Great Teachers: Mr. Miller

When I was in High School, I had this teacher named Mr. Miller.  I’m guessing it was freshman or sophomore English/Literature – who knows?!?!

Mr. Miller would read to us.  Yeah, we were in high school and the guy would read to us.  Not only that, but he would read to us using different voices and inflections, as if he were acting it out.  You know, like they do in 3rd grade!

Just today, someone mentioned Poe’s “Cask of Amontillado” and the voice of Mr. Miller rang in my head, “I will not die of a cough! (insert fake cough here)”

Mr. Miller, you stepped out and took a huge risk reading like that to high school students.  However, you also TAUGHT.  You taught in a way that enabled me to remember story elements and different works well into adulthood.  Thank you, Mr. Miller.

Who was one of your great teachers and why?

Tell Me a Little Bit About Yourself

This is the question that I’m going to be intentional about asking at least 3 students this week.  And here’s why…

At the end of last week I went on a camping trip with the fifth grade class from the school where I work.  Evidently, they were short on males, so asked if I could help chaperon.  I said yes, and I didn’t mind doing it, but I wasn’t very excited about about the whole thing.  I’ve never done an “overnighter” with students, and never particularly wanted to.

However, this was such a great trip!  The students represented our school well, had fun, and learned a lot.  But for me, the most valuable aspect of this trip was getting the know the students better.  I was struck by the story of one student, in particular.  I’m not going to go into detail about the difficulties this child has faced and still faces.  Suffice it to say that there are students, possibly sitting right in front of you every day, who are in the midst of personal situation that threaten to overcome them emotionally, spiritually, and even physically.  The question is: would you even know it?

I’ve taught in some pretty tough schools throughout the years and one coping mechanism I know I’ve used to to create a certain amount of distance between myself and the students.  I’ve always maintained a good rapport with students, but I never meddled.  If a personal matter came to my attention, I dealt with it.  However, I don’t make a habit of trying to dig stuff up.  I’ve worked with some teachers who seem to have a knack for really knowing their students.  They could tell you who’s dad was in jail, who’s family used the oven to heat their house because their electric heat was turned off, etc.

This knowledge makes is harder to teach, and easier to teach.  When you know your students’ situations so well, it makes it harder not to take it home and detach yourself from the emotions that child is facing everyday.  On the other hand, knowing your students like this helps you to understand their behavior and performance in class and respond accordingly.  This does not mean lowering your expectations for students at risk.  It means helping them to succeed in spite of the circumstances that surround their life.

So, in an effort to tear down the walls a little bit, I’m simply going to ask a few students to tell me a little about themselves.  Is it possible you’ve made it this far through the school year and still don’t know your students?