2nd Grade Teacher: Hannah
Today on the blog I have Hannah Mulqueen also known as mrs.hanna_mulqueen on Instagram. Hannah and I connected over Insta of course and I loved how sweet and kind she was. I knew she had to also care deeply for her students if she could be so kind to a stranger she met over social media. I also learned that she moves a lot due to her husband’s job and I thought this could help any other teachers out there who are in a similar situation. Here is Hannah’s interview:
1. What did you want to be when you were growing up?
Growing up I always knew that I wanted to be an elementary school teacher! I'm now six years into my career, and I couldn't be happier to be pursuing my dream job.
As a young girl, I would play "school" for pretend with my siblings and neighbors and have always adored children. I'm the middle child of five kids and both my parents are one of seven children. So I come from a large immediate family and a huge extended family and have many fond memories of caring for younger cousins.
Growing up, I did a ton of babysitting from infants through grade school age. I simply cherish being with kids on a daily basis as a teacher. Their imagination & energy keep me smiling, laughing, and learning right along side them.
2. Is there a moment that sticks out to you that you remember from school with a teacher you had growing up (can be good, bad, or both)?
Mr. Bricker from Hosack Elementary School in Allison Park, PA was my favorite teacher. I was in his fifth grade class and that year changed my outlook on school and myself for the better. That was the first year I was in the "high" math class (the years before I was in the "middle" class), and I was nervous but excited about qualifying to be in his class with all the "really smart" kids. The work was intimidating and challenging, but he didn't give up on me. He had faith in me and knew that with hard work and persistence, I could stay in his class. With his confidence in me, in addition to the help of my parents and two older siblings (who also had him for math; they set the standards high!), math become my favorite subject. I learned that I could do anything, including the challenging things, that I set my mind to and that it's ok to ask for help along the way. I emailed this teacher during my freshman year of college at Penn State. Here's the email I had sent him. I can only hope that I leave the same kind of positive mark on my students as he did on me.
From November 3, 2010:
"Hi Mr. Bricker!
I wanted to send you a note because in my favorite class (Human Development and Family Studies: Infant and Childhood Development) this semester, we have 'surprise' one minute papers. The professor asks a question and we have a short period of time to jot down our response. The other day, we had to tell who our favorite teacher was and explain what that person did to make them stand out from the others. You were my favorite teacher because you inspired me to do my absolute best. Even if something was difficult and challenging, you taught me that with a little hard work, I could do anything. Math has been my favorite subject since your 5th grade class, and I'm looking forward to taking a math course next semester. I'm still planning on majoring in Childhood and Early Adolescent Education, and I hope I can affect my students' lives in a similar way to how you changed mine. Hope you had a Happy Halloween! Thanks!"
3. How long have you been teaching, what do you teach, and what did it take for you to get there (I'm learning every state and teaching position can be different so I'm adding this question in lately for others to see how different places and positions have different requirements that can vary)?
I have been teaching for six years!
My first year of teaching was at Grays Woods Elementary School in Port Matilda, PA from 2010-2011. I taught kindergarten there. I had done a year-long student teaching internship in that classroom my senior year of college at Penn State from 2009-2010. I majored in Childhood and Early Adolescent Education and minored in Special Education. During my senior year, I conducted a teacher inquiry project (for the internship) and an honors thesis research study (for the Schreyer Honors college) entitled “The Effects of Whole Brain Teaching Strategies in the General Education Classroom.” During that internship, my mentor teacher had a baby and since I was a graduated student by that point in May 2010, I took over as the substitute for the last few weeks of the school year! I was SO excited to complete my first year of teaching in that SAME classroom since she decided to take the year off to be home with her first child. That was the greatest blessing securing a job for my first year of teaching in the same classroom I had spent the past year while doing an internship. I still am SO grateful I had that opportunity and began my career with such confidence because I was so comfortable with that space - every teacher knows that their classroom is their home away from home.
I moved to Colorado Springs, CO the summer of 2011 because my (now) husband had his first Air Force assignment there. I landed a first grade teaching position at Wildflower Elementary School from 2011-2014. The schools in the district had teachers departmentalize in order to become an expert in their content areas of focus. Over the 3 years, I taught reading, writing, phonics, literacy intervention, science, and social studies. When moving to Colorado, I had to take a test online at a facility in order to obtain my Colorado teaching license.
I moved to Destin, FL the summer of 2015 for our second assignment and currently teach math/science at Florosa Elementary School in Mary Esther, FL. In order to obtain my Florida teaching license, I thankfully didn't have to take a test but did have to pay and complete online paperwork to earn my Florida teaching license. Also, I am almost done taking online courses to earn the required ESOL endorsement.
I plan to continue teaching 2nd grade for the next two school years until we are supposed to move (somewhere in the US!) summer of 2022. Leaving here, I'll have eight years of teaching under my belt from three states and three grades! Teaching is a beautiful career as a military wife because I can pursue my passion wherever life takes us over the years. Kids are kids no matter where you go in the world! :)
4. What is your go-to tool you use in the classroom and why?
I'd have to say that my Smart Board is go-to tool. I've been fortunate to have a Smart Board in my classroom for my second through sixth years of teaching and absolutely love it! I make my lesson plans in Google slides. Google everything is my best friend as a teacher! I love that I can access it from anywhere (my laptop, phone, iPad, etc) and can "share" the slides, docs, or sheets with my teammates to either "view" or "edit." With a Smart Board in my classroom, I can so easily click through my plans while it's projected on the board. It provides a visual for my students and is very engaging with the different colors/fonts/pictures/etc, and it's interactive. I often put a reflection in the "notes" section of the slides, like what went well or what I need to alter for next time.
