Lauri Hawkins – Garland Elementary School

Mrs. Hawkins is one amazing Teacher!

My son started in her 3rd grade class in December of this year. Her class was already full but she was still willing to take him on anyway.

When my son first entered her class he was struggling with reading and spelling especially. His self esteem was low and he was very hard on himself about making mistakes. She patiently told him “It’s ok to make mistakes, because that is how we learn. You are a smart kid and you can do anything you set your mind to.” Within the first week he was coming home happy and was constantly telling me “I had a great day, Mrs. Hawkins is the best teacher ever!”

I’ve noticed if he has a test or assignment where he doesn’t score as high she writes little notes on his papers. She doesn’t just mark it wrong and hand it back, she explains why something was marked wrong, and what he can do the next time to get it right. When she does notice improvement she is quick to write notes of praise to him pointing out his success. She keeps parents involved by sending out a Hawkins Gazette each week to parents to let them know details on homework and what they are working on in class. She also has a Hawkins Store, where the kids can buy prizes with points they’ve earned for turning in homework on time.

At his last parent teacher conference I noticed my son was not only happier in her class but had jumped ahead 2 reading groups, and had gone from one of the lowest spelling groups to the highest spelling group in his class.

Today my son received a card in the mail from Mrs. Hawkins addressing him by name and saying, “I just wanted to write you a little note to let you know how proud I am of you. You have been working so hard in school and I can tell you are doing your very best! Keep up the good work. ”

Love Mrs. Hawkins I’m so grateful to have such a great teacher in my son’s life. When I told him I was nominating her, he said “If I could mom, I would nominate her too.” 🙂

-Christy Christensen