“Growing up, I had an incredible first-grade teacher who made school so much fun, and I fell in love with learning,” shared Tamara Smith. “After that, all of my teachers influenced me in some way or another. When I student taught at Elizabeth Fonde Elementary School, Mrs. Gatlin was my CT and made me fall in love with Kindergarten.”
Ms. Smith graduated with her Bachelor’s in Elementary Education from the University of South Alabama in 2019. She currently teaches Kindergarten at Fonde Elementary and is pursuing a Master’s in School Counseling from the University of West Alabama.
“I love Kindergarten and don’t see myself teaching anything else. I have so much fun. I can use my creativity in lesson plans and other activities throughout the year,” Ms. Smith said. “Using creativity and making learning more fun is very helpful for a lot of my students because this is their first time in school. I try to make lessons more relatable to my students, and we do a lot of real-life connections.”
By building relationships with her students, Ms. Smith is also able to help establish trust and even spark her students’ commitment to their education. You can often spot her attending after-school or extracurricular activities just to watch her. She even schedules morning meetings with her students if they want to fill her in on anything.
“One of my students was a very stubborn child. He would refuse to do his work, even if he knew how. He invited me to one of his football games but didn’t think I would come. Of course, I showed up, and he had the biggest smile ever,” shared Ms. Smith. “He came to school the next week, talking about it to the other students. After that, he worked so hard to pull up his grades that he became one of my top students and a fluent reader. This experience showed me what showing up for my students could do for a better learning environment.”
When her school year comes to an end, Ms. Smith hopes her students leave her classroom knowing that they can accomplish anything. With discipline and hard work, their dreams are within reach.
Tamara Smith is originally from Opelika, Alabama. She has been teaching for six years. When she isn’t at work, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, photography, and reading a good book while drinking tea.
