"A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle."

- James Keller

When we think of sticky notes, we often envision them as tools for capturing our goals and aspirations, helping us organize our lives and stay focused on what truly matters.

My journey into discovering effective teaching strategies began during my undergraduate program, where I encountered a wealth of tools, tips, and tricks designed to elevate teaching experiences.

From implementing wait time in responses to engaging platforms like Kahoot, the possibilities were endless.

The key is figuring out what works best for you. It’s all about trying things out, checking out different methods, and fine-tuning your style.

One life-changing thing I picked up during the program was how teachers can use sticky notes to give specific praise to students. The results were amazing.

It's really straightforward:

Look for a specific positive behavior that a student showed or something nice you want to share with them.

For instance, maybe you saw a student saying encouraging words to a friend who was feeling down.

Just write down what you noticed on a sticky note, pop it on their desk, and keep going with your day. There’s no need to ask if they saw it — your gift is in their hands now.

It's amazing how a simple process can transform your classroom in many ways.

1. It fits into your schedule without stealing time from instruction—you can spend five minutes during your lunch break or before the start of class.

2. It brightens up the student’s day. Watching their faces light up from a distance is truly a sight to behold.

3. It undeniably builds rapport. I still remember a student from my first year who gave me a gift the following day. I am currently in the works of returning that kindness, more on this later.

4. Though students may not remember every word of praise that was spoken, having those moments written down allows them to refer back to it whenever they need it.

In some cases, the students take the sticky notes home to share them with loved ones or keep them in their desks throughout the rest of the year.

In other cases, this happens.

At the time of this writing, this note had been framed and hanging on the wall for six years.

Recently, the student’s mother reached out and asked if I’d be willing to share my email with her daughters to mentor them as they navigate the treacheries of high school.

I happily obliged, and this is what one of the daughter’s emails read.

Hi, Mr. Park! How are you? This is [K] from your 3rd and 4th grade class. I don't necessarily have a reason to be emailing... I just got a hold of it and wanted to say hi. Also, I'm doing well in school, and I believe that part of that is because of you. I'm not sure if you remember this, but in 3rd grade, on the 16th of October (the date is on the note, lol), you wrote notes for the entire class, and mine revolved around my consistency in the classroom. While I was thankful then, of course, lately, as I've been introduced to more stressful work and started to stress myself out, I go back and read that note. I find it to be a sort of reminder that someone out there acknowledged my potential, and when your focus and confidence are scattered all over the place, those kinds of things can be really grounding.

- K