Team KTD's Favorite Teachers

Submitted by KTD on May 25, 2012 - 11:25am

APPRECIATING TEACHERS THIS week got all of us at Kids These Days! remembering our own favorite educators. So we're calling them out here, thanks teach!

Who was your favorite teacher? Tell us in the comments below...

Shana Sheehy KTD Host	Ms. Cagle, Glacier Valley Elementary, Juneau, AK: I remember two wonderful moments with Ms. Cagle. First, I had chapped lips and she let me use her lipstick one afternoon since there was no chapstick to be found. The other was when we were almost at the end of the book "Old Yeller." She was reading it to us, chapter by chapter. That day we all decided to stay in instead of go out to recess so we could finish the story. It was so sad we were all bawling at the end, even Craig McIntosh (my third grade love) and Ms. Cagle herself. I'll never for get those moments or her!
Jessica Cochran KTD Contributor	Mrs. Cox, Hardy Middle School, Washington DC: Mrs. Cox was the librarian at my middle school and taught a 7th and 8th grade literature class. She really fostered my love of reading, and is the first person I remember really talking about books with -- what feelings they brought out, seeing things from different points of view, what worked and didn't work in books. I ended up spending a lot of time before school and at recess with Mrs. Cox.
Patrick Walgren KTD Blogger	Mr. Lechtenberger, Service High School, Anchorage, AK: Mr. Lechtenberger looked like Santa Clause, but his demeanor was the exact opposite. He notoriously made kids cry over his unyielding teaching philosophy (hard work and nothing else). I liked this "tough love" style and his dry sense of humor. Mr. Lechtenberger taught me physics, and also how to succeed.
Erin Kirkland KTD Blogger	Ms. Vanderwood, St. Louise Catholic School, Bellevue, WA: Her 7th/8th English classes were legendary. Throwing dictionaries, making soft speakers stand on their desks to be heard, and demanding perfect writing, every time, Ms. Vanderwood was brash, loud; 4 feet, 5 inches of pure creative writing genius. From within the boundaries of our comfortable Catholic school setting, she somehow created a generation of expressive, insightful writers who entered high school miles ahead of their peers. It was she who taught me to write outside my comfort zone and never, ever, compromise my ability for the sake of a good grade. She may not have been my "favorite" teacher, but she certainly was one of two who greatly influenced my future as a writer.
Brandy Steinhilber KTD Blogger	Ms. Phillips, Southside Elementary, Shelbyville, KY: Mrs. Phillips had a round sweet face ringed by bouncy round curls, and she was always smiling. She radiated kindness. My first three years of elementary school were awful, but when my mother transferred me to Southside, all the trauma of my prior years was erased by the gentle, loving manner in which Mrs. Phillips conducted herself. She read to us. My previous teachers had threatened us with paddles to keep us in line. Mrs. Phillips told us that if we got our work done in time, there would be more time for reading. Mrs. Phillips didn't need discipline, she had our love.
Sarah Gonzales KTD Producer	Prof. Alfred Arteaga, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA: Alfred was a college professor who taught writing, literature and Chicano history. From the first class I had with him I knew that he would teach me valuable lessons - more than history, more than writing - he became my mentor, encouraging me towards making hard decisions without being too hard on myself as a writer, a woman and a human being. He passed away a few years ago, but the way he taught me to look at the world still lives on.

Team KTD's Favorite Teachers

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