This is a very important note to all of the leaders of parent-teacher cooperative groups.

Tuesday May 6, 2008, is national Teacher Appreciation Day. Actually the entire week surrounding this date (May 5 to May 9) is Teacher Appreciation Week. That gives us less than one month to put a plan in motion. Between today (April 8) and the May 5 Teacher Appreciation kick-off, I will post numerous ideas on the best way to honor your children’s teachers.

Today, however, I want to make the case for this commemoration to those schools that have never acknowledged their teachers in this honorific capacity.

Saying Thank You is the Right Thing To Do
The first reason is the most obvious. We should simply say thank you to our kids’ teachers in a very sincere way, because it is the right thing to do. For approximately 180 days per year, seven hours per day, this one human being is with your child. That’s over 1,200 hours per year! This is a significant time investment he or she is making in your offspring.

The teacher has to be the educator, referee, counselor, friend, parent, protector, nurse, role model, and friend, all wrapped into one tidy package. Since the average classroom has over 20 children in it (some many more than that!) the teacher has quite a daily challenge to face. Going out of our way to say thank you to him or her is the absolute least we can remember to do.

Cheer for a Strong Finish Strong
As Teacher Appreciation Day occurs in early May, the end of the school year is clearly in sight. And, as the weather improves, it gets harder to keep the students’ focus on their studies. This makes the teacher’s job all the more difficult. I would imagine that the last four or five weeks of a school year are just about the toughest they’ll endure.

A flurry of encouragement from the parents is a great boost. Like cheering supporters at the end of a marathon, the teacher will feed off of your praise, attention, offers of help, and even gifts. If there was ever a time that you could lend a hand in the classroom, this is now it. It’s been a long school year. Help your kids and their teacher finish strong.

Teaches Students The Value of Appreciation
As parents, we’re always looking for ways to teach our kids real-world lessons. These kinds of lessons are always best when we actually model the desired behavior. Therefore, I urge you to take the opportunity of Teacher Appreciation Week to show your children the ways to and the reasons for being sincerely grateful.

Show them how we are called to thank and honor those who serve us and then also how we can serve them in return. If our children see us doing this regularly and with a gracious and giving heart, they will follow suit and make that an important part of their own lives.

Conclusion
In the coming days, I’ll be writing a lot more about ways to show our kids’ teachers that we care about them and are thankful for all they do. If you would like to share any of your experiences, I would be happy to pass them along to our entire community. Thank you!