6 Memorable Teachers from Middle Grade Literature

Mr. Terupt (Because of Mr. Terupt, Mr. Terupt Falls Again, and Saving Mr. Terupt), by Rob Buyea
This moving and powerful series of books—written by a teacher—offers a first-person, inside-the-classroom account from seven very different kids about the tremendous impact that an outstanding educator can have on his students. Alexia, Anna, Danielle, Jessica, Jeffrey, Luke, and Peter are all just starting fifth grade with new teacher Mr. Terupt in the series’ first installment, Because of Mr. Terupt. Short chapters from alternating perspectives unfold, month by month, detailing the kids’ experiences with their beloved teacher, who teaches them much more than they could learn from any textbook. In the follow-up, the students get the rare opportunity to spend yet another school year with their teacher, learning more about him and themselves in the process. And Buyea’s latest, Saving Mr. Terupt, finds the students entering junior high without the security blanket of Mr. Terupt’s daily guidance. And as a harmless game of spin-the-bottle gone awry threatens to tear the group’s friendships apart, the kids think only Mr. Terupt can help them, but it looks like Mr. Terupt may be the one in need of rescuing.

Professor Minerva McGonagall (Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling)
Professor McGonagall is head of Gryffindor House and is a transfiguration professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where she also attended and became a top student. As an educator, she is quite strict with her students and expects a great deal from them as she teaches the young witches and wizards to turn beetles into buttons and how to make both animate and inanimate objects vanish, among other spells. But she has also always been one of Harry’s biggest champions. As a member of the Order of the Phoenix, she watched over Harry well before he was ever even accepted to Hogwarts. During his first year at the school, she helped get him onto the quidditch team, where he became the youngest seeker in a century. She also later helped protect Harry from Lord Voldemort in his various incarnations and fought alongside Harry, Hermione, and Ron during the Second Wizarding War, ultimately leading to Voldemort’s defeat.

Miss Jennifer Honey (Matilda, by Roald Dahl)
Young Matilda is brilliant, but her genius has gone unnoticed by her self-centered, disinterested parents. It’s actually her teacher, Miss Honey, at Crunchem Hall Primary School who notices her prodigious talent. A warm and nurturing soul, Miss Honey has “that rare gift for being adored by every small child under her care.” And Matilda is no exception. The two become friends as Miss Honey encourages, supports, and believes in Matilda, despite her being turned down for advanced placement by the school’s horrid Headmistress Trunchbull. But after Trunchbull goes after Matilda’s beloved teacher, the gifted little girl decides to use the psychic powers she has learned to tap into to seek revenge against Trunchbull and her boorish parents once and for all.

Mr. Brunner/Chiron (The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riordan)
Percy Jackson’s favorite teacher, Mr. Brunner, has high expectations for the 12-year-old despite his dyslexia. As the Latin teacher tells Percy, “What you learn from me is vitally important. I expect you to treat it as such. I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson.” But Percy has no idea that the real reason Mr. Brunner pushes him so hard has nothing to do with preparing him for a written exam. Unbeknownst to Percy, he is actually a half-blood with a human mother and a father who is one of the gods, and Mr. Brunner is really a centaur in disguise named Chiron, who is responsible for training Percy and the other heroes at Camp Half-Blood.

Mr. Selkirk (Twerp, by Mark Goldblatt)
Twerp is a middle-grade book about bullying, but it sets itself apart in that its protagonist is neither the victim nor a real bully—12-year-old Julian Twerski, or Twerp, is a minion, a follower of Lonnie, the unofficial leader of his group of six friends. Over winter break, Julian is involved in bullying another student who is hearing impaired. Upon Julian’s return to school after a weeklong suspension, his English teacher, Mr. Selkirk, gives the boy a chance at redemption: He can get out of writing a report about Shakespeare if he keeps a journal, in which Mr. Selkirk is hoping Julian will reveal the truth about what happened over winter break and discover his own role in the bullying incident. Mr. Selkirk sees something in Julian that the sixth-grader doesn’t, and through the assignment, Julian is able to learn more about himself, life, and maybe just a little about Shakespeare too.

Mrs. Baker (The Wednesday Wars, by Gary D. Schmidt)
Seventh-grader Holling Hoodhood is the only protestant in his class, so on Wednesday afternoons while the rest of his Catholic and Jewish classmates have religious instruction, Holling is forced to read Shakespeare with his teacher, Mrs. Baker. Holling is positive that the strict Mrs. Baker hates him, but in reality, she just sees the boy’s true potential and is determined to motivate him. Under Mrs. Baker’s tutelage, Holling becomes a better student, an athlete, and even an actor—even in the midst of dealing with a bully, a couple of angry rats, and appearing in a play while wearing yellow tights in this Newbery Honor-winning novel.
Who’s your favorite fictional teacher from middle grade lit?