Comments (67)

1. My favorite teacher taught advanced algebra, trig and precalc at Starmont High School in Iowa: Ms. Schmidt. She just retired, so how fitting to post tribute to her here. Recent conversations with other Starmontians have revealed a similar experience. She was so good, we all thought we were good at math (but later classes told us otherwise).

   She was demanding, NEVER allowed calculator use unless it was absolutely necessary, and cared so much that I think she almost gave herself several strokes. Before school, after school, whatever a student needed. And she was really good at pointing out, for instance, that 2X3= 6, not 5.

   posted by Rebecca on 6-2-2009 at 11:13 am

2. My favorite teacher was my 6th to 8th grade history teacher, Mrs. Garcia. She was about 6 ft tall and her attitude fit her stature. Everyone was terrified of her. Perhaps that is why we always listened, but I like to think she truly engaged us on a deeper level. She was the first person to open reality to us…both good and bad from the texts in our bland history books. I eventually got my degree in history and although I am not employeed in the field, I still feel passionate about history. I like to think she was the first person to start that fire. On a side note, her son married my next neighbor’s daughter. Small world!

   posted by marty on 6-2-2009 at 11:25 am

3. I love this topic!

   My favorite teacher would have to be Janet Tower. She taught English and Journalism at the junior and high schools I attended in Coloma, Michigan. Mrs. Tower was such a wonderfully supportive person that I often look for her online. I’ve found her through 2008, but lost her after that. (Does that make me a stalker)???

   Mrs. Tower opened my eyes to not only English, but to kindness and positive reinforcement. She was the type of teacher to send letters home to parents when their child excelled. She expected more out of me than I thought I was capable of…but she was right. I think about her often and the impact she has had on my life.

   Mrs. Tower, if you’re out there, I just want to say, “Well done! Thank you!”

   posted by Kristin on 6-2-2009 at 11:31 am

4. Mr. Kotter!!

   posted by Dave Tsunami on 6-2-2009 at 11:58 am

5. My favorite teacher was also an English teacher. His name is Mr. Ed Yoschak, and he was one of the most inspiring people I’ve ever met. He was always a mystery to us, because no one knew about his past. He disappeared the year before I had him as a teacher–and, when he returned my eighth grade year, he had a scraggly, unkempt beard and he weighed at least fifteen pounds less than he did the year before. He didn’t lose any of his dynamicism, though. He’d do jumping jacks and scream and bound across desks in order to get the idea of a plot or setting across to us.

   He was certainly a mystery. I miss him–he always gave me great, college-worthy feedback on my poetry (in eighth grade!), commented with hilarious jokes on my essays, and gave me the constructive words and criticisms that I needed to become a better writer. We always did interesting class activities (if anyone is familiar with the book Johnny Tremain, we actually once held the Johnny Tremain Olympics in which we all taped our hands together and attempted to put glasses on and pick up pennies. All in the name of education, right? Ha.) I’ll never forget him.

   I owe him my career interests, anyway. Like Ransom’s Mrs. Janoff, he gave me the confidence to want to become a writer.

   posted by gillian on 6-2-2009 at 12:03 pm

6. I am exceeding lucky in that I’ve had some wonderful teachers along the way. I can probably still name all my teachers from kindergarden all the way through HS if I had to.

   I can’t just go with one, but I will par the list down tremendously:

   Mrs. Williams: 3rd Grade Teacher. One tough cookie. The troublemakers feared her. She always wore shoes that matched her handbag. She read us books aloud once a week and I still remember them (Flight of the Doves, Don’t Take Teddy, Prince & The Pauper, Lion, Witch & The Wardrobe). To this day I remember how she “turned the lightbulb” on for me when it came to fractions. I just didn’t get it. And finally she drew it out for me and suddenly I did. Gladys Williams was a true teacher.

   In high school I had AP English for 2 years with 2 very different, yet equally wonderful teachers: Mrs. Fran Young and Mr. Ken Luks. Mrs. Young made us read more than I ever did (even in college). I read more literature in my junior year. She took her essay writing seriously and everything was to the point. Mr. Luks focused on less literature but definitely more taking apart. He wanted essays to go on for pages and pages. You could never give him enough. I think my love of writing stems from both of them.

   posted by Beth on 6-2-2009 at 12:04 pm

7. My favorite teacher was my 6th grade English teacher Ms. Muriel Sokol. befiore she became a teacher.. she was a Broadway gypsy.. and she taught us all about theater and acting.. once a week.. she take time off from the fundementals and have us act things out.. to improv… the best and brightest in her classes got the chance to become a small improv troupe. I was in that troupe.. she made me feel like I could do anything, and my love for theater and writing has never waned since. I know she singled me out (she thought the best of me.. and at that time I needed it… 6th grade can be a VERY tough time in a very small girl’s life). She always thought I’d go far.. but I didn’t pursue an acting career..but I do write though.

   posted by Mindy on 6-2-2009 at 12:09 pm

8. I was the kind of student who was fascinated by teachers, so I would almost always get along with them, if only to learn a little bit about them. I had several high school teachers that I still talk about and talk to today, but the teacher that had the most impact on me probably didn’t come until this year in college, and unfortunately, she’s retiring.

