Meredith Cheetham and Sonja McKay, science and mathematics team teachers at Exploris Middle School in Raleigh are this year’s outstanding K-8 Educators. For the past four years, Meredith Cheetham and Sonja McKay have guided their students drawing upon each teacher’s strength while demonstrating to students that greater outcomes are achieved through collaboration, not in isolation. When asked to describe their teaching partnership, Ms. Cheetham and Ms. McKay explain they team teach by shifting into a variety of roles including teaching, guiding, supporting, and intervening. Students have two teachers constantly applying academic press and encouraging a rigouous and supportive learning community. Their teaching philosophy is “Talk less, do more” and each day their classroom routines engage students in small group problem solving where students are pressed to discuss, reflect upon, and improve their understanding of mathematics content. Their science instruction is driven by the analysis of current global issues. Each quarter they teach a thematic unit that integrates science and technology with social studies and language arts. At the end of each thematic unit, students complete group projects that offer innovative solutions to local and global issues.
Meredith Cheetham and Sonja McKay, science and mathematics team teachers at Exploris Middle School in Raleigh are this year’s outstanding K-8 Educators. For the past four years, Meredith Cheetham and Sonja McKay have guided their students drawing upon each teacher’s strength while demonstrating to students that greater outcomes are achieved through collaboration, not in isolation. When asked to describe their teaching partnership, Ms. Cheetham and Ms. McKay explain they team teach by shifting into a variety of roles including teaching, guiding, supporting, and intervening. Students have two teachers constantly applying academic press and encouraging a rigouous and supportive learning community. Their teaching philosophy is “Talk less, do more” and each day their classroom routines engage students in small group problem solving where students are pressed to discuss, reflect upon, and improve their understanding of mathematics content. Their science instruction is driven by the analysis of current global issues. Each quarter they teach a thematic unit that integrates science and technology with social studies and language arts. At the end of each thematic unit, students complete group projects that offer innovative solutions to local and global issues.