Maple Elementary School celebrates Teacher Appreciation Week

CAMBRIDGE — During Teacher Appreciation Week at Maple Elementary School, administrators planned various activities and events to boost staff morale and show the appreciation that administrators and students have for their teachers.

Myesha Ford, principal at Maple Elementary, said the goal was to find activities that would get teachers working together and complementing each other, as well as spreading kindness and joy throughout the building.

“I feel like if our teachers are happy, and they can come to work and just kind of be able to love what they do, that kind of transfers over to the students,” Ford said. “So we see when our teachers are happy, our students are happy.”

Ford said they set up games for the week with the reality show “Survivor” as the theme. Teachers would spin a wheel, and the number that they get would correlate to a challenge. The challenges included writing a paragraph of praise to a fellow teacher and sending it to the principal to give the message anonymously.

Haley Wright, a teacher at Maple Elementary, said she had a lot of fun this week. She enjoyed the appreciation she received from staff and the chance to connect with other teachers at the school.

“It allows teachers who may not always see each other or maybe they’re able to establish new friendships among their staff members. The kids really get into it,” Wright said. “On their morning announcements, students asked staff to ask us, ‘Did we spin the wheel?’ ‘What challenge are we going to work on today?’ So I think it also allows for the students to get excited about it, too.”

Natalie Drake, teacher at Maple Elementary, said she enjoyed the work that the administration put into this week, especially while making it a team activity. Drake described how teachers and support staff were split into teams to earn points to be the winning team at the end of the week.

By far, Drake’s favorite part was feeling seen by other teachers and staff at the school.

“I did receive one of those anonymous emails today, and that really just put a smile on my face,” Drake said. “Other people here at school recognize the hard work that we all put in. They’re very appreciative of all that we do here. So not just our administration appreciates us, but also our colleagues are appreciative of us.”

For Ford, teachers work hard all year, and with standardized testing, it is easy for everyone to feel a bit burned out this time of the year. These events are meant to refresh everyone and provide a positive outlet for energy for teachers, staff and students.

“Teaching is hard. But it’s fun, and it’s rewarding,” Ford said. “I enjoy seeing my teachers in action, their passion, and you can truly tell that they care about all of their students, and it just makes me feel good. It makes me proud to be the principal here and just proud to be able to work with such amazing educators.”