Watch VideoPueblo teacher builds confidence in students
Andy Koen
Sometimes as a teacher, the compassion you bring to the classroom makes just as much of a difference as any teaching method. That seems to be the case with fourth grade teacher Michelle Meier from Belmont Elementary in Pueblo. She's the Teachers First award recipient for January, 2008.
Meier knows that her students at are at an age when learning and development move fast, and it's easy for them to get discouraged and feel left out.
"There's nothing that I wouldn't try to help those struggling kids,” Meier says. “Any little hints that I've picked up from workshops or picked up from other teachers or sometimes from the kids too.”
Meier values one-on-one time with her students believing that a deeper connection sparks a greater interest in learning. "I think that's really important that you do that with your students that you don't just know them on the surface, but that you know things about them and you learn what they're about."
The extra attention seems to give her students the confidence they need to grow, and they're not shy in telling people that they appreciate it. An enthusiastic Russell Palumbo proudly predicts he will be “an A plus student” when he gets to middle school “because of my wonderful teacher Mrs. Michelle Meier."
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