TEACHER'S CORNER: TEACHER WATCHES KIDS GROW

CHAFFEE -- Fifth- and sixth-graders at St. Ambrose School are compiling a "growth capsule" to measure the changes that occur over the school year.

Their teacher, Susan Ramsey, said the activity helps youngsters realize how quickly they are growing and changing, but that's not all.

"I like this activity because the students use several math and science skills without even realizing it," she said.

Students measure their height, shoe size, arm span, head circumference, hand length and reach. Ramsey takes a full-length photograph of each student.

"Once all the information is compiled I will put it away, not to be opened until the end of the school year," she said. "At this time they will measure themselves again and compare the information to their figures taken at the beginning of the school year."

This is Ramsey's third year teaching. She earned an associate degree from Shawnee Community College and a bachelor's degree from Southeast Missouri State University. Her area of specialization is mathematics.

She and her husband, Stacy Ramsey, live in Cape Girardeau. She enjoys reading, especially biographies and autobiographies, and cooking.

At St. Ambrose, she teaches fifth- and sixth-grade homeroom and seventh- and eighth-grade mathematics.

"I have always wanted to be a teacher," Ramsey said. "When I was young I used to pretend to be a teacher with a younger neighborhood friend as my student. I loved making and grading my own tests. Although the novelty of grading papers has long since worn off, I still enjoy being the teacher.

"My favorite part of my job is getting to know the children's special and unique personalities. I like having fun with them and making them feel as though I am not that much older than they are. I still enjoy watching the same television shows and listening to the same music as they do.

"I feel as though I have a very important job to do as a teacher. It is an honor for me to be a part of these young people's lives, even it if is for a relatively short amount of time. I am learning just as much if not more than my students are learning. They have taught me so much."