Teacher Appreciation Week Notes: day two
“I appreciate Mrs. Lipke for how much she wants us all to succeed; she is always there for help and support and truly gives math her all every day.”
“Mrs. Will, thank you for the limitless support you provide for all of your students. You pour in so much time and energy into ensuring our success. Every week, you plan a schedule that is both beneficial to our learning and stress-free. I have never had to study for a quiz or test because you explain every lesson so well and provide a bunch of fun tips and tricks for memorizing certain rules and equations. Your hard work to support every single student doesn’t go unnoticed. Thank you so much for everything.”
“Ms. Zilhaver, thank you so much for the love, encouragement, and enthusiasm you pour into band. You consistently try and find music that the entire band will enjoy, and you make sure that every single voice is heard. I admire your passion and your true love for the marching band. Trying to teach a collection of students how to play their instruments is hands down the most difficult thing to do virtually. Despite all the obstacles that this year has thrown in our way, I appreciate the strides you make to create the most fun and beneficial experience possible. Thank you.”
“Thank you so much, Mr. Labenz, for making the year worth my while. Even though I don’t have the highest grades in APUSH, it wasn’t as much about the numbers. I love coming to class to hear your loud singing and hilarious conversations with all of us while you make fun of our SAQs. I don’t know how you stay sane with all the extra effort you put into making us successful and happy. I appreciate you more than you know, and I’ll always think of you when I hear Ariana Grande. Truly, thank you for everything.”
“Señor Silvestre, thank you for showing such passion in teaching your students the Spanish language and culture. Your class has always been stress-free, and your smile is contagious—even when it’s behind a mask. Gracias.”
“Thank you, Mr. Garb, for putting up with our craziness while making sure we can be proud of what we’ve learned from you. I really appreciate the amount of effort you’ve put into making this chaotic year successful while the schedule kept changing and we never knew when we were going to be back in class. You somehow make math exciting rather than boring, and I hope I’ll be in your class again! Thank you for everything.”
“Gracias Señor Silvestre for always smiling no matter the day. When we all complain, you just tell us that we’re doing great and give us time to control our emotions. Your infectious smile makes my morning better, and you’ve made Spanish entertaining while helping us grow as people. I appreciate everything you’ve done. ¡Gracias por todo!”
“Thank you, Mr. Anderson, for working so hard to make sure we have everything we need to be successful. This year was crazy, we all know, but you made it easy for us to learn chemistry at times when everything else was uncertain. I can tell how much you like to watch us finally understand [your class] and joke around with you. Even though the class isn’t easy, you make my time there worth it. I appreciate everything you’ve done.”
“Thank you, Ms. Zilhaver, for always having a bright attitude and giving me a reason to be proud of myself. Music is such an important part of my life, and you are too. You know all of your students so well, and it makes band feel different than any other class. We laugh and make jokes, and you allow us to rely on each other to feel a sense of family. All your efforts to make us wonderful musicians and wonderful people do not go unnoticed. We all love you and are so glad we can stick with you throughout high school. Thank you!”
“Mr. Labenz, I’ve spent a long time trying to find the words to express the impact you’ve made on my life. I remember during freshman year, while we were filling out schedules, the only class I wasn’t sure about taking sophomore year was APUSH. Many of my friends encouraged me to take the class, but I didn’t want to put so much stress and pressure on myself. I went to talk to you on the day we were investigating classes, and you were very honest with me, talking about the workload and the amount of information that we had to cover. If it weren’t for the insisting of Mrs. Potts and other teachers, I may never have signed up. Joining your class was probably one of the best decisions I ever made. Despite the countless hours spent trying to cram in names, dates, and a variety of other facts into my mind, I’ve never been more proud of myself for succeeding in a class. You continue to push us so that we can reach our full potential, and throughout the year, I’ve continued to have such a massive amount of respect for you. I cherish every tiny conversation I get to have with you and immensely enjoy every time you sing or anytime I can make you laugh. I couldn’t imagine reading through so many terrible essays about the Cold War or reading the PQ responses for countless hours. Your hard work doesn’t go unnoticed, and I will always be grateful for you. I’ve always hated History class, except for this year. I’ve never been so intrigued by American history until now. Thank you for showing me the interest in something I found so boring in the past. Thank you for challenging me to discover how much I could learn in just one year. Thanks for everything.”
“Mr. John Anderson, thanks for everything you have done for your students this year. Chemistry is certainly not an easy subject to teach, and I appreciate your perseverance in helping each student understand the material.”
“I appreciate Mr. VonEhr so much for how he answers questions in a really effective and engaging way and for how he makes and lets his class be lots of fun. His class is always the highlight of my day!”
“I appreciate Madame Van Houten because of how much she cares about her students. She always makes sure we are comfortable with the material we are learning and offers her help in any way possible. She also cares for her students and lets us bond [uniquely] since we are stuck with each other through all of our years of French. Whether we are watching a movie, learning grammar, or performing a skit, Madame always tries to make the class fun yet still makes sure we are learning something. Thank you, Madame!”
“I appreciate Mr. Spadafore for many reasons, spanning from early morning rock investigations to his room and all the windows that welcome the sunrise, but most of all, I appreciate him for being kind. Despite my inability to finish half the work I should’ve finished for his class, he remains ready to welcome not only my late assignments but my ideas into his class. This time last year, I would have never freaked out about seeing an oxbow lake with my own eyes, but I did a few weeks ago, and that is because of him. Thank you so much for everything!”
“I appreciate Mrs. Burnaby because she is always understanding and caring. She really seems to care about all of her students, and I appreciate everything she’s done for me this year.”
“I appreciate Mrs. Will because of her positive attitude, and the inspirational quotes she hangs up in her room always brighten my mood whenever I see them. She seems to make the world a little brighter.”
“I appreciate Mr. Manders for always supporting my creative ideas and pushing me to get better every day. He always tells the best stories during our class period, and they make my day better!”
“I appreciate Mrs. Potts for her unwavering desire to help her students learn! She taught me so much my freshman year, not only about school but about life. I’ll forever be grateful for her and her teaching!”
“I appreciate Mrs. Penninga for the amazing job she is doing this year despite all of its challenges. She has truly made an impact on each and every one of her students, and she makes every day great.”
“I appreciate Mr. Scholten for always being an understanding and helpful teacher. I really enjoy the cat dissection and all his help with that!”
“I appreciate Mr. Riley for all the hard work and well-thought-out lesson plans that help us learn to the best of our ability. I really liked how he provided us with numerous projects that took us beyond the textbook and really helped us learn the material in a more interactive way.”
“I appreciate Mr. Brad Anderson because of how he pushes us to become the best students we can and always has super fun and interactive activities that help apply our learning.”
“I want to thank Mrs. Lipke for everything. My freshman year was interesting, but I found I always had a place to escape to in Mrs. Lipke’s classroom. She made math fun and easy to learn, and I actually enjoyed a math class for the first time ever.”
“I appreciate Mr. Ivory for his patience with listening to us throughout this year, especially wanting to do what is best for our mental well-being and for showing us the extent of music across the world. [He shows us] the beauty and meaning it can have to every one of us.”
“I appreciate Mr. Sultini for his care for each one of his students—hoping that we put into our work the best we can give and nothing less.”
“I thank Mrs. Lipke for inspiring us to have a good work ethic throughout this year and to take hold of our individual learning—not [to] give up when things are confusing or unknown.”
“I am grateful for Mr. Fisher for his way of teaching, allowing for insight and relating book/story/lesson ideas to not just the subject matter itself, but to the world around us as well.”
“I appreciate Ms. Chadderdon for always pushing me to be my best and to learn the content matter of the course!”