My junior year had finally approached and all the difficulties that come with it. In Texas public schools you have to pass the TAKS test your junior year if you want to graduate. A make up test is given if you fail but is always nice to pass the first time. As I began my junior year the same old feeling hit me when I stepped into my math class, total frustration. Math is my goliath, my Everest, my boggy monster, it’s the class I dread entering and only find happiness far away from its clutches. So walking into my junior math class I had only a small hope of passing.

Mrs. Allen was my algebra teacher that year. She like any other teacher pegged me for a good kid who always did their work and had no problems; at least that is my assumption. Starting out I tried to understand the math facts flying at me and then slowly began to fall behind. Mrs. Allen was a good teacher but the math was not sticking in my brain. At first I was afraid to ask questions until I realized she was patience and didn’t mind helping. She was a very hands-on teacher and always very creative in the way she presented the algebra. She also made her class fun and connected to her students, caring for each one in a different ways. She would always ask about sports or trips and ready to hear the latest junior gossip. Mrs. Allen was always willing to show up early or stay late to tutor or let a student finish work. Mrs. Allen was not only a great teacher in the classroom but could also be found supporting the soccer team, cheering at pep-rallies, and helping with school spirit. Her family is very involved in their community church and has been on several mission trips to Africa. Now matter what she is doing she can always be found with a smile on her face.

She probably doesn’t know how much she truly helped me through that horrible subject that can almost eat me alive. I swear I did a happy dance across the classroom when we got the results of the TAKS test. It was done over with; I didn’t have to worry about another math class, well until college. Mrs. Allen was truly an important teacher to my success, in the fact alone that she was patience and took the time to care.