Last year at this time, when I wrote about Teacher Appreciation Week, we were all living under much different circumstances than we are now. Hopefully, you will have much more opportunity this year to thank your teachers for all they do with expressions of gratitude such as cards, flowers, other gifts, or even celebrations, depending on what your school allows you to do or has as a part of its traditions. Since all of you are now back in class, everyone should have the chance to show their teachers appreciation in some form, whether that entails reviving old traditions, changing them in some way to fit the present moment, or starting something new. No matter what you decide to do or are permitted to do, the most important thing to remember about making your teachers feel appreciated is that ultimately, the size and scope of what you do doesn’t matter nearly as much as the sincerity behind it. What matters most to your teachers is that instead of simply showing them appreciation, you make them feel appreciated. Show them you care, and that your appreciation for them is from the heart, so that whether large or small, your show of gratitude will make a positive difference – not just for them, but for you as well.
As I said in my post a year ago, increasing the sincerity of your appreciation for your teachers can take many forms. You can make thanking them a habit throughout the year, thank them for both their help and their time, and show your gratitude by making your actions speak louder than your words. Teachers appreciate hearing sincere words of thanks from students, especially if you look at them when you speak to them, with a smile on your face and enthusiasm in your voice. This is easier to do when you like the teacher or the class, of course, but if you make the effort to sincerely thank the teachers who challenge you, too, especially when they go out of their way to assist you, they will not only appreciate it, they will also be even more willing to work with you and help you through your challenges than they already were.
In addition to showing appreciation to your teachers this week, make sure you also remember to show appreciation to anyone who has helped you on your study skills journey over this past year, and perhaps even earlier. Now that you are back in school, and are also hopefully resuming activities, you have the chance you might not have had these past two years, or might not have realized you wanted to take earlier in your academic career, to thank teachers, staff members, coaches, activity directors, volunteer parents, and anyone else who has offered assistance or an encouraging word, or has made your school experience a positive one in any way. This is an especially important thing to consider doing for anyone you might have learned is leaving your school at the end of this year, or to do for anyone who matters to you in any way if you are the one who is leaving. Good-byes are never easy, but when they include an expression of gratitude and appreciation, they can be very meaningful. As much as teachers and other adults who have worked with you this past year will appreciate your gratitude, those who have worked with you in the past will appreciate it even more, because they will realize that you have not forgotten the difference they have made in your life.
With both teachers and other adults who have assisted you, remember that sincere expressions of gratitude and appreciation go a long way, not just for the big things, but for the little things, too. Take the time this week to really think about everything that teachers and other adults you encounter in your school day have done for you, especially in these past few years when so much of what they have done has required them to change how they do things, and has involved so many additional expectations and responsibilities that they would never even have realized could be possible before the pandemic hit. Even as your school days have more resembled what they used to be, not everything is how it once was. Just like you have, teachers, staff members, and volunteers have all had to make a lot of adjustments, and just like for you, for them, too, it has not always been easy to do. If you are aware of some of the extra steps they have had to take, not just to assist you, but also to keep you safe, and you realize that these extra steps have involved them putting in extra time to learn new ways of doing things and to implement the changes, you should also realize that they deserve even more of your gratitude and appreciation than you would have previously thought. When the pandemic at last becomes something we can reflect back on instead of live through, hopefully you will not lose sight of just how much time and effort teachers put into your education, and that will lead you to continue to show them all the respect, gratitude, and appreciation they so richly deserve.
Even though this year’s Teacher Appreciation Week may more closely resemble what you remember from the years before the pandemic, there is much you can do to show them, as well as other adults in your building, appreciation and gratitude that you may not have thought of before. Whether your school has found a way to celebrate your teachers or not, and whether they have relied on past traditions, implemented new ideas, or done a combination of the two, take this opportunity to find ways to appreciate your teachers and show you care that will mean more to them in the end than any celebration ever could. By expressing your sincere gratitude, especially when they have gone out of their way to assist you or things are particularly challenging for you, as well as by striving every day to do your best, just as they do, you will show your teachers how much you care, and the more you show them you care, the more willing they will be to help you along on your path to success.