For those of you that don't know, my mom is a teacher. She gets paid to teach kids how to read maps, write stories, solve long division problems and anything else a third grader needs to know before the fourth grade. But, she also teaches them kindness, responsibility, appropriate behavior, and really just in general how to be a functioning human being. Growing up as the daughter of a teacher there are a few things unique to me and my family that only comes with the territory of having a teacher mom....
1. Your mom has at least 25 other kids.
Yes, my mom biologically only has 2 children, my sister and me, but she has had hundreds of students that she also referred to as her "kids". Each of these kids all of have stories she can talk about just as much as she can talk about my sister and me. Even if I've never met some of her students I can still tell you all about his life because my mom is always talking about "her kids".
2. There's always that "one kid".
Every year there is always that one particularly special student my mom talks about. This kid is always doing things like running away from school, screaming at teachers, throwing temper tantrums in the hallways, and overall just making my mom's life hell for 9 months a year.
3. You're mom is always talking about adopting one of her kids.
Even though my mom always has that one terrible kid, she also has that one sweet little angel child with a rough home life. All the time my mom will tell me, "Oh, I'd just love to take so and so home with me, they're so sweet and deserve a much better life." Honestly, she's come so close to bringing me home another sibling so many times, I'm surprised that it hasn't happened yet.
4. She has the funniest dumb kid stories.
I will never stop laughing at the kid that got a nose bleed for sticking pencils up his nose to get the cotton balls out that he stuck up there the day before in art class or the girl who stuck so much Silly Putty in her belly button that she had to go to the hospital to get it removed or the girl who wrote about her sister breaking her "croach" trying to do the splits. Honestly, kids do the weirdest things.
5. Her clothes from the 90's are extra special.
Apparently teachers in the 90's loved to craft their ensembles. Homemade pins, jewelry, sweaters, vests, and dresses were the sign of a great teacher. I would kill to have my mom's complete wardrobe from the 90's because those iconic pieces should never be forgotten.
This beautiful maxi dress is her "Halloween dress" covered top to bottom in bright orange pumpkins. I'm sure she had earrings to match.
6. Education reform gets her heated.
My mom's not a super political person, but when it comes to education reform she has a whole lot to say. Ask her about standardized tests, I dare you.
7. She knows all the school gossip.
This one was specifically relevant for me because my mom teaches in my school district. Every single person I ever hung out with she asked all of her teacher friends about them. She knew everything. One time I got caught skipping class with my cousin (who's mom also teaches with my mom) because the attendance officer at my high school recognized that it wasn't my cousin's mom calling to excuse her from school by her voice. I was grounded for 2 weeks and didn't skip school without telling my mom again.
8. Teachers hold you to a higher standard.
As the daughter of a teacher I know how frustrating bad-behaving students can be, so obviously I knew how not to act in a classroom. Therefore acting out was never an option for me, unless I wanted a phone call to my mother.
9. Teachers and school employees were more likely to befriend me.
Even though I couldn't be rebellious like some of my peers, I was given a lot of free reign in high school from my teachers because many of them knew my mom and if they didn't they trusted me because I was raised by a teacher. This was super helpful when my mom taught with the wife of one of my teachers and I generally skipped at least 20 minutes of his class a day to take medicine from the nurse (who also knows my mom) and he never questioned why it took me so long.
10. She has the biggest heart for kids.
Although my mom's job can be very stressful and unrewarding she always puts the best interest of her students first. She invests countless hours into the lives of her students and ensures that she does the best she can to make sure they have the skills they need to be successful.
