My first impression of Ms. Navarro was 'WOW, she's tough!" Her class was quiet and there wasn't any shenanigans going on when she was present. I was very intimidated of her. She came off as a very powerful and independent woman. I did NOT want to get on her bad side. Because of the issues I went through at the time, I felt like a complete screw up after subbing for Ms. Navarro's class. I'm pretty sure whatever she had planned for me to teach that day had to be re-taught. I don't think I had a positive first impression. She must have thought I was an idiot.
One thing I learned from Jessica was her no nonsense teacher voice. When a child half-assed a writing piece or slacked off on a math problem, she called them out on their bullsh*t. She used a voice that is hard to describe. She never yelled. Her tone hinted at her disappointment. It made the student feel bad for not doing their best. They learned not to screw around with their work. When I subbed for other classes, I tried 'the voice.' It worked brilliantly. You can see how quickly a child would get their act together.
I began to know Jessica on a more personal level when she started working with Daniela and Rita as the 2nd grade team. We discovered that we all had the same sense of humor and bonded quickly. She would then introduce me to a Wizard, a Mr. Kevin Bortfeld. Kevin's a person that is full of wisdom and always has an interesting story to tell that's related to any topic of discussion.
I am grateful to have welcomed both into my life. Because of Jessica Navarro and Kevin Bortfeld, I am now…
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