Growing up, when the bell rang for school to end, I went home, which was just down the hall to my mom’s classroom. The school was my home, and any teacher’s kid understands that.
Teachers get paid from the time the first bell rings until the last bell, but they are often there an hour before and multiple hours after, and after that, the work gets taken home with them. Do they get overtime pay? No. Do they even get paid a substantial salary for the work they do that takes care of children? No.
How are these brilliant human beings continuing to work in these conditions every day? Well, teachers have a passion for changing lives. My mom always said, “I could be teaching and helping to change the life of the future president.” She, like many other teachers, do not go into the field to become rich, they simply want to influence the children of the world in a positive way.
During spring break, I got to visit my mom at work, which I do whenever I can because somehow my life is always changed when I enter that kindergarten classroom.
The last time I had gone in there was closer to the beginning of the year, and I got to see how the kids were just now learning a million little things, but when I came in there this time, I could see just how brilliant each and every one of these kids were, and that was thanks to my mom.
During an activity, my mom would ask the five and six-year-olds questions over a math assignment, and every single student wanted to answer or try to answer the questions. I instantly thought, how in the world are these kids so ready to try and maybe even fail and then try again to answer questions?
Most college students I know never want to try and fail in a public space, but these children have no cares in the world, so I thought to ask one of these little minds, and the answer I got changed my life. “We are just learning!”
“You are just learning,”
My mom used to say that to me in moments when my anxiety took over, and I realized she says it to these little kids, and it allows them freedom from doubt. It made me realize I want to continue to tell myself that every day, I am learning, and it’s that simple, learning in class, in life, within myself, etc.
I also realized the impact of a teacher like my mom, one who wants to allow kids to have freedom from doubts that might come into an innocent mind, a teacher who recognizes that every soul and every mind is important.
Thank you to my mom and to teachers just like her who choose to impact the world in the most positive way by creating a world for children to grow up without barriers in their minds.