sabercat chronicle
"A PLACE FOR GREATNESS"
Teaching Math at any school level is an involved position that requires patience and a commitment to helping each student achieve success at an appropriate level, but do we really know our math teachers? Or is there more to them than just being a math teacher. Throughout this interview, we will let you see a glimpse of our teachers’ perspective in life and who they really are.
-Angelica Joyce Mesa
The Unity of the Mathematicians
Mr. Carrell,
There are a lot of things we don’t know about Mr. Carrell, like the fact that he played a saxophone for 8 years or that bonding with his family means playing Pokemon Go. When asked what he liked the most about teaching, he thought for a second before giving a brief answer, “Probably seeing the ‘a-ha’ moment the student gets in their eyes when they understand the concept and when they can make their own connection from what they have learned and what they are learning now.” Furthermore, he believes that to motivate his students into becoming an active learners in his classroom he, "Continually ask questions.”
For the remaining months to follow, Mr. Carrell envisions that the biggest challenge that will happen will involve mainly on filling out all the paperwork for academic defiance forms or other new concepts that the staff are trying to implement to the school.
Mr. Nuttall,
As interviews go, Mr. Nuttall was smooth sailing. We hit it off with Mr. Nuttall by reflecting on his accomplishments in life, “I graduated from Brigham University Idaho with a Bachelor Degree in Sociology and Statistics, a certificate in Criminology, and a minor in Russian.” A person with this many achievements would not be expected to be a teacher now. He has lived in Ukraine, was a New York police officer, and worked for Scenic County Sheriff Department. Being a part of this department made him realize that, “I wanted to help kids more. Since I already had my fair share in math in my bachelors, I have decided to help kids with math.” One funny thing about him is his nickname, “Русский or russkiy”, which means Russian. He concluded that, “Some people think I’m a Russian spy because I have all this training and stuff like that. Its just a fun thing.” One thing is for sure, he has a pleasant personality, is easy to talk to, and gets along with everyone.
Mr. Perales
Now, if you want to create an orchestra, I suggest you go straight to Mr. Matthew Perales, a.k.a” P-man” or “Dig” from “mad diggity dog.” Not only has he played the viola since 1992, but he was a part of the Central Arizona Symphony Orchestra. On a typical day, Mr. Perales would be seen either reading a book or writing something, but you’ll never find him in a crowded place, as he expressed his discomfort being in big crowds. That’s not the only thing interesting about him, Mr. Perales was also an English teacher.
Mr. Perales views school as a challenge not like any teacher would. He went on to talk about his teaching career, “I like that everyday is different and I never know what to expect when I come to school.” As far as classes go, he voices out that, “Well this is my first year teaching, so not knowing how the whole class fits together by the end of the year is one of the challenges.” As the school year goes on, let’s hope to hear more from Mr. Perales.