By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Rene Burns, a second-grade teacher at O'Loughlin Elementary School, knows what it's like to have difficulty learning.
She struggled in school as a child and now searches for inventive strategies for her students to learn in their own ways.
"I struggled in school. I was not a good student," she said. "I was very active. School was hard. Even through high school, test taking was difficult. I just got really nervous.
"I wanted to make it easier for kids. I feel like I am a good teacher because I went through that,"she said. "I experienced what it is like to be nervous and also be wiggly and want to move.
"It is my mission. I want learning to be fun and engaging and let students know that even though it's hard it's something they can work through and be successful."
Burns, who is in her 13th year as a teacher at O'Loughlin, was nominated for the Hays Post Teacher of the Month by parent Emily Breit.
Breit said in her nomination, "My son likes going to school, and when I pick him up from school and ask about his day, he will say, 'I had fun! We learned a lot about …'
"As a parent you want nothing more than your child to 'want' to learn. "
Breit said in her nomination Burns achieves this by providing numerous engaging learning activities for the students, and she provides videos or photos of these activities to keep parents engaged and aware of what their kids are doing at school.
Breit gave the example of a book the students made prior to Thanksgiving. They wrote paragraphs on 10 things they were thankful for and then drew pictures to go with those paragraphs.
"The love that she has for each of the kids in her classroom is so evident with the extreme amount of time she devotes to them," Breit said.
Burns said she was disappointed her students did not have the opportunity to participate in their spring economics lesson. The children make hand-crafted items or offer services and then sell them in a market to fellow classmates, who buy them with play money.
Burns drew much of her inspiration as teacher from her mother, Brenda Easter, who still teaches fourth grade in Rene's hometown of Harper. She also engages the children with many hands-on activities, such as hatching chickens.
However, Burns got her start in teaching by teaching dancing. She said dancing helped her build confidence.
Burns resurrected O'Loughlin's “Morning News” video program. The videos have included social emotional learning lessons on topics such as integrity.
As students have transitioned to virtual learning, Burns has continued to offer the Morning News. She has collected photos of students studying at home and added them to the videos.
She said she loves being around people, which has made the COVID-19 quarantine difficult.
"I love the people. I love the people I work with," she said. "I feel O'Loughlin has my heart."
Burns acknowledges virtual teaching has been difficult. She has her own children at home she is teaching and she said she misses seeing her students in person.
"The COVID-19 saying is that we are all in the same storm, but we are using a different boat," she said. "I feel like mine has a hole in it and there is a shark waiting to get me."
She further used the boat analogy to describe learning.
"We are all trying to learn the same concepts, but the way we learn it is a little bit different. Our boat to success looks a little differently," she said.
Burns said she really enjoys working with students.
"They are all brilliant in their own ways and the way they think," she said. "I love that every learner thinks differently. ... I am fascinated about how the mind works."
She gave examples of how some children can do math in their head. Others children need to draw a picture. Other students need to learn through movement.
"I like the challenge of presenting the information in different ways," she said.
Burns is working on master's degree at Fort Hays State University and was asked to develop a philosophy of leadership. She said building relationships is key.
O'Loughlin has a looping model. Teachers have a class of students for two years instead of one. Burns will have the students she has this year for second grade again next year for third grade.
"With the looping, they become like my babies," she said. "I feel very much like they are a part of my family. I worry about them, and I celebrate when they do wonderful things."
Burns said she likes taking on children who are struggling with behaviors.
"I think my students get that I am a genuine person and I share a lot of my vulnerabilities," she said.
Another huge part of her classroom is knowing it is OK to fail and that growth comes from failure, Burns said.
"If we had easy things to do all day long, we wouldn't learn and we wouldn't grow," Burns said. "Failing is just part of it. Either laugh as a strategy to move on from it or sit back and reflect and think what went wrong. How can we fix this?"