For Teacher

This file includes poems, quotes, humor, and album ideas for teachers to enjoy. Also see Teachers (from the parents and children's point of view), and School Days.

Teachers are expected to reach unattainable goals with inadequate tools. The miracle is that at times they accomplish this impossible task. (Haim G. Ginott)

Page Toppers

Home, Sweet Classroom!
Math Teachers Make Your Life Add Up
Math Teachers Really Count
Science Teachers Have the Right Chemistry!
Teach from the Heart!
Teacher's Aide: A Welcome Addition!
Teachers are Angels in Training.
Teachers are in a Class of Their Own
Teachers are Special People
Teachers Do the "Write" Thing
Teachers Have Class
Teachers Like You, are Precious and Few
Teachers Make the Grade!
Teachers Rule
Teaching is a Work of Heart
This is What a Great Teacher Looks Like:
To Teach a Child is to Touch the Future
To teach is to Learn Twice.
To Teach is to Touch the Future

Quotes

The art of teaching is the art of assisting in discovery.
Behind every successful student is an exhausted teacher!
Blessed are the teachers, for they open minds, touch hearts and share the future.
Children are a great deal more apt to follow your lead than the way you point.
Children love to learn, but hate to be taught.
Discover wildlife: be a teacher!
Example isn't another way to teach, it is the only way to teach. (Albert Einstein)
For every person wishing to teach there are thirty not wanting to be taught.
A great teacher loves teaching others to love learning.
He who can, does. He who cannot, teaches.
He who dares to teach must never cease to learn.
History Teachers are our link with the past!
I am not a teacher, but an awakener. (Robert Frost)
I cannot teach anybody anything, I can only make them think. (Socrates)
I heard someone say kids are different these days. I disagree. Kids are the same. What’s changed is a society that lowered expectations, lack of discipline, and acceptance of disrespect. If you give kids boundaries, expectations, limits, rewards, and consequences they will rise to the challenge and exceed your expectations every time.
I touch the future. I teach.
If you can count your blessings, thank a teacher!
If you can read this, thank a teacher!
If you have knowledge, let others light their candle by it. (Margaret Fuller)
If you want to see the poor remain poor, generation after generation, just keep the standards low in their schools and make excuses for their academic shortcomings and personal behavior. But please don't congratulate yourself on your compassion. (Thomas Sowell)
If your students know your political affiliation you have failed as a teacher. Teachers are there to help students think for themselves not think like you.
It's sad but true...teachers have homework, too!
Leading a child to learning's treasures,
gives a teacher untold pleasures.
Let there be a half-hour of story-time at the end of the day in elementary schools. Make this half hour they along for, that the don’t want to be over. Let the children go home dreaming of the story, reliving it and wondering how it ends. (Michael Morpurgo)
A million computers can't replace one outstanding teacher.
The object of teaching a child is to enable him to get along without his teacher. (Elbert Hubbard)
One good teacher outweighs a ton of books. (Chinese Proverb)
One of the most important things a teacher can do is to send the pupil home in the afternoon liking himself just a little better than when he came in that morning. (Ernest Melby)
Only the educated are free. (Epictetus)
Preschool teachers enjoy the little things in life!
Real learning begins with one good teacher.
Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
A special teacher is remembered forever!
Summer vacation is the time when parents realize that teachers are grossly underpaid.
A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops. (Henry Brooks Adams)
A teacher takes a hand, opens a mind, and touches a heart.
Teachers change the world one child at a time.
Teachers don't impact for a year, but for a lifetime.
Teachers help students blossom.
Teachers help us to learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.
Teachers make the little things count.
Teachers plant seeds of knowledge that will grow forever.
A teacher's purpose is not to create students in his own image, but to develop students who can create their own image.
A teacher's task it so take a lot of live wires and make sure they are well-grounded.
Teachers that love to teach, create kids that love to learn.
Teachers work in classy places.
Three good reasons to be a teacher: June, July and August!
Tell me and I'll forget. Show me and I may not remember. Involve me and I'll understand. (Native American proverb)
Time spent teaching is never lost.
To learn is a blessing. To teach, and do it well, is a gift.
To teach is to learn again.
To teach is to touch the future.
To waken interest and kindle enthusiasm is the sure way to teach easily and successfully. (Tyron Edwards)
A truly special teacher is very wise,
she sees tomorrow in every child's eyes!
We teach what we live.
What a teacher writes on the blackboard of life can never be erased!
When I hear the term 'critical race theory' I say what's critical to know is that human beings share 99.5 percent of our DNA. That’s what our students should hear from pre-school on. (Alveda King)
When all else fails, ask a teacher!
The whole art of teaching is only the art of awakening the natural curiosity of young minds for the purpose of satisfying it afterwards. (Anatole France)
A wise teacher makes learning fun.
A wise teacher teaches by example.
You can't scare me--I'm a teacher!

