Tennessee Education Lottery Educator of the Week: Stacie Carlton

HAYWOOD COUNTY, Tenn. — Stacie Carlton teaches second grade at Haywood Elementary School. “I want parents to know that when they drop their kids off with me in the morning, I’m going to love them the best they can,” she said.

This is the same place that inspired her to become an educator. “I grew up going to school in Haywood County and I had the best experience here. I wanted to come back and give back to my community what they gave to me.”

And she said giving back is her favorite part about teaching. “I love that my students are excited to see me in the morning and that their parents have a relationship with me.”

She chose to teach second grade for a personal reason. “My special teacher was my second grade teacher, Miss Annette Hill. When I actually first started teaching, we got to teach together for several years, so that was kind of neat.”

Carlton said communication with her students is the key to connecting with them in the classroom. “Oh, we do all kinds of fun things, brain breaks — I try to keep ’em up and moving during the lesson so that we’re not just sitting all day.”

Carlton will now be eligible for the statewide Tennessee Education Lottery Educator of the Month award. Starting in March, to vote for her or any of the other nominees go to seehowitaddsup.com.

To nominate a teacher for our weekly award, email us at educator@wbbjtv.com.