A Message from Wreaths Across America's Curriculum Director, Cindy Tatum


With Teacher Appreciation Week around the corner and the days of the 2022-23 school year ending soon, Wreaths Across America would like to extend our most sincere thanks to each of you for your dedication to teaching America’s young people!

Hopefully, the days of mandatory state testing are behind you, and you’ve had a little time to think back on the many positive experiences you’ve had with your students during this school year. If you have not done that, let me encourage you to reflect on those positive experiences for a few minutes. Then, write down your “Top Twenty-Three of 2023” in a journal, notebook, or a Word document.

As an educator, I kept every note and letter every student gave me. On those days when nothing seemed to go as planned, I would take 2-3 out of my desk and read them. When I retired, those letters were still in the top drawer of my desk, and they were one of the few things I brought home with me after 26 years in the classroom! Never underestimate your ability to be a positive influence on the lives of your students, sometimes a little inspiration can help them to achieve things that will change the world!

And speaking of changing the world, please share the 2023 Wreaths Across America Youth Service Project with the young people in your lives. Now more than ever, our youth need to understand the importance of service to others, not just for the extrinsic rewards-badges, ribbons, or community service hours for college, etc., but for the intrinsic rewards, which leads to:

  •       more effective learning.
  •       higher rates of persistence when attempting to learn or achieve something new.
  •       greater problem-solving skills.
  •       improved decision-making skills.
  •       forming a connection between local concerns and global problems.
  •       a sense of accomplishment while contributing to their community.

All of these skills are necessary for students to develop to their maximum potential academically, but they are also skills that will help to instill positive character traits that will stay with them for a lifetime. Download the 2023 Wreaths Across America Youth Service Project HERE. 

For those of you who will still be with students on Memorial Day, please check out our free Memorial Day Lesson Plans, available at www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/teach. If you will be out of school on Memorial Day, feel free to share the lessons with the children in your lives. Help them understand the history of Memorial Day, and why it is important to honor those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice protecting the freedoms they enjoy every day.

And finally, we encourage you to sign up for the “Teaching Times With Wreaths Across America” quarterly newsletter, HERE, so you can continue to receive the latest information on the free resources available to Great Educators Like You across the country! Again, we thank you for all you do for our country, by educating our next generation of leaders!

Warm regards,

Cindy Tatum

Wreaths Across America's Curriculum Developer