Simply put, without Mrs. Snyder as my mentor teacher my first year at Rise, I probably wouldn’t have grown, and I most likely would have quit teaching.
She instilled in me the skills necessary for me to succeed. Having taught in Vegas the previous year, and having to the deal with the trauma of Nathaniel Hanna’s departure quarter 1 of my first year, I mostly blamed kids for their bad behavior. At the end of the day though, she helped me question whether it was my management that led to those behaviors. In the end, it probably was. She was honest with me, and told me what I needed to improve upon, and without that cruel honesty, I wouldn’t have gotten better.
She was perky, she was friendly, and she should have stayed in the classroom as far as I’m concerned. She’s a loving mother, a kind friend (although always busy), and a brilliant mind.
She advocated for me when I wanted to quit. She was my biggest defender my first year when I mostly felt like I was on an Island. After all, I was the only teacher teaching both Technology and History, and pulled a million different directions (with my grade level chair at the time not helping), while simultaneously having to deal with belligerent students who didn’t listen to me. She questioned me when I said I would teach to the middle of the class, and challenged me to do better. She was disappointed when I showed a movie during SBAC testing to my Technology students. That look of disappointment stuck with me, as I vowed to never let my students down again.
Even though she’s gone, a piece of remains with me, and I hope to make her proud by continuing to aspire to be a better teacher for all my students. People are meant to cross paths for a reason, and because of her, I have been changed for good.
