Math has never been my thing. I have always had a hard time understanding it. After spending freshman and sophomore year with the same teacher, I felt doomed for junior year. After my first day, I felt like this was the year I was going to understand it, and I felt this because of my teacher; Mr. Schmid.

His style of teaching was basic, and simple. He always taught at a good pace and made sure that everyone was right with him before moving on. We took notes, did examples, worked in groups, discussed homework and played math games every once in a while. It was the first time I actually looked forward to coming to math class.

Half way through the year, I felt I had a good grasp on the subject. For the first time in High School, I got an ‘A’ on a math test. I was feeling confident, but still wanted that extra push. Mr. Schmid offered to help me with my homework during my 10th hour study hall. Every other day during my 10th hour, I went back to the math room to discuss my homework. There were usually about two or three other students there getting help also. We worked our way through all of the problems on the assignment, and if I was still a little shaky, he made up more examples till I did understand. Somehow, he managed to completely help me and three other students in just 40 minutes.

After we all finished, there was usually around five to seven minutes left before the bell rang. That’s when we would discuss our favorite teams. We talked about the Brewers, Packers, and Badgers.

Having Mr. Schmid as my teacher changed my views on math. I know now that it’s okay and always a good idea to go in for extra help. I had to go on to my senior math class without Mr. Schmid as my teacher this year. I will always remember him as “the teacher who somehow managed to make math make sense.”