To The Teacher Who Changed My Life,

You have changed my life and made me who I am today. Before meeting you, I hated school and had no clue what I wanted to do with my life. You changed the way I looked at schools and teachers. You helped me see the importance of going to school. You didn’t just care about the topics you taught, you cared about how your students felt in your classroom. You made a point to get to know us as a person instead of just a student. You cared about all of your students and you still do to this day. I could never thank you enough for being the best teacher I have ever had.

I met you in 7th grade, one of the hardest school years for me. While every other teacher had been making me feel like I would never succeed, you were the one to show me how smart I was. Entering your classroom, I had a 70 average in English and had no motivation to change my ways. You quickly helped me turn that 70 into a high 90. You gave me the motivation I needed to keep trying while everyone else told me to give up. It was so easy to trust you. I was always the shy and quiet girl in school. But I was able to open up and be myself in your classroom. I remember being so excited when I found out you were also moving up to the high school. Even when you weren’t my teacher, you gave me a safe place to be and a person I could open up to.

I have never witnessed someone with as much passion and love for their career like you. You made your classroom an open place for all students to speak their minds. Your room was a safe place for all students no matter what was going on. I never had as much respect for a teacher as I did, and still do, for you.

You are one of the main reasons why I decided to go into the teaching profession. I hope that one day I will be even half the teacher that you are. I want to be able to give students a safe place like you do for your students every day. I want to make sure all students have someone to talk to, just like your students do with you. I want to be the teacher that every student feels comfortable enough to come and talk to, even when I am not their teacher.

I could never thank you enough for everything you have done for me since I walked into your classroom when I was in 7th grade. Thank you for pushing me to succeed. Thank you for believing in me even when I had little to no faith in myself. Thank you for never giving up on me. Thank you for showing me how a good teacher should be. Thank you for being the best teacher you could be. And thank you for showing me the type of teacher I want to become.

You are more than just a teacher to me and all of your students, past and present. Thank you for being my counselor and psychologist when finding answers to all of my problems. Thank you for being my confidante and a shoulder to cry on. Thank you for being a librarian, showing me adventures that different storybooks bring. Thank you for being a decorator, beautifying your classrooms and making it a nice place to be. But most importantly, thank you for being my teacher and showing me what kind of teacher I want to become.

Love,

One Grateful Student