Citrus Park Elementary Teacher Of The Year: "Star Polisher"

A poem, "The Star Polisher" by Leah Becks, is proudly displayed on Julie Gladden's desk, right next to her teacher of the year award.

It was what she read to her second grade class when she announced she had been selecteds as Citrus Park Elementary's Teacher of the Year.

"The poem captures exactly how I feel about my job as a teacher," Gladden said.

Gladden, who has taught at Citrus Park Elementary for the last 18 years, believes strongly in hands on learning and spends countless hours devising creative lessons to stimulate, as well as educate, her students.

As part of a unit on dinosaurs she created two enrichment activities that turned students into paleontologists for the morning. The students' job was to find bones that were scattered in a courtyard area and place the bones together to form a dinosaur skeleton.    

She taught them about excavation by handing out chocoloate chip cookies, toothpicks and plastic forks and asked students to "excavate" the chips without breaking the cookies. 

"She is one of those teachers who does amazing things on a daily basis," said Principal Joan Bookman.  "She makes them want to learn and they have a lot of fun in the process."

Gladden's classroom is filled with artwork, props and posters to encourage students to feel good about themselves and their accomplishments.   There is even a special desk for a "star student," which is earned through hard work and good behavior.

"She is beautiful and smart and always helps me with my work," said Keshawna, a student in Gladden's class. 

After a lesson on using adjectives, one of her students, Alissa, gave her a thank you card and wrote,

"... You are as sweet as a fireworks red strawberry, with an evergreen leaf and an almond brown stem."