Tag: feature friday

Welcome to Feature Friday! Where we showcase a new teacher each week in an interview. For past Feature Friday interviews, go here. 

Today’s Feature Friday is highlighting Hannah Giles. Hannah teaches first grade in Idaho. She received her education at Brigham Young University of Idaho. Here’s what Hannah has for us today! 

What is your favorite thing about teaching first grade?

“First grade is my favorite because my students are still excited about learning! They are so sweet and come to school with smiles on their faces no matter what they have going on outside of school. It’s really fun being around their positive attitudes every day and their energetic personalities!”

What made you want to go into teaching?

“I have always loved working with children and helping them learn new skills, so it was only fitting that I go into education! I have a  degree in early childhood education and special education, and I always enjoyed being around my uncle who had special needs when I was younger. My interactions with him inspired me to get the special education part of my degree, even though I currently teach in a general education classroom.”

If you could recommend one children’s book, what would it be and why?  

“I would highly recommend “The Bad Seed” by Jory John and Petel Oswald! This is a great story about a seed who has a bad experience which makes him a mean and bitter seed. No one likes to be around him because of the way he acts towards the people around him. In the end, he learns that it’s okay to have bad days but it’s not okay to treat the people around you poorly! There are two other books by these two authors called “The Good Egg” and “The Cool Bean” which are also great!”

What do you wish someone would have told you in your first year teaching? 

“I wish that someone would have told me that it’s okay for a lesson or activity not to work and to keep trying new ideas. You’re not going to reach every single student in the same way, but that’s only because they are all different! Students will remember more of how you made them feel in the classroom and the relationships you build. After the relationship is built, the real learning begins!”

Who influenced you most to choose a career education? 

“I had several teachers while growing up who influenced my choice to go into education! Michelle Watson taught me in fourth and sixth grade. She was an amazing teacher in the way she delivered lessons as well as the relationships she built with her students. I always knew that if I became a teacher, I would want to be just like her!”

What are the benefits you’ve seen in collaborating with your team of teachers? 

“I work in a school that has a Spanish Immersion program and I have a partner teacher who teaches Spanish to our first graders for half the day while I teach English! Then we switch and do it again with the other half of our students. It is a small school, so we are the only first grade teachers, and I could not do it without her. She is an amazing teacher, and I have learned so much from working with her. She has taught me behavior strategies that have helped with some of the most difficult students. Collaboration is so important in teaching, and I lucked out with the best partner!”

How has teaching in a rural area affected your teaching, both positive, and negative?

“Teaching in a rural area has its pros and cons. The community is small, so it’s nice to know most of the parents and families that live there. The town I teach in has a very low SES which makes the kids there very humble and appreciative of everything. They are amazing kids! The main downside is that there are several students who come from hard home lives. Some of the students only eat the food they receive at the school, and it breaks my heart! Overall, I definitely prefer teaching in a small, rural school even with the negative sides of it.”

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Thanks, Hannah for your great insight. I think it’s always fun to explore the point of view from a rural teacher because those are the schools I grew up going to. Come back next week for our next Feature Friday to hear from another Idaho teacher! 

Welcome to Feature Friday! Where we showcase a new teacher each week in an interview. For past Feature Friday interviews, go here.

Today’s Feature Friday is highlighting Haley Trauntvein, a 4th-grade teacher in the small town of Tremonton, Utah. Haley loves teaching 4th-grade because she loves seeing how independent the students are becoming at this age and it’s fun for her to see them develop their personalities and sense of humor. Haley received her teaching degree from Utah State University. Go Aggies! 

What made you want to go into teaching? 

“Growing up, my father was a high school teacher, and one of my closest aunts was an elementary teacher, so it was always on my mind, but what really got me into it was when I actually did my high school senior project of tutoring in a middle school math class. This class was specifically for eighth-grade students who tested well below the benchmark, to the point where they were on a second or third-grade level. Over the semester, I went in every morning and provided one-on-one tutoring and small group lessons with the supervision of an awesome teacher. After that semester, my life was changed forever. I let myself get scared out of it for a while and tried out my hand in cosmetology, which I still love a lot. Once I moved to Logan, Utah a few years later, I became a teacher’s aide in a third-grade classroom, I finally got myself to start taking classes, and now I’ve been graduated for a little over a year, and still loving it.” 

