TUSD Teacher of the Year is Georgette Theotig
TUSD Teacher of the Year is Georgette Theotig
By: Joy Gray Mazzola
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Posted by editor Tue Nov 30, 1999 00:00:00 PST
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0 responses 0 comments As acknowledgement of Georgette Theotig’s unique brand of educating, she has been named Tehachapi Unified School District’s Teacher of the Year for 2006 and is among 34 teachers county-wide to be nominated at the county level.
Theotig, a fifth-grade teacher at Cummings Valley Elementary School, began her career in Tehachapi in 1971 after graduating from the University of Redlands.
“I’ve always loved learning and nature,” she said. “And I want to inspire that in other people.”
Cummings Valley Principal Dave Spencer affirmed Theotig’s strengths and impressive value in the classroom.
“Georgette Theotig is truly doing what she loves,” he said. “She has the ability to make learning come alive to her students.”
Two examples stand out.
As part of the study of the riparian, or riverside habitat and the cycle of life of the trout, Theotig obtained trout eggs that she and her students have watched hatch and grow in a tank in the classroom over a six-week period. The lesson will culminate when her students, and those from another classroom, set the 235 tiny trout free in the wild waters of the Kern River.
“It’s really sad for us to see them go after we’ve watched them for so long,” she said.
Encouraging her students to dress in costumes from the 13 colonies is another way Theotig brings required learning home to her students.
“We dressed up and went to a local restaurant for a colonial tea,” she said. “One of the parents’ made “mop hats” for the girls, similar to the hats worn in colonial days. They also wore long skirts and shawls. The boys wore tri-corner hats and rolled up their pants to look like breeches. The students were also required to use colonial etiquette during the tea.”
She said her students still wear their hats on a daily basis when studying history in the classroom.
“Georgette will be irreplaceable when she retires from teaching at the end of the year,” Spencer said. “She will be greatly missed by the staff and students at Cummings Valley School.”
Theotig said she is in awe of Cummings Valley staff members.
“Although this recognition is a big moment for me and a wonderful surprise, I work with a great team of teachers at the school and the district and so many of them deserve the same honor.”
The 2006 Kern County Teacher of the Year will be announced at the Kern County Teacher of the Year awards reception on May 16 at the Kern Count Museum on Chester Avenue in Bakersfield.
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