Submitted Article
OSWEGO, NY – Carol Carroll is in the Oswego City School District Teacher Spotlight for the final month of the school year.
Carroll has been a teacher at Fitzhugh Park Elementary School for 16 years.
During her tenure at FPS she has been the enrichment teacher and has taught first, second and fourth grade.
She is currently a sixth grade teacher who concentrates on all core area subjects with all three sixth grades. In addition to teaching at FPS, Carroll also acts as a facilitator each summer for the Keystone Center in Colorado at their teacher trainings for Climate Status Investigation.
Additionally, she is part of the team of web – developers who work on the StudyZone that is available on Oswego.org
Carroll grew up in Oswego and earned her Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education (N – 9) with a concentration in science from SUNY Oswego. She earned her Masters in Literacy from Oswego and has continued to take graduate courses and has earned an additional 90 hours.
When asked what the favorite part of her job is, Carroll responds, “My favorite part of my job is the students. I love learning and teaching the kids new things.â€ÂÂ
A visit to Carroll’s classroom found actively engaged sixth graders who are truly enjoying their science lesson for the day. All students have an active role in the lesson on “Creating their own Crayons.” The lesson was a culmination of a Green Chemistry Unit that found the students working in small groups to create at least four crayons of four different colors for their group’s ‘company.’
The students were excited about using the many types of technology that are available in Carroll’s classroom and displayed a level of comfort when using it.
Carroll has always provided support and encouragement of her students’ efforts.
She has truly put together a ‘recipe for success’ with her science lessons.
“Science is real in my classroom. Students are taught concepts that they apply using the scientific method along with critical thinking. Students are engaged in labs and hands-on experiments that make learning interesting and fun,†she said.
In addition to being hands – on and engaging Carroll’s lesson is also a vocabulary – rich example that models good and appropriate use of subject – specific terminology including: paraffin, tempera, soy, additive, vybar, stearic acid and scent.
Her lesson titled ‘Striving for Perfection’ is a wonderful example of  cross – curricular planning as she has artfully woven the areas of social studies, math and language arts into her students’ work.
She is excited about the opportunity to use all types of technology in her classroom.
Carroll noted, “Technology is part of my instruction. The Smart Board is used to display the DOL daily (morning assignment). I also use the Smart Board for science and ELA lessons every day. Students are taught how to use Word, Publisher, and PowerPoint programs. They use Word to word process their writing pieces, Publisher to make a career book, PowerPoint for their presentations. They also use the computers in the lab for FASTTMath and the Internet for research.â€ÂÂ
She continued, “Technology makes instruction rich and engages all learners.â€ÂÂ
During the summer, Carroll enjoys going to the beach and golfing while in winter months she enjoys downhill skiing. One of her favorite things to do is to take a vacation somewhere new and explore the area.
Carroll and her husband, Phil, have four children: Philip, Nicole, Stephen, and Courtney. She has one daughter-in-law, Lisa Carroll, who owns and runs a dance studio in town and one son-in-law, Frank Freebern.
Her grandson, Austin, is the newest addition to the family and Carroll said “I’m lucky, all my children live in Oswego and I get to see them daily. My parents along with my four brothers also live here.â€ÂÂ
For all that she has done to integrate technology into her classroom and to educate, engage and excite the sixth grade students at Fitzhugh Park Elementary she is being recognized as our 2008 June Teacher Spotlight.
missing or outdated ad config