As International Women’s Month comes to a close, it’s an apt time to recognize the amazing women who make up the staff in Amador. Though this year has been a struggle for all teachers, many have really put their effort in to make sure that students get the most out of their quarantine learning. 

Nevertheless, teachers and staff have adapted to new learning requirements, and have effectively made this a remarkable and memorable experience!

“I think … what I pull on is human experience. And I’m a pretty social person. So I … have to work in an environment that engages human beings in a way that’s really not natural, and [unlike] anything that I have experienced much in life. That was probably the most challenging part” stated Delise Anderson, World History and Economics teacher. 

Mrs. Anderson also noted that “[it’s been] hard for me to let go of … content and skills that I know, [and that] I really want to teach my students to make time for building … connections and conversations in a way that I’m very much not comfortable with.”

Even though teachers have had a hard time engaging students in an all-online environment, they really tried to adapt to their new surroundings and many ended up learning new skills to help better their teaching. 

“I’ve learned several new ways to incorporate technology in teaching that I’ve never used before. There are some teaching methods I learned this year that I … want to keep and incorporate in our classroom even when we can all see each other in person. In past years, much of the learning was communicated verbally and not always captured in an enduring digital form that students could go back and review later. Providing students with more varied ways to learn and review information is helpful” acknowledged math teacher Gauri Reyes. 

Due to the differences in teaching and learning this year, teachers have been going above and beyond to help students learn the materials. 

“I know that this is a difficult year for a lot of people and that some of the technology is new or different or unexpected, so I feel like it’s really important to be able to be flexible and roll with things… It doesn’t help anybody to be too too rigid while everybody’s trying to make all of this work” agreed Stacey Sklar, an English and Comp Civics teacher. 

“When I became a teacher I was told “if you aren’t having fun, neither are your students.”  and I live by that. I love my job more than anything, and I love my students as if they were my own children, and when you are in my classroom you are with family” said math teacher Marisa Mejasich. 

These mentalities are present in each and every teacher and staff at school, and it is what makes Amador such a harmonious learning environment. Happy International Women’s Month!