Good morning from the next generation of teachers

New Ulm High School student Brooklyn Wersal is no ordinary student. Instead of going to a classroom, she hits the door and heads down to Jefferson Elementry. She is greeted by Mrs.Rawitzer with a good morning and heads to the hall to help the fourth-grade students with their spelling words. She brings her own homemade flashcards and tries to create a fun game to make sure they stay engaged.

New Ulm high school students are taking part in the apprentice program. This program allows for senior students to go down to Jefferson elementary and work in a classroom for an hour. The students help out the elementary teachers by reading to students, helping grade papers, and working one on one with students. This program is led by Mrs.Longtin who meets with the students Tuesday mornings for a “progress/check-in” report.

The program gives the high school students a hands-on class working with younger students. In Wersal’s case, it opens her eyes to the teaching world as a future career. “I enjoy making the connections with the students. It gives me an opportunity to be one more person in their life to help them learn,” Wersal said.