Three Gifts Your Teachers Actually Want for Teacher Appreciation Week 2020
Teacher Appreciation Week could not have come at a more opportune time this year (May 4-8, 2020) because, thanks to COVID-19, we’re all teachers now.
And, on behalf of educators everywhere, I want to thank you, our parent/guardian community, for everything that you have done to help bridge the gap during the shelter-in-place.
I know that it’s been a learning process. You’ve been right there alongside your children every step of the way, figuring out how to navigate math lessons, and spelling tests, and Zoom morning meetings. Aiding your child in sounding out words as they learn to read, helping them complete science experiments on the kitchen table, all the while keeping up with your own 9-5 job—you’ve been the receiver to our quarterback, and we are so glad to be on the same team with you.
While it may not be front and center, I do want to make sure that we are recognizing the hard work, dedication, time, and tenacity that is going on behind-the-scenes of your child’s distance learning protocol. Because when you pull back the emerald curtain, you’ll see the true wizards hard-at-work—teachers. Educating from afar is definitely not how the majority of educators planned on ending the school year. In fact, according to NPR.com:
Educators are now shouldering an impossible task: to replicate the functions of school for months without an actual school building. And that means millions of teachers . . . now isolated at home, having to harness technologies new and old to reach and teach every student. America's schools have never had to improvise like this.
We carry on because that is what teachers do.
It’s been amazing to have conversations and be on the receiving end of emails from my own parent community throughout the Shelter-In-Place (SIP). Parents are expressing awe as to everything that goes on, day-in and day-out, with regards to the education of their kids. One silver lining of this quarantine is that it has forced us to do what nothing else has done before: bulldoze down the proverbial classroom walls and expose what it is that teachers actually do throughout the year.
This leaves us with the perfect opportunity to recognize and thank teachers everywhere for all that they accomplish—pre- and post-COVID.
Here are three ways to extend the long arm of gratitude, even from afar:
Write a thank you note.
Simple, straightforward, but significant. I know that I miss seeing students, and their work, in person. And, I imagine that my colleagues do too.
Take a screenshot of a homemade thank you card, a drawing or picture, or perhaps, email them a letter from your kiddo (if you have a student in Fourth Grade and beyond, this is a very appropriate writing task). Seize the chance to put those author skills to work, and encourage them to narrate what they appreciate most about their teacher. Don’t let them settle for the generic (we wouldn’t in the classroom!), and be sure to have a Thesaurus handy for some extra vocabulary expansion. So often now digital communication, in the form of a quick text, is all that we have the time and patience to muster. Creating a space where your child knows that this project is a priority and deserves their undivided attention and effort is crucial.
2. Create DIY Classroom Coupon
No one went into the pandemic prepared for the road ahead. Reaching out with an offer to help would be greatly appreciated.
Many teachers left their classrooms quickly and without much time to prep for the long-term closure. Reaching out with an offer to help would be greatly appreciated. Students could assist in taking down and re-doing bulletin boards for the Fall term, rearranging classroom furniture, touching-up paint, or taking part in a deep-clean disinfection before next year’s class arrives. This would go a long way toward easing the burden teachers are carrying as they anticipate what awaits them when they are able to return to school.
3. Gift cards for meal deliveries or groceries
COVID or no COVID, a gift card for a prepared meal, especially after a hard day, is always such a welcome treat.
As teachers find themselves housebound all day, with their hours now often extending earlier and later than ever, making it out to the grocery store is challenging. So, the option to have some essentials delivered instead of worrying about finding time to make it to their grocer—well, that’s an A+ gesture of appreciation.
It doesn’t have to be anything grandiose or have a price tag attached at all—modeling for your child the random acts of kindness, appreciation, benevolence, and gratitude are life lessons that will remain with them long after the shelter-in-place has been lifted.
And, that’s the kind of silver lining that teachers everywhere live for.
Have another idea for a great Teacher Appreciation Week gift? Let me know on social media — Instagram or Facebook
