Children are the future of our world, and teachers spend more waking hours with them than their parents do. Showing appreciation to teachers lets them know they are valued and respected—you don't have to be a student or even a parent of a student to show your appreciation. Remember, teachers help shape everyone's world...including yours.

TAKE ACTION TODAY

  1. Identify a teacher you want to thank—your child's teacher, a friend or neighbor who teaches, a teacher at a local school, or a teacher of your own.
  2. Show this teacher your appreciation by.
  3. Writing a thank-you note.
  4. Bringing a gift like homemade cookies, handpicked flowers, a book on a topic that interests them, or a gift card for something you know they will like.
  5. Organizing a class Appreciation Jar. Give every student a piece of paper and have them list all the reasons why their teacher is special to them. Stuff the papers in the jar and let the teacher open one per day.
  6. Volunteering in the classroom and helping with special projects or field trips.

FACTS

  • There are 3.3 million teachers in the U.S.—2.6 million teach K-12.
  • 42% of K-12 teachers are over 50 years old.
  • Almost 50% of teachers leave the profession by their fifth year.
  • A $15 billion per year investment or a 30% raise for all teachers is necessary to make teacher compensation competitive with other professions requiring similar levels of education.
  • In 37 states, teacher salaries do not keep pace with inflation.
  • $7 billion a year is the cost of teacher turnover.
  • The single most important factor in determining student performance is the quality of his or her teachers.
Excerpted from: Every Monday Matters: 52 Ways to Make a Difference by Matthew Emerzian and Kelly Bozza. Copyright © 2008 Every Monday Matters LLC. Excerpted by permission of Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published 06/20/2010

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