5. Is there anything you do to accommodate your students and how often do you find yourself using that accommodation?
At the beginning of each school year, I make sure to teach my students the Band-Aid analogy. While sitting in a circle, we discuss how if a student is bleeding, the student needs a Band-Aid, right? If another student is not bleeding, does that student need to get a Band-Aid too? Of course the students say no. We discuss how what students receive throughout the school year may look/sound different BUT EVERY student gets just what he/she needs in order to succeed. I love this simple analogy because I refer back to it throughout the school year when a student may ask why another student has something (like a Token Board for a behavior intervention) but they don't have it. Simply saying, "You're not bleeding, so do you need a Band-Aid too?" helps the students to remember that discussion and understand equality vs equity in an age appropriate manner.
I think the big thing I'll touch on are the students who receive accommodations for testing purposes. Since I departmentalize and only teach math/science, I have two sets of students and while taking assessments in the classroom, there are students who receive particular accommodations in second grade. These students sit at my kidney table for assessments while the other students sit at their desk. We typically take assessments weekly; some have more impact on the students' grades than others. Weekly assessments, which are a reflection of the mastery of grade level standards, help teachers to use that data to drive instructional steps to take next in order to meet the needs of the students. Teachers enter grades online and this year we could enter two types of grades. Category 1 were "yellow," short term grades were worth 30% of the child's grade, like daily and/or weekly grades. Category 2 grades were "green," standards-based assessments/projects and were worth 70% of the child's grade. These were assessments over increments of time to determine the progression of the mastery of the standards; a minimum of four were required for each quarter. Other accommodations, like a behavior intervention, is happening on a daily basis.
6. We have been chatting on Instagram and I think it sounds so fun and exciting that you are a military wife. Any advice for other teachers that find them in the same position of moving a lot?
I have learned that having everything (like lesson plans) digitally is SO helpful. Moving a lot means I don't want more "stuff" than I absolutely need to box up and haul across the country every few years. Also, when plans are stored digitally, it's SO easy to "search" your files for what you're looking for on a computer rather than flipping through and trying to find that one binder that had that one little thing in it.
From state to state, the grade level and content I've taught has changed and, of course, the standards I teach are different, but I have been able to use old plans and resources from year to year. For example, I taught science in first grade in Colorado and was able to incorporate some of those plans into my teaching of science here in Florida in second grade. I've noticed that students might learn about similar topics from year to year (like plants growing and animals' habitats) but the depth of the content varies as students progress through their elementary school years. In addition, having my content digitally makes it very easy to collaborate with colleagues and also makes it very engaging (colors, pictures, graphics, special effects) and helps me to stay organized.
7. Any advice for a new teacher?
Have a GROWTH MINDSET!
As a teacher, you will ALWAYS be learning and growing as a professional educator. Even after six years, I'm still learning every day. And that's what keeps this career fun and interesting! It would be so boring to know it all and just do that year after year. You have to be willing to learn and adapt. I mean, look how this school year ended! I still can't believe the last quarter of the school year was spent online through distance learning. That was a huge, unexpected change during these unprecedented times and all teachers/students/families/staff had to pivot and settle into their "new normal."
8. How has it been teaching virtually?
Teaching virtually has definitely been interesting! I, along with all teachers, missed being in the classroom with my students. Our district's motto during the unprecedented times was "compassion and grace." As a second grade math/science teacher, I felt like I was monitoring an online platform and communicating with parents more than I was teaching my students directly. I was able to provide suggestions for other optional learning opportunities, but the only required work was minimal, which is to be expected during a global pandemic. Teaching virtually like that is definitely not something I would want to continue any longer than is necessary! I was able to host Zoom calls once a week with my students, which gave the students an opportunity to see one another. My favorite themed week was a scavenger hunt! I shared my screen with my students and had a list of items for them to run around their house and grab during the three minutes I gave them. When the time was up, we went around and shared what we were able to find! :) Before teaching virtually and while teaching virtually, I continued to use Class Dojo; it's the easiest way to communicate with parents through the messenger feature and the Class Story.
9. A lot of people have been saying they hope things start to change in education since this Pandemic, do you think anything will change from it?
Our world will not come out of this pandemic the same. We will never return completely to our old normal. We are all experiencing a piece of history that will be written in textbooks, featured in movies, and discussed around dinner tables for years to come. I think educators are appreciated now more than ever before due to parents/guardians taking on the role and responsibility of helping their student continue to grow/learn virtually while safe at home. I hope we all come out the other side of this pandemic stronger and kinder than before.
10. Last but not least, where do you see yourself in ten years?
In ten years, I am not sure where "home" will be due to our military lifestyle! But I know that we'll continue to make the most of wherever we call home; we fill our time with endless adventures and live life to its fullest. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow and with us moving every few years, we have the mindset of living in the present and calling "home" wherever life takes us. I also hope to have 2-3 kids and would love to be a stay at home mamma for a few years before returning to my teaching career. While home, I'll continue to support my family through my current teach side gig of online wellness coaching with Beachbody. And before my teaching career is over, I would be honored and humbled to earn Teacher of the Year.
Thanks so much Hannah for this awesome interview!
As always everyone, Happy Teaching :)