   Dr. Peterson, first and foremost, helped me hone my writing skills. I thought I was a pretty good writer, but once I took her classes, I got a lot better and writing and researching thanks to her help and inspriation. We share the same opinions and ideas and last month I went on a small class trip to Icleand with her where our little group bonded and got along perfectly.

   posted by Nicole on 6-2-2009 at 12:32 pm

9. Without a doubt, Ms. Sara Merrill of Hopkinton High in MA. Imagine having Bette Midler as your French teacher for three out of the four years of high school; that’s what class was like with Madame. She taught us about French culture beyond Muzi videos, and she started AP French at my high school, even though we only had six students in the class, so that we could realize our full potential and grasp of the language. She’s definitely the reason I minored in it in college and why I still love it today. I’ve lost touch with her (I think she moved to Ohio) but if by some strange coincidence someone knows her, I would love her email address!

   posted by Jessica on 6-2-2009 at 12:40 pm

10. One of my favorite teachers was my 9th grade English teacher. Believe it or not, his name was Rod Stewart. He had 80′s permed hair, wore his shirts unbuttoned practically to his navel (chest hair everywhere!), and he would strut up and down in front of the class in his fancy cowboy boots. That was how he got his nickname, “Strut”. Scary appearance aside, he was an excellent teacher. So much so, the underachieving girl who sat next to me actually checked out a book on witchcraft to try and put a curse on him.

    However, he taught me about things like symbolism and how to look at literature from more than a literal perspective. He was also the first teacher to sit me down outside of class and ask what the heck I was doing in a regular English class when I clearly needed to be in an AP class. He really inspired me to do more than “just enough” in all my classes.

    posted by Anthony on 6-2-2009 at 12:44 pm

11. Mr. Sund at Creascenta Valley High School.

    Although it’s cliche, he was basically Mr. Keating from Dead Poets Society. He inspired us, treated us like equals, and urged a carpe diem existence. In his class, I was me.

    posted by NateJ on 6-2-2009 at 12:57 pm

12. By far, Mrs. Guppy (yes, Guppy…how cool is that??) She taught my high school Latin classes with a passion that was unmatched by anyone I have ever seen since. She lived, breathed and loved Latin, and everything about it. Imagine getting classrooms full of teenagers to get excited about a “dead” language (and boy did she have some choice words about that phrase!). My class was full of nerds, jocks, preps, and kids whose parents made them take it…and we all loved every minute of it!

    Thank you Mrs. Guppy :)

    posted by Katie on 6-2-2009 at 1:01 pm

13. mr. peters, algebra 2. i struggled and struggled with math and although i tried my damnedest, i failed. mr. peters passed me with a D. although he couldn’t get algebra through my thick skull, i learned something invaluable that i use daily with my own students: patience. he’s gone now, but his example guides me daily.

    posted by Shelly on 6-2-2009 at 1:15 pm

14. Mr. Ken Cox, who taught me Chemistry, Physics, and Computer Programming (on the Apple IIe). He taught me that it was OK to be smart, he introduced me to a “summer camp” where I met most of my bestest friends, and he told jokes that were sometimes naughty but always funny. Here’s to you, Ken Cox.

    posted by Neil on 6-2-2009 at 1:33 pm

15. I had two:

    Mr. Davis was my 11th grade English teacher. I majored in English, and he’s still without a doubt the single best English teacher I’ve ever had. I learned more from him on poetry (assonance, consonance, internal rhyme) than anyone else-I still to this day recognize some of that stuff sometimes. Plus he used Simon and Garfunkel to teach, and what’s not awesome about that? He had very high expectations of his students, and taught with passion. He was nuts, though. When Robert Downey Jr was nominated for his role in Tropic Thunder, my best friend’s reaction was “He got nominated for doing an impression of Mr. Davis!” He had a sense of humor, though-he hung a note from my best friend in his office that said “You’re the teacher I hate the least.”

    Then there was Mr. Nee, my 12th grade calc teacher. Hilarious. He’d crack on students all the time, but was always there when you needed help, in and out of class. He made math interesting, and as someone who generally hates the subject, that says something (that and the fact that I took AP Calc BC specifically because he taught it).

    I had plenty of awesome teachers, but those two stick out the most.

    posted by Kate on 6-2-2009 at 1:37 pm

16. Most of the teachers I had were middling to terrible, but I had three who were exceptional:
    1. Mrs. Jernigan, 1st grade: She was barely five feet tall, but she loved kids and loved learning. Every month had a specific topic, and she went all out on decorating her classroom. For rainforest month, she built a room-size papier-mache rainforest and played jungle sounds during reading time. She remembers all her students; I ran into her during college, and she remembered me and my little brother.
    2. Mr. Hallacy, junior high: He taught history, social studies, and a money management class that I still refer to. His test bonus questions were trivia from A Christmas Story. He was the first teacher to catch on to how miserable I was in my small farming community school and warned my mom during a parent-teacher conference that I wouldn’t be happy until college. He was 100% right.
    3. Mrs. Naylor, 12th grade English, debate, and forensics: This woman worked tirelessly for her students. Her comments on papers (and we wrote a ton) were always insightful. College English was a breeze because of her. She also coached debate and forensics, working to make us think not only about the competition but about the world at large. She was the best teacher I had in high school, hands down.

