When I was about ten years old my family moved to a new town. In fact we moved because we had been having some really dysfunctional issues in our family. I was sent to a new school and the adjusment was so difficult. This was a very different neighbourhood to the one I had known and I had no friends in this strange town.
The shining light of that year was being placed in Miss Martindale's class. Miss Martindale was surely a teacher of the "old school" by which I mean, she had a real love for and understanding of children. Her lessons were filled with fun and questions, not just parroting information ad nauseum. She took a personal interest in each child in her class, invited us to her country home and really made us all feel special, clever and important.
I don't think I would have endured that year without the sense of self-esteem she instilled in me. She must be about 55 or 60 now. I wonder where she is.
The reason she stands out so much is because throughout my school years there was not another teacher who seemed to have a real love for what she did and the children she taught. This seems to be rare.
Did anybody else have a "Miss or Mr Martindale" in their lives, growing up?
Hey – I just came across your blog as you are on a lot of my friends blogs – I really like your journal, so I hope you don’t mind me adding you as a friend!!! 🙂
Sure thing fluffybunny! Add away. The more the merrier and all that sort of thing….:)
HI Capegirl,I was fortunate to have a few of these kinds of teachers.Some were just hum drum however, the ones that saw the light inside me made the effort to be patient with my temper and over look my emotional state and give me the care and love which was like the watering of flowers … I BLOOMED!I feel each person has 1 or 2 teachers that made the differnce in their lives and this is what being a teacher is all about.I teach in Egypt and in my short teaching period there in 2005 I did make a difference in a few. They also made a difference in my life as well.Eve
Hi EveI think its lovely that you see that your kids made a difference in your life as well as you in theirs. I think we often overlook the reciprocal nature of relationships or at least at times we do. After I wrote this post I was also remembering Ms. Adlington. She was a skinny little lady who wore tie dyed dresses and did Yoga. She was my art teacher and always seemed to see promise in the work I did. I did her Yoga class as well as her folk dancing lessons. It was fabulous because up until then I hadn’t had a teacher who promoted these sorts of practices – which were things I related too. Anyway, hats off to you and other teachers like you who really “teach” children to be all they can be!Thanks Mrs M, Mrs A and EVE! 🙂
…I remember Miss Jagger, who kept us all spellbound with her wide eyes and her descriptive voice tone, as she read to us in the classroom. Later on, I remember Mr. Hall, I would have been about 11yrs old, reading to us, during our English class, the story of a female wolf in the frozen north of Canada, trying to keep her cubs together during a terrible winter. Such times. Such times. Pure magic for a little boy who loved to hear and to read stories of adventure, of faraway places, of magic castles, of bravery and daring-do. And I also loved to read stories from a book called “1001 Arabian Nights” a wonderful collection of stories” Capegirl, you took me back. Thanks so much for your lovely posting, thanks also to our friends who posted their recollections of their teachers here.~lokutus 🙂
Ha, Lokutus! Ha, I say! She probably wore short skirts and that probably kept your attention and fostered your love of stories! You adored her even more after the first time she spanked you.When I was growing up we moved around a lot. In fact the longest I have stayed in a single place was Cape Town – which was for about eight years starting at the age of 17. But I do have some teachers from high school whom I know changed my life, and for whom I know I had the same effect. They were more like friends than teachers. I lost touch with them after high school but I do think of them from time-to-time and I am always grateful for the invaluable lessons they taught me.Thanks for making me think of them once again, CapeGirl :)JCL.
JCL -re your comment “You adored her even more after the first time she spanked you.”You have touched on a sore point. (tee hee):lol:lokuSpanked
JCL and Lokutus I am glad I got some memories going – It can’t be a bad thing you know! However you are both due a Capegirl Spanking! You naughty boys! 😀
..Ohhhh..yesssss pleeze….misss… -do I stay in after class?:lol:lokuSpankedByCapegirl 🙂
yes you stay in after class and bring me apples 😉
Ohhh MCG…apppplesss….mmmm…she uses code. Oh joyyyy!!…lokuLateHomeFromSkool 😀