As summer moves in and the days quiet down, I’m left wondering again how these teachers — the trusted adults so many kids lean on without ever saying it out loud — show up so meaningfully even in the midst of end-of-school-year chaos.
Thank you for showing up. Thank you for seeing my kid.
Backpacks get emptied. Classrooms get stripped bare. Kids who spent 10 months learning side by side suddenly scatter for summer. And somewhere in the middle of all of it, most parents feel something they don’t always say out loud: thank you.
That second part matters more than most of us realize.
Teachers are more than educators. They’re what researchers call “trusted adults” — the people in a child’s life who hold enormous power over how that child sees themselves. Not just parents. Not just family. Teachers, coaches, community leaders, mentors — anyone a child deems safe enough to believe.
And belief, it turns out, is everything.
The Pygmalion Effect: What the Research Says
Research on the Pygmalion Effect has consistently shown that when a teacher holds high expectations for a student, that student tends to rise to meet them — not because of magic, but because of what those expectations communicate: I see something in you worth investing in. Studies found that students whose teachers believed in their potential showed measurable gains in performance and self-concept compared to peers whose teachers held lower expectations. The reverse is equally true — low expectations produce what’s called the Golem Effect. Children shrink to fit the box they’re placed in.
I know this from both sides.
What I Carried Into Parenthood
Growing up, there were adults in my family who had a way of making me feel smaller. When I wanted to immerse myself in learning, I was told not to think I was so smart. When I dreamed big, I was told to be realistic. These weren’t cruel people. But their words had weight, the way words from adults always do.
What saved me was my teachers.
They saw someone hungry to learn. They told me any dream was worth chasing. They didn’t know they were counterbalancing something I was carrying — they just showed up and saw me. It was enough to change what I believed about myself.
That experience never left me. And it’s why what happened during my son’s 3rd grade year hit so hard.
His teacher that year was in an ICT classroom for the first time and struggled with patience for kids who didn’t fit a particular mold. My son — bright, capable, different in ways that are also his greatest strengths — was often treated like a problem to manage. There wasn’t much encouragement. There wasn’t much nurturing. He finished that year smaller than he started it.
Third Grade vs. Fourth Grade
Then came 4th grade.
Two teachers who looked at him and saw what he was capable of. They didn’t ask him to conform — they met him where he was and held him accountable from a place of genuine belief. When things got hard, one of them would remind him: “Yes, it’s hard — but you can do it. Yes, it’s hard — but I will help you. Yes, it’s hard — but you have to try.”
That’s it. That’s the whole thing. Consistent, patient, repeated faith.
His confidence grew steadily through that year until it was practically spilling out of him. He walked into 5th grade ready — not just academically, but in the way he carried himself.
Research on trusted adults confirms what parents already feel intuitively: kids who have at least one trusted adult in their lives show higher self-esteem, stronger school engagement, and more resilience against adversity. Not having a trusted adult at school is a documented risk factor for anxiety and withdrawal. One relationship can be the difference.
One teacher. One year. That’s how fast a child’s trajectory can change — in either direction.
We talk a lot about curriculum, test scores, and school rankings. We don’t talk nearly enough about this: the teacher who says yes, it’s hard, but I believe in you until a child finally believes it themselves.
Why KidsGiving Press Exists
That’s why every November, KidsGiving Press gives a teacher a real, meaningful award. Not a plaque. Real money — and a moment of recognition that says: what you do matters more than you know.
This year, we’re starting early. If a teacher has ever seen your child the way my son’s 4th grade teachers saw him, you already know why this award exists.
Help us make it happen.
[Buy a Book → 20% goes to the award]
[Donate Directly → KidsGiving Press Teacher Awards]
