TEACHER'S CORNER: TEACHING A DREAM FOR WASHINGTON INSTRUCTOR

One of Teresa Seyer's sixth-grade students at Washington School seemed concerned about his teacher being overworked her first year in the classroom.

"Only thinking of me, I'm sure," Seyer said, "a student approached me with his new teaching tip: `Miss Seyer, I'm concerned about all these papers that you have to grade. So to make your job easier, I'd be willing to do less homework.'"

Seyer isn't too concerned about being overworked. In fact, she's delighted to be in the classroom.

"The role of an educator is crucial and it has been a lifelong dream for me to take on that responsibility," Seyer said. "Now that I'm teaching, I've found it to be everything I hoped it would be and more."

Teaching sixth-graders can be a challenge, she said. But Seyer is a firm believer in assertive discipline, a technique she has found to work.

"I try to focus on positive things," Seyer explained. "I give out many certificates and rewards for academic achievement, individual progress in grades, behavior, attitude, kindness anything positive."

Teachers must reach all types of children, Seyer said.

"I want to create in my students a belief in themselves," she said. "If a teacher believes in her students, then they learn to believe in themselves.

"It's gratifying to see a child feel good about himself or herself. It may not be a direct result of academics, necessarily, but may stem from certain behavior that deserves credit or any combination of the two."

Students in Seyer's classroom compete in a drawing once every two weeks for a reward. They receive tickets for any number of successes being polite, being a good listener, having a good day or a positive attitude, working cooperatively with a classmate. The number of tickets entered in the drawing is unlimited, thus encouraging positive behavior.

Seyer said she also seeks a lot of student input in the classroom.

"For example, the prizes that we give out for the ticket drawings are all ideas from the children," she said.

"We hold class meetings once a week to work out any problems or to discuss new ideas. And we have a pet hamster named Martin. The students take care of him just as they promised to do," Seyer said.

"I've found that they will work harder if they are directly involved in the decision making."

Seyer graduated in May 1992 with a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Southeast Missouri State University. She is the daughter of Joe and Frieda Seyer of Cape Girardeau and is the youngest of eight children.

She is a member of the Missouri State Teachers Association, the Community Teachers Association, Kappa Delta Pi and St. Mary's Parish.

In her spare time she enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading, dancing, volleyball and music, especially singing.