Last Day of School

Emma was fortunate enough to be in Jessica Baker's 6th grade class the first year she taught school.  At the time, I wasn't sure how I felt about her getting a teacher with so little experience, but I had nothing to worry about.  Miss Baker was wonderful with the kids and so talented and smart that she instantly became Emma's favorite teacher.  She would come to Emma's plays and even brought her flowers once when she had a big role in Into the Woods.  She would attend other students' sporting events, dance recitals, and band concerts.  Since she wasn't married yet and didn't have children of her own she kind of adopted them all.  She loved them and they loved her right back!  Emma even said she wished she had lived in the time of the one-room school house so she could have Miss Baker every year.

Emma has visited Jessica often over the past three years after school.  Their birthdays are only five days apart, so she often takes her a Boston Cream Cake on her birthday.  This year Miss Baker had me take her a bouquet of yellow spider mums and some chocolates. One time Emma missed her when she came to visit, so she wrote "Thanks for being the best teacher I ever had" on her back chalkboard.  When we came to visit on the last day of school, Emma was surprised and happy to see that her note was still saved on the board.

 These girls were the Three Musketeers of Miss Baker's first 6th grade class:  Sidney Olcott, Rachel Brown, and Emma.  Every year for Halloween they would dress up and have me drive them to Jessica's house.

 Jessica is moving to Boise to be closer to her boyfriend, so the girls came to decorate her room and see her one last time together.  They each wrote on the board, took silly pictures, and vowed to drive to Boise to see her someday. 

 A good teacher can have such an impact on a child, and I'm so grateful for Jessica Baker and the influence she had on Emma.