Whitlock has a song in her heart for teaching
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“This is home to me now,” says Whitlock. “I love living here, and wouldn’t have it any other way. “
Kindergarten children are full of energy and fun, and a teacher can have such a big influence in their lives. That, to Whitlock, is the most important and most rewarding part of being an educator. She recalls a quote she heard at a conference she recently attended: “A child may not remember everything they’re taught, but they will always remember how you treated them.”
Said Whitlock, “They might not remember all their colors, but I want them to remember me and that I loved them. I just love the little ones. They’re babies, but they grow so much as the year progresses.”
Jill Stubblefield, who also teaches kindergarten at Morrison, looks forward to working with Whitlock every day. “Being a young teacher like she is, she has lots of new and fresh ideas,” said Stubblefield. “She is a wonderful teaching partner and I enjoy working with her. She’s very good with the kids.”
An example of this enthusiasm for alternative methods of learning is obvious as soon as you enter Whitlock’s classroom. “We put as much of the material as possible into song,” she says. “The kids love to sing, and they learn so much more through music without even realizing it.”
Keeping the class work fun is important, even though there is more taught in the earlier grades now. Whitlock’s class works on reading sight words, phonics, and quite a bit of the accelerated reader this year.
To aid the youngsters, she uses peer tutoring. The children have so many different levels of ability at this age, and peer tutoring allows the students who have mastered a certain skill to help others in their class who are still struggling with the concept. It promotes confidence as well as cooperation among the children.
If she were advising a new teacher, Whitlock says she would recommend doing as many classroom observations as possible before teaching. “It’s amazing,” she admits, “to see all of the things that we are supposed to do, but it’s just not possible. We can’t change everything, and we can’t do everything at once.”
One advantage would be to request a mentor teacher. “I was very lucky to have the people here at Morrison. They’re all so great, and it’s so important to have someone you can turn to for any questions you may have.”
Bridget says her family is her life, and she likes to spend all of her extra time with Brent and their children, 3-year-old Will and 8-month-old Reagan.