A Good Teacher is Hard to Find!

Last week I got to meet with some of Beulah's teachers. We talked about how things were going in class and what some of the expectations were. After looking at some of Beulah's work and assignments, I remembered back 22 years to when I was in 9th grade, and I met my favorite teacher of them all, Mr. Harry Steinmetz (pictured to the left). He taught my World History and Geography class and he was my first teacher who seemed to be really demanding, and yet he was so interesting. He assigned us challenging assignments and projects. (I had to write a paper on a Great Topic using the Great Classics, i.e., guys who have been dead for over 300 years. I choose, "The Consequences of Sin: The Loss of Charity and Grace") His tests were unforgivably hard. He treated us with respect, though; he knew we were able to learn and he coddled no one. He also was the speech coach, and while I always underperformed, I enjoyed being on the speech team with him for a couple of years. It's amazing how some teachers are such jewels--so capable of making complicated information accessible and so full of energy to inspire greatness. I don't think Beulah has such a teacher this year, unfortunately, but I understand how rare they are. I had maybe five or six really excellent teachers out of my time in high school.