We’re sitting down for lunch, her eating crackers and hummus and drinking iced tea, while I have a cup of yogurt and leftover pasta from two nights previously.  I used to come here to escape the anxiety that I get when am in the loud noisy cafeteria, where food flies, kids yell and I feel as if I am being judged.  But now I come here because I have made a friend: My English teacher, Ms. O’Keefe. 
I approach her and ask if I could come to her room for lunch, and she says yes and start to talk about the book we are reading “Bruiser”, by Neal Shusterman, and she immediately engages in a conversation about the different characters.  By the time the bell rings to signal my next class, my head is swimming, nearly bursting with ideas about about the characters, their motivations, and underlying messages.  I thank Ms. O’Keefe and head out the door, hoping to learn as half as much in science as I did in that lunch period. 

English class is always the highlight of my day.  Whether we are writing memoirs, studying a class text, or writing essays, I can always count on Ms. O’Keefe to make it a good English class.

Ms. O’Keefe always has a smile on her face, even if it’s a cold, rainy and miserable and all of her other classes have been loud and noisy, and she has a headache, she always wipes the slate clean and starts teaching our class with enthusiasm, making sure our English class is always as good as it can be. 
You can always be sure that it will be a good day in Ms. O’Keefe 8th grade English class because she always has an exciting lesson planned, which she will then share with us; her enthusiasm and excitement is consistently contagious. 

Teaching with enthusiasm is a specialty of Ms. O’Keefe’s.  When she announced we would be studying William Shakespeare's “Romeo and Juliet”, there were several eye rolls and groans.  But fear not!, for Ms. O’Keefe had it all covered.  She made Romeo and Juliet relatable, even though they were born over four hundred years ago, spoke early modern english, and spurted lines in poetry, she made them seem like us. 

She also relates books back to our own life.  For example, we were studying Act 2, Scene 2 in Romeo and Juliet:  Romeo goes to Friar Lawrence and requests that he marry him and Juliet today, Friar Lawrence is shocked that Romeo is up this early; even four hundred years ago teenagers liked to sleep in late.  She relates it back to our lives and how if you get past the fancy language, “Romeo and Juliet” is not unlike our own lives today. 

She always wants her students to succeed, and she does that my making sure everyone can learn.

Ms. O’Keefe doesn’t teach the class as a whole; she teaches every individual person.  When we work on a writing project, whether it be fiction or nonfiction, poetry or prose, she is always there to help someone.  While the rest of us are writing our drafts, she meets with everyone individually,  helping them edit their story and never gives up on them, even if they give up on themselves.  I was having trouble coming up with a compelling thesis for my op-ed essay (Homeschooling is the New Harvard), but fear not!, Ms. O’Keefe spent twenty minutes with me in class and stayed an hour after school, helping me write a compelling argumentative essay.  She cares about her students and wants them to do well, even if they don’t care about doing well. 

Finally, she is so much more than just a teacher.  Over my year of eighth grade, she has become my friend.  She understands that middle school is tough, friends can be mean, and work can be stressful, and she is always there to listen.  Whether I talk about books, writing, school, friends, or home, she always listens, gives advice, and is there to support me. 

I could not ask for a better teacher; I am so grateful that I have had the chance to take her english class.  She has pushed and mentored me, igniting the flame for my love of the literary arts.   Ms. O’Keefe is an amazing English teacher and anyone would be lucky to have her as a teacher or a friend.  I am so lucky to have her as both.