|
|
|
Deborah
Thompson,
Excellence in Teaching Awardee
 Stinson
Elementary School
First Grade Team Leader
Philosophy
of Teaching
Educational/Professional
Background
School
Principal Comments
Philosophy of Teaching
I believe it is my responsibility as an educator to provide a safe,
stable environment for my students. My students trust
me to treat them with respect and to help
them learn to treat each other with respect. I strive to build a feeling of
community in my classroom by allowing students to participate in making decisions
that affect the class, encouraging students to be responsible for classroom
maintenance, and teaching students to help each other and be empathetic. Providing
opportunities for parents to be involved in the classroom also contributes
to a feeling of community spirit.
It’s also important to laugh and enjoy
each other every day. I try to build relationships with my students by sharing
my life with them. They all know my favorite color is blue, that I love chocolate,
and they ask to see the new pictures of my granddaughter. They invite me
to their soccer games and birthday parties and know I genuinely care
about what
happens in their lives.
Within this safe environment, I set high realistic
expectations for my students. They work to earn a “Q” for
quality work and know I will not accept anything
but their best effort. Students need to know that you will help them
meet their goals and that making mistakes is part of the learning process.
It is my responsibility to find the method, techniques,
or materials
to allow my
students to be successful and to use diagnostic assessment to assist me in
planning for the specific needs of each student.
During the last decade, teaching methods and approaches to learning
have been changing based on the amazing research
that is being done on the brain and
how children learn. Teachers today need to be lifelong learners in order to
apply
this new knowledge in their classrooms. I have been fortunate, during my tenure
with the district, to be given the opportunity to stay at the forefront of
educational trends through district training and also to take on many leadership
roles.
During
my career I’ve conducted over 200 hours of district in service, served
as team leader for 19 years, piloted software programs, and worked as a member
of the Integrated Curriculum Design Team for five years. This was an amazing
experience! I taught at Mendenhall in the morning and worked at the Curriculum
Design Center in the afternoon. My time at the Curriculum Design Center was
spent writing curriculum, designing software, and training district teachers
on curriculum
and on the use of technology. I’m currently a district trainer for
Cognitively Guided Math Instruction and serve as co-leader of the Writing
Vertical Team
charged with implementing a new Kindergarten and First Grade writing program.
There
are many rewards in the field of teaching; the light in the eyes of a child
who realizes they are reading “all by themselves,” creating
the perfect lesson to touch that “hard to reach” student, letters
from parents thanking you for enriching the lives of their children, and
whose heart wouldn’t
melt when a six year old hands you a little love note written with a crayon
on a paper heart!One of my favorite notes said, “Mrs. Thompson you
are my best teacher, you make me work hard but you let me sharpen the
pencils.”
I have been a teacher for almost half of my life and I am
thankful everyday that I work in a profession I love and also have had
the opportunity
to impact the
lives of the children I welcome into my classroom each day. Children
of this age are so eager to learn and so willing to trust. My goal
is to have
them
so excited about learning they can’t wait to come to school each
morning. As they leave at the end of the year you can hear them say, “We
were the best class Mrs. Thompson ever had.” I believe every year
is the “best.”
Educational
/ Professional Background
Education
- 1973 B.S. in Education (Elementary), Eastern
New Mexico University, Portales, NM
- 1981 Kindergarten
Certification, University of Texas
at Tyler, Tyler, TX
- 1987 Master of Education (Early
Childhood, PreK - 2), University of North Texas,
Denton, TX
- 1994 Gifted and Talented Certification,
University of North Texas, Denton, TX
Work Experience
- 2000- Present
Plano Independent School District, Plano, Texas,
First Grade teacher/team leader
- 1984-2000
Plano Independent School District, Plano, Texas,
Kindergarten teacher/team leader
- 1981-1983
Dhahran Academy, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Kindergarten
teacher/team leader
- 1981-1983
Albriton-Carden School, Tyler, Texas, Kindergarten
teacher
- 1973-1981
Substitute teaching experience in Austin, Texas,
Seattle,
Current Job Description with PISD:
Other Leadership Experience
- Currently serving as a district trainer for
CGI (Cognitively Guided Instruction –
Math)
- Conducted building professional development classes
in the use of Microsoft
Publisher, Kid Pix, and Wiggleworks software
- Team
Leader for past eighteen years
- Planned and conducted
breakout session at CAMT State Math Convention
- Served
on the district Kindergarten Learning System
Adoption Committee
- Served on the Math Textbook Adoption
Committee and represented this
group on the District Math Textbook Adoption
Committee
- Developed curriculum to be used by
district kindergarten teachers working with
Talent Pool Students
- Developed assessment materials
for use in all district kindergartens
- Assisted
in the development of Advanced Placement Test
for district Kindergarten
students
- Supervised several student teachers
- Served a five
year term on the District Based Improvement Committee
- Piloted
Wiggleworks Language Arts Software which was
adopted and is being
used in district kindergarten, first and second
grade classrooms
- Trained district first grade
teachers who piloted the Wiggleworks Language
Art
Software
- Piloted software developed in conjunction
with the district Integrated Curriculum
Project
- Served as PACE grade level teacher for eleven
years
- Committee chairperson for Mendenhall Elementary’s
Web Page Development
Committee
- Chairman of the Technology Vertical Team
for Mendenhall Elementary
- Chairman of the Language
Arts Vertical Team for Stinson Elementary
- Planned
and conducted building in-services involving
technology, guided reading,
Wiggleworks and Integrated Curriculum
- Worked as
a member of the Kindergarten Integrated Curriculum
Design Team for
five years during which I taught at Mendenhall
in the morning and worked at the Curriculum Design
Center
in the afternoon. My time at the Curriculum Design
Center was spent writing curriculum, designing
software, and training district teachers on curriculum
and
on the use of technology.