    posted by janeeyre316 on 6-2-2009 at 1:57 pm

17. Miss Rosemary LaPrise, my ninth grade English teacher. Everyone else seemed to hate and fear her, but I enjoyed her class and learned a lot from her. Even though other teachers had long since abandoned having students diagram sentences using the old-fashioned tree-style graph, Miss LaPrise made us do that regularly. She also had us write stories/essays every week, and made us read the classics, like “Pride and Prejudice” and “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” instead of the more youthful, “hip” books by S.E. Hinton and Paul Zindel. The rumor always was that Miss LaPrise was, by virtue of her strictness and very conservative manner of dress, a former nun. Some 20 years after I’d graduated, I attended a trivia convention. One of the women in attendance turned out to be Miss LaPrise’s youngest sister! She laughed at my recollections, and said that the rest of the family often joked about “Rosemary shoule become a nun.” Miss LaPrise’s mother had died when she was a teen, and she basically had to raise her six younger siblings, which made her mature beyond her years (and overly serious, according to younger sis, the Wild Child of the family).

    posted by Kara Kovalchik on 6-2-2009 at 2:00 pm

18. I am so going to use “Are you listening to me? I’m being fascinating!” next semester when I’m student teaching. LOVE IT!!!

    posted by Sarah on 6-2-2009 at 2:02 pm

19. Part of me was looking for my name here, and part of me knows that this topic needs to be revisited in ten years for it to occur.

    My mom used to tease me that ALL my teachers were my favorite, and she’d probably be correct. But I think that two deserve mention here, based partially on their untimely deaths and their influence on my teaching career.

    Mr. Paxson was my fourth and fifth grade English Teacher. He was the type of guy that you’d want as a grandfather: firm but kind, witty and serious. It was in his room that we would always get a joke of the day, and sometimes it was the ever-continuing Shaggy Dog joke, which I never really got. It was the F that I got on a vocab test of his that really solidified the relationship, and made me realize that every subject was important and needed to be studied. He died in 1993 of lung cancer, just after I had graduated from eighth grade.

    Ms. Guengerich (or Miss G as we called her) was my on-and-off math teacher for five years, from fourth to eighth grade. I now teach math, and a lot of her quirkiness was my inspiration for that decision. She’d put on costumes to drive home a point about geometry (As Pythagoras in a toga) or algebra (the mythical mathematical superhero FOILman) and always taught topics with enthusiasm and love. She died in 2003, my first year of teaching, due to heart complications.

    And since I seem to be talking about death, my recaptcha: toxin arrives.

    posted by Patrick J. on 6-2-2009 at 2:37 pm

20. Obama is my favorite teacher. Until him, I never knew there were 57 states in the US and that Austrian was a language.

    posted by Hurricane on 6-2-2009 at 3:03 pm

21. my fav teacher was my college bio professor, dr cusic. She was hard, no doubt to that, but she was fair. I will have to say that she taught me how to really study.
    Her test were very hard and she was very much against cheating. My fav quote from her was:
    ” Look up for inspiration, down in desperation, but never to the side for information”

    posted by Jennifer on 6-2-2009 at 3:06 pm

22. My Favorite Teacher: Mrs. Marie Maguire
    Cedar Grove, NJ

    Mrs. Maguire was my eighth grade teacher 40 odd years ago. Typical eighth graders are a flighty lot with hormones kicking in, voices cracking and puny boys kids suddenly shooting up like cornstalks in July. We were all so busy with the business of becoming teenagers we were hardpressed to fit in anything academic. Mrs. Maguire was having none of that. She recognized our distractions and, somehow, found a way to reel us in. She brought us Algebra, composition and made sure we really understood what a thesis statement was before we rushed off to become the lowly freshmen at the local High School.

    Once we made it to the BIG school she managed to follow us there becoming a Guidance Counselor for those of us lucky enough to get assigned to her watch. This is where she made a huge impact in my life. I went to her as a frightened, pregnant 17 year old about to marry her boyfriend. I was prepared to quit high school and becomne yet another statistic in the annals of girls-gone-wrong suffering that fate so many had before me. Ready to slink away with the shame of my actions. Mrs. Maguire convinced me to stay in school, verified that there was no actual law that said a married student could not continue her education and went to bat with the schools governing body to make sure I would not get railroaded out. When my pregnancy became too advanced for me to be comfortable in those awful student chairs she arranged for me to finish my classes at home with my current instructors coming to my home after regular classes had ended. This was an amazing feat in 1969. This was so long before the Baby-Daddy scenario that has become an everyday occurance that I am blown away by the effort it must have taken. All this to keep one kid in school. I graduated in June and gave birth in July.

    Years later as a divorced mother of three (did anyone see that coming?) I was able to go back to school and now have a successful career. This is because Marie Maguire saw a young girl and her potential. She let me know that she cared about me as a student but, more importantly, she cared about me as a human being. Today Mrs. Maguire is still involved in education and is an advisor to the Alumni Committee for my Alma Mater. She is an amazing educator and woman

    posted by JaneM on 6-2-2009 at 3:21 pm

23. This topic warms my heart, and should be a more frequent one.

    I have had many favorite teachers, from Mrs. Badzinski at E.P. Rock Elementary School in Hudson, WI, to Mrs. Jackson and Ms. Stenger (English teachers at Woodbury High School in Woodbury, MN) to Professors Larry Shapiro and Nancy Rose Marshall at UW-Madison.

    My father is also an elementary school teacher, and has been for almost 40 years; he is the source of my lifelong love of learning. I live in the same area as he used to teach, and I can’t count the number of people who run into me and say, “You’re Mr. K’s daughter?” He was my favorite teacher!”

