Chidimma “Chidi” Uche
Second-grade teacher
Jamestown Elementary School, Arlington
Years teaching: 5
I would like for all of my children to become expert yogis. They can do yoga to release or to calm down. It’s for them to clear their own minds.
Our children are tremendously stressed. There’s a lot of pressure on them and very little time for them to do things like play, which is so developmentally necessary. Teaching yoga isn’t just about the stretches; it’s the practice of mindfulness that’s important, too.
We have a nature nook. This is a real pufferfish. This is a moose skull. Once, the younger sister of one of my students found an abandoned wasp’s nest and gave it to me for our nature nook. I forgot it in the copy room, and there was an email: “Did someone forget a wasp’s nest on the copy machine?”
We also have a peace-out corner. It’s not punitive nor consequential; a child chooses to go there. A lot of times they’re upset about something—if a divorce is happening at home or a sibling was mean to them at breakfast. Sometimes I’ll put a tissue box in there and let them have their moment.
One of my favorite days is the day we come back from winter break. They are all full of hugs and they’ve grown so much.
In our hearts, we know they’re going to be okay. But some people don’t believe it will happen without constant micromanaging.
A big focus we had this year was making them feel proud of their writing. We had a huge publishing party for a project we did with Randolph Elementary called Read Across Arlington. The kids publish their own e-books. That’s the whole idea, that they’re a published author. It’s beautiful.
Children are very overbooked. They have so many tremendous expectations upon them. To just stop and listen to them is all they need sometimes. –Madelyn Rosenberg
Wayne Hogwood
Head football coach, Wakefield High School
P.E. teacher, Long Branch Elementary School, Arlington
Years teaching: 13
I teach every student at Long Branch. That’s about 500 kids between the ages of 4 and 12 that I get to see twice a week. By the time they’re in fourth or fifth grade I can read their body language. I know what makes them tick and what upsets them.
My favorite games at school are Capture the Flag and Trash It, which is a combination of kickball and basketball. I play flag football for fun on the weekends.
I spent my first eight years of coaching football at Yorktown. I was also teaching P.E. at Jamestown Elementary at the time, so I had a group of fourth- and fifth-grade students who eventually played for me at Yorktown. That was a great experience. I got to know the kids and their families. Those relationships made the kids more willing to play a tough sport.
There are more similarities than differences between high school and elementary school students. I say the same stuff: Try your best. Worry about things you can control, like your effort and your attitude. We tend to forget that high school students are still kids and they’re going to make mistakes. We assume a kid is more mature because he’s 6 feet tall and has a beard, but he’s still just 15.
I was a quarterback at Wakefield and went to Shenandoah University. I was 22 when I first started teaching. I have more patience now, but I come to work with the same level of enthusiasm.
I grew up in the neighborhoods where most of my players come from—Nauck and Claremont. I’ve walked in their shoes. I’ve been in the same school, had some of the same teachers. I have been on that field. I have literally done what they are going to do.
As a coach, I focus on developing student athletes who are good citizens with strong character. Life is more important than just football. Not everyone can be a pro athlete. We must prepare them to be good, understanding members of society. –Lisa Rabasca Roepe
Elinor Scully
Head of school (K-8)
The Langley School, McLean
Years as an educator: 28
Kids who are supported in their emotional maturation do better in school. They’re growing not only academically, but also with more confidence in who they are as a person.
You have to create moments to learn who your students are—intellectually, socially, physically and emotionally—and who their families are. This creates trust and impacts learning in a profound way.
If you can get students to feel confident and engaged from the earliest years, you can almost ensure that their high school and college years will be successful.
There is so much joy in a relationship-based learning environment. Last year I saw a girl crying on the last day of school. I thought something had happened so I went over to her. She said: “Summer is soooo long.”
People often think of adolescence as a time full of angst, drama and self-consciousness. But there’s also a real spirit of curiosity and openness to new ideas and experiences. It’s a time that really deserves celebration.
I encourage students to advocate for their ideas starting young. If they want a new water fountain, they write me a note: “We’re hot; we need to be hydrated.” I haven’t yet figured out how to get a vending machine that sells hummus and carrot sticks, but they have me thinking.
Kids today are pushed to do more, earlier. The best advice I give parents is just to slow down and focus on some of the simpler things. But it’s understandably hard to do this, given the pressures to afford children as many enrichment opportunities as possible.
