May is Teacher Appreciation Month. In a normal year, students may give their teachers a letter, a gift card or some cookies. But as the end of May approaches, it has become increasingly apparent that no gift can adequately express the gratitude we should feel for our teachers this year.

Faced with uncertainty, fear and loss, our teachers adapted gracefully when we moved online last March. During a difficult transitional period when asynchronous classes were the norm, they continued to provide activities and resources, plan online lessons and bridge the gap by checking in with their students.

Teachers, thank you for making a small grid on the screen feel so much more than virtual.

Synchronous E-Learning was not an easy adjustment. With daily challenges of unstable internet, frozen faces and unfamiliar technology, it became easy for students to do nothing more than show up. Still, teachers continued to make class engaging while remaining sensitive to the stress students faced outside of school.

As we moved to a hybrid model in the fall, our teachers continued to be flexible and accommodating. Even while working with students in the classroom, in-person teachers continued to involve online students, providing resources, offering help and contributing to an online community. Our teachers’ jobs were already difficult when we were all in person. It was even more difficult when we were all online. Now, with some of us learning remotely and others in person, we recognize how hard it must be to balance the two environments at once.

Throughout the turbulent and stressful political and social events of the past year, many teachers took time out of class to explain and help students process these events. They connected current events to class material, enriching the curriculum while recognizing what was on our minds and validating our concerns. Even if the event didn’t directly connect to key terms or concepts, some teachers took the time to lead discussions, share resources or simply acknowledge all that has happened. Academics are a priority, but we thank our teachers for realizing schoolwork is not our only concern.

During the hardest times for many, teachers continued to be there for us: empathizing with us, reaching out to us. As students, it can be difficult to separate our teachers from the academic setting where we are used to seeing them. It’s important we acknowledge that teachers have lives outside the classroom and are people too, people who have been affected by the events of the past year just as much as we have, if not more. Teachers, thank you for being vulnerable with us.

Though May is Teacher Appreciation Month, know we appreciate you year-round. You have made this past year just that much easier.