Um, Our Families ROCK at Teacher Appreciation Week
Share to FacebookShare to TwitterShare to LinkedInShare to PinterestShare to EmailPrint this page

Um, Our Families ROCK at Teacher Appreciation Week

We may be biased, but we think our teachers have an incredible gift for educating kids with learning differences. That said, our TJS families might have an even greater gift for showing their love during Teacher Appreciation Week!

Here are just some of the gifts, notes and overall love we received over the past week.

A huge THANK YOU to our wonderful, considerate families! It's an honor to serve you and your kids.

Mrs. Flowers students with signs on their backs saying why they love her

Mrs. Flowers' class wrote what they love about her and school on sandwich board-style signs!

Note to Transition Coordinator Ms. Dorr, saying thank you for help with a high school interview.

Ms. Dorr is our Transition Coordinator. She helps our families throughout their mainstreaming process. We're so glad this 8th grader had a positive experience thanks to Ms. Dorr's work!


Mrs. Carey wearing a light purple shirt, smiling and holding flowers and a construction paper scarf from her students

a boy (purple shirt, khaki shorts) and a girl (red dress) 2nd grade student hold out a construction paper scarf they made their teacher. It has construction paper hands on either end of the scarf. It represents how much they love their teacher when they extend the hands.

Mrs. Carey's students made her this scarf with hands on either end out of construction paper. When they extend the hands in both directions, it represents how much they love Mrs. Carey ("Thiiiiis much!").


Gifts for Mrs. Donovan - a boquet of purple flowers in brown paper, a pound cake in a polka dot wrapper, and a yellow flower in a vase.

A sign with a yellow border and gray text that says

blue, square tin with a clear square in the middle that shows polka dot paper and cookies inside. A note on top says,

Tiff's Treats teal balloon that says

Mr. King, wearing a dark shirt, sits in his chair holding yellow tulips in front of a yellow wall.

Mrs. Motal, in a white shirt, smiles while siting and holding a bag of her favorite coffee and a yellow flower

Mrs. Flowers standing behind her students who are lined up in shirts that say,

Mrs. Flowers students showing the back of their shirts, which read,

Two notes and a pot of flowers for Ms. Sorensen

A bag of Almond Joys, a gray bag with flowers on it and a blue card that says,

The note card says, "Thank you for bringing joy to learning and the school!"

A bouquet of pink roses in a glass round vase

light pink roses in a small vase with a golden base

A heart-shaped box that's painted pink with blue letters that read,

A polka dot card that says,

Mrs. Wilson with a middle school boy holding gum he bought her.

A starbucks cup with a gift card inside. Cup says,

Heart shaped cookies with red icing and a white keyhole, similar to The Joy School's logo. A white note reads,

Mrs. Janssen and her student holding a unicorn with cardboard wrapped around it. On the cardboard, the student wrote the

This cardboard unicorn that a middle schooler gifted her math teacher is actually wrapped in the first 400 numbers of pi!


Ms. Sorensen wearing a yellow shirt and smiling as she holds up a flower and a card she was given.


Mrs. Wilson holding a yellow rose in front of a yellow wall.

A note with graphics that reads,

This card accompanied a lottery ticket given to Mrs. Kosley.


Tootsie Pop Bouquet




More Stories from TJS

RSS Feeds Subscribe to Alerts
Middle School Meet-Ups: Nerf Wars

Recently, our middle school students had the opportunity to attend our first in-person middle school meet-up of the year, a nerf war, on the TJS playground. Middle school meet-ups offer students the ability to practice social skills in a fun, real-life way, so it's a true JOY to offer these events in-person again. Read through this Q&A blog post with Program Director Elyse Trusell to learn more about the unique benefits of our middle school meet-ups for students, how we're keeping students safe at these events and plans for future meet-ups.

#JoyFromAfar: A Look at Online Learning with Christina Medina

In this #JoyfromAfar blog post, Christina Medina, Learning Specialist, explains how she developed an online learning program that worked best for her students, striking a balance between providing social opportunities with learning opportunities through live and on-demand videos and giving students chances to have fun while learning, even at a distance.