    These are the teachers that make learning entertaining and fun, and make you want to work that much harder for it. These are the people who help us mold ourselves into productive, happy adults. And more often than not, they are underpaid and underthanked.

    Kudos to ALL teachers.

    posted by Kristin on 6-2-2009 at 4:02 pm

24. My favorite teacher was Ms. Ryan @ Bentley Jr. High School in Burton, Michigan. She was a very inspiring teacher and friend, and I will never forget how she made me feel about learning, but how she made me feel about myself. :)

    posted by Mike on 6-2-2009 at 4:16 pm

25. My favorite teacher was Mr. Smith. He was my 8th grade choir teacher and later became my 10 and 11 grade choir teacher, at Franfurt American Middle and High Schools in Frankfurt, Germany. He made class fun. He took no crap from anyone (students or teachers!) and expected excellence.

    I ended up graduating from a different school my senior year (the result of being a military kid), yet, he was nice enough to drive my best friend to my graduation to see me walk.

    He has since passed on. Every time I see a conductor, I think of him.

    recaptcha: mourner more

    RE: Hurricane – as much as you were trying to be funny, Austrian is a language…..

    posted by Michelle on 6-2-2009 at 4:33 pm

26. Yes – I spelled Frankfurt wrong….I’m getting old…

    posted by Michelle on 6-2-2009 at 4:39 pm

27. My favourite teacher is my Literature and Romanian teacher, Mr. Lazarescu, who still teaches at Saint Sava National College, in Buhcarest, Romania. He kind of knows it all and he used to tell us all these amazing facts about…well, everything, cause he knew it all, and he would listen to all of us mumbling and sometimes talking nonsense and would encourage us all to speak and develop our own way of writing and expressing our ideas…..Although sometimes we were considering his class boring (we were teenagers, after all), everything he told us over the years turned out to be very useful and helped us enlarge our horizons……Thats why we all thank him!

    posted by flo on 6-2-2009 at 4:48 pm

28. My favorite teacher was my sixth grade science teacher, Elizabeth Alexandra Patterson, back in 1968-69. She was demanding with a capital D. When I’d wander into the public library and ask for help looking up something like ‘spermatophyte’ or ‘icosahedron’, the librarians would always mutter “Miss Patterson.” She was fired before she made tenure because so many students found her too challenging. But to those of us who wanted to learn, she was a godsend. We still talk about her 40 years later.

    posted by Antinous on 6-2-2009 at 6:22 pm

29. SEMP-DAWG! We loved him so much we made a website (Check it out– my name’s the link!)

    posted by erinbrianne on 6-2-2009 at 9:01 pm

30. Mr. Rimbold, who was my 6th grade literature teacher in Lake Orion, MI. He was really something! Tall, lanky, serious, and goofy. He really expected something of us. Right off the bat he told us that the class was not his class, but *our* class and we were just as responsible for how class went as he was. Desks were arranged so that we all faced the center of the class.

    There was also a closet FULL of pillows that his wife had made (they were tiger striped) so that when we had free time to read silently we could grab one (usually two) and read wherever we wanted to in the classroom. Sometimes we went outside. Class was relaxed, but he always expected us to be mature and not abuse our liberties.

    posted by JRJ on 6-2-2009 at 9:48 pm

31. It would have to be Mr. Hobart Cook, my chemistry teacher at Cummings High School in Burlington, NC. Anyone who went to high school there between 1970 and 2004 or so probably had him for chemistry, and even if they didn’t, they probably have “Mr Cook stories.” He also taught my dad.

    He made chemistry class FUN. The year I had him, we made rocket fuel and paint that froze if you kept stirring it. My dad says Mr Cook made contact explosives the year he had him (think pop-caps), and had scattered them all over the floor just prior to the class entering the room. If you fell asleep in his class, he would usually just set off a small explosion on your desk, without a word to you when you awoke. The administration learned to ignore any loud noises coming from his classroom unless they were accompanied by the fire alarm.

    Dad says Mr Cook once decided to repaint his car, and used latex house paint and rollers to do so. Since it was Mr Cook, no one even thought twice about it!

    He claimed to grade papers by tossing them down the stairs next to his classroom (land on the top step, you got an A, and so on).

    He really cared about his students, and impressively, even after so many years and so many students, he remembers them. He started teaching at the community college where my dad works, and remembered my dad, remembers me, and even remembers that we are father and daughter. He asks about me every time he sees my dad.

    Some years before I had him, he started talking about retiring, but it was always “well, maybe I’ll just teach one more year.” Same thing the year I had him. He finally retired from the public school system 4 or 5 years after I graduated, and dropped to only part time at the community college.

    posted by Jenn on 6-2-2009 at 11:48 pm

32. If you ask my dad, even though he’s not a huge fan of the fact that my siblings and I went to/attend a Catholic elementary school, he would say that the nuns were the best teachers that school ever saw. I would agree, although I couldn’t outright pick one as my favorite, Sister Julia Marie (4th grade) is the one who really sticks out in my mind. My class was extremely obnoxious until the day we graduated the 8th grade, and she’s probably the only nun who ever yelled “Will you please shut up!” in a classroom.
    As far as entertainment value goes, my favorite is a tie between Coach Tom Kickham and Mr. Schultz, both high school history teachers. I had Kickham for Hn. American History and AP Psychology. He really made things fun and relevant…I remember taking the AP Psychology test and everybody laughing out loud when we read the essay questions…they were either that absurdly easy or Kickham had really taught us well. Schulz taught AP European History. I will never, ever, ever, ever, ever forget as long as I live his trench warfare lecture. He wore a WWI helmet, used a volleyball net antenna as a rifle, and the couch in his classroom as the trench….jumping over it, shooting the enemies in the front row, getting hit by an imaginary bullet, and staggering 3 desks down the middle row to collapse and “die” on my desk. I thought I would die laughing!

