Teacher of the Week: Casey Spesard, fifth grade, Salt Fork South Elementary, Sidell
Mar. 28—When Casey Spesard accepted her first job at Jamaica Elementary School shortly after the 2005 school year began, the Eastern Illinois University graduate only had a week to put together a room for her new fifth-grade class.
"I had never been more scared, nervous and excited all at once," she said.
Almost two decades later, she's still at the same school, which is now named Salt Fork South Elementary School.
"Ms. Spesard has been a fixture in the way we handle math education in the elementary," Principal Brian Allensworth said. "She has taken it upon herself to be one of the leads in the area of mathematics and works tirelessly to make sure her students understand the important concepts. Her passion for math comes through in her teaching and the work she puts in with the students she sees every day."
I find my work important because ... I get to be part of a team that shows up every day and puts in 110 percent for our students at Salt Fork South. As a teacher, the most rewarding thing is celebrating your students' successes, big or small. Being there to share your students' joys with them, to laugh at something funny with them, or sometimes to even just let them laugh at you. It is even better when you work with a group of people that will go along with any crazy idea for our students because they care more about them then they do their own humility, they celebrate your students, and you get to celebrate theirs. We are who our students spend most of their day with. Knowing their past, current and future teachers are a team and are all always showing up for them every day lets our students know how important not only their education is but how important they are to each one of us.
I became a teacher because ... I wanted a career that made a difference in our society. I wanted a career that could make an impact on someone or maybe somewhere in this world, even in our small community. I wanted a career I would be proud of.
My favorite or most unique lesson that I teach is ... I have so many. Math has always been my favorite class. I love numbers and all the things we can do with them. I enjoy teaching the kids fun ways to remember how or why they do certain rules with different operations in math. We just got done doing one of my favorite chapters where we say over and over again, "keep it, change it, flip it." By the end of the chapter, the kids are laughing at me because I am a little animated with our phrase, but they have it embedded into their minds. Adding laughter into our lessons is a very common thing in my classroom. I will have kids start fifth grade telling me math is their least favorite subject, and by the end of the year, they are saying it is their favorite subject.
My most fulfilling moments on the job are when ... you are able to make an impact on their life or behavior or attitudes in some way. A student smiles at you and tells you thank you for something simple like letting them read in an old claw-foot bathtub you have in your classroom. You listened to them during a really hard time, when they didn't think anyone else was listening and that makes a huge difference to them. Seeing past students come back to your classroom, just to visit you. Sometimes it is the simple phrase of "you were my favorite teacher" from a student you wouldn't have expected to hear it from that reminds you that it isn't your own opinion that matters, it is theirs. This career allows us to have so many fulfilling moments that I think it would be impossible to pick just one.
I keep students engaged by ... I walk around the class and talk with the students and see how they are doing. I give them different types of praise and forms of encouragement. I offer them a variety of ways to do things, or opportunities to try different approaches to things. They get to discuss their opinions and hear feedback from their peers. I switch things up, so we don't get stuck in a rut doing the same thing. Surprises are a good thing!
Something else I'm passionate about is ... my kids. I have a son, Hayden, and daughter, Harper. Their activities are my passions, from school athletics to raising show pigs and going to livestock shows. I would not trade any of it.
My favorite teacher and subject to study in school was ... My favorite teacher was Mrs. Eleanor Means, my first grade teacher at Chrisman Elementary. She wanted neat handwriting, good behavior, no talking and white milk drinkers. If you could follow those rules, you would get a skittle from her jar that sat on her desk. While that seems strict and maybe silly, she was also the teacher who at that very young age made me realize I wanted to be a teacher. From first grade on, I can recall playing school at home all the time. I wanted to have a classroom just like her, skittle jar and all.
If I weren't a teacher, I would be ... a travel agent. I love to visit different states and countries. I am a planner and always make sure I make the most of any trip. I would love to share that with others who want to travel.
— ANTHONY ZILIS
