Dear Parents,
I’m here to tell you, “Don’t worry.”
I will take care of your baby.
After all, he is your baby, no matter how old he really is. You’re trusting me with him for eight hours — a significant part of the day. In turn, these twenty-something kindergarteners become my family. They become part of my world for eight hours and I think about them all day, even when those hours are over.
I grow to love, defend, and encourage them like my own.
As a teacher, I’m trained to notice everything. I’m taught to assess everything from bathroom habits, to social behavior, to academic progress. I notice when your child is sad, feeling left out, or nervous about something. I notice when he’s lonely, when he’s motivated, and when he’s sleepy. I will do everything I can to make them feel loved and special.
I want you to know:
I can’t do this alone.
I need your trust and I need your support. You know your child better than I do. You know what makes him angry, sad, jealous, motivated, and joyful. YOU are the key to our classroom success. I value our communication. Tell me what works for your child, and what we can do differently. I recognize your child is a child and not just a student. Don’t be afraid to tell me how much he loves Ninja Turtles, or that he’s afraid of the dark. Don’t hesitate to share her interests, fears, and dreams.
At the same time, have faith and trust in me as an educator.
I’ve spent most of my summer planning, designing, mapping, and organizing everything for this specific group of students. As teachers, we plan for the lesson. We plan for the unexpected and adapt when necessary. We constantly collaborate with each other to find new and better ways to teach. Understand that everything I do as your child’s teacher is to make our classroom safe, comfortable, positive, and inviting. Over the years, teachers revisit a lot of “trial and error” ideas and we know what works and what doesn’t work for different groups of children. From the beginning of the year school supplies I picked out, to the way I’ve arranged seats, there’s a rhyme and a reason to it all.
We are all human, and we will all make mistakes.
You will forget the homework, supplies, and picture day. I will send home the wrong papers and forget to announce the line leader. Neither of us are perfect, but we have a common ground: We both love your child and want to see him/her be successful.
I seriously needed this. My son started kindergarten today and it killed me!! All of these little things crossed my mind. I sincerely hope his teacher has all these same feelings and thoughts and will love him like you love your students!
I pray that she will! How’s it going? I bet he loves it!
Well, you have me smiling and tearing up. My daughter starts kindergarten very soon, and I’m a high school teacher, so your words are doubly touching.
Thank you! How does she like Kindergarten?