The teacher shares a funny incident where a student made her feel as if all her efforts towards the children were worthwhile.
According to statistics shared by We Are Teachers, 98% of the population believes that a good teacher is crucial for a positive outcome in life. Being a teacher is a huge responsibility, as other than parents, they have the biggest influence on children. The way they behave and treat the students shapes the beliefs and tendencies the kids will carry forward with them. u/Natylit understands this and takes her duties towards the profession very seriously. She tries to function with empathy and love so that her students follow the same ideals in their lives. All her students adore her for the love and warmth that she shows to them. The teacher felt the affection her students carry for her, in all its glory, at a recent incident. She shared all about it on Reddit.
The woman is a middle school teacher. She primarily teaches students of color and is very open with them as she tries to be a home away from home for them. All her efforts seem to have been successful, as on a visit to the after-school art club, one girl literally called her "mom!" The whole thing transpired when the girl located the teacher during the latter's visit to an art club. The girl wanted her friends to meet the teacher, whom she had been tearing their ears off talking about. Seeing the opportunity in front of her, she could not resist and got a hold of the teacher.
The girl starts by giving the teacher a giant hug, which she happily reciprocates. They warmly exchanged pleasantries and it was evident that the students were mighty impressed by the teacher. Seeing all her friends' reactions, the girl further complimented her teacher by saying, "See! I told you! Ms. X has the sweetest personality - she's like my white mom!" It caused the teacher to go into splits as the compliment was sudden. Since she works mostly with children of color, this lighthearted comment held a lot of value.
The girl added more laurels to her beloved teacher's name by saying, "This is why I love Ms. X. She's just everyone's white mom." The whole incident was "the sweetest and most ridiculous/hilarious thing" for the teacher. The takeaway that was the most satisfying for her was that the girl considered her a 'mother-like' figure. She felt elated that the emotions she invested in her students were actually taking shape. They were growing to be empathetic and loving individuals.
In her own words, "Moments like this are why I love to teach middle school." The impact she can have on students makes all the hard work worthwhile. To further spread the happiness she had received from the girl, the teacher asked the netizens to share funny incidents that made their day.
u/discordany shared how other students came through for them at lunch, "Today, it was my student's reaction to me forgetting my lunch. Was debating whether to just buy school lunch (kids get it free but staff pays) or to try to get to a restaurant off campus and back in time. Kiddos who typically give me a hard time immediately offered to smuggle me sandwiches so I didn't have to pay."
u/BigChiefJoe shares how listening to his students led to a fun-filled day for him, "We just had a 'BBQ Dad' day as part of homecoming, and several of my classes BEGGED me to dress up. I came with a bunch of dumb dad jokes ready, a ridiculous Hawaiian shirt, and sandals with socks... I had a lot of fun that day."