What is one of your favorite ways to utilize technology in the classroom? 

“My school purchased iPads for all the teachers this year, as well as software to project the screen up onto the smartboard. Being able to have students interact with it has been so much fun. I also love the mobility of the iPad. Being tied down to standing at the document camera makes it really hard to reach your more challenging students, so having the ability to walk around and be right with them has been amazing.”

How have you integrated the arts into your core curriculum? 

“One of my favorite ways that we have integrated art into the curriculum was by doing character sketches of the book Holes. Groups of students were assigned to work together to sketch what the character might look like and to use their personality and other character traits to fill in the background. I definitely had some kids take more artistic license with their characters… but it was still very fun and whenever we pass their posters out in the hall, they beam with pride.”

If you could recommend one children’s book, what would it be and why? 

“I honestly love the book Holes, maybe it’s because I got to read it when I was a kid myself and loved it then, but being able to teach about it and get my students to really think about the overarching theme of luck, destiny, and chance, has been so fun and each student has had such unique perspectives to contribute to the discussion.”

What are your best tips for avoiding burnout? 

“It’s probably not the healthiest, but after a hard day, I reward myself by going to the local soda shop (shoutout to Soda Fixx!) and get a pop and one (or two) of their delectable stuffed rice crispy treats to eat on my commute home. If that doesn’t work, I call my dad and make him listen to my complaints.”

Who influenced you most to choose a career in education?

“All of the kids I’ve been so lucky to meet and teach are my biggest inspirations. At one of the schools I worked at, I was shown Rita Pierson’s TEDTalk, “Every Kid Needs a Champion,” and I really took that to heart. I get so much from these kids, and they deserve to have someone looking out for them and their needs. I’m not calling myself a “champion” by any means, but I’ll fight for these kids’ rights any day.”

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Thanks, Haley for the great tips and insight you had for us today. I think we all should consider a soda after a hard day of teaching, we deserve it! Come back next week for our next Feature Friday where we are privileged to hear from Kim Anderson, an educator, and administrator. 

Welcome to Feature Friday! Where we showcase a new teacher each week in an interview. For past Feature Friday interviews, go here. 

Today’s Feature Friday is highlighting Mary Wade, a kindergarten teacher, AND the previous writer for this blog! She was willing to do this interview with me even amidst the crazy going on with schools shutting down during the global pandemic, not only for her as a teacher, but also as a mom. Here’s what Mary has for us. 

What is one of your favorite ways to utilize technology in the classroom?

“This is a definitely unique time for that question! Under normal circumstances, while teaching fifth-grade years ago, I would have said student blogging. I loved seeing their reflections and their confidence grow over time. But now that we’re on full remote teaching and I’m working with kindergarteners, I am loving Youtube. Parents don’t have to subscribe to see the links, our whole grade level is collaborating to contribute wonderful content, and we can organize our videos into playlists so it’s easy for little ones to watch more than one at a time. When I was working with fifth grade, we also enjoyed leveraging Youtube for flipped learning, particularly for math. Students could watch me teach a previously-recorded clip at their own pace, freeing me up for one-on-one instruction throughout the room.”

How have you integrated the arts into your core curriculum?

“My current Waldorf-inspired school is all about arts integration! It has been wonderful to have been challenged to do this more this year. For my kindergarteners, I have found that starting the first 15 minutes of our day with an art project has made for a wonderful soft start. Our PLC collaborates to find projects that inspire students to make connections to our curricula.”   

If you could recommend one children’s book, what would it be and why? 

“Just ONE??? Well, you know I’m just going to work around that by sharing my Goodreads list! But truly, recommending a children’s book is something I take seriously, and upon which much depends on the recommendee. I firmly believe in teachers as children’s book connoisseurs so we can be ready to give timely recommendations to our students! For example:”

Do they need to be inspired by the power of one voice? I’d say The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet! by Carmen Agra Deedy, or For Every One by Jason Reynolds. 

