Mrs. Kayla Timberlake, a teacher at Armuchee High School (AHS), has recently started teaching an Advanced Placement(AP) Environmental course after the old teacher left. Mrs. Timberlake has taught this class before, but not at AHS. Kayla Timberlake, the new AP Environmental teacher, said, “I have taught regular environmental science for nine years, so taking the concepts deeper with an AP class is even better.” Not only is Mrs. Timberlake eager to teach these concepts in a deeper way, but her students agree that she ensures their understanding of it as well. Lacey Williams, a student taking AP environmental, said, “She makes sure to thoroughly go over the material. If someone doesn’t understand, she’ll go over the topic in another way.” Despite the fact that Mrs. Timberlake is teaching a new class; she always goes back and reviews if the class, or even a certain student, needs it.
This class, just like any class, has its teaching struggles, and Mrs. Timberlake is not an exception to these challenges. She said, “Gathering materials and finding enough class time to do all the activities. I want to do has been unexpected.” However, even though she has not gotten to do all she wanted, students have been learning and growing in the class already. Krish Patel, an AP environmental student, said, “Mrs. Timberlake has already helped me grow throughout the class through various activities such as labs we did.”
Just a few examples of these labs include an Island Biogeography lab using bird seed, natural selection represented by beans, and ecosystem services chalk drawings. Mrs. Timberlake may feel like her activities were not sufficient, but other teachers and administrators believe that she will teach these students valuable information and habits. Administrator, Mrs. Ashley Flagello, said, “ She will one hundred percent prepare them in many different ways. The material itself, study habits, and how to handle an advanced academic class.” These beliefs not only highlight Mrs. Timberlake’s ability to teach the material, but her ability to discipline the students and help them grow.
Her students and fellow staff believe she has excelled so far in teaching this class, even though there are struggles with preparations and time to do activities. Despite the struggles of teaching this new class, Mrs. Timberlake is always happy to teach it. When asked how she felt about the new class, Mrs. Timberlake said, “Excited! My undergrad degree is in the environmental science field, and we get to go outside a lot which is fun.” Teaching this class has obviously given her joy, but it goes farther than just going outside that makes her happy. While teaching the class is an overall joy for her, she also enjoys stressing to her students the subjects of the class. Mrs. Timberlake says, “I am grateful that I get to stress the importance of this to students so that they can hopefully share it with others.” Mrs. Timberlake shows that despite the hardships that might arise, she still takes many joys in the class. Her students can also tell she enjoys the class due to the environment she creates with her joy. Krish Patel said, “I enjoy this class because of the environment Mrs. Timberlake creates.” This highlights her joy for teaching and how it shows in her teaching abilities, and this uplifting environment makes her students enjoy this class even more
Based on the opinions of her students, Mrs. Timberlake is a great candidate for teaching this class. Krish Patel said, “She is great at teaching, and she always finds a way to make her students feel well taught.” Mrs. Timberlake has already shown to her students that she is a great person to be teaching AP Environmental, but she also explained some of the ways she feels prepared to continue being a good candidate for this class. She said, “Hands-on concrete experiences make the concepts easier to understand and visualize.” Her excitement for this class, and her belief that these experiences aid in her student’s learning show that she will always make sure that they understand the concepts before moving on. Another one of her students, Lacey Williams, said, “She is a very organized person, and it shows in her teaching abilities.” Not only is Mrs. Timberlake teaching them the materials in an organized manner, but according to Mrs. Ashley Flagello, she is preparing them for their futures. She said, “If your plan is to major in Biology, AP Environmental and AP Biology are a huge step in having a head start in the right direction.” Mrs. Flagello believes that Mrs.Timberlake is giving these students a head start, and her students think she’s doing a great job teaching them so far. This is a final detail that is based on the opinions of others: Mrs. Timberlake is a great candidate for teaching this class and is doing well so far.
Mrs. Timberlake’s new AP Environmental class has so far been thoroughly enjoyed by both herself and her students. She has navigated the hardships of this class, and still made it a great learning environment for her students to learn. Mrs. Timberlake explained that AP Environmental has gone well so far, and her students and administrators believe that this class will surely continue to succeed with her as the teacher.
