BALTIMORE (WMAR) — It’s no secret teachers spend a lot of money on their classrooms and with inflation this year, they need a little more support to start the school year off right.
Many teachers have created Amazon wish lists with things to enhance learning, make kids more excited to come to school and be more engaged, which has been even more of a struggle ever since virtual learning.
“A lot of their mannerisms were off. They were overly stimulated or overexcited and just didn’t know how to act in the classroom. So that was one of my biggest challenges and it was very hard to keep them engaged because they had a very short attention span just from being home,” said Alana Boyer, a second year Baltimore City 4th grade teacher.
Her list includes book bins, pencil holders and a timer to keep kids on time for assignments during class.
“They would physically see it be like ‘Oh when that thing runs out, we gotta get our work done’. I just think little things like that, as a teacher you know how impactful it would be even if it might seem silly to someone else but it just makes life a lot easier,” said Boyer.
She has gotten a lot of help from her family and friends to clear her list before school starts. All she asks for from parents and community members is to be there and support them, not financially but through simple acts like being responsive to teachers requests for meetings, etc.
“I think just in general people should be a little kinder to all of us because we are trying out best. I know especially for me, I spend a lot of time outside of work, way too much time outside of work preparing for the kids and doing all the stuff on my own time and it’s not just because I have to. I do extra things because I want to. I want to make the lesson fun and make sure they are learning what they need to,” said Boyer.
