History has always been my least favorite subject. I never found it interesting and I could never follow the stories we read until I met my fifth grade teacher at Richmond School. 

Everyone wanted Mrs. Wholfiel as their teacher. The way she taught was different. There was never a dull moment; she was always coming up with fun ways to learn. One time she did a demonstration with kings and queens. She had us stand up and play the kingdom while she played the queen and walked on top of the desks. I’d never had so much fun in a social studies class nor had I remembered a thing we learned until this demonstration. She was always keeping us active with our learning.

After fifth grade, I was happy to hear she was moved to middle school. I remeber doing things like the Ootsi project, making a pyramid and the murder investigation. Although Mrs. Wholfiel wasn’t my main teacher, I had her for a few classes throughout middle school and I remember looking forward to her classes.

When I first met Mrs. Wohlfiel, I had an instant connection. I felt like I could trust her and that she was going to be someone I was comfortable talking with. She treated every kid that way, even the ones who had a hard time following rules. She wanted everyone to succeed. 

She also never had a bad day, at least not that she ever showed. Every day she came into class smiling and in a good mood. She also had a family member in the hospital and she never showed she was upset because she didn't want the students to worry about her. That's another thing I loved about her; she never let her homelife affect the way she taught at school.

After high school, I want to go to school to be an educator myself and it's very inspiring to know that I could possibly influence someone the way Mrs. Wholfiel influenced me. I want to come into school with a smile each day ready to make a lasting impression on the students. I also want to create a safe comfortable learning environment so that all kids feel welcome. 

Thank you, Mrs. Wholfiel, for providing a safe learning environment for me and being someone I could talk to. Thank you for inspiring me to be a teacher and for giving me someone to look up to.