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You've Got E-Mail!

Like most of you, I get e-mail -- lots and lots and lots of e-mail. Most of those e-mails hit the recycle bin almost as fast as they hit my inbox. I received one the other day, however, that caught my eye before my finger reached Delete. So I thought I'd pass it on to a few million of my closest friends!

Like most of you with an e-mail address and an online presence -- or friends with time on their hands -- I get e-mail -- lots and lots and lots of e-mail.

I get ads -- for financial services, beauty supplies, vitamin supplements, business start-up kits, and a variety of products seldom mentioned in polite society.

I get desktop games -- most of them involving some type of cyber weapon and a moving target. I once opened a game in which a hammer smashed a bug to a bloody pulp every time I touched my keyboard. It took me an hour to figure out how to close it!

I get dire warnings about viruses that will completely devour my computer from the inside out and alerts about outbreaks of mall kidnappings that are reminiscent of rumors of the hook-armed murderer who reportedly haunted the lovers' lanes of my youth.

I get jokes -- some of which are actually funny.

Look What She Starr-ted! What's the most interesting e-mail you've ever received? Share it on the StarrPoints message board. Linda Starr, a former teacher and the mother of four children, has been an education writer for nearly two decades. Starr is the curriculum and technology editor for Education World. More StarrPoints

I get quizzes designed to determine my math ability, my knowledge of trivia, the state of my relationships, or the year of my birth.

I get invitations to apply for more credit, to refinance my home -- and to reduce my debt.

I get conference announcements, singles ads, press releases, and breaking-news bulletins.

I get animated birthday cards with hundreds of glowing candles, Halloween cards with ghosts that pop up on my desktop at unexpected moments, and Valentine's Day cards populated by dancing cupids!

I get inspirational stories recounting deathbed visions, minor miracles, heroic acts, and impossible coincidences that have changed lives -- and the course of civilization.

I get chain e-mails promising that a flood of money (or, in one of the more interesting ones, a steady stream of eligible men) will appear at my door if I forward the message to 100 of my closest friends.

The most prolific e-mails are the inspirational chain mails that preach love for my fellow humans -- and threaten me with a miserable, friendless, poverty-stricken existence if I don't forward them to every man and woman I know.

Most of those e-mails hit the recycle bin almost as fast as they hit my inbox. I received one the other day, however, that did catch my eye before my finger reached Delete. It's such an interesting idea for a classroom activity that I thought I'd ensure myself a lifetime of good fortune -- and possibly a few good men -- by passing it on to a few million of my closest friends!

There's more to the e-mail, of course -- much more. I have my editorial license, however, and I know how to use it. So I'll end it there.

I don't know whether the story as it's told in that e-mail is true, but the message is clear: Teachers make a difference -- with everything they do. And the most important work they do seldom is found in a curriculum guide or on an assessment test.

So try the activity in the e-mail and, if you like it, forward it to a few of your closest colleagues. You won't (I'm quite sure!) be rewarded with a flood of money -- or even a tiny trickle of eligible mates. But you might make a difference in the life of a single child.

Article by Linda Starr
Education World®
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The opinions expressed in StarrPoints are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Education World.