Feature Teacher: Heather Hovey
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Heather Hovey began her career as a latchkey supervisor (an after-school program supervisor). She taught in a Head Start program for five years before taking time off to raise her two sons. She returned to teaching at a cooperative preschool and in 2012, she began working in the Great Start Readiness program in the Dundee Community School District, in Michigan.
What is something important a child has taught you?
Resilience—no matter what your life circumstances are, you can always have a smile on your face and a skip in your step.
What is most important in your classroom?
Making sure every child feels safe and valued.
How do you show children that you value them?
By really listening when they speak, having intentional back and forth conversations, and encouraging children to share their thoughts and ideas. Spending quality time with them is how children feel the most valued.
How do you build on children’s individual and family strengths, cultural backgrounds, and experiences?
Before the school year begins, an assistant teacher and I learn about the children and their families through home visits, and we use that information for planning. We also invite families to be a part of our classroom and to share their experiences. As far as individual strengths, we are always taking notes, and we use those notes to make our whole group and individual lesson plans.
How do you communicate with children’s families?
We make sure to have conversations with families at drop-off and pickup times. It’s nice to have face-to-face conversations. We also have two home visits and two parent conferences each year. However, our most effective communication has been through our closed (invitation-only) Facebook group. We post pictures and videos of our day, which allows families to have great conversations at home with their children about what they did that day.
Future Goal: To become more educated about the effects of childhood trauma on brain development and how to serve those children more effectively.
What do you do when things don’t go as planned?
Often, the best and most teachable lessons come out of things not going as planned. I find the best route is to roll with it and find that teachable moment. For example, one school year we had a group of children that loved to make and play with slime. I found a new slime recipe, but I didn’t try it out before making it with the children. It was a disaster! I was feeling flustered when one of the children suggested we try to add different ingredients. We graphed our trials and errors and ended up with a hands-on science experiment the children were proud of.
Words of inspiration:
“I am enough of a realist to understand that I can’t reach every child, but I am enough of an optimist to get up every morning and try.” — Preston Morgan
Favorite children’s book:
Owl Babies, by Martin Waddell
Why didn’t someone tell me?
That you can’t please every family all the time, but you can’t take it personally. Do your best, be authentic, and let the negativity go.
When I knew I had to teach:
I began my career as a latchkey supervisor and realized that my favorite part of the job was interacting and playing with the children. This inspired me to work toward a career where I would have my own classroom.
My teaching style in three words:
Compassionate, playful, fun.