The question we’re always asking is: How do we make sure childhood isn’t getting rushed or hijacked, so that kids can just be kids? You only get to be a third-grader once. –Madelyn Rosenberg
Brian Bersh
Director of bands and music department chair
Yorktown High School, Arlington
Years teaching: 7
As a music teacher, I develop a rapport with my students that spans four years. Witnessing their progression is remarkable. As they mature, they are able to truly emote through music. They are able to do more than “just play the notes.”
It is a special moment when a student performance moves an audience to tears, or inspires them to get up and dance.
Talent is not a strong predictor of success in the music program. Students may have varying levels of aptitude, but the strongest indicator of success is practice. There is no cramming in music. Achievements are no accident.
I particularly enjoy teaching composers whose music captures a part of the American spirit. Sousa and Ellington are two D.C. natives whose musical contributions are part of the fabric of America.
As teachers, we care. Students carry all these stressors—college applications, tests, grief, social pressure, emotional stress—and it is hard to see. Music can provide a relief from the stress and the ability to express emotions in a healthy way.
I’m never more idealistic than when I head back to school in the fall after having the summer to recharge. The past few summers I have attended workshops through Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City and Music for All in Indianapolis. I play a bit of everything, but I’m trained as a percussionist.
Music participation increases the activity between the hemispheres of the brain, which can lead to effective and creative problem solving in other academic and social contexts.
Students get the most out of their school experience when teachers and parents work together. If parents and teachers are on the same page, the students perceive that they are valued—and that what they are doing in school is valued. –Lisa Rabasca Roepe
Lacey Gandy
Fourth-grade teacher
Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, Falls Church
Years teaching: 9
There’s never enough time to be the teacher you know you can be. So many outside variables come into play. The kids are what’s most important. It’s not the end of the world if 25 of the 50 emails I get each day go unread or I don’t respond to them.
I’m building a classroom community of Gandylandians. In Gandyland, kids feel welcome, safe to make mistakes and free to be themselves. I let them choose where to work, who to work with and how to demonstrate their knowledge.
Children haven’t changed but the influences on children have changed. We cannot fathom what the world is going to be like when our students are adults. This makes it hard to educate for the future. We do know that technology is going to be part of that world.
Has technology altered how I teach? Yes and no. The kids come in expecting something fun, fast, snappy, easy and quick, and that is not what education is. Learning is hard and it’s laborious. But I do put less emphasis on lower-level thinking when the information is available online. And I allow students to create with an array of [tools] that show their understanding. They are creating videos, 3-D printing and are collaborating through Google Drive.
I always knew I wanted to be an educator. I don’t think my mother [Lorraine Gandy, a retired Arlington Traditional School teacher] influenced my decision, but I do think that subconsciously I am very much like my mom in the classroom. We both understand how theatrics can hook and engage students. This year she visited my class as a guest reader. One little girl turned to me and said, “She’s just like you.”
I love all the hugs and fist pumps I get. The classroom is sometimes like a three-ring circus, sometimes like heaven and sometimes like Comedy Central. It’s a great place to spend eight hours of your day. –Lisa Rabasca Roepe
Eric Berman
Special-education teacher and minority achievement coordinator
Swanson Middle School, Arlington
Years teaching: 5
At the start of the poetry unit in my English class I always ask, “What do you think about poetry?” Usually the answers are “that’s boring” or “I hate poetry.” Every year, by the end of the unit, we’ve had to extend it; they don’t want to stop.
Spoken-word poetry is all about finding a way to express yourself—to share your own story and your own truth. My students latch onto it in a way they don’t with anything else.
I try to incorporate things into my classroom that aren’t part of a regular [general education] setting. They’ve been doing the same thing over and over and it hasn’t worked. Why deal with the same strategies?
One of the main goals as a teenager is just not to be embarrassed. I need to build a relationship with the kids before they will let themselves feel vulnerable and be okay putting themselves out there. It’s all about finding what makes that kid click. Every day there’s an aspect where they have to share a part of themselves.
From my students, I’ve learned that every day really is a new opportunity. Just because Tuesday is the worst day in the world doesn’t mean you can’t come back and start over the next day.
In May we organized a field trip to see congressman [and civil rights activist] John Lewis. He introduced himself to every single kid. They were glued to him and his story. They all found a unique way of connecting with him.
Everyone has unlimited potential for growth. The power of knowing that another person believes in you is huge. If I can spend five minutes talking to a kid and seeing the progress they’re making, that easily makes up for the extra paperwork or meetings I don’t enjoy.
I want my students to know that their voices matter. They have something to say and people want to hear it. –Madelyn Rosenberg