You might say that Jim Molenari, a fifth-grade teacher at Mill Creek Elementary, knows a thing or two about teaching. This week’s #TeacherTuesday was both a student and parent of two students in Central Bucks School District, and is now in his 29th year of teaching in the district.
Having been involved in National Board Certification has allowed him to appreciate the quality of teaching taking place in the district. “When you step back and watch yourself and others on tape you realize the number of decisions that you are making during every lesson,” he says. This experience has helped him to appreciate the impact that teachers have on students.
Jim’s classroom, affectionately called Molenariville, is a true learning community. As this veteran teacher notes, “In our world of standardized testing, it is easy to forget that we are teaching individual children, not subjects, and not test-taking. Each year I plan several trips for the students to build that sense of community.” Team building activities, an annual Turkey Bowl football game, community service, and a poetry recital at a children’s bookstore, all help to “make memories for the students in my class.”