The ABC's of Teaching

(compiled by Bill and Cheryl MacLeod, and Denny Davis)

A apple, art, arithmetic, alphabet, achievement tests, addition, algebra, ability, adjectives, adverbs, activities, appreciation
B books, bulletin boards, band, book reports, bus, blackboard, board members, birthday party
C children, crayons, chalk, classrooms, colors, consonants, computers, creative, career day, cafeteria duty, communication, conferences, conjunctions, counting, crafts, counselor
D desks, discipline, division, decorations, decisions, demonstrations, discussion, documentation, divisor, dedicated
E English, experiments, eager, eraser, effort, excited, extra-curricular, easel, education, emergency drill, encouragement, enrollment, exceptional
F field trips, fractions, fun, field day, feedback, facts, first day, fundraisers, future
G grades, glue, geography, globe, geometry, graduation, goals, grammar, gym, games, gifts, graduation, great kids, great teacher
H holidays, history, handwriting, homeroom, home economics, health, hall pass, handprints, helper, hugs
I instruction, imagination, inquisitive, intelligent, individual, interesting, important, ink
J journalism, junior high, judgment, just, job chart, June at last!
K knowledge, kickball, kindergarten, kids, kindness
L learning, lesson plans, lunch, lockers, library, loudspeaker, lab, laminating machine, language, letters, leader, listening, teacher's lounge
M math, music, microscope, multiplication, meetings, metric system, make-up test, manners, mascot, memories, mid-terms, Monday
N notable, notes, neat, nature, numbers, notebook, nouns, nap time, names
O objectives, overhead projector, observant, odds and ends, open house, obedience, office, outstanding
P parents, parties, programs, plays, P.E., playground, patience, pencils, pens papers, progress reports, principal, physics, prepositions, pronouns, painting, penmanship, perfect, pop quiz, presentations, printing, projects, pupils
Q quizzes, quality, quality time, quiet time, Quiet, please!, query, questions, quotient
R reading, report cards, reports, recess, ruler, room mother, resources, respect
S science, social studies, spelling, sports, students, subtraction, skills, Spanish, social skills, spelling bee, subjects, seminars, safety patrols, school pride, sharing, show and tell, staff, substitute, sum
T teacher, typing, tests, term papers, teacher's aide, teacher appreciation, terrific teacher, thinking, trying
U understanding, unique, uh-oh!, uncovering talents, unsurpassed, uppercase
V valuable, vowels, visual aids, verbs, very smart, videos, volunteers
W wisdom, words, writing, work days, walking, water fountain, welcome, wonder, whispers
X eXtra special, eXcellent, eXciting, eXperiences, eXtraordinary
Y yearbook, youth, yelling, yes ma'am, yippee it's Friday!, youth
Z zany, zealous, zoo trip, zest for teaching, zero, zillion reasons why I like to teach

Include the names of students, special projects, field trips, programs, etc.

What Really Matters

One hundred years from now, it will not matter
What kind of car I drove or what kind of clothes I wore.
All that will matter is that I made a difference
In the life of a child!

