Photo: Anna Weaver
By Anna Weaver
Hawaii Catholic Herald
There is a scene from the second season of “The Big Bang Theory” TV show that sums up how much I think we should be thanking our teachers this year.
It’s Christmas time and the character of Sheldon, a socially awkward genius, has several sizes of gift baskets at the ready to give to his friend Penny. He’s waiting to see what Penny gives him before bringing out what he thinks is the comparably priced gift basket.
Penny’s gift turns out to be a napkin signed by Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy, Sheldon’s idol, which she got when the actor was dining at the restaurant where she waitresses. Sheldon, overwhelmed not just by the signature but the fact that the napkin has the DNA of Nimoy on it (“I can grow my own Leonard Nimoy!”), runs to where all the gift baskets are hidden and gives them all to Penny. Then he says, “It’s not enough, is it?” and follows it up with an awkward hug, something he never does. To him, it’s the ultimate gift.
I feel like my children’s teachers, and indeed all the hardworking teachers out there, deserve a stack of gift baskets, Starbucks cards, massages, and COVID-safe air hugs for teaching during the pandemic, whether it’s virtually or in-person.
Here in Hawaii, private schools have been doing in-person learning most of the school year, and Hawaii Catholic schools have been doing it since the start of the year. As a parent of two young children in a local Catholic school, I am so grateful that they can be learning in person on campus with their peers.
My kindergartener’s teacher and aide had to get 20 children to stay six feet apart at their sneeze-guarded desks for the majority of the day while also trying to get them to learn sight words, science, and about Jesus’ love.
My preschooler’s teachers have managed to keep their class bubble separate from the other early learning center classes and did their best to get 4-year-olds to belt out Christmas and May Day songs behind cloth masks for pre-recorded programs, among many other things.
My mother, a second-grade teacher at the same school as my kids, has taught for four decades. I doubt that before last spring’s school closures she ever thought she’d lead an entirely online class. She currently balances one online learner and many in-person students. She said that having the kids do a quick lap outside the class between lessons helps to get their energy out before they have to be confined to their desks again.
I’m sure you too know a dedicated teacher who not only has to teach students their academic requirements but also follow enhanced safety protocols while still making their class feel nurtured from six feet away.
There are art teachers hauling supplies between classes to maintain classroom bubbles. There are P.E. teachers figuring out how to exercise kids while keeping it contactless. There are religion teachers who executed socially distanced first reconciliations, first Communions and confirmations. And there are school administrators calculating budgets and student-to-teacher ratios based on available space.
Keep in mind that with all that they do, Catholic school teachers earn significantly lower salaries than their public school counterparts.
So, for the recent Teacher Appreciation Week, I gave my children’s teachers Starbucks cards and travel cups, because goodness knows they need their caffeine. But they really deserve ALL the gift baskets and all the air-hugs and air-fives.
As the academic year wraps up, why not send a note, a lei, a prayer card, etc., to a teacher, whether you have a child in school or not. Our educators always deserve thanks, but much more so during this pandemic.
