I happen to have a lot of friends who are teachers, and it kills me when they say things like, “Oh, I confiscated the funniest passive-aggressive note today from a kid in my class. I wish I could give it to you, but I don’t want to lose my job.” (Of course, given the state of education funding in Texas, that’s not mere paranoia talking.)
Luckily, there are enough self-aware parents out there like Carmen (a.k.a. “drunk mommy”) to fill the kids say the dardnest fuckin’ shit category of notes that some of you love and some of you can’t stand.
One of those parents is Sheila in Indiana. Her first grader, Andrew, “has had a rough year,” Sheila says, “and is in trouble for talking too much every single day.” When she gave him a card to sign for Teacher Appreciation Day, this is what he wrote.
Meanwhile, Jessie in Utah says that for teacher appreciation day at her first grader’s school, the kids were all asked to write something they appreciated about their teacher on paper butterflies displayed on the door and wall outside the classroom. The anonymous nature of the project seems to have yielded mixed results.
To wrap things up, I just had to pull out this first grader’s letter from the archives. (And no, like many notes on this site, it isn’t passive-aggressive — or even mean-spirited — just adorably bizarre.)
related: (Not) so nice, (Not) so smart
23 responses so far ↓
#1
Kathleen
The first note is adorable. It would be hilarious (tragic?), however, if the teacher had been handed that on the first day of school.
Jun 6, 2011 at 1:30 pm rating: 90
#2
cuffed
More of the same at a blog called Broken Chalk. Not updated very often, but it makes me smile. http://brokenchalk.blogspot.com/
Jun 6, 2011 at 1:51 pm rating: 90
#3
SweetPea
Dear Teacher,
Thank you for yelling at us. Our other teacher just sends us passive aggressive notes.
Student
Jun 6, 2011 at 1:58 pm rating: 90
#4
Nina
Haha, I chuckled at the last one. At least she made the right choice
Jun 6, 2011 at 2:10 pm rating: 90
#5
clever name
Wow that last one means something. As a kid with a special tree, I get it. I would let many a ho get cut for that tree when I was a kid!
Jun 6, 2011 at 3:25 pm rating: 90
#6
Quite Contrary
I am sorry about the school year. Please email me an explanation.
Andrew
Jun 6, 2011 at 4:31 pm rating: 90
#7
sol
love how the first grader on the last note writes much better than many adults on previous posts…
Jun 6, 2011 at 5:06 pm rating: 90
#8
berge
I LOVE the subtle “blah blah blah” in the second one.
Jun 6, 2011 at 5:47 pm rating: 90
#9
Michelle
One of my first graders called me a “jerk” and his mom made him write me an apology letter. The next day he comes in with this beautiful picture that must have taken him a very long time to make. Written across the top it says, “I am very sorry that I called you a jerk.” It made me laugh so hard.
Jun 6, 2011 at 9:35 pm rating: 90
#10
TickleMyBambo
The first note resonates a small hint of both melancholy and sarcasm. Coming across like, “Dear Teacher, I’m sorry for being a failure in your eyes this school year. I know I talked a lot in class which got me in trouble, but you can’t expect me to not have a social life. Again, I am sorry!”
Jun 6, 2011 at 11:00 pm rating: 90
#11
Canthz_B
The first one is a grammar school Dear John letter:
Dearest Teacher,
I’m sorry about how our school year together worked out, but I’ve met another…my second grade teacher, with whom I expect a long and lasting relationship.
You’ll always have a place in my heart, please keep your head down next school year and get home safely from each day at the battlefront.
Jun 7, 2011 at 9:45 am rating: 90
#12
Meg
hah! I’ve had a few of my preschoolers tell me that I ‘yell really good!’
Jun 7, 2011 at 7:08 pm rating: 90
#13
kaycee
I taught junior high, and after I finished reprimanding a seventh grade class for their behaviour, a girl came up and told me that I was “on the rags”. When the Vice Principal made her write an apology note, she wrote, “Dear Mrs, I’m sorry I called you a bitch, but you were pissing me off”.
Where do they find them, and why do they send them to me?
Jun 11, 2011 at 9:16 am rating: 90
#14
cathy
One of my students kept calling me her third best teacher. I taught her in second grade.
I’ll never forget the boy who was showing a birthday card he got from his great-grandfather. When I asked how old the great-grandfather was the boy said, ” Oh, he’s old Mrs. S., he’s even older than you!”
Jul 7, 2011 at 7:58 am rating: 90
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