US Teacher Appreciation Week 2019 Begins!

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week 2019 to teachers across the United States!

Throughout the week, Google is celebrating the classroom heroes supporting their students every day. Today’s Doodle was created in partnership with the 57 2019 US State Teachers of the Year who visited Google in January for their first group meeting and explores the theme “A day in the life of a teacher.”

Below, 2019 National Teacher of the Year, Rodney Robinson, shares his experiences in the classroom—as well as his experience working on today’s Doodle!:

My decision to go into teaching—and even the ways that I approach my students and classroom—was inspired by my mother, Sylvia Robinson. Growing up in rural Virginia, she dreamed of becoming an educator but was denied the chance due to poverty and segregation.

I’ve now been teaching for over 19 years, and today, I teach social studies in a juvenile detention facility in Virginia. When I was selected as Virginia Teacher of the Year, and eventually National Teacher of the Year, I was excited to have the opportunity to share my students’ stories and to advocate for them—and all students from underprivileged backgrounds—to get the great education they deserve.

I was also excited to connect with incredible teachers from across the country. Earlier this year, my fellow State Teachers of the Year and I flew in from every corner of the United States to meet in-person for the first time at Google headquarters. The week was full of workshops and activities, including one session in which every teacher was asked to dream up their own Doodles to show the world a day in the life of a teacher. When I thought about a day in my own life, my students—whose stories aren’t often told—rose to the forefront.

I often tell my students, “Sometimes in life, a temporary setback (detention) is what you need to refocus and dedicate yourself to achieving your dreams.” I kept that phrase—and my students—in mind as I created my Doodle, which I hoped would express the power of education for my students. In my Doodle, I drew some jail bars to represent detention, paired with a library book and couch to represent an opportunity for education, therapy, and healing. Finally, I drew a person flying away looking healed, educated, and happy.

I saw similar themes of hope and passion for students in my fellow teachers’ drawings and was excited to see the final Doodle: I always have said if you put a group of teachers in a room together, magic organically happens! That magic—partnered with the technological capabilities of Google—made creating this Doodle and my entire week at Google some of the most memorable moments in my teaching career.

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week to the educators everywhere inspiring the next generation!

– Rodney Robinson, 2019 National Teacher of the Year

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