The title character in Beowulf, an epic poem translated by Burton Raffel, has many characteristics valued both in his ancient time and modern days. Beowulf is a fearless, fair, and responsible man. Kindergarten teachers in the twenty-first century often have these same characteristics.

In order to survive having 20 bratty six-year-olds to teach and care for, kindergarten instructors must be fearless. A cowardly teacher is not a good leader. Beowulf is a very brave man, and showed this when he went to help Hrothgar beat the terrible monster Grendel. After he killed Grendel, Beowulf had to kill Grendel's mother. He jumped into the fiery lake where she lived without thinking much, because "[...]Beowulf and fear/ Were strangers; he stood ready to dive into battle"(1471-1472). Near the end of the book, Beowulf has to fight another monster: a dragon. He thinks he will lose, but he says "[...] When [the...