Teachers are an important part of school. Every day, teachers show up with a lesson plan to engage students and help them to become the best learners possible. Teachers serve as influential figures to many students, and inspire them on a daily basis. 

However, teachers, just like students, have a life outside of school. When they’re not confined to their classrooms, they live a separate part of life that most students don’t know the depth of. German teacher Frau Myers is a teacher at Rochester High with an amazing background that not all students have heard about.

“My teacher was really enthusiastic and cared about us, he made me want to be there,” said Frau Myers.

Frau Myers was like most kids in school, didn’t care for school and on some days did not want to be there. However, there was one teacher that stood out to her: her German teacher. She enjoyed being in that classroom and looked forward to it. She started to think about what if she could be that kind of teacher to kids. She realized that she wanted to be a special figure for someone, so she became a teacher. 

“One school that I worked at was almost all dudes, it was like a sports-based high school,” Frau Myers said. “There would be a classroom of like all 17-year old soccer players. I just wondered, ‘how was I going to do this’.”

Frau Myers student taught in Austria for two years. She notes it was very different from teaching in America. Her students viewed her as “the cool American teacher”. One of her favorite stories was when some of her students were roasting each other, and she intervened in German. She decided to respond at the front of the class in German. They were all taken aback as they were not aware that she not only understood but spoke German. 

Another story teaching in Austria was when the students were curious about why students in America do the pledge of allegiance every morning. She had them stand up and say the pledge. They thought students here are forced to say it, so they were distraught over it. However, it was a good memory for them and they laughed about it soon after.

“It’s okay to nerd about, to find your passions,” said Frau Myers. “Just do what makes you happy.”

Frau Myers was a German/literature nerd in high school and she’s fine with that. She continued to pursue German and now she can do it as a career and is something she loves. She also wants everyone to be kind to each other. Everyone has bad days, and something as simple as a smile or a joke can make someone’s day better.

In the short time that Frau Myers has been a part of the Rochester High School community, many have grown to love having her in the classroom. 

“She’s an amazing teacher,” said a freshman student. “I love her class.”

A student in Frau Myers German class said that she gives good energy to everyone in class. She’s very interactive and involving with the class, she does fun things like play their favorite songs, and has dance parties in class. This creates a good and encouraging environment student to learn.

Classes like Frau Myers make school a lot more fun to some students. Having good connections with our teachers is important in order to form strong student-teacher relationships.