes; don't write in pink ink.

Adults make mistakes; you can be brave and polite and speak up for yourself.

Don't swing from bathroom doors...and if someone in your class does do so, expect a lecture.

It's okay to grow up; celebrate it with some eye shadow.

Laugh a lot.

Sometimes people leave you, even though they don't want to, but they can surprise you by coming back, too.

Talent Pool 2nd through 5th, and then Sixth Grade (and life): Jerry DeFina

Sometimes you have to let your wild energy out.

Geronimo!!!!

There are all sorts of great hiding places.

Yes, it's good to learn a lot, but what is most memorable is when you stretch your creative muscles.

Be curious and see where that curiosity leads.

Don't believe everything people tell you.

You can't always be the best, and you have to choose where to try your best.

There is so much to be in awe of; allow yourself time to wonder.

Project your voice! (Bellow?)

Sometimes people who love one another bicker.

Life is not fair. Don't expect it to be. But act fairly to others.

Elementary school Music, and life: Frank DeMonaco

We all have melodies in us.

You can wear many hats and live many lives.

Silly is fun.

Sometimes we can be lazy.

Follow your passions.

Explore new technologies.

Xylophones are for everyone.

Elementary School Art, Mrs. Gatley:

You can let people know if you're feeling sad.

Elementary School Mathletes, Mr. Ford:

Make a wish at 11:11.

Enjoy numbers; they are fun!

Girls have breasts and so girl trophies should have breasts. (He meant well.)

Focus when you're doing your math.

Sometimes your instinct is right; go with it.

Sometimes people wear one hat at this point in their life but other hats at other points or places. Don't define them just by what you see now.

Elementary School instrumental music, and life, Tom Wagner:

French horn players are always in demand; flutists are not.

Stick to it and it might work out.

Orient and Orientate are both words.

You can look happy but struggle with depression.

Love stories are beautiful.

The art of letter-writing is the art of friendship-making.

Elementary School gym, Mr. Muller:

Even good girls can be told to sit in the corner if they are chatty.

Elementary School Science, Mrs. Lashen:

The leaves sometimes blow to the neighbor's side of the street.

Junior High English, Ann Bohlin:

Old people take off their glasses to see.

The good old days are here and now.

Don't be a monkey; if you need to say something, say it.

Self exploration is as important as world exploration.

We all have stories inside of us.

Do not let yourself be defined by grades.

Only you can define yourself.

Poetry, Susan Miller Astor:

You can empathize with anyone or any thing.

Poetry is for your whole lifespan.

My eyes shine brightly with enthusiasm and that is special.

Junior High Social Studies, Mr. Powers:

We are more resilient than we know and more loved than we can see.

Junior High Math, Mr. Coffey:

Competition is fun and you don't need to be ashamed to be a competitive girl.

Junior High Science, Mr. Anzelone:

Free the mice! Pranks are fun!

Junior High Art, and life, Jane Rubinstein:

You are spectacular!

Nothing lasts forever.

You can do it!

Celebrate impermanence.

Try to be happy, and sometimes you will become happy.

We all have something to offer.

Middle School Social Studies, Mr. Ashley:

Teachers- even social studies teachers- can be racist bigots. Don't feel obliged to laugh at their jokes.

Middle School Math, Miss Ammerman:

Wry humor is still humor.

Middle School Science, Mr. Milne:

Some people will believe anything you tell them.

Middle School Art, Diane Veitch:

People may prey on you because you are nice, but don't let that stop you from being kind.

Strings, Barbara Schramm:

Saying "You give me agita" will make everyone laugh.

Ninth grade social studies, Mr. Formisano:

It's thrilling to look at old maps, especially when you ponder each minute detail.

Tenth grade social studies, Mr. Richards:

Seize the day.

Embrace your passions.

Be true to yourself.

Don't believe everything you are told.

Sometimes you have to throw out the formal textbook and let life be your textbook.

Nations look for enemies to define themselves. Watch the news and question it.

AP US History, Doc Comerford:

Delay gratification!

AP European History, and life, Carol McCavitt:

History is lots of stories, enjoy telling them and seeing how they connect.

Friendship matters.

Don't go into a friendship to try to change a friend.

Your identity cements at about age 25.

High School English, theater, and life: Russell Fritz

You can find kindred spirits in unexpected places.

Sometimes it is meaningful to be irreverent.

Today's enemy might be tomorrow's friend.

Friendship requires a little bit of humility.

Mischief can be meaningful.

My voice can be strident; be careful.

We can all grow.

Take younger people out for lunch.

Timing is everything.

Biology, Mrs. Hussey:

When you're miserable, find something to love and you'll be a little less miserable.

Even grown-ups can talk really fast.

Sometimes, you just need to make it LOOK like you've done a task, but you don't actually need to do it...especially if that task affects your well-being.

Chemistry, Ms. Andrelchik:

Chemistry is just math that can explode.

AP Chem, Doc Borut:

Explosives don't have a sense of humor, but people do.

Physics, Mr. Engel:

The woodwork on a teacher's desk can be fascinating.

AP English, Dr. Boring:

You can have unreliable narrators, even if the unreliable teacher denies that.

High School Math, Mrs. Garbowski:

There can be humanity within mathematics.

High School Mathletes, Doc Beaulieu:

There was still a prejudice against girls in mathematics in the 1990s.

AP BC Math, Mr. Hordlow:

Even if you can do it in your head, sometimes you have to show your work.

Spanish, and life, Rosemarie Pantin:

At some point, you have to push past your shyness and speak up.

The sixties were a wild time.

Life just gets more expensive.

Your hopes will change over time and your desire for impact will expand, too. Let it happen.

Honesty is the best policy.

Laughter is the best medicine.

If knowing a new language helps you learn something that you shouldn't know, that knowledge is yours to keep.

A good teacher makes all the difference.

French, Dr. Chanover:

Everyone has a story but we don't know everyone's story. Always keep learning.

French, and life, Ellen Solomon:

Don't tell your college interviewers that you are from Pluto.

Even smart people can struggle with depression.

It's okay to ask for help.

There are beautiful places to walk.

You don't have to be perfect at everything.

Friendship matters.

AP French Lang and AP French Lit, Mrs. McAteer:

All that glitters isn't gold. "Tu me tues, tu me fais du bien" summarizes the human condition.

10th grade English, Mr. Weinlandt:

Favoritism sucks. Grow your vocabulary.

11th grade English, Mrs. Eckhardt:

You can learn a lot of psychology through literature.

11th grade English, Mr. Costigan:

If you are going to be absent a lot, make the time meaningful when you are there.

Celestones Choir, and life, Adrienne Werring:

Sometimes a brief, unexpected encounter can change a life for the better. Be open to it.

Flute, and life, Jeredythe Arrellano:

Sometimes you have to be perfect, but that means being fully awake and fully alive.

Viola, and life, Mildred Perlow:

Music tells a story.

Piano, and life, Nana:

Everybody makes mistakes, just keep on going and wait for the applause.

Dalcroze, Mrs. Roth:

Eventually, we will all find our middle C.

Music Composition at KU, Mr. Holmberg:

Melodies have layers and are like pyramids whose foundations cannot be in the sand.

Band at KU, Colonel Gabriel:

Don't let time define your task. Let your task define your time.