    posted by Mary on 6-3-2009 at 1:13 am

33. Dr Carter at Blue Springs South High School will forever be my favorite teacher. She taught English, but she really taught me how to be an individual thinker. Her lessons were always full of life, even in English a subject that was not my favorite. Most of all, she was human, if you were having a bad day Dr. Carter would listen, you really felt that she cared about your well being and not just your grade. It is because of this inspirational teacher that I decided to become a teacher myself and I hope that I can inspire students the way she inspired me.

    posted by Randa Crutcher on 6-3-2009 at 3:05 am

34. My favorite teacher of all time was my high school Theatre Arts Director Bill Horton at PHS in southern oregon. We weren’t allowed to call him Mr. Horton, it made him feel old, so he was simply Bill. Mr. Horton was a brilliant man who taught me to use the soundboard, focus lights, build sets, and not let my chubby tummy and big boobs make me feel scared to play a belly dancer in front of 500 people a night for three weeks. He was a sarcastic, dry, bad tempered, dirty old man with absolutely zero patience for useless people and that is why him and I connected. We both graduated (he retired, actually) on the same day in June of 2005.

    posted by Kate on 6-3-2009 at 7:52 am

35. I ran a search on Mrs. Janoff, hoping to find something like this. I was also one of her students, many years ago. I am so pleased to find your brief article, which is just one of many testaments to her as a teacher and as a person. She will forever live in my own memory, and I only wish that others could have the same interactions with her that I did. What a wit she had!

    Hopefully, more students will post similar memories of her as you have. Thank you for doing so.

    posted by Will S. on 6-9-2009 at 1:47 pm

36. Gail Elizabeth Tillary (sp?) Richardson taught HS junior English Lit & Humanities; before that French to 4th graders. Truly related to teenagers especially as she was only around 30 at the time I knew her. She knew how to inspire you and make you think; taught lessons for life not just class. Was tough enough to make you work hard to get an A. You could always bring your troubles to her and she would understand and support you. If you were one of the lucky few you could call her friend.

    posted by MelB on 6-10-2009 at 4:14 pm

37. I just experienced my favorite teacher in junior college. Dr. Steve Hubbard was the best English teacher you could possibly have. He was certainly the one who encouraged me to stay with my major during the times I wanted to give it up. If I end up with my dream career as a writer, it will definitely be in huge part because of him.

    posted by Monica on 6-12-2009 at 10:37 pm

38. A few of my best teachers (favorite then or now upon reflective and time).
    Mr Hobart, 7th grade math, Roosevelt Jr. High, Glendale,CA. Intro the fun in math, stories, persons ( Archimeties).
    Roy Klassen, Glendale High School Choir director. Could be funny but took music and teaching seriously.
    Taught me and others the mechanics and the joy of singing.
    Others along the way in college but more on that later.

    posted by Jim LeVasseur on 6-16-2009 at 7:19 pm

39. Anthony,

    I had Mr. Stewart my Senior year at OHS, and I have to agree, best English teacher EVER.

    posted by Josh on 1-22-2010 at 12:10 pm

40. My favorite teacher was one of my math teachers that I had during high school. Mrs. G made sure the shoot down the idea that only men are good at math. Mrs. G made sure that all of us understood the math concepts. She used a lot of enthusiasm to teach us so that the girls were excited and not scared of math. Mrs. G was always willing to help us–even if it meant having to come in early or stay after school late to help us out. It is because of teachers like Mrs. G that I have decided to go into math education. I hope that I can be as good of a teacher as she was to us.

    posted by Elise on 3-1-2010 at 9:28 pm

41. One of my favorite teachers would have to be my high school biology teacher, Ms. Swiontek. She was younger and only in her late 20′s, but it kind of helped when dealing with a class full of high school seniors. She could turn lessons about microorganisms and atoms into an actual interesting lesson that was fun with hands on labs. While she was funny and would joke around with all of the students, she would never not challenge us. We had to do our first real dissections in her class and she made sure that everyone was hands on and doing their part.I plan on becoming a teacher as well and I hope that I too can have a good relationship with my students while still inspiring them to do their best.

    posted by Zach on 3-2-2010 at 1:52 pm

42. One of my favorite teachers is Mr. R. He taught Chemistry which was not one of my favorite subjects. Mr. R was creative in his teaching methods. He went to great lengths to make chemistry interesting and fun. To help us learn chemistry concepts we made slime, ice cream, and blew up pumpkins. He was always willing to use his free time to provide students with extra help in understanding the material.

    posted by Cara on 3-2-2010 at 4:37 pm

43. My favorite teacher was my second grade teacher Mrs.P. She used comedy and humor to keep our attention and reward us for good behavior and finished homework assignments. She made an effort to get to know each and everyone of her students and to connect with everyone of them personally. She never yelled or showed herself losing her temper which gained respect. Mrs.P had different unique ways of disciplining any students that stepped out of line. She had such a unique way about her that you WANTED to listen carefully to what she was saying. Even being seven years old.

