Dyane Smokorowski
Advanced Language Arts Teacher
Andover Middle School
Andover, Kansas
Email: [email protected]
Class Webpage: http://mrssmoke.weebly.com/
Facebook: MrsSmoke
Skype ID: mrssmoke
Twitter: @mrssmokeAMS
Andover Middle School
Andover, Kansas
Email: [email protected]
Class Webpage: http://mrssmoke.weebly.com/
Facebook: MrsSmoke
Skype ID: mrssmoke
Twitter: @mrssmokeAMS
Dyane Smokorowski is the Region 4 secondary finalist. She is an eighth-grade advanced language arts teacher at Andover Middle School.
Dyane believes that making the world her classroom and sparking student interest for community activism are her greatest accomplishments in education. Each curriculum unit holds potential for real world connections. She and her students collaboratively research global current events and charitable organizations whose missions correlate to the themes of the novels being read in class. The students must use the information learned through their research for the betterment of their community or world. Dyane says, “Not surprisingly, this is where magic happens in my classroom.” Through these experiences, her students have connected to classrooms on all seven continents and with more than 30 experts ranging from the entertainment industry to the American Revolution.
Community service plays an integral role to project-based learning. Dyane and her students organized a drive to collect school supplies and gently used curriculum materials for an African orphanage in Nigeria to use in starting its own school. They also developed a website, written by teens for teens, to teach ethical uses of digital media.
Dyane says, “Without question, I know these personal experiences have shaped my students to discover their own passions and dreams.”
Dyane believes that making the world her classroom and sparking student interest for community activism are her greatest accomplishments in education. Each curriculum unit holds potential for real world connections. She and her students collaboratively research global current events and charitable organizations whose missions correlate to the themes of the novels being read in class. The students must use the information learned through their research for the betterment of their community or world. Dyane says, “Not surprisingly, this is where magic happens in my classroom.” Through these experiences, her students have connected to classrooms on all seven continents and with more than 30 experts ranging from the entertainment industry to the American Revolution.
Community service plays an integral role to project-based learning. Dyane and her students organized a drive to collect school supplies and gently used curriculum materials for an African orphanage in Nigeria to use in starting its own school. They also developed a website, written by teens for teens, to teach ethical uses of digital media.
Dyane says, “Without question, I know these personal experiences have shaped my students to discover their own passions and dreams.”