Mrs. Wentland- Special Education Teacher

I’ve always liked school, but in middle school I dreaded coming,  not knowing what people were saying  behind my back. I  learn differently than other students and I didn’t like the way people looked at me. When I needed extra help on a test, I would leave the classroom and go into the Content Mastery Center. Other students would talk and wonder why I was leaving.  At first, I was embarrassed and tried to avoid getting the support I needed. I was  tired of people judging me. For once, I  wanted to be normal like them. However, I realized if I didn’t leave, I would struggle and not complete my assignments.
While I was in second grade, I was diagnosed with having a learning disability and was assigned a case manager. But it wasn’t until sixth grade, when I met Mrs. Wentland, that I learned what a case manager was all about --  she treated me like a person.
I have a case manager because I have an IEP (Individualized Education Plan) for my learning disability, I have difficulties with reading comprehension. It might not seem like that big of a deal, but to me it was a huge obstacle in my life. I struggled in class to keep up with everyone else's reading pace. I  never  finished in time before the teacher started  talking again. Not only did Mrs. Wentland  help me work on improving my reading everyday, she made me feel like a real person. Mrs. Wentland did many things in her classroom she works with special needs kids with everyone having a different disability. It didn't matter the disability you had she worked and helped you in anyway possible to make you feel like anyone else.
Mrs.Wentland was special and made  me feel welcomed.  She  always greeted me with her sweet smile  that I looked forward to seeing everyday.. This made me feel relieved and I wasn’t worried anymore of what people thought about me. When I was with her . . . nothing else mattered . . . I could be myself.
  I can still remember entering middle school, thinking I was going to be stuck with a teacher  that didn’t understand my challenges. But as I walked into the CMC at Lake Country School, all I could hear was a soothing voice, welcoming me, and making sure I felt like I was in a safe place.
“Hello Angeline, I’m Mrs. Wentland and I’m your case manager. I’m here to help you in anyway I can,” she said as she smiled.
I had a sigh of relief. I was not expecting a teacher to be so welcoming. I was not expecting to see a smile that could brighten anyone’s day.  But the best way to describe Mrs. Wentland is compassionate, understanding, and trustworthy.
  As I walked in the  tight, crowded hallways, Mrs. Wentland  walked with me if she spotted me saying, “Angeline, how’s everything going so far?”  I thought it was special that she always noticed me. No one ever really did.
When I was little, I never thought that my reading level would increase. No teacher ever tried helping me the way Mrs. Wentland has.  Some days, I thought it was torture, but in time, I noticed my reading skills improving..
I remember Mrs. Wentland telling me that  when I read “you sound like a Swedish person.”  I used to always add “a’s” after a word. She recorded me so I could hear what I did to fix it. I will always know that I will struggle with reading but least I’m better at comprehending the passage thanks to her.
Mrs. Wentland is a mother, grandmother, a special education teacher, my case manager and a friend.  When I arrived in the mornings and during recess, I would always go down to her room instead of hanging in the crazy commons. This gave me the time to relax and get organized for the day with the help of  Mrs. Wentland. This was the place where I felt safe and could be myself.
I have always known, since I was little that I liked helping people. But I wasn’t sure what future career I was interested in. Mrs. Wentland was a role model and she has inspired me to work with kids. I have decided that I’m going to major in early childhood education and minor in special needs education all because of Mrs. Wentland.
  I am thankful for not only having her as my teacher, but as my case manager. She guided me through school when I felt alone. This is why she is my Teacher of the Year. She is the reason I wanted to keep pushing myself harder to make her proud. I want to go into education to make a difference in someone else's life like she did for me. Because of Mrs. Wentland, I am independent, dedicated, and hardworking