As I sit here in my first set of education courses, about to enter my first classroom setting, I find myself wondering how and why I ended up here – well the answer is you two.
To my two favorite teachers,
Thank you. Thank you for being you and helping me figure out what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Although I knew I wanted to be a teacher for a while, it wasn’t until I interacted with you two that I knew I wanted to be a self-contained special education teacher. While I was never even a student on your roster, the time I spent in your classrooms made for the most insightful learning environment I have ever been in. Although I will admit I originally came into your classes as a sub par member of Council for Exceptional Children, I immediately fell in love with your students and knew I wanted to interact with them more. Luckily for me however, not only did I build relationships with those students that I otherwise may not have, I met you two: two of the most inspiring and motivating educators. The two of you showed me that each and every child, regardless of their disability has the ability to improve and achieve things that once seemed impossible – so thank you for opening my eyes. Thank you for making me realize that yes, this job is frustrating, but seeing the students succeed makes it all worth while. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to grow in your classroom in ways that I would not have been able to in any other setting. Thank you for giving me a place within school where instead of sitting and taking tests - I was able to get hands on and real life experience. That experience was easily the most important information I walked away from high school with. Thank you for letting me work closely with you and your students, and then eventually trusting me to work independently with them. The trust you provided in me, as well as the observations I made while in your classrooms, has given me the confidence to be one of the few teenagers who knows exactly what she wants to do with her life – so once again, Thank you Mrs. Higgins and Ms. Goracy - for everything.
With love and gratitude,
The future Ms. Wolfskehl
P.S – My experience would not have been nearly as wonderful if it wasn’t for the amazing Mrs. Zwerko, Ms. Shanagher, Mrs. Gaffney, Mrs. Marago, Ms. Lare, Mrs. Ozeransky, Mrs. Czemeris, Ms. Doce and Mr. Casey!
