Thank You Teacher!

Leaving Year 2 to head to Junior school is a huge step!

I’m starting to put together a little thank you poem for my youngest daughter’s teacher. It’s been a hell of a year for both the kids and the grown ups so I really hope I do it justice!

The image above is an excerpt from the class poem I wrote when my middle daughter left infant school back in 2018. It’s an entirely different tone to the one I’m contemplating. Through the year they were so busy with activities, excursions and shared celebrations. Plus, I felt significantly more connected to what the class had been doing because we had more physical contact with school. So this process is proving a stark clarification of the difference in experience that the class of ‘21 have had.

But then, my youngest daughter doesn’t know any better. She’s still had a great time, covered loads of topics, had experiences and hung out with her friends. So although COVID will need to be addressed in our thank you poem, I don’t want it to suffocate the joy that the class have still managed to have despite it all.

One thing I do know is that these gifts are always gratefully (sometimes tearfully) received. It’s so easy to forget the events of a year, especially for teachers whose years can be both the same (same topics, trips, events) and yet so wildly different. My goal with these poems is to celebrate those memories that distinguish our class from the next. Now, this will be a year that no one will forget. Even more reason, then, to get the words right.

Next stop, Juniors!

Pre-school still have our thank you gift poem up on the wall of the classroom!