Share on Facebook

A Trusted Friend in a Complicated World

36 Teacher Quotes That Inspire a Love of Learning

These teacher quotes truly capture the priceless value of all educators and how their influence can touch lives.

Our editors and experts handpick every product we feature. We may earn a commission from your purchases.

1 / 37
Teacher Quotes Ftrd.com, Getty Images

Share these inspirational teacher quotes to show your appreciation for educators

Teachers are essential when it comes to the education of our children. They dedicate their time and resources to ensuring kids get a comprehensive education, along with teaching them how to think critically, ask important questions, and develop skills they’ll use for the rest of their lives. Recent events have shown us how dedicated teachers are to providing the best for their students, whether they’re teaching them in person or remotely. So why not show how much you appreciate their work by sharing one of these teacher quotes?

These uplifting quotes about teachers are perfect for thanking a teacher, or sharing how important education is for everyone. Once you’re done reading (and sharing) them, check out these kids’ quotes, graduation quotes, and leadership quotes for more inspiration.

2 / 37
Bf Skinner Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

 1. “Education is what survives when what has been learned is forgotten.” —BF Skinner. Don’t forget to read these patience quotes that inspire peaceful persistence.

3 / 37
Margaret Sangster Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

2. “No one should teach who is not in love with teaching.” —Margaret Elizabeth Sangster. Check out these powerful reasons why teachers love their jobs.

4 / 37
Loris Malaguzzi Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

3. “Our task, regarding creativity, is to help children climb their own mountains, as high as possible. No one can do more.” —Loris Malaguzzi. Talk about a hopeful quote!

5 / 37
Gail Godwin Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

4. “Good teaching is 1/4 preparation and 3/4 theater.” —Gail Godwin. Sometimes, we need motivation to prepare for the day; here are some great Monday motivation quotes to help you kick the week off right.

6 / 37
Karl Menninger Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

5. “What the teacher is, is more important than what he teaches.” —Karl Menninger. This is a quote that’s sure to boost confidence.

7 / 37
Marian Wright Edelman Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

6. “Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it.” —Marian Wright Edelman. Check out these quotes about change that will make you optimistic about the future.

8 / 37
William Ellery Channing Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

7. “It is greater work to educate a child, in the true and larger sense of the world, than to rule a state.” —William Ellery Channing. Bookmark these strength quotes for future inspiration.

9 / 37
Henry Brooks Adams Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

8. “A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.” —Henry Brooks Adams. Read these be yourself quotes for more motivation.

10 / 37
Alice Wellington Rollins Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

9. “The test of a good teacher is not how many questions he can ask his pupils that they will answer readily, but how many questions he inspires them to ask him which he finds it hard to answer.” —Alice Wellington Rollins

11 / 37
Bob Talbert Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

10. “Teaching kids to count is fine, but teaching them what counts is best.” —Bob Talbert

12 / 37
William A Ward Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

11. “The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” —William A. Ward

13 / 37
Unknown Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

12. “Teaching is the profession that teaches all the other professions.” —Unknown

14 / 37
John Dewey Teacher Quotesrd.com, Getty Images

13. “If we teach today’s students as we taught yesterday’s, we rob them of tomorrow.” —John Dewey

15 / 37
Robert M Hutchins Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

14. “Education is not to reform students or amuse them or to make them expert technicians. It is to unsettle their minds, widen their horizons, inflame their intellects, teach them to think straight, if possible.” —Robert M. Hutchins.

16 / 37
Albert Einstein Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

15. “It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.” —Albert Einstein. Read more great Albert Einstein quotes that will inspire you to greatness.

17 / 37
Maria Montessori Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

16. “The greatest sign of success for a teacher…is to be able to say, ‘The children are now working as if I did not exist.'” —Maria Montessori.

Speaking of amazing teachers, find out why it’s believed that students should bring an apple for the teacher.

18 / 37
Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

17. “Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help them to become what they are capable of being.” —Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

19 / 37
Benjamin Franklin Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

18. “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I remember, involve me and I learn.” —Benjamin Franklin

20 / 37
Aristotle Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

19. “Those who know, do. Those that understand, teach.” —Aristotle

21 / 37
Galileo Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

20. “You cannot teach a man anything. You can only help him find it within himself.” —Galileo Galilei

22 / 37
Malala Yousafzai Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

21. “One child, one teacher, one book, one pen can change the world.” —Malala Yousafzai

23 / 37

Amos Bronson Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

22. “The true teacher defends his pupils against his own personal influence.” —Amos Bronson

24 / 37
Steve Maraboli Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

23. “What we instill in our children will be the foundation upon which they build their future.” —Steve Maraboli

25 / 37
Paulo Coelho Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

24. “Teaching is only demonstrating that it is possible. Learning is making it possible for yourself.” —Paulo Coelho

26 / 37
Virginia Woolf Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

25. “Once she knows how to read, there’s only one thing you can teach her to believe in—and that is herself.” —Virginia Woolf

27 / 37
Eric Michael Leventhal Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

26. “Our children are only as brilliant as we allow them to be.” —Eric Micha’el Leventhal. Especially when they make us laugh. Don’t miss these hilariously heartwarming classroom stories from real-life teachers.

28 / 37
Frank Herbert Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

27. “Proper teaching is recognized with ease. You can know it without fail because it awakens within you that sensation which tells you this is something you have always known.” —Frank Herbert

29 / 37
Deepa Bhushan Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

 28. “Teachers, you don’t teach a subject. You teach a child.” —Deepa Bhushan

30 / 37
Scott Hayden Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

29. “Teachers have three loves: love of learning, love of learners, and the love of bringing the first two together.” —Scott Hayden

31 / 37
Marva Collins Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

30. “What all good teachers have in common, however, is that they set high standards for their students and do not settle for anything less.” —Marva Collins

32 / 37
Nathaniel Branden Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

31. “We must become what we wish to teach.” —Nathaniel Branden

33 / 37
Helen Caldicott Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

32. “Teachers, I believe, are the most responsible and important members of society because their professional efforts affect the fate of the earth.” —Helen Caldicott

34 / 37
Mark Van Doren Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

33. “The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery.” —Mark Van Doren

35 / 37
Lee Iacocca Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

34. “In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for less.” —Lee Iacocca

36 / 37

Horace Mann Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

35. “A human being is not attaining his full heights until he is educated.” —Horace Mann

37 / 37

Muriel Spark Teacher Quoterd.com, Getty Images

36. “To me education is a leading out of what is already there in the pupil’s soul.” —Muriel Spark, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. Next, check out the best book quotes from our favorite books.

Reader's Digest
Originally Published in Reader's Digest