Dear Teachers,
I’ve started this letter so many times over the past week. I keep getting lost in the middle. It’s not because I can’t figure out what to say to you, but rather because there’s so much I want to say to you.
I mean…this has been a year. Right?
When schools closed abruptly last March, we were all caught off guard. Sure there were rumors of COVID shutdowns, but none of us had ever experienced anything like this before. To borrow a word that has gotten thrown around a lot this year, it was wholly unprecedented.
But you did what you do best. You pivoted and planned and stayed up late to figure out how to best make distance learning work for your students.
Thank you.
You gave yourself a crash course in Google Classroom, Zoom, or some other learning management system. You redesigned lessons and researched how to connect with kids online. And you put together hundred-page packets that were somehow meant to substitute for an entire quarter of instruction.
You dropped materials off, read to kids over the phone, and conferenced in driveways, at a safe six-foot distance. You went above and beyond for your students, because that’s what teachers do.
You are a rockstar.
At the time, we believed these accommodations would be temporary and we would soon be back to teaching and learning as normal.
But here we are, a year later, and some of you have not yet been back in the classroom! Schools that have reopened have had to deal with temporary shutdowns and quarantining students and staff. Not to mention masks, PPE, and social distancing.
Other schools have hybrid schedules and many of you have taken on the nearly impossible task of teaching kids at home and kids in the classroom simultaneously.
And you have made the best of it.
You are amazing, inspiring, and truly dedicated to your profession and your students.
And now it’s testing season.
Ugh. There is always that push for more.
It’s not enough that you and your students learned to navigate school in this new normal. It’s not enough that you provided love, support, guidance, and the best education possible given the circumstances. Or provided a safe place in the midst of chaos. It’s not enough that you taught essential skills in reading, writing, and resilience.
Now you must also prepare for and administer standardized testing, as if this were any other year.
As you stare down the start of another testing season, you may be feeling anxious or afraid. Or even angry.
Testing just seems extra hard and so inappropriate this year.
The media has been telling us that kids are “behind”—whatever that means—for months. It’s likely that many students may not reach the goals established for a normal year.
But you know what? That’s okay!
Because there is nothing normal about this school year. I know that. You know that. Parents know that. Heck, even the kids know that. But, apparently, those in power haven’t gotten the message.
We are living through a pandemic. And to expect normalcy is absurd.
I know that despite the challenges, each and every one of your students is ahead of where they were in September. Each and every one has grown and learned and developed new skills, both academic and personal.
Goodness, if we could measure all the things our students have learned this past year—things like resiliency and time management and technology skills and independence and organization and creativity—they would be off the charts! If only those things counted.
Well, I’ve got good news for you! All of those things do count! If you want them to.
Success is 100% personal. You can define success however you want. And I’m pretty sure that even in a normal year, you wouldn’t define success—yours or your students—by test scores.
Standardized Testing Does Not Measure Success
So please don’t let those tests define your success this year.
You know your students. You know how they came to you at the beginning of the year. And you know the challenges they faced trying to learn during a pandemic.
You know how far they have come—academically, emotionally, socially. You’ve watched them blossom before your eyes. And you created the environment and the experiences to make that happen.
You helped your students not only survive but thrive this year.
Your students’ scores do not define you as a teacher. Or a person.
Regardless of how your students score on their tests this spring, one thing is clear:
You, my friend, are a success.
Think for a minute of all you accomplished this year. Of everything you learned. New teaching strategies. Connecting with kids online. Communicating with and engaging parents. Mastering Google Classroom. And so much, much more.
I am in awe of you.
And I am honored that you have invited me to be part of your success story. Thank you for trusting me, for trusting my resources, and for being part of the Not So Wimpy Teacher family. We are always here for you, cheering you on!
Have a Not So Wimpy Day,
P.S. If you are looking for some fun activities to make test prep a little bit easier and more fun, check out this post about fun reading test prep activities or this one with fun ideas for math review.
Thank you so much for this heart warming words. If only administration and TEA could understand them and understand teachers this world would function so much better and our children would be smarter and more compassionate. God bless you.
Jamie, YOU are a rockstar, as well! Thank you for your words of encouragement and most especially for all the work you have done on curriculum to help us stay afloat. After teaching for 39 years I am retiring at the end of this year! I want you to know that your NSWT site has been a lifesaver many times. I hope you continue to help those education for many years to come!
Thank you! As a teacher ROCKSTAR for 39 years you have made an impact on so many young people! Enjoy your retirement!
Jamie, Thank you so much for such kind encouraging words. I really appreciated the line in your letter, “don’t let those tests define your success this year.” Yes, it has been a hard year, but as you stated, we have all learned so much more than academics! Thank you for your continued support and products to help us keep doing what we do best!
Celebrate all that you have accomplished–which is so much more than test scores!
I needed to hear this today. I am so glad that you used the word “absurd” to describe testing this year. I am tired of euphemisms, so your directness is a breath of fresh air. This year is so hard, and we are getting no support. I just want it to be over. My district is even trying to start our school year earlier than ever next year, and they just added after school meetings twice a month until the end of this year. We are already starting our school day earlier to squeeze in 2 cohorts per day. We are back with full classes next week, but they are keeping the earlier start time. Nothing is ever enough. Thanks again for recognizing how hard this is. Take care!
Thank you so very much. You have no idea how much I needed to hear this today. Your resources are some of my students’ favorite assignments. We just finished our Informational Reports and my students who hated writing finished with pride in their work. Your lessons gave them skills to become authors and they no longer dread writing (it’s still not a favorite, but we’ll get there!)
I was feeling beat down by emails today and reading this has lifted me.
Thank you for all you do to support us!
This is exactly why I truly do love everything about you Jamie! You and your team have worked incredibly hard to provide myself and so many other teachers, with incredible resources for our kiddos. Writing was tough this year, but boy did my students look forward to your videos and using the amazing graphic organizers! You have been the constant voice of encouragement and your letter was simply perfect and so needed. Thank you for the support and the loving words, this absolutely made my day. Sending love to all my teacher friends out there. Hang in there, we can do this!