This week's Student of the Week is Lydia C!
You might wonder how I choose each week's Student of the Week. It's not much of a scientific process: I just think of my grade 12 classes and when I come to someone that I can recall a good memory about I just start typing. Pretty well every week one of the people's faces who pops into my head is Lydia's. After all, I have nothing but good thoughts / feelings about her. But just one problem: I honestly can't recall any SPECIFIC stories to tell about Lydia. She has never done anything silly or embarrassing in my class to mention. I have never lost my temper with her so I have nothing to apologize to her for. She's not overly loud or needy or eccentric. It was actually becoming a bit of a concern of mine: "of course I want to make Lydia Student of the Week - she's awesome - but what am I going to say about her?". I don't have any interesting stories to tell about her. Praise, praise, praise is nice (and very deserving)... but kind of boring. Well, this week Lydia asked me to write her a reference letter so I figured it was time to finally make her Student of the Week. I decided I could copy some of the rave reviews I gave her in the reference letter and paste them here. And that's what I am going to do now: What I will remember most about Lydia is what a wonderful person she is. I honestly can’t remember a single time that I have seen Lydia where she has been anything but cheerful, friendly, and enthusiastic. She is the sort of student that radiates warmth and positivity; just her presence in my class puts a smile on my face. Furthermore, I know that my teaching colleagues and the great majority of Lydia’s peers feel exactly the same way as I do. Lydia, you really are a great person (kudos to your parents because your older sister, Dasha, was just the same!). I'm so happy that you took Foundations 12 this year. Not only are you a real leader in our class but - selfishly - I'm just happy to spend time with you every second day. I know that making a difference with others is something you believe strongly in (it's one of the things I love most about you) and I know that you will do just that for many, many people in the future. I can honestly say that, over the past five years, you have made a difference in mine... just by being delightful YOU! I wish you nothing but the best, Lydia! This week's Student of the Week is Parsa A.
To be honest, I'd never even heard of Parsa before this year (how long has he been at our school? It can't be more than a couple of years, could it?). Sorry about that Parsa! Anyway, it became VERY apparent, VERY quickly this year that Parsa is an outstanding Math student. He's the sort of student who, when you feel like nobody is understanding the lesson, you can't help but look over at to see "does Parsa even know what's going on? Because if he doesn't then we have a BIG problem here". What makes Parsa's achievement in Math even more impressive is the fact that he is one of the highest achieving Calculus students while also playing on the Senior Boys Basketball Team. It is a bit overwhelming to even consider how many hours the boys put aside for their basketball and, for most players, it can't help but impact their marks at least a little bit. But, somehow, Parsa managed to maintain his very high standing in Calculus. It is a testament to his organization, motivation, and natural Math ability! And the fact that he played on the Senior Boys team speaks to his work ethic (I know this was not something that came "easy" to him like Math seems to). Parsa is one of my Peer Tutors this year. It has been so impressive to watch him working with my grade 9 students. He has a very gentle and supportive manner with them. He listens carefully, offers help in a simple manner (doesn't complicate things) and is willing to return to the same students (and same questions) time and time again. I know my grade 9 students really appreciate Parsa's contribution to the class (and, needless to say, so do I). Parsa, I have not know you a long time but I am so very impressed with the sort of student - and person - that you are. I believe that your goal is to be a pharmacist and I can see no reason why you will not be (very!) successful in this pursuit. You do a wonderful job of blending the talents of a scholar, an athlete, and a caring, friendly guy. You are an all-around success! |
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