The Reward of Teaching Elementary Students

I believe that teaching, no matter what the age level, is one of the most rewarding careers that one can ask for. Teachers are touching the lives of children everyday and motivating them to be the best they can be. I believe that teaching elementary school students is a very special opportunity that I believe every teacher can have. I believe that teaching the elementary age is extra special because you get the opportunity to be with your student’s longer, form the foundation of their content knowledge and positively manipulate their cognitive development because they are so impressionable.
The unique opportunity of teaching elementary school students is that you are graced with the ability to spend eight hours a day with them. I believe that this time gives you more chances to inspire your students because rather than only seeing them for only 45 minutes a day. I believe that the short 45 minutes does not give you an enough opportunities to form a bond with your students and to leave a lasting impression. Many people remember all of their elementary school teachers, but their memory begins to fade when progressing into the older grades. Younger students need the structure of one classroom with one teacher for the length that they are there for. This is an advantage for teachers like me, who get to spend all this time with the same group of students in order to monitor their development and growth as learners.
Much of the content that elementary school students learn is carried with them throughout lives. Not only do you teach elementary school students appropriate socialization, manners and many other life lessons, you teach them crucial content that they will have forever. This crucial content I speak of is the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. As an elementary school teacher, you get the divine privilege to teach students how to read, write and solve problems. As you get older and go through your education, there is a lot of content you end up not seeing again. The content that elementary school students learn will be utilized for the rest of their education and in many elements of life. Important figures such as the president can dedicate his articulacy to his elementary school teachers who taught him how to read and write. Although he perfected it throughout his education, it is the elementary school teachers that first taught him these skills. We have a huge responsibility on our shoulders because we want our students to be successful and achieve their goals, we must effectively teach these crucial content areas so our students can keep their head above the water and reach their goals.
The fact that elementary students resemble sponges at the young age in comparison to older students gives us so many opportunities to make impressions on them because of the larger amount of allotted time we spend with them. Students at the elementary age level are progressing through so many cognitive developmental levels at a higher rate than older students. This is beneficial for elementary school teachers because we get the opportunity to witness it first hand and are able to form their education around their development and instill in them the roots of a successful student. We get the chance to educate our students in a way that guides them through developmental stages. Because elementary age students are so impressionable, it is advantageous for elementary school educators to mold their education.
It is such a reward to teach these impressionable young students. It is a special opportunity that we get to be able to educate these students for solid amounts of time and teach them crucial skills, and content that they will always utilize.