While many schools have the Wednesday right before Thanksgiving off, we do not. I mean...who needs another day off, right?
Anyway.
On this Wednesday, we have a late start AND an assembly. This leaves us with 25 minute classes. While it would be easy to assign a reading day, or attempt a full lesson, I chose to do neither of these with my sophomore English classes. Instead, they wrote grateful notes and cards to at least one teacher on campus. The direction was to write a sincere note of appreciation. I then delivered these notes to the teachers via their mailboxes in the workroom.
Upon busting out markers, colored pencils , fancy paper, and super-fun scissors (the kind that zig and zag), I also mentioned they were free to write more than one note. Many of them did. Adorable, right?
Honestly, I always tell them to write to other teachers. My goal in assigning this is not to personally receive these notes. I jokingly tell my students I already know I am their favorite, so there is no need to write to me! They laugh, of course, but I am always serious in that I would rather the kids think about teachers from last year, this year, and maybe even a coach if they play a sport.
Some of them, however, choose not to listen and write to me.
Sweethearts.
Once the kids had left for the day, I sorted through the cards to be placed in mailboxes. I stumbled across my name multiple times. As I read each note I could hear their voices and "see" their faces.
If you are one of the students who wrote a card/note to me last week -- thank you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for the kind words.