During the second semester of my junior year at Arrowhead, I was checked out and ready for summer. Let’s face it: that last stretch can be brutal. Walking into my Human Relations class, I was anything but excited. I wasn’t even sure what the class was, but I needed one more credit, so I signed up. Little did I know just how much I would end up loving 6th hour each day.
The minute I stepped through the door, I heard, “Hello! Come in, sit down! How are you? What’s your name?” She was as ecstatic and energetic as a kid on the first day of summer. Middle aged, with dark hair and a friendly smile, Mrs. King welcomed everyone into the classroom. She was enthusiastic and excited to be there, making me feel excited too. And that’s how each class period started for the rest of the year.
You could tell how much Mrs. King loved to teach and be around her students. She got to know each one of us, and pretty soon I was talking to her about my life and things going on outside of the classroom. She always made me feel comfortable and I wanted to tell her everything from problems I was dealing with to stories about things I had done over the weekends. She always knew just what to say, and was excited to hear it. She loved being there to give advice and build relationships with her students.
Mrs. King not only loved teaching, but she was also good at helping us if it was needed. If I would miss school, she made sure to try her best to help me get caught back up and she was willing to meet with me whenever I wanted. She cared about each one of her students and wanted all of us to succeed not only in her class, but outside of school as well.
Tucked away in the far end of the school in room 200 was not your average class. Each day she tried to make class as fun and exciting and she could. Not only did we do in school work and read (like every other class you will ever take), we did fun things such as going outside for a day, or playing games in the hallways to help learn our lessons.
Mrs. King was always trying to make each day interesting and that made us want to learn. With every new lesson, we did something exciting, like doing team building activities, playing Kahoot, and having game days. Being more of a visual and hands-on learner, I loved this. I would even be sad when that 40 minutes of class time was up and I was excited to come back the next day.
Human Relations was full of new experiences. Mrs. King liked to challenge us and push us outside of our comfort zones. Mrs. King helped me to grow as a student and I learned to do things that I was not so thrilled about doing before her class, like work with new people each day and presenting in front of the class. She taught with passion. It was evident when she talked and the way she treated her students.
Mrs. King made her classroom a warm and welcoming place for everyone. I am so glad and lucky to have had her. I never had built a relationship with a teacher like that before and for this reason, Mrs. King will always be my favorite teacher.