Life Lessons I Learned from Mom by Haley

Life Lessons I Learned from Mom by Haley - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

There are many lessons we can learn from teachers. Being accountable for our actions through student discipline, working hard for a good grade, organization, and of course the simple rules that every kindergarten teacher has on their wall, “Respect others…Clean up after yourself…Work Together”. All of these are great life lessons to learn from our teachers, but for me, the greatest lessons came from Mrs. Groff, who happens to be my mom.
She has taught me many things, as any great mom would, however, she has also taught me some lessons as a teacher. One lesson she taught me was that just because someone has the ability to help you, doesn’t mean you need to take advantage of them. My mom happens to be a teacher at the high school I attend, so she is always looking out for me. She hand picks my schedule, my teachers, and tells me each new school year where the classrooms are so I don’t get lost like a little “freshman fishy”. All of these little things really add up, and after a while I started to get used to it, and I was using her just to get special perks. If I was late to a class I would ask her to write me a note, or if I didn’t want to go to a certain class, I again would ask her to write me a pass so I could get out of it. I learned that the first time someone offers something to you they are being nice, but to then ask again and again for a special favor, that’s when it turns into selfishness.
Another lesson that stems off of this is to take care of things for myself. I won’t have her there to do every little thing for me next year when I go to college. She taught me that as you grow up, you need to be able to handle all different types of people in different situations. She taught me that sometimes you won’t get the best teacher on campus, or they may not be very nice or flexible, but that you have to be willing to adapt to their rules and their teaching style. She taught me how to communicate with my teachers and how to approach them with respect.
Finally, probably the most important lesson I have learned is the importance of education. Both of my parents are educators, and both have fostered a need for learning within me. As far back as I can remember, every family vacation included a visit to whatever university was nearby. They both wanted my sister and I to have as many options and opportunities for education as we wanted.
I’m sure there are lots of students who have parents that have taught them similar lessons. For me, having these lessons come from a teacher that I call “Mom”, make the lessons all the more relevant, personal, and meaningful.