The room was still as the diverse group of ten- and eleven-year-olds waited for the President to come on stage. They seemed interested in the goings-on in the energetic high school audience and applauded when the President appeared, right along with the high school students.

It was a short speech with big ideas, and the fifth graders paid attention. Asked at the end by one of their teachers to share what they thought were the most important thoughts the President was trying to get across to them, hands shot up.

“To put down the video games and pick up the books,” was the first response.

“Work hard every day.”

“Learning is the ticket to success.”

“Just because you fail doesn’t mean you’re a loser.”

“Stick up for yourself.”

“Don’t be afraid to ask questions.”

“Don’t give up.”

They got it. Now, as the elementary teachers who taught me used to say, “the proof’s in the pudding.”

As I watched these fifth graders listen to the President of the United States share about his own struggles as a student and what it was like for him to be raised by a single mom and his feelings of missing having a father as a child, I hoped the many children in the room dealing with the same issues of family life and academic struggles in our under-resourced community were feeling deeply that this historic and famous person was speaking directly to them.

I know our teachers in the library felt respected by having their vocation validated by the President. He affirmed values teachers have shared with their students for generations, at the beginning of the school year, and on the tough and wonderful days throughout the school year. As a teacher, I felt both pride and determined responsibility as I listened and watched.

Thank you, Mr. President.