Second-year teachers are usually still finding their footing in the challenging field of education. And when the career starts in kindergarten, it’s even more daunting. There are no such concerns for Burlington Elementary’s Kacey Day. She brings unbridled enthusiasm to the classroom.
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“She’s well organized. She’s well-versed in teaching literacy and how it impacts students, and she does a fantastic job. She’s innovative, and she has major energy. She loves students. She builds excellent relationships with them, and she’s just a very well-rounded teacher,” Burlington principal Beth Grim Jennings said.
“Seeing the kids make the connection when that light bulb comes on—that they’ve learned something and I’ve had a hand in teaching them—that’s something that is just so rewarding to me every day. Some of these kids come into kindergarten and have never even seen the alphabet, and then by the end of the year, they’re reading words, reading books. So it’s really rewarding to see that I’ve had a hand in that,” Burlington Kindergarten teacher Kacey Day explained.
Burlington is a Title I school, which means it helps students from low-income families succeed academically. But the children’s backgrounds, their experiences, and their exposure to education can be wide and varied. That adds to Day’s degree of difficulty on a daily basis.
“So you kind of have to spend that first little bit learning them and learning where they came from and where they’re at. But then, once I have learned that, I do some small group instruction and really individualize their instruction during that time to hit those missing spots that they need really hard,” Day explained.
“Seems to be one of her gifts, right? That she can take the child wherever they are, at whatever level and really connect with them and engage with them in a way that really makes an impact on their learning too,” Blue Eagle Credit Union Senior Brand Specialist Laurissa Thompson explains.
Day and Burlington Elementary each receive $250 from Blue Eagle Credit Union as a reward. Day said good day or bad day, everyone gets a clean slate every day, including herself. What a refreshing attitude!