Do they need to laugh? Maybe We Don’t Eat Our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins or Full of Beans by Jennifer Holm.

Are they a deep thinker? Perhaps Carl & the Meaning of Life by Deborah Freedman, Forever or A Day by Sarah Jacoby or The Nest by Kenneth Oppel. 

Do they love to explore the natural world? Definitely The Brilliant Deep by Kate Messner or The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood. 

Is poetry their jam? Probably When’s My Birthday by Julie Fogliano by or I’m Just No Good at Rhyming by Chris Harris. 

Are they after a just plain delightful story? Leave Me Alone by Vera Brosgol and Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage.

But if you really want just one, a read that’s close to my heart right now is All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon. It makes me feel connected and comforted amid all the “social distancing” right now. 

What is a big challenge you face often in teaching, and how do you overcome it? 

“Pacing has always been tricky for me. Planning specific questions beforehand has been key to my improvement.”

What do you wish someone would have told you in your first year teaching? 

“Just to brace yourself for the drinking-from-the-fire-hose volume of information you’d be expected to take into consideration at any given point. IEPs, bell schedules, allergies, recess duty, friendships, parent concerns–everything. I wish someone would have given me the tip to start the year with a spreadsheet of all the students where you can jot notes down as they come to help you gradually absorb it all. And don’t worry, eventually, you will, and you’ll get into a good flow. But be patient with yourself in the meantime!”

How have you seen education change in the years you’ve taught? 

“I taught both before and after Common Core, and while it’s far from perfect, there’s one powerful shift I’ve observed because of it: more “how do you know what you think you know?” Really helping students to learn to point to evidence to support their thinking, even from a very young age, is a profoundly-needed skill for all 21st-century learners.” 

What are the benefits you’ve seen in collaborating with your team of teachers? 

“There have been benefits throughout the year in arts integration like I’ve described above. But the benefits are even more tremendous right now as we are pulling together for this school closure. Everyone has different strengths, so as we contribute what we’re good at, it helps us pull this off!”

How do you use student voice in your classroom and what outcomes have you seen from it? 

“My favorite way to see student voice with my kindergarteners is in their writing. We have created personal word rings for each of them that we add to throughout the year, and we encourage them to think of their own sentences. Their emerging voices are nothing short of beautiful.”

What has been one of your favorite teaching moments so far? 

“This year, some of my favorite moments have been while gardening with my kindergarteners. Before COVID-19 started, we were working on clearing grass from our planter box. Students chose between hoes or rakes and experimented with their different functions as we cleared and tilled. The level of communication, cooperation, and mindfulness made it thoroughly a lovely and engaging time for us all.”

What tips do you have for teachers who take a few years off of teaching and then start again, as you did? 

“I would definitely practice interviewing beforehand. I didn’t realize just how rusty I’d gotten, but it had been 9 years since I’d last interviewed for a job! I’d also recommend taking the time to get to know your new grade level team outside of school if possible. Get together for lunch and learn about their “real” lives to build your relationships.”

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Mary has so much information for us! Thank you for sharing your insights, and book lists, with us! It was so much fun featuring Mary on the blog today. She dedicated years and years to growing this blog and then trusted it in my hands while she teaches Kindergarten this year, so obviously we needed a Feature Friday for her! Thanks, Mary! 

Welcome to Feature Friday! Where we showcase a new teacher each week in an interview. For past Feature Friday interviews, go here. 

Today’s Feature Friday is highlighting Kiera Rasmussen, a first-grade teacher in Roanoke, Virginia. Mrs. Rasmussen loves teaching this age because they mostly have their foundation for learning, but are still young and excited about new information. She received her elementary education degree from Utah State University. 

What made you want to go into teaching? 

Ever since I can remember, I have loved working with children and teaching. I wanted a career that would make an impact on future generations and I could see the difference I was making.

If you could recommend one children’s book, what would it be and why? 

Giraffes Can’t Dance – I love the lesson that it teaches. It is okay to be different and unique! Everyone has something they are good at and it is not always the same as everyone else.

