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THURSDAY, APR IL 30, 2020 • KOKOMO TR IBUNE / PHAROS-TR IBUNE
BY ADAM GILBERT
KOKOMO TRIBUNE
T
he buildings have closed due to
the COVID-19 pandemic, but
school is still in session.
Educators like Tipton fifth-grade
teacher Jessica Hendricks are still
doing all they can to provide powerful
and impactful lessons to enrich their
students’ lives.
Teaching was always Hendricks’
dream as she came from a family of
teachers. She credits being creative and
performing as part of the reason she
enjoys the profession she chose.
“I know that sounds like it doesn’t go
with teaching, but I like making con-
nections with other people,” she said. “I
like connecting with my students. I like
being able to share information.”
Hendricks channels her love of
performing into a unique aspect of
her class, bringing the lessons to life
through immersive experiences and
costumes. Active in the community
theatre, Hendricks puts that passion
into her classroom. She’s donned a full
crown and wig when portraying the
king during the Revolutionary War due
to a desire to connect the lesson and
make it more real for the students.
“I do all the things in my classroom
that the king did to the colonists,” she
said. “They have to pay tax on paper.
“It’s about making those connections
real, I don’t have a single kid in my
class that’s going to forget paying taxes
on their worksheets.”
Although she can’t physically
immerse the students in the lessons
from online learning, Hendricks has
found a way to keep the fun lessons
going. Since starting the e-learning,
she has begun filming videos for her
class to watch on YouTube that still
bring characters to life.
Hendricks also added another love
into the classroom to benefit the
students and give them a worldly
understanding. An avid lover of travel,
Hendricks said she wants her students
to have a greater sense of the world
beyond the four walls of the class-
room.
To help with her education vacation
aesthetic, Hendricks has a flight menu,
has the students put their jackets and
bags in airplane gates and instead of
a daily agenda, uses an itinerary. All
of this bundles together in Hendricks’
theme of “finding joy in the journey.”
“It’s about having fun and happiness
and joy even when we have to teach
double-digit multiplication that day -
and nobody loves that,” she said about
relating the theme to each day. “Some-
times when you’re traveling you have a
flat tire or things don’t go as you plan,
but how you handle those and choose
to find joy – it’s the same in the class-
room.
“You may not love social studies, but
it’s probably going to happen.”
What keeps Hendricks going each
day is the love for her students, despite
the bad reputation students can some-
times get.
“People talk about how kids have
changed, but I like their sense of
humor. I like seeing their faces as
they connect new information and
solve problems,” she said, adding
that e-learning has been hard since
she can’t personally interact with her
students.
Hendricks noted there have been
some emotional times for teachers and
students alike during the e-learning
due to the school year being completed
at a distance. She had one student cry
about only having so many days left
and not being ready to be done yet and
added the kids won’t see her anymore
since they are changing buildings to
the middle school.
She also said she’s sad the kids
missed out on events they had been
looking forward to like track and field
day, picnicking with police and a field
trip to Marengo Cave.
Hendricks said the kids are doing
alright despite the situation. Recently
she spent the day checking in and
calling many of her students. One
student became emotional because she
didn’t realize how much she missed
Hendricks until she called.
Hendricks said her students’ success
is important to her and encourages
them from the start. In her class she
keeps an antique high school diploma
from the 1930s hanging on the wall of
her classroom. She tells kids her goal is
for them to receive their diplomas and
to invite her to their graduation parties
so she can celebrate with each student.
While it can be hard to stay positive
in these times, Henricks uses her
students as motivation to keep pushing
and making sure they get the best edu-
cation possible.
“We’ve got to keep going because
number one, that’s what I’m asking
from the kids,” she said. “I need my
kids to keep going. We have 10 days to
go. We can do this. I’ve got 10 days to
go – I’ve got 10 videos to make.”
KEEPING KIDS LEARNING
Teacher gets creative in the classroom
Photo by Tim Bath
Teacher Jessica Hendricks
channels her love of performing into a unique
aspect of her class, bringing the lessons to life through immersive experiences
and costumes.
