I (Clare) know that many of the readers of our blog are teachers — whether in primary/secondary schools or in higher education. October 5th is World Teachers’ Day. I found the articles below which I thought I would share with you.
Happy Teachers’ Day!

October 5 is World Teachers’ Day, a global opportunity to show appreciation for the meaningful roles teachers play in our education and lives. Celebrate World Teachers’ Day by finding an event near you (or creating your own!), sending an e-card to an inspirational teacher in your life, or sharing pictures, stories, or links with the hashtag #worldteachersday on social media. Thanks to all the educators who have inspired us and who continue to enrich the world by sparking their students’ passion for learning. For more celebratory stories, read on!
I found this inspirational letter to a teacher which I want to share with you. http://www.literacyworldwide.org/blog/literacy-daily/2013/12/04/a-love-letter-to-teachers?utm_source=TW-09292015&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=ThisWeek&utm_content=Story-1

To Those Who Give It Their All on a Daily Basis:
Let me start by saying thank you. Thank you for showing up each and every day, not just on holidays, and giving it your all. You are magnificent and deserve a moment to celebrate YOU.
Being a teacher, particularly a teacher of reading, means sharing so much of yourself in addition to your knowledge of strategies, letter sounds, and authors. As teachers of reading, you help breathe life and joy into books during a time in education when learning can too often and too quickly become rote and lifeless. You celebrate student success and embrace their frustrations, pushing them gently to overcome obstacles that feel insurmountable in the moment. You constantly doubt yourself, wondering if you are doing enough, planning enough, reaching your students enough. But it is that doubt and self-reflection that makes you a better and stronger teacher who is able to give it your all.
You give it your all in terms of your instruction, and you also consistently give of yourself. You share your reading life and preferences with your students. You share your students’ favorite authors and books as well as their struggles when encountering an unfamiliar and challenging text. Being a teacher of reading does not just mean giving students access to instructional best practices, it means giving students some insight into who you are as a reader, a teacher, and a person.
All too often, I hear “rigorous practice” separated from discussions of “fun” activities. Yet so many of you strive every day to reconnect “fun” with “rigor” by coming up with new ways to engage your students with difficult concepts and texts. This type of instructional savvy doesn’t just happen, nor is it inherent in every curriculum. It comes from teachers who give it their all, just like our friend Pete the Cat.
So know that at least one person out there knows how hard your job is and how much of yourself you give to your students every day.
Happy Holidays!
xoxo,
Mrs. Mimi
Mrs. Mimi is a pseudonymous teacher who taught both first and second grades at a public elementary school in New York City. She’s the author of IT’S NOT ALL FLOWERS AND SAUSAGES: MY ADVENTURES IN SECOND GRADE, which sprung from her popular blog of the same name. Mimi also has her doctorate in education from Teachers College, Columbia University.

For more info on World Teachers’ Day check out the UNESCO site: UNESCO http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/events/prizes-and-celebrations/celebrations/international-days/world-teachersday-2015#.VgqU1M4XqHl