The Importance of Educators Right Now

Below is the transcript of the video, but I would LOVE for you to watch it! Because of the message, this video is my favorite one I've made in a long time.

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Teaching this school year was supposed to be easier. The pandemic was supposed to be behind us. You weren’t supposed to have students out on quarantine every single week. Social distancing in the classroom was supposed to be over. There wasn’t supposed to be teacher shortages and crowded classrooms. You weren’t supposed to have to carry the weight of anxiety about Covid and all that it has done to society anymore; that was supposed to be last school year, not this one.

But it is this one, and it’s made it challenging to get excited about all the things you normally love about teaching. Especially because the normal challenges of a teacher: testing, difficult parents, evaluations, busy schedules, discipline issues, are still present. They just seem to be intensified.

This year’s been tough. There’s no need to sugarcoat it, the weight of leading young people through a pandemic is a heavy burden, and it’s a weight you’ve carried for almost 2 years now. I’m not going to try to point out a silver lining in this video, sometimes that isn’t helpful. 

But I do want to take a minute to thank my son’s second grade teacher for helping him fall in love with reading this year despite how hard it’s been. His mom and I appreciate that more than you know.

And my daughter’s kindergarten teacher for making her feel so loved in her first year of school, knowing how difficult life in and out of the classroom is for you this fall. Thank you.

And the science teachers out there, thanks for continuing to help students develop wonder about how the world works, and even though it’s hard, you’re still inspiring their curiosity.

And history teachers, thanks for continuing to teach students the stories that made us, and helping them learn from the past so they can lead a better future. We need you now more than ever.

And language arts teachers, I know it’s been challenging, but thanks for continuing to discover ways to get kids to open books, and grow in their language skills, and express their thoughts in writing. That’s still happening right now, and we need you.

And math teachers, despite all the noise about learning loss, you’re still exercising your students’ brains and giving them new challenges, and helping them solve complex problems, a skill they will use forever. Keep doing that.

And fine arts teachers, you are helping students find beauty in what can often be a bleak time. What could be more important than the work you are doing? Thank you.

And counselors, thanks for listening to kids. Custodians, thanks for working extra hard right now to keep schools clean. Librarians, thanks for pointing students to books they’ll love.

School leaders, you’re helping steer this ship through a storm, thanks for doing it with grace and patience; I can’t imagine what that’s like.

And coaches, thanks for providing fun, and structure, and movement, and hope. And front office staff, thanks for taking all phone calls and being a calming presence.

Whatever you teach, or however you serve in schools, you need to know three things: First, you are not the only one who is feeling this weight. It is a shared experience, and you are not alone in that. Two, it may not always feel like it, but the work you’re doing right now is making a difference. It is vital. You are providing stability, learning, mentorship- love to your students, and the importance of that cannot be overstated. So know this. Hold on to that fact. And three, when Thanksgiving and Christmas Break come around, you better shut off your email. Take advantage of times when you can rest and remember that this too shall pass.

Thank you for what you’re doing.

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Thanks for checking this out! I'd be honored if you shared this with any educator who you think might need to hear this message.