The average teacher will impact over 3,000 students throughout their careers. 54% of students say a teacher helped them through a difficult time. 80% of students say a teacher has encouraged them to follow their dreams. 83% of students say a teacher has boosted their confidence and self-esteem.
Mr Reynolds is a new teacher at Bowling Green Junior High School. He is teaching eighth-grade social studies. Mr Reynolds is working to impact the students through social studies. Mr Reynolds wanted to become a teacher because he wanted to make a difference in someone’s life exactly like his teachers did for him.
He wanted to teach social studies because it combines every subject in a way, whether it’s English analyzing text and information, science working to solve problems as a society, or even Math understanding statistics and how numbers work. You learn and grow on these in social studies and he wants to teach the most he can. He has wanted to teach since high school and developed a passion for it in college.
Teachers face many challenges every day, making so many decisions that it’s overwhelming, not having enough time to plan materials, and they cannot individualize every student’s learning. Each teacher has around 125-150 students over five periods in a day. He tells us that it’s hard to keep everybody’s personalities in check, and It’s hard to grade so many tests and assignments. But he also tells us, “I would not change my job for anything in the world because this is the most fulfilling job I have ever had.”
His favorite lesson he taught so far was “Black Male Scholars, where we discussed the importance of Gil Scott-Heron and his influence on modern music like Kanye, Travis Scott, and conscious hip hop.”
One of his students, 8th-grader Eden Yeomans, tells us her favorite lesson is, “probably learning about Jamestown and Roanoke.” She also shared what she likes about Mr. Reynolds’s class: “He teaches a lot of information but in a fun way.” Another one of his students in eighth grade, Jaxon Ross, tells us his favorite thing he learned is, “The Events of Nine-Eleven.”
Now that you know about Mr. Reynolds, can you see how he’s making an impact? Whether it’s boosting their self-esteem, helping them through a difficult time, or encouraging them to follow their dreams, Mr. Reynolds is making a difference.
