Teachers

KBAY Teacher of the Month

Nominate teacher for KBAY’s Teacher of the Month

Click here to see who was named KBAY’s Teacher of the Month in prior months

The KBAY Teacher of the Month for September is Shirley Veloro, who is a kindergarten teacher at Christopher Elementary School in the Oak Grove School District. Shirley has taught at Christopher for eight years. Shirley has a Bachelors degree in Psychology from UC Davis, and a Masters degree in Educational Leadership from San Jose State University. Shirley will receive a Teacher Innovation Grant for her classes from the Silicon Valley Education Foundation.

Shirley says of her school and program, “Christopher Elementary School is located in South San Jose and is the oldest school in the Oak Grove School District. My bilingual kindergarten class is made up of 20 students who are all English Language Learners. These students learn all their academic subjects in Spanish and receive daily English Language Development. As they progress through the grades, the amount of English instruction in the academic subjects increases, until they fully transition out of the bilingual program in 4th grade”

When asked what she liked most about being a teacher, Shirley replied, “I help shape the future lives of my students. My students start the year with a vastly limited school experience. They do not know how to read, write, nor do math. Sometimes just being able to get along with other kindergartners can be a challenge. However, by the time the school year ends, all of my students are readers and writers who have grasped the basic concepts of math; they have also learned how to cooperate with each other and resolve problems with peers. It is so exciting to witness these transformations! Even after years of teaching I am still in awe of what my students accomplish. It gives me pleasure knowing that I play a role in the development of skills that they will use for the rest of their lives. At the same time I am honored and humbled to know that parents entrust me with the responsibility of being their children’s first guide through school.”

Shirley will use her SVEF grant to purchase a music system for the Ballroom Dance Project at Christopher School, an after school ballroom dance program that she designed. “The program is a year-long course for 4th, 5th, and 6th graders that will integrate physical, social, and mental learning through ballroom dance. Students in this program will be exposed to, and learn about the art of dance; they will have the opportunity to express themselves creatively; they will appreciate that learning can be a fun and rewarding experience; and they will develop social and life skills. Students will learn six dances (swing, waltz, salsa, cha-cha, tango, and foxtrot), including dance vocabulary, history, and social etiquette. In addition, students will keep an ongoing dance journal where they can reflect on their development as dancers and as individuals, and communicate their thoughts.”

Shirley says that the biggest challenge she face every day in teaching is, “making sure the required more rigorous learning standards are met and completed within the limited amount of time students are in class. Though kindergarten classes at my school are already on an extended day schedule, it often feels like I am pressed for time and there are many days that I cannot get through everything in my lesson plan book. With the strong pressure to meet testing goals statewide, students are being required to reach higher standards than ever. I am teaching my kindergarten students material that used to be considered 1st grade level. Not only must they learn this material, but they must also demonstrate that they are proficient at it.”

“One way I deal with this challenge is by explaining to the parents that they are teachers, too. I ask them to be my partners in teaching their children at home during the school year. I show them the kindergarten goals and standards and describe how I will be working with their children at school. Then I train them in ways that they can support their children’s classroom learning at home. By involving parents in the educational process, they see the value of being active participants in the schooling of their children. The parents become more empowered, the students benefit from spending quality time with their parents, and I can continue forward with teaching the more demanding required standards in the classroom.”

Congratulations to Shirley Veloro, KBAY’s Teacher of the Month for September.