    posted by Amanda on 3-2-2010 at 11:29 pm

44. My favorite teacher was my fifth grade teacher, Mrs. Levine. She made her entire class entertaining and interesting, for all her students. Mrs Levine tried to make sure her students were comfortable in her class and did her best to instill in each and every student, a thirst for knowledge. She had a very relaxed teaching style, but was firm when necessary. To this day, I don’t know anyone who didn’t love her class.

    posted by Ben on 3-3-2010 at 12:08 am

45. My favorite teacher was my tenth grade American Literature teacher, Mr. Adams. Before I took that class I never enjoyed reading, didn’t appreciate literature and could care less about debating. Mr. Adams taught us how to appreciate literature so much that now I love to read book and poems! He was so passionate about teaching and teaching English. You could just tell he loved what he was doing and that he knew a lot about it. He taught me how to look at things in a different way and to ‘not judge a book by its cover.’ He was most passionate about debating and would put on debates in the classroom, which I didn’t like at first but ended up loving!

    posted by Casie G on 3-3-2010 at 12:45 am

46. My favorite teacher was my third grade teacher, Mrs.T. Mrs. T. was a very caring and helpful teacher. Mrs. T. would never turn a student away for any reason. If any of her students needed extra help she was willing to come in before or after school to make sure each student understood everything that she taught. Mrs. T. was very special to me because when I was in third grade my family moved. When we moved I completely skipped over learning to how to write in cursive. Mrs. T. was very helpful at coming in before school to teach me this writing technique as well as giving me extra homework to accomplish this task. If it was not for Mrs.T. caring that I learned cursive writing I still may not know how to write that way today. I am very greatful that I had such an amzing third grade teacher to help me master such a tough technique. Mrs.T. was amazing to all her students and definately willing to help everyone.

    posted by Alanna on 3-3-2010 at 1:23 pm

47. My favorite teacher was Mr. Ed Yoschak. I notice from above that someone else had him! He had this beard that covered half his face. He was my 8th grade History teacher. Some people might think History is boring but he kept this class fun. He always had a joke to tell. Once we had to read a report while people threw crumpled up paper at us. We had to perform a play in slow motion, read reports while we shout, and sing about Manifest Destiny. Sounds easy? Think again. He also kept this class hard, to prepare for what’s at the high school. He piled projects on us and we had to learn the Presidents in order. We had a final on the Civil War worth most of our grade. I’ll never forget when he had this stick to keep the door open. He called it his “ninja” stick and he to whame the stick down on our desks to scare us. It did. He use to throw rubber balls at us when he asked us questions and he wanted the answers. All in all, he’s still my favorite teacher

    posted by Ali on 6-19-2010 at 11:06 pm

48. My favorite teacher was my high school U.S. history teacher, even though at the time I did not consider him to be my favorite. Now that I look back, I did not have to put any effort into my high school career, barely ever opened a book, and did not study. The class that I did have to read the text and study for exams was for my U.S. history class. The teacher would make his students put effort into each class period. With challenging activities like inventing something that would make a change in the world like Alexander Graham Bell inventing the telephone. He was always inviting and treated everyone as equals and never made you feel like asking a question was a burden. He would go out of his way for his students by putting thought in his lesson plans and would present us with just the right amount of information never overwhelming. He could keep your attention by being humorous yet always knew the times to be serious. I did not really appreciate him at the time, but now that I look back the fact that I actually had to try in his class made me appreciate him.

    posted by Kellie Yanek on 9-29-2010 at 1:48 pm

49. My favorite teacher would have to be my Spanish teacher sophomore year. Ms.Carossa was not at all the teacher that I thought that she would be. When I first met her I thought that she was going to be really tough on us and she looked kind of mean. As the year went on though I gained a lot of respect for her. She knew the best ways to help us learn the language and didn’t use just one teaching styles. She was actually a very kind person and gave the students help whenever they needed it. She didn’t have unrealistic standards for us but she was always challenging us and wanted to see us do our best. By the end of the year I was really glad that I had, had her for a teacher; I had a greater knowledge of the subject and it was mostly because I had a great teacher.

    posted by Molly O'Shea on 10-2-2010 at 5:04 pm

50. My favorite teacher would have to be my third grade teacher Mrs.Jaeger. At first I didn’t seem to really like her because she would always push me with my work. She would push me to do better on my tests, to excell in the class, and to participate more in the classroom. As I look back, if it wasn’t for her I don’t think I would be the person that I am today. She was a tough teacher who pushed me to do better in life. If it wasn’t for her being tough I don’t think I would have respected her. I respect how she teaches and how she bonds with her students. Since I was in her class I knew I wanted to be just like her. I wanted to be a teacher and to this day I still stay in contact with her. She was overall thrilled that I was going to be a teacher. “Now you can have a little brat just like you!”-She told me just the other day. I loved her teaching techniques and how she would spice up each lesson that she taught. She even handled the misbehaving children differently too. If they wouldn’t be quiet or were being rude to her. She would take a yard stick and slap it on their desk when they weren’t paying attention. This would scare them half to death and they would never act out again. Overall she was an awesome teacher and I will always look up to her.

