Golden Apple Award: Becky Frick

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Becky Frick teaches kindergarten at Hawthorne Elementary in Albuquerque Public Schools. As the Grade Level Chairperson and Early Childhood Leader at Hawthorne, she leads weekly meetings at which teachers collaborate on instructional strategies, techniques and materials.

In addition Frick serves as a district math trainer and a Math Recovery Specialist. She has also achieved the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards Certification. Selection team members described her teaching as “never missing a moment to teach” and noted how her well her very young students took responsibility for their own learning, moving from interest center to interest center in the classroom with a clear and independent understanding of the activity to be accomplished at each center.

“Our yearly food drive and Junior Achievement lessons make a difference in the lives of my students," said Frick. "Three years ago, after a Junior Achievement lesson about the story Charlie Plants a Garden, my students wanted to help our community by collecting food to donate to the local food bank. I arranged the details between our school and the food bank. The entire school community donates food and brings it to the boxes in front of my classroom. Then the kindergarteners count and graph the food items collected daily by each grade level. My students could not wait for math time to count the cans, write number of food items donated on 100s charts for each grade level, and figure out the daily total. We saw other students, parents, and teachers studying the graphs, too. The quality of student work and daily attendance improved significantly. When Bobby could not remember the next number to write on the 100s chart, he went into the classroom, got a number chart, and explained, “I need to be sure that I am writing the right number. This is important!” This real life activity made math come alive an showed the students that math is important in our daily lives. They had their first taste of community service and realized if everyone gives a little, we can help provide food to many people in our community. Hopefully, this lesson will be a springboard for other volunteer activities in their future.”