Thank you Teachers!

Next week is teacher appreciation week at our elementary school. THANK YOU to all the great teachers who teach our kids and more importantly, to those who love our kids!! I am truly grateful for great teachers because that isn't always the case. We've been blessed with a lot of great teachers for my girls - preschool and up! (I didn't say all though, but that's not what this is about).

Our PTA decorates each door with a cute thank you poster. Most of the room moms do the classroom doors or delegate it, but its not easy to get someone to volunteer for ALL the "other" staff. So, I volunteered to do a door, ok two. Our school has 2 speech teachers and Taylor has worked with both of them (one last year, one this year). I volunteered to do their doors. I chose them because I am truly grateful for them ... not just because I didn't want them to be left out.

If you know Taylor's background, you know she has really struggled with speech and she has REALLY come a long way. She started with speech therapy when she was two yrs old and not talking AT ALL. It was discovered she had not learned how to use her tongue which contributed to both the speech and eating issues and eventually the social delays as well. I am SO grateful to Kids on the Move, her preschool special ed teacher and all the speech therapists she has worked with for all they do with and for her. I'm grateful to ALL my kids' teachers (art, music, computer, classroom, etc) but these speech teachers at our elementary school really have a special place in my heart.

So ... back to their doors, I wanted to do something special, but nothing has come to mind. I just wasn't feeling the normal creativity. So, tonight, as I'm starting to get nervous about finishing the door decorations by tomorrow at 3:00, I searched online for poems to speech therapists. I found one that I liked. I tried to use that poem, but it wasn't quite right. So, I started by changing a few lines here and there, and taking a few out. Then I changed a few more and replaced some with a few of my own. In the end, I used a similar rhyming scheme and stole two or three of lines from it (no author so I can't give credit!), and ended up with this poem below.

I wanted to share it with you all because its truly what my heart says to these teachers who spend just 20-40 minutes a week with my child but who make a world of difference!! I'm sure if any of you have a child who has benefited from a great speech therapist, or if you have watched my Taylor over the last 3 years, you can understand my gratitude! I'll post pictures of the doors after I get them done. :)

Dear Teacher,

As you would know only too well,
the right words can be so hard to find,
but I've got so much gratitude in my heart,
I just had to share what's on my mind.

I’m so grateful that you teach at Eaglecrest!
It takes an amazing person to do what you do.
You have helped my child discover her voice,
Express her thoughts, and gain confidence too.

You see, I know it’s truly magnificent,
Those little miracles you perform each day.
You help my little one grow so much,
by teaching her how and what to say!

I can say “Thank you” but it just isn’t enough,
So I did my best with this poem to be so clever!
Here’s to you, speech teachers, for all you do,
I am truly grateful to you, this week and forever!

Sincerely,
A grateful parent!

Thank you Mrs. Taggart and Mrs. Nielson!!