What is a big challenge you face often in teaching, and how do you overcome it? 

I worked in an inner-city school, so it was very challenging to have students from very rough homes and family life, and many students with behavior problems. What I kept in my mind the whole time is that they just need love and stability. My most important job as their teacher was to make sure the students knew they were loved and safe. It was also important to lean on coworkers and receive help.

What do you wish someone would have told you in your first year teaching? 

I wish someone would have told me that it is okay when lessons or days don’t go well! It doesn’t mean you are not doing a good job. Most of the time, following the lesson plan exactly does NOT work. It may not work exactly as thought for that group of kids or even just that day. Teaching requires adapting to the students.

Who influenced you most to choose a career education? 

My mom! She has been teaching for 25+ years. She taught while I was growing up, so I had the chance to watch her and learn so much from her. I had a lot of experience practicing and learning from her example.

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Thanks Kiera for all of your insight! Come back next week to read our Feature Friday post from our old writer here at Honors Grad U, Mary Wade!

Welcome to Feature Friday! Where we showcase a new teacher each week in an interview. For past Feature Friday interviews, go here.

Today’s Feature Friday is highlighting Patrick Tolman, a high school social studies teacher. Mr. Tolman received his Master’s degree in curriculum design with an emphasis on educational technology, so I took this interviewing opportunity to ask deeper questions about utilizing tech in classrooms. He had some great answers to share with us! 

What is your favorite thing about teaching high school social studies? 

“My favorite part of teaching social studies is having a student’s perspective. These ideas and opinions change from year to year and student to student and they always make the in-class discussions more valuable and allow us to talk about the historical thinking skills that I focus on in my class.”

What is one of your favorite ways to utilize technology in the classroom? 

“I love tools that allow students to provide their opinions or responses anonymously so that there are no barriers to student participation. Tools like polleverywhere or padlet that allow students to participate with their favorite device (their cellphone).  I have got some of the best responses from students using these tools that I am fairly certain I would not have received with a traditional question, answer, raise your hand, response type of situation.  I got my Master’s degree in curriculum design and instruction with an emphasis on educational technology and my thesis was about improving the classroom using cell phones so I could go on about what a great opportunity teachers have to help students engage more with these devices.”

What are the benefits you have seen by utilizing technology in your classroom?

“The biggest benefit of using technology in the classroom is that you are giving students more buy-in.  Technology plays such a large role in students’ lives today that by using it in class you are giving the students a king of validation to a part of themselves. Especially if you make use of their cell phones!”  

There are a lot of frustrations that come with using technology, how do you move past this and keep it a positive aspect in your teaching? 

“You have to plan ahead and be ok with some hiccups in using it at first. Just like regular classroom management you have to establish norms for how it is used in class. But…….”

What advice do you have for the educators out there currently using minimal technology, but want to expand and use more? 

“You can’t be afraid to use new things.  We ask the kids to learn new things all the time so we have to be willing to do the same.  Education is a field in which we have to be in the process of continual improvement!  There are so many tools out there you are bound to find something that will make your classroom more engaging and likely make the presentation of information easier!”

What are your best tips for avoiding burnout? 

“Plan ahead.  Put in some extra work in the summer to prepare for the school year so that you aren’t stressed preparing last minute.  If possible do your grading at work and then leave it at work. Don’t take it home with you. When you go home, be home and present for your home life.”

How do you use student voice in your classroom and what outcomes have you seen from it? 

“I teach at an alternative high school and some of the responses I get from students are inappropriate and have to be addressed as such, but in general, I try to make sure that even if students give an answer that is not correct that we explore their response and talk about it so that students feel that their voice is heard and matters.  The outcome I see from this is that most students are willing to speak up and answer in class which is great for me as a teacher and great for them to buy into what we are discussing.” 

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Thanks, Mr. Tolman, for your great thoughts and for diving deeper into the ever-growing educational technology.

Come back next week for a very special Feature Friday, where our old writer here at Honors Grad U, Mary Wade will be showering us with her wisdom once again!