- Planned and conducted
over 200 hours of Professional Development Training
for
district employees (these hours included training
on Integrated Curriculum, technology hardware and
software, classroom management, planning, multi-tasking,
guided reading and writing, and classroom environment)
- Assisted
in planning and conducting a session at the Technology
Summit for Education held at University of North
Texas
- Assisted in planning and conducting Early
Release training sessions involving math,
language arts, technology and TAAS analysis
- Assisted
in training at district New Teacher In-Service
- Worked at the PISD Job Fair
- Served on the district
committee charged with developing the Technology
Skills and
Competency Curriculum Guide
- Wrote the district Kindergarten
Math Curriculum Guide and assisted in the writing
of
the second grade guide
- Assisted in the writing of
the PISD Kindergarten Curriculum Guide
- Coordinated
and chaired the Bilingual Kindergarten transition
team
- Wrote activity manual for integrating the
use of Kid Pix software into the
Kindergarten and first grade curriculums
- Assisted
in planning and implementing Mendenhall TAAS
Writing Handbook
- Served on Leadership Teams for
Mendenhall and Stinson Elementary Schools
School
Principal's Recommendation
It is a pleasure to recommend Deborah Thompson,
first grade teacher and team leader, for Plano’s
Experienced Teacher of the Year. Debbie Thompson
is an incredible educator. I see her as an exemplary
model of the 21st century professional. She makes
a difference in students’ lives, serves as
a role model for team and campus colleagues, and
is a leader in district staff development. Mrs. Thompson
has a stellar reputation in this district. You can
imagine how thrilled I was five years ago when she
agreed to come on board as first grade team leader
and to be an integral part of the core leadership
team of a new school.
Debbie Thompson is an outstanding master teacher.
She always puts the welfare of the children first.
She sets the stage for every child to be successful.
She believes in her heart that every child can and
will learn. Debbie creates a classroom atmosphere
charged with enthusiasm. Creativity abounds in her
classroom. She knows the curriculum inside out. She
has the uncanny ability to understand where each
child’s academic, emotional, and social needs
lie and she uses that knowledge to plan and organize
amazing lessons. Children grow by leaps and bounds
in her class. They leave her class in May as very
confident and secure readers, writers, and problem
solvers.
The students adore her. They shower her with love,
hugs, drawings, and stories. She gives them much
confidence and inspiration and they in turn are so
eager to please her. Debbie Thompson has a marvelous
reputation in our community. Parents often compliment
her teaching skills and her dedication to their children.
Mrs. Thompson is a born leader. She has built a
dynamic first grade team. High expectations, mutual
trust and respect, and the belief that all students
will learn is its guiding force. She is respected
and well liked by our staff. She is flexible, cooperative,
and shows a willingness to share ideas. Debbie will
do whatever it takes to get the job done and never
says no to a new, challenging task. Her own thirst
to learn and grow finds her always searching for
new and better ideas. This has made her instrumental
to our campus leadership team. She guides us in book
studies, chairs vertical teams, and helps us become
more technologically literate. Debbie often develops
staff development sessions for grade level teams,
parents, and our campus. Plano ISD frequently uses
Debbie’s talents in curriculum writing and
teacher training sessions.
Debbie Thompson inspires and energizes me! Each
week I sit in on her team’s planning session
and marvel at how she continually brings out the
best in other people. I leave those sessions wishing
that I could be a teacher on her team! Debbie Thompson
is an advocate for making learning relevant, fun,
rewarding, and personal. I believe that this dedicated
professional epitomizes every quality that anyone
would hope to find in Plano’s Experienced Teacher
of the Year!
Sincerely,
Barbara Salamone, principal
|
|
