As library/media specialist at Carrie Busey Elementary School in Savoy, Mandee Crow sees students evolve through the books they read. In her three years on the job, she has worked to curate those choices while teaching kids to ingest information in a variety of ways.
The Bloomington native began her career teaching in Normal for three years, and she’s spent the last 10 at Carrie Busey, where she taught second grade for three years before moving on to her current role.
I find my work important because ... being a teacher is the most important job there is. Educating the future generation is what keeps that world turning. I started teaching in the primary grades where students make the most growth in reading. Watching a child go from only knowing the letter names and sounds to being proficient reader was such a special experience every year. Now, in the library, I get to take that a step further and focus most of my energy on igniting the love of reading in my students. Additionally, especially with third through fifth grades, we work on being kind online, researching skills, evaluating sources for credibility and bias, and citing our sources. All of these skills are critical for students to have in order to thrive and positively contribute in the digital age.
I became a teacher because ... all of my skills and experiences were pointing me in that direction. My first job was as a swim instructor to the sweetest group of 2-year-old girls. Then I worked at Barnes and Noble for a few years in college. My past in theater was a big part of it, as well. The ability to get up in front of an audience and perform is an essential skill in teaching. Whether you are having the best day of your life or the worst, when you get in front of that classroom, you are on a stage, and to be captivating helps engage your learners. I knew I had the skills, but then actually having my first group of students and watching them grow and thrive solidified for me that this was a job I was not only capable of, but it was also quite fulfilling.
My favorite or most unique lesson that I teach is ... one I do with fifth-graders about media bias using a book called “Seen and Unseen” by Elizabeth Partridge. The book highlights three different photographers who took pictures in Manzanar, a Japanese internment camp, during World War II. Each photographer has a different reason for taking pictures (i.e., paid by the government vs. sneaking a camera in as a prisoner) and opinion of the internment camps. Not only do we learn about Japanese internment camps, but we also get to see that photographs have bias.
One photographer, who agreed the camps were necessary, made sure to pose his subjects and turned in pictures of mostly smiling faces and cozy-looking bungalows. Alternatively, another photographer was taking illegal pictures and made sure to capture what was truly happening and what was not allowed to be captured by government-hired photographers. We have such rich discussions about the humanity of the camps as well as how biased the media can be, even for something as seemingly black and white as a photograph.
My most fulfilling moments on the job are when ... Being a school librarian, I get to see the same kids for more than just a year. It is really fulfilling to see how diverse their book selections get from when they start at Carrie Busey to when they leave. It takes a village to unfold a reader, but I get to see the side of the student that chooses a book for enjoyment, and seeing kids excited about a new book or a book they have been wanting to read is the best part of my job. When kids tell me how much they have enjoyed a book I recommended or when I see them fly through a series that I helped put in their hands is amazing. It only takes one book to ignite the passion for reading, and I’m on a mission to help each kid find that book.
I keep students engaged by ... changing it up every once in a while. I read a lot of books to each class, but I also throw in an author study or a unit on Google skills. We do digital citizenship lessons or create projects on Canva. The library is so much more than reading books. It’s a hub for many essential life-long skills, like typing, being a good digital citizen, computer skills, coding, research, writing poetry, etc. It’s hard to fit it all in!
Something else I’m passionate about is ... This may seem obvious and like a cop out, but I am really passionate about reading. I read a lot, and I find so much joy in not only the stories, but also being able to recommend books to my friends. I suppose if I had any other career, it wouldn’t seem like such an obvious answer. Actually, my middle name is Read, which is so incredibly fitting.
My favorite teacher and subject to study in school was ... My favorite teacher was Mrs. