Favorite Teacher

Here I am popping my cherry in front of all of the blog world, I am participating in my first ever rafflecopter.

I was super honored when Miss Lifesaver and Middle School OCD asked me to participate in their two amazing Rafflecopter drawings for their celebration of reaching 300 followers.

They have brought together ten of their favorite teacher bloggers to bring you some of their favorite products in a fun scavenger hunt and to tell you a bit about the teachers that influenced their lives. 

And the fact that I was a included in their favorite list makes me gush with blogger joy.

Graphics and Fonts by Confetti Graphics, The Learning Site, Lovin' Lit, and Shelia Melton

Coming up with my favorite teacher was tough. Like pull out all of the scrapbooks, yearbooks and mementos I seriously just packed away over winter break and try and rack my brain. It's not that I don't have a bunch of memorable teachers, I was a dream student they all loved me, but coming up with the one that influenced my life was tough.

I was dead set on my history teacher until I realized ... of course my favorite teacher is the first and only teacher to ever give me detention. Ms. Stone actually issued me the 'perfect' senior a detention in April for not wearing my student id.

As a teacher I mostly deal with the minions, but occasionally I get a magnet student or two in my room and sometimes they act above the rules, school and lowly other students. I once told a magnet student to put their phone away, a big school no no, and their response was..."but I am a magnet student." 

Ms. Stone's example of how to handle discipline issues fairly and without playing favoritism is a constant reminder to me as a teacher to hold all students to the same standard.  This is also true of the student just out of juvie...the student might frighten me a bit... but they are held to the same standard as every other student in the classroom.

I like to think that the fact that I expect each and every student to follow the rules and hand out consequences regardless of who they are, is something the students respect me for...

but perhaps that is wishful thinking.

I will be honest I did not want to take Ms. Stone's computer class, desktop publishing. 

As a senior I took four classes at the community college but in order to do so had to take 3 classes at the high school campus. Being the overachiever I took AP Calculus and AP Statistics, but literally didn't need a single other class to graduate so in desperation I signed up for one of my few non advanced classes...desktop publishing.

I thought coming to campus for desktop publishing was a complete and utter waste of my time, I had better things to be doing...like sunbathing topless in the backyard. But like any other overachiever senior I was saving my skipping days for senior skip day, so of course I never missed class.

In desktop publishing I learned how to use Microsoft powerpoint, Microsoft publisher, excel and write HTML coding to build a website.

Fast forward four years and I was using my amazing graphic design skills to redesign bar menus for the bar I worked for. Which then helped lead to my first 'adult' job where I did marketing and IT for a law firm, and I used HTML to write the website and my all time favorite program, Publisher, to create weekly newsletters that we sent to over 3000 school professionals.  And then later I spent time training my staff how to use publisher, powerpoint and html for our newsletters and website.

Which ultimately lead me to where I am today, a Career and Technical Education teacher.

At 17 I would have never dreamed that that little desktop publishing class would have lead me to becoming a teacher, I probably would have laughed in your face if you had told me back then.

My second semester of teaching I was grasping at straws and failing at engaging the students with the standard CTE lessons, so I recalled a few of the projects Ms. Stone used and revamped them and BANG they were a hit. A part of me thinks I should go back and thank her...and maybe even apologize for being the moody dramatic teenager that I was...because ultimately I owe my love of teaching technical skills to her.

Woo...that got long fast, I think you deserve a prize!

Because what blogger wouldn't love to create little mini bloggers in their classroom? In the scavenger hunt I included my blogging unit, while I use it as a way to teach digital citizenship and cyberbulling in a two-three week period you could easily use this across a semester depending on how often you have access to computers. And the best part is the blog site is free, easy to manage and kid safe!

Head on over to Miss Lifesaver's blog or Middle School OCD's blog and enter the Scavenger Hunt Rafflecopter. Everyone is a winner! My favorite teacher is: STONE.

Also be sure to also enter the Grand Prize Rafflecopter at Miss Lifesaver or Middle School OCD. The person that wins the Grand Prize will receive my $10 Starbucks Gift Card, because every teacher deserves a little treat now and again, along with many other fabulous prizes from some other very special bloggers.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Best of luck to all of you and I hope you enjoy the scavenger hunt goodies!

Who was your favorite teacher?

- The Babbling Box!