Angels Among Us

(adapted by Pam in TX)

Teachers and Angels
help us spread our wings and fly,
urge us to take risks and catch us if we stumble,
see the smallest and simplest of things as a reason to celebrate.
A Teacher's and an Angel's work is never done.

You May Be an Elementary School Teacher If...

(author unknown)

you ask guests if they have remembered their scarves and mittens as they leave your home.
you move your dinner partner's glass away from the edge of the table.
you ask if anyone needs to go to the bathroom as you enter a theater with a group of friends.
you hand a tissue to anyone who sneezes.
you refer to happy hour as "snack time".
you declare "no cuts" when a shopper squeezes ahead of you in a checkout line.
you say "I like the way you did that" to the mechanic who repairs your car.
you ask "Are you sure you did your best?" to the mechanic who fails to repair your car to your satisfaction.
you sing the "Alphabet Song" to yourself as you look up a number in the phone book.
you say everything twice. I mean, you repeat everything.
you fold your spouse's fingers over the coins as you hand him/her the money at a tollbooth.
you ask a quiet person at a party if he has something to share with the group.

If you answered yes to four or more, it's in your soul--you are hooked on teaching. And if you're not a teacher, you missed your calling.
If you answered yes to eight or more, well, maybe it's too much in your soul--you should probably begin thinking about retirement.
If you answered yes to all twelve, forget it--you'll always be a teacher, retired or not!

Real Teachers...

(author unknown)

buy Excedrin and Advil in bulk.
will eat anything left in the teacher's lounge.
grade papers in the car, during commercials, in faculty meetings, in the bathroom, and at the end of nine weeks have even been seen grading in church.
know that sixth graders get hormones from Santa at Christmas.
cheer when they hear that April 1st does not fall on a school day.
drive older cars owned by credit unions.
can't walk past a crowd of kids without straightening up the line.
never sit down without first checking the seat of the chair.
have disjointed necks from writing on boards without turning around.
are written up in medical journals for the size and elasticity of their bladders.
wear glasses from trying to read the fine print in the teacher's manuals.
have been timed gulping down lunch in 2 minutes 18 seconds.
can predict exactly which parents show up at open house.
understand the importance of making sure every kid gets a Valentine.
never teach the conjugations of 'lie' and 'lay' to eighth graders.
know it is better to seek forgiveness than to ask for permission.
can teach anatomy to high school students and not hear the giggles.
know that the best end of semester lesson plans come from Blockbuster.
know the shortest distance and length of travel time to the front office.
can 'sense' gum.
know that the first class disruption they see is probably the second one that occurred.
have their best conferences in the parking lot.
have never heard an original excuse.
know that secretaries and custodians really run the school.
know that rules do not apply to them.
give themselves away in public because of the marker smudges all over their hands.
know that dogs are carnivores and not "homework paperavores."
know that happy hour does indeed begin on Friday afternoons.
do not take 'no' for an answer unless it is written in a complete sentence.
know the value of a good education and are appalled upon seeing their paychecks.
hear the heartbeats of crisis; always have time to listen; and know they teach students, not subjects.

Partners

(author unknown)

I dreamed I stood in a studio,
And watched two sculptors there.
The clay they used was a child's mind,
And they fashioned it with care.

One was a teacher; the tools used,
Were books and music and art.
One, a parent with guiding hands,
A gentle and loving heart.

Day after day the teacher toiled,
With a touch both deft and skilled.
The parent labored side by side,
And all the values filled.

And when at last their task was done,
They looked at what they'd wrought.
The beautiful shape of the precious child,
Could neither be sold nor bought.

And each agreed it would have failed,
If one had worked alone.
For behind the parent stood the school,
And behind the teacher, home.

       2 teach is
     + 2 touch lives
     ---------------
       4 ever

T-truth
E-Encouragement
A-Assurance
C-Care
H-Heart
E-Effort
R-Respect

It takes a special person
to be a great teacher.

