Educator of the Year Essay

The teacher that I would like to nominate is Robert Lingenfelter from Skyline Middle School. Mr. L teaches 8th grade Social Studies, and he was a fantastic teacher. Mr. L didn’t have favorites because he loved all of his students equally, and let me share with you more about Mr. Lingenfelter’s amazing personality and his fantastic teaching methods. So, why is Mr. L such a good teacher?
Mr. L said some amazing things when I had him. For example, Mr. L always said, “Follow your dreams no matter what.” That stuck in my head, and I now use that as a source of motivation when I’m struggling through certain things. Also, he lived by these words and didn’t just say things like this to try and act like someone he wasn’t; he always wanted to be a teacher and he followed his dreams to get where he is now. One of Mr. Lingenfelter’s goals as a teacher was not only to teach, but to instill good values in us. He always used to talk about how important your family should be to you, and that you should always tell them you love them. And again, Mr. L would set the example by showing his love for his family (his wife) by always talking about his wife in class.

Mr. Lingenfelter was not only a good person with good values; he was also a GREAT teacher. He didn’t believe in lecturing; he believed in more of a kinesthetic style of teaching, or teaching by “doing”. Like when we talked about the court system, Mr. L set up a fake court and appointed students to be judges, and I really got a feel for what it’s like to be a judge and be present in a court during trial. And also when we learned about the Bill of Rights, he set up a simulation of the Constitutional Convention. As students we proposed bills, and we would vote to pass them or not to pass them. Another trait that Mr. L has that I admire, was that you could always tell he wants to see his students in the future. For example, at the end of the year we made a time capsule and later on in life he’s going to invite us back for a reunion party. And Mr. L always used to tell us to come back and visit him later on in high school.

Mr. L would never take his good students for granted, and he would always appreciate them. He would send out e-mails to students’ parents, explaining to them why their kid was so amazing, and why he loved them so much. My parents received one of these e-mails and they were sent out to a few of my friends too. I regret not saving the e-mail, but I remember it being well written, and I remember being proud of myself. Another way I could tell that he was very appreciative of his students was because he would frequently tell us how much he cared about us. Mr. L would always say that he was going to miss each and every one of us when we were gone for high school, and he would always say that he can’t wait to see how we will turn out in the future.
So, in conclusion, Mr. Lingenfelter truly cared about his students, and he really believed that you should always take action and make things happen. From his amazing quotes and his inspirational and unique teaching style to his caring attitude and his all-around good values, Mr. L is a truly unique, one of a kind guy, and he deserves this nomination. Honestly, before I wrote this essay, even I took Mr. L for granted, but now that I’ve been away from his classroom for so long, I now realize that it’s not every day that you come across a great teacher like Mr. L. I can’t wait to go back and visit Mr. Lingenfelter soon!