    posted by Kristyn McCarty on 10-3-2010 at 10:36 am

51. My favorite teacher was probably Mr. sadler in highschool. He was a really good teacher, kinda grumpy and had a quick temper, but he was probably one of the most involved educators i ever had. He offered alot of concrete life applications for history, and even taught us things that were not history. He was a very powerful speaker and very opinionated, and not afraid to rise to a students intellectual challenge. (i never won T-T)

    posted by Daniel Schwartz on 10-3-2010 at 6:30 pm

52. My favorite teacher was my 7th and 8th grade ESL and bilingual teacher Mrs. Delatorre. She was nice, patient,enthusiastic there are not enough words to describe her. She pushed us to do our best even though it was hard at times. Whenever I needed to talk to someone she was always there for me. She changed the opinion I had about education. I am planning on majoring in bilingual and ESL education because I want to change the lives of many children the same way she changed mine. Her classes were so engaging, she had great teaching techniques that made all of her students engaged in the lessons. I still stay in contact with her.

    posted by Crystal Hurtado on 10-3-2010 at 8:24 pm

53. My favorit teacher would have to be my 6th-8th grade science, Mrs. Bowlby. I really liked her because she always expected alot out of us. She actually demanded us to do well and that really pushed me to succeed in her class. She saw what i was capable of and got it out of me one way or another. She also provided us with exciting experiments that entertained us and kept all of our attention focused. She also was very funny, i always liked her jokes. Overall she was a great teacher that i admired and hope i can be as good to my students as she was hers.

    posted by chance on 10-3-2010 at 9:31 pm

54. My favorite teacher is Dar Foley. She was my kindergarten teacher and taught me to stay true to myself no matter what. I moved away from my elementary school in second grade, and only saw mrs. foley a few times before her tragic death. I will never forget her and the way she inspired me. She is one of the many reasons I want to become a teacher. She is extremely inspirational in that she teaches each child with respect for their individuality. She also taught us to be creative and to use each other’s gifts to make the classroom run effectively! I have had many other excellent teachers since her, but she still reigns as my favorite!

    posted by Camille Dobbins on 10-4-2010 at 9:07 am

55. My favorite teacher would be my sophmore year of High School history teacher, Mr.Lenahan. He has been one of the only teachers that I have had that has actually brought what we learn in class to real-life. He was much more than a teacher, more like a friend who you could come to with anything. He got all the kids in my class to do better than any other class that year and the lowest score in his class was a c-. He brought out the best in a lot of kids, and he went out of his way to make it fun for everyone in my class. When I look at him, it inspires you to do something with your life, and he has played a part in why I want to try and become a teacher. I would love to mirror his gift with future generations of kids.

    posted by Chris Mahar on 10-4-2010 at 10:42 am

56. My favorite teacher would be my AP Engligh teacher from high school. She loved the subject and content that she was teaching and that showed in the way that she taught. She was excited about new subects that we were learning and incorporated neat assignments into the lesson plans that helped us get a better understanding of certain novels or authors. We had to write an analysis paper for every novel that we read, and she would pull us aside and help us one-on-one with aspects of our writing that we needed to improve upon. This helped all of us out because we got her full attention. I really liked that she set aside class time just for this. She also had a bubbly attitude that rubbed off on my classmates and I. This alone made us want to learn more about the content that she was teaching us. She was just an overall genuine, wonderful person and I thought she was fantastic at her job.

    posted by Carlyn Seeman on 10-4-2010 at 9:04 pm

57. My favorite teacher was my Accounting, Marketing and Computer teacher Mrs. Mullen. I had her my freshman year and then my senior year also. She was my favorite because she always believed we could do the work and do it well. She had a passion for teaching which showed through every lesson, she also showed her pride for the school and how involved we should get. Her classroom was decorated with motivational posters and was very colorful to engage the students. Always I mean always organized and prepared. If there was something we could learn or somewhere we could go that had to do with the lesson she did her best to get us to go to it or do it. She was an exciting teacher, and I miss her class a lot she was a great role model I believe seeing her teach gave me that final push to become an education major. The best part was we got t-shirts in Accounting that said “I heart Accounting!”

    posted by Tori Fraher on 10-4-2010 at 10:28 pm

58. My favorite teacher was Mrs. Waddell in my high school childcare vocational class. She was the one and only teacher who could make me feel like an adult, capable and responsible, while making me feel like a carefree child again all at the same time. She made every minute of her class enjoyable and she made all of her students look at life in a new way. She retired after my first year of that childcare class which left me with a new teacher my senior year of high school. She wasn’t enough to fill Mrs. Waddell’s shoes. I still saw her a few times after she retired, she invited myself and a friend of mine to her house. We took her granddaughters to the swimming pool, and I brought my little boy over to her house to meet her when he was just a baby. I haven’t seen her since then however, and that’s been about 4 years ago. I’ve sent her Christmas cards but life just took it’s course and now I have two children, a job, and school to deal with. I hope that she understands and I would love to see her again. She will always be my favorite teacher and she always has a place in my heart.