#JoyFromAfar: Supporting Families Through a Virtual Admissions Process

In this #JoyFromAfar blog post, Director of Enrollment Management Rob Wise discusses how the admissions team has adjusted their process due to COVID-19 and continues to provide a virtual experience that allows them to understand prospective families deeply and build relationships with them while also providing opportunities for families to remotely assess the School and fit.

#JoyFromAfar: Re-engineering Instruction During COVID-19

In our #JoyFromAfar series, we discuss The Joy School's transition to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this blog post, learn about how TJS Learning Specialist Kathy Matlage worked remotely with the parent of one of her students to build a document camera, a much-needed resource for a student who was having success using manipulatives to understand math concepts in class before the school closure.

Coffee Talks with the Speech-Language Pathologists

Our speech-language team serves a very important role at The Joy School supporting teachers and leading specials classes for students called Language and Cognitive Development classes. To help build relationships with parents and provide strategies for parents to use at home that complement strategies that they're teaching in their specials classes, our speech-language team hosts coffee talks for parents. Read on to learn more!

Nurse's Notes: Preventing the Flu This Flu Season

In this edition of Nurses Notes, Nurse Mary explains ways that you and your family can prevent getting the flu this year. She also describes a campaign she is working on at The Joy School to help students understand the importance of proper hand hygiene and the role it plays in preventing the spread of illness.

Education Vocabulary: The Basics of Scaffolding

In this post, we discuss scaffolding with Andrea Dorr, our Transition Coordinator and former math teacher, to help you better understand this term and help you visualize how it's used in our classrooms. We also explain the integral role scaffolding plays as Andrea evaluates students' readiness to transition into other schools.

Summer Learning at The Joy School

Summer programs at The Joy School are a great way to bridge the gap between school years in a relaxed environment, and for younger students, summer programs are a great way to prepare for their first year of school. Learn more about The Joy School summer programs by reading our most recent blog post!

#WhoCaresIDo Global Challenge: Students Standing Against Bullying

Ms. Burden's fourth and fifth grade students participated in the #WhoCaresIDo Challenge - a global challenge that encourages young people to stand against bullying and stand up for inclusion and kindness. Learn more about the art projects they completed and submitted in our most recent post!

Crafting Effective Consequences

Jan Flowers, Learning Specialist, explains how to effectively use a variety of different types of consequences, a topic she presented on at the 2018 Early Childhood Methodist Conference.

The Language of Math

Summer Erskine, Learning Specialist, explains how she uses the CPA Method (Concrete, Pictorial and Abstract) in her classroom to teach math.

All About Asthma

The winter season is upon us, and with it comes cooler weather. This may trigger an asthma flare-up. You might be asking yourself, what is asthma? How can we prevent it? Read on to learn what asthma is, and what you can do prevent asthma attacks from happening.


Alumni Update!

Shout out to Zach Johnson, TJS alumnus who is now a 3rd degree black belt!

Alumni Update!

TJS alumnus Charlie just "signed" at National Signing Day to run cross country and track!

One Gift Opens Up a World of Play

When we received the wonderful news that an alumni family made an anonymous major gift to The Joy School for our outdoor space, the AEIOU (Association for the Evaluation & Improvement of Outdoor Utilization) jumped into action.


The Lessons I Learned on the Mountaintop

Sarah Burden, Speech-Language Pathologist, shares an adventure that pushed her out of her comfort zone and challenged her physically, mentally and emotionally more than ever before.

Adult Alumni Happy Hour!

Share a drink with us, on us. Gather with your old friends, teachers, and administrators while we share stories and catch up.

Cardboard Arcade

Our 5th graders participated in the Global Cardboard Challenge this year, creating a real-life arcade out of mostly recycled materials for our students and parents to enjoy! Here they are with some of their creations.

Alumni Takeover Family Fun Night

Thanks to all the alumni who came to visit us at Family Fun Night! We are so lucky to have you and can't wait to see all you accomplish!

Alumni Athletes

We are so proud of these alumni! Shout outs to these athletes for making time for their passions.

Fall Alumni Visitors

We are overwhelmed by the number of alumni who came to visit TJS already this fall semester! Here are some of the friendly faces we were so glad to see