I just want to shout out to my DD's Ap Lit teacher (who DD has had for almost five years now in various classes)-- what a terrific person and truly, a gift to her MG+ students. She is fantastic. She can encourage even the most perfectionistic of them to improve their writing and analysis effectively. DD calls the "The Barracuda" because she gives no quarter on her high standards, but also communicates that those standards are high because she believes in her students.
She loves her students and she's intellectually curious and enthusiastic herself-- and it shows in her every word to her class. LOVE teachers like this-- she praised my DD this morning for her insight that Swift's infamous "Modest Proposal" was analogous to Steinbeck's indictment of the 'haves' in the Grapes of Wrath.
The teacher thought it was a fascinating parallel and had DD explain 'where that thought came from' to the rest of the class. She's fascinated by how her students think, and encourages really healthy metacognition in them.
She also loves that DD's asynchrony leads to really unconventional and unique insights and appreciation for literature-- and doesn't squelch that, but nurtures the novelty of such unusual perspective, treating it like a treasure rather than a liability.
She's AMAZING.