    posted by Shannon Grover on 10-4-2010 at 10:37 pm

59. I had so many good teachers throughout my school years it is hard to pick just one as my favorite. I would go back all the way to second grade for my favorite teacher. Her name was Mrs. Shields and she actually has a part of me wanting to become a teacher. In second grade, we were learning to read more of the longer stories, and I remember sitting down with her and reading stories just with her, and I loved that. She gave every student individual time with her, because she wanted everyone to succeed. I think I liked her so much because she paid so much attention to me. I was always more of a quite student that always got overlooked by teachers, but not by her she always paid attention to every student not just the loud ones or the smart, but those students and everyone in between. She was so sweet and calming she almost reminded me of my grandma, and who does not love their grandma. The other night I was talking to one of my past teachers parents. Their daughter grew up in Lexington, and she as a teacher and a person has been a very big influence in my life. As I was talking to her parents, they told me their daughter wanted to be a teacher in a third grade, when she had Mrs. Shields. I thought this was crazy because I had the same feeling. I think that kind of information reveals how great of a person and a teacher she was. She affected me and someone else I know lives and a major part of it.

    posted by Emily Davis on 10-4-2010 at 11:05 pm

60. I had plenty of good teachers…and the some that weren’t so great…but my favorite had to be my PE teacher (also happened to be my sophomore basketball coach). He was, and still is, in my book, and inspiration. He kows what students are capable of and holds hih standards for them, and encourages them to reach those standards. He’s a really nice guy, easy to get along with and also loves to joke around and develop a friendship with the students, and for me, that was key. Developing a friendship wit the students, as a teacher, can pay off big time in the future. Another thing with this guy was that he clearly stated out what the rules and guidelines were. But, he also gave warnings. I know teachers that would just send kids to the office and such, but this guy gave second chances, which I thought was great too. Like I said before, he was an encouragement to the students and had them work hard and wanted them not only to suceed in the class and to reach their goals in the class, but to succeed and reach their goals in the real world too. This guy is a real people-person and is a big reason why I want become a phys. ed. teacher. I want to have as big of an impact on others’ lives as he did mine.

    posted by Brandon Campbell on 10-5-2010 at 3:18 pm

61. I have had plenty of very good teachers, but it is very hard to raise one above the rest because similar qualities were found in each of them. Probably the best teachers that stick out in my mind were my third grade teacher and my tenth grade math teachers. They each pushed me even though I thought I was at my limit which wasnt very much. They helped me individually and helped me realize things I wasnt able to before. I believe these teachers had huge impacts on my learning and I will never forget the help and skills I learned from them.

    posted by Eric Greiner on 10-5-2010 at 6:22 pm

62. I have had some good teachers through out my school career and some that were not so great. There were two teachers that I remember who were great teachers. Mr. Short and Mr. Chapman. I had them both my Sophomore year of high school,they were my history teachers the class was a co-taught class. They both used different teaching strategies to cater to students different learning styles. They were energetic, enthusiastic, knowledgeable of the subject matter, and they cared about the students, which they wanted the students to do well. They always had good attitudes everyday. They made what we were learning very fun, and encouraged me to want to become a teacher myself!

    posted by Rachel Senior on 10-5-2010 at 7:07 pm

63. My favorite teacher was Mrs. Umland from my elementary years. She was one of the funniest teachers I had ever had. And that alone makes students, especially me, want to be in her classroom. The humor made her very comforting, welcoming and down to earth. She was also always there for all her students and showed no favoritism. She treated everyone equal and wanted to help each and every student, no matter how frustrating they may be. I remember one instance where I did poorly on a test because I didn’t know the material very well. I just didnt understand it, and she pulled me aside one day after school and helped me personally. After that, i have never had any problems with that subject!

    posted by Sarah Fairburn on 10-5-2010 at 7:19 pm

64. My favorite teacher is was my PE teacher from middle school. He always had a smile on his face and was an overall good guy. A good sense of humor goes a long way. Helping students in any way he can was his best characteristic and everybody liked him. I’m a very competitive person and he was the first person to teach me to keep my cool when things didn’t go my way or i lost at something. He taught many other life lessons that have made me the man i am today. I couldn’t have put toegther a more well rounded person and because of that he was a GREAT teacher.

    posted by Brad Mandarino on 10-5-2010 at 8:09 pm

65. My favorite teacher will and most likely will always be my P.E who was also my high school soccer coach. There are many reasons why he was my favorite teacher, but what I will always remember the most is that he was always willing to give me advice and support in his own time. He was always happy and approachable and most importantly for me he was always enthusiastic, and I never got the feeling that there was a day when he did not want to be there.

    A big factor also for me was that with his knowledge and skills he developed me into a more complete soccer player, and I believe it was through his support of developing me a s a player is what got me noticed in England and ultimately what landed me my professional soccer trials. He always believed that I had a talent to play soccer and this is why I believe he dedicated much of his own time with me before and after practices. He is a big factor why I have achieved so much in the game of soccer, winning many championships and playing at a high level not only in England and the U.S.A but also other leading European countries.

    posted by Jagdeep Kang on 10-5-2010 at 8:38 pm

66. My favorite teacher would have to be my 8th grade Spanish teacher. What made her my favorite was the fact she always looked like she was happy to be there and by that you could tell she liked kids a lot. When i needed help or advice about something it was never a problem and she would see me after class or something. Back then i wasn’t the best of kids in class and even then i always felt like she liked me anyways.

    posted by Jeff on 10-6-2010 at 10:21 am

67. This teacher sounds like the kind of teacher I would like, someone who is funny and makes class fun, but also has a structure in the class. I love teachers who make you want to come to class just to see what kind of wakey thing they are going to say, or what we are going to do that day!

    posted by Alex on 10-6-2010 at 10:39 am

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