Tadpoles and Frogs (Symbol)
Tadpoles and frogs symbolically represent the life cycle of human beings. Just as the speaker and her classmates transform suddenly from young children into older ones on the verge of adulthood, the class tadpoles turn suddenly into adult frogs. Not coincidentally, the frogs are also a catalyst for the speaker's discovery of sexuality, since it is while playing with the frogs that the "rough boy" approaches her to explain "how you were born." The simplicity and abruptness of the frogs' maturing hint at how abrupt that process of maturing feels for the speaker.
Gold Star (Symbol)
The gold stars that Mrs. Tilscher leaves beside her students' names symbolize her love and affection. The description of the stars arrives just after the sentence "Mrs. Tilscher loved you," as if offering evidence of that love. The individualized nature of the gesture—a response to one or a few students at a time, singling out and rewarding them—shows how the teacher makes her students feel valued as individuals. The speaker doesn't perceive the gold stars as rewards for or responses to any particular behavior, instead greeting them as random, pleasant surprises. In other words, she feels no need to earn Mrs. Tilscher's love, which instead feels unconditional.
