Our November Teacher of the Month: Laurie Baker-Flynn

TOM_bakerflynnWe are ecstatic to announce that Laurie Baker-Flynn, an inspirational kindergarten teacher at Alvarado Elementary School is our November Teacher of the Month! Ms. Baker-Flynn has continued to amaze us with her innovative, caring, and dedicated style of teaching.

Ms. Baker-Flynn is always teaching the “little bears” in Room KL something new and challenging.  A typical day with Ms. Baker-Flynn looks like this: she begins her class by having students participate in yoga, dancing, or stretching sessions, then tells them the plan for the day. After this, little bears might learn math by baking cookies or pick strawberries from Alvarado’s very own garden to make jam. When it comes to reading and writing, Ms. Baker-Flynn encourages her students to write multiple books–all of which are published, and which all students get to take home. The possibilities are truly endless for the ingenious and thoughtfully planned curriculums that originate from Ms. Baker-Flynn’s classroom.

Aside from creative classroom activities, Ms. Baker-Flynn is notorious for her out-of-class activities as well. It’s hard to beat bird-watching at Crissy Field or observing works of art in San Francisco museums, but she managed to out do herself with an overnight camping trip for both parents and students to the Roy Hill Campground, which overlooks the San Francisco Bay.

She has earned the respect of parents, students, and staff alike because of her caring nature and understanding that all students have different learning styles. Parent Jennifer Dolan says that Ms. Baker-Flynn is open and receptive to accepting students who may have learning or social disabilities into her classroom. She “integrates these children into her classroom, along with their caregivers, to provide them an unparalleled quality of teaching. She also teaches the children without these disabilities how to be caring, gentle peers to the ones in need.”

While some students dread doing homework, Ms. Baker-Flynn ignites her students’ natural curiosity and love of learning. She is able to accurately “tailor homework so that students learn ‘real world,’ useful, and fun things.” This allows students to take pride in their hard work and their education. According to parent Michelle Meyer, through Ms. Baker-Flynn’s teaching, her students “love and respect themselves, each other, their community, and their world.”

We are so honored and proud to present this month’s Teacher of the Month Award to Ms. Baker-Flynn. The students and families of Alvarado Elementary School are lucky to have such an inspiring and caring educator. Congratulations, and keep up the amazing work!

If you know an amazing teacher you’d like to nominate, visit our Teacher of the Month page to see the submission guidelines.