Tennessee Education Lottery Educator of the Week: Brooks
This video is no longer available.
DYER COUNTY, Tenn. — It is now time to introduce you to this week’s Educator of the Week from Finley presented by the Tennessee Education Lottery. Amanda Brooks’ fifth-grade class shows a combination of care and comfort in getting her students to succeed. “I absolutely love being with my students all day,” Brooks said. “I like to hear what they’ve got to say, like their viewpoint on things. I like to know with teaching that I am making an impact not just on their fifth-grade year.” “I work really hard on citizenship so they’ll go out into the world and be better citizens,” Brooks said. Brooks, a teacher at Finley Elementary School for the last several years, is an alumna of the University of Memphis and William Woods University, where she earned her master’s degree. “My mom was a librarian when I was growing up, and she always showed me what a huge difference a teacher could make in a child’s life,” Brooks said. “If you can help one child, that can make a huge difference. So that inspired me to get my degree in education and pursue this career.” Brooks says she tries to show her students they can achieve and go anywhere they want as long as they put their mind to it. “I want them to know that their education can take them far beyond the boundaries of this town,” Brooks said. “They can do anything, they can go anywhere. The key to success is in education.” Brooks also likes seeing her students be a change to something in the world, and that is the most important thing she tries to teach before they head off to junior high. “I like to be the kind of teacher, even though in fifth-grade they leave me and go on to junior high, every year we have a reunion,” Brooks said. “We all meet back together before they move on to high school and discuss key values that they may need in the real world.” Brooks will be eligible for the state-wide Tennessee Education Lottery Educator of the Month award. To vote for her or any of the nominees, go to seehowitaddsup.com. To nominate a teacher for our weekly award, email us at educator@wbbjtv.com.
