There are some teachers who devote a lot of time to their students in the classroom but then go home and focus on other things. Then, there are teachers who always have their students on their mind. They don’t just forget about them when the class is over. Brent Walker is a fifth-grade math teacher at Sheehy Elementary School in Tampa, Florida.
Brent likes to do nice things for his students and find new ways to help them learn.
This past Easter, he was planning on going to the store to buy some plastic eggs that he could hide for his class. When he walked down the seasonal aisle and saw all the giant Easter baskets, he suddenly wished he could buy them each a basket instead.
Each class consists of around 20 students, and the baskets were at least $10 each. There was just no way he could afford to buy them each a big basket full of candy, chocolate, eggs, and toys. Then, he thought some other people might want to help. He posted on Facebook, asking if any of his friends would like to help him buy the baskets for his class.
He wanted to be able to get baskets for all three of his classes, a total of 63 children.
He didn’t expect what happened. As soon as he posted on Facebook, people started stepping up to help. It looked like other people in the community cared as much about his students as him.
A lot of Brent’s students come from homes where elaborate Easter baskets simply aren’t an option. Many of them live in poverty, and some don’t even have enough money to pay for lunch at school each day. Still, Brent felt like they deserved to feel special and have Easter baskets, too. The community was chipping in, and it looked like baskets for everyone were a possibility. He had raised over $1,200 in just an hour.
The day he went to pass out the baskets, he arrived at school early.
Many of the other teachers helped him unload the baskets and display them in the room. He wanted everything to be perfect for his students when they arrived. The other teachers were thrilled that this was happening, but Brent was ecstatic.
He carefully picked out a basket for each student.
He tried to focus on the things the kids liked and what was inside each basket. Some had dolls, some had soccer balls, some had squirt guns. He knows his students well enough that he can figure out which baskets should go to which kids. He wanted everything to be perfect.
When the students arrived at class that day, they each had a basket sitting on their desk. The looks on their little face were priceless. Of course, Brent recorded them as they walked in and saw what their math teacher had worked so hard to do for them. Brent refused to take all the credit, though, and he acknowledged all the people who had helped make it possible.
His act of kindness may have changed the lives of every student that day.
What they thought was going to be a normal day in math class turned into a celebration. Many of these kids weren’t expecting gifts for Easter, especially not large baskets.
Brent said that he hopes the baskets will motivate the children and make them aware of the fact that other people in the community care about them and are rooting for them. He said:
“I think it will encourage them, hopefully, to really do their best and try harder, because they know people they’ve never met before are fighting for them and are encouraging them from all over the place. I mean this was coming from all over the country.”
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