On Being a Teacher

(Emma Brown)

A careful teacher I want to be
A little girl follows me
I do not dare to go astray
For fear she'll go the selfsame way

I cannot escape her eyes;
Whatever she sees me do, she tries;
Like me she says she's going to be
The little girl who follows me.

She thinks that I am good and fine
Believes in every word of mine;
The base in me she must not see
The little girl who follow me.

I must remember as I go
Through summer's sun and winter's snow,
I am building, for the years that be,
For that little girl who follow me.

Tomorrow

(author unknown)

I saw tomorrow marching by
on little children's feet
Within their forms and faces
read her prophecy complete.

I saw tomorrow look at me
from little children's eyes
And thought
how carefully we'd teach
If we were truly wise.

Great Teachers

(author unknown)

Truthful
Enthusiastic
Assuring
Caring
Helpful
Encouraging
Respectful
Sensitive

Teachers

(William Arthur Ward)

The mediocre teacher tells.
The good teacher explains.
The superior teacher demonstrates.
The great teacher inspires.

What's Really Important

(author unknown)

No written word nor spoken plea
Can teach our youth what they should be.
Nor all the books on all the shelves,
It's what the teachers are themselves.

Poems for the First and Last Pages of a Teacher's Album

(author unknown)

I will not yell in class.
I will not throw things.
I will not get mad.
I will be good
Because I'm the teacher.

No more students
No more tests
I finally have
Some time to rest.

The Automated Phone System at School

(author unknown)

Hello! You have reached the school's automated phone system. To assist you in connecting to the correct staff member, please listen to all the options before making a selection:

To lie about why your child is absent - Press 1
To make excuses for why your child did not do his work - Press 2
To complain about what we do - Press 3
To cuss out staff members - Press 4
To ask why you didn't get information that was already in your newsletter and several flyers mailed to you - Press 5
If you want us to raise your child - Press 6
If you want to reach out and touch, slap or hit someone - Press 7
To request another teacher for the third time this year - Press 8
To complain about bus transportation - Press 9
To complain about school lunches - Press 0
If you realize this is the real world and your child must be responsible and accountable for his/her own behavior and school work, and that it's not the teachers fault for your child's lack of effort, hang up and have a nice day!

How Requiring Masks Might Work in Elementary School

(This was written during the pandemic in 2020 by an unknown author.)

Please don’t snap Billy's mask in his face.
Your mask is not a necklace, bracelet, or any other form of jewelry.
You should not be using your mask as a slingshot. Please put it back on your face.
Please do not chew on your mask.
Your mask should be on your face, not on the back of your head.
I’m sorry your mask is wet, but that's what happens when you lick the inside of it.
I’m sorry you sneezed. Here's a tissue. Wipe out the snot as well as you can.
No, you may not blow your nose in your mask.
And you put it back on your face after you dropped it?
I’m sorry you broke the elastic on your mask by seeing how far the band would stretch. Now you'll have to hold the mask on your face ... or use this duct tape.
Please take the mask off your eyes and watch where you're walking. I don’t care if you have X-ray vision.
Please take the mask off of your pencil and stop twirling it.
I know the mask fits over your pants like a knee pad, but please take it off of your leg and put it on your face.
What do you mean you tried to eat your lunch through your mask?
Please don't share your mask or trade masks. I don’t care if you like Ingrid's mask better than yours.
We're not comparing our masks to other kids' masks… everyone’s mask is unique and special.
You're not a pirate, please take your mask off your eye.
Try to get the gum off as much as you can.
Please don't use your mask to pick your nose.
No, your mask doesn't make it hard to get your work done.
Your Mom will need to get you a new mask since you chewed a hole in that one.
Why is there a shoe print on your mask?
No, you cannot eat the snow through your mask.
Who's making that noise?
I’m sorry your ponytail is stuck, that’s what happens when you see how many times you can wrap it around your mask.
I’m sorry your breath stinks in your mask, maybe we should all try to brush better.
Please take those cookies out of your mask. You are not a chipmunk.