Yesterday marked the start of Teacher Appreciation Week—a wonderful opportunity to show how important teachers are in our lives. Outside of family, teachers are some of the most influential figures in young people’s lives. Everything we do as adults reflects on the teachers we’ve had and the ways they’ve helped us learn how to think and do.

Truthfully, it’s impossible to adequately show our appreciation in just a single week. That’s why we need your help.

To start the week off, we encourage you to check out the StoryCorps National Teachers Initiative. StoryCorps— co- funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation—has dedicated an entire year of recording stories of teachers who have changed the lives of those they taught.

We really enjoyed Meliza Arellano’s story. She does a beautiful job telling Sarah Benko, her former seventh-grade teacher, about how she inspired her and changed the trajectory of her education and life.

We all have stories about teachers who touched our lives or our children’s lives—let’s let our teachers know how much they mean to us. Post a comment below or share with us on Facebook. We'll share these amazing stories and grateful comments later in the week on Impatient Optimists.

Teachers love to hear from former students. Even if your favorite teacher has retired, you can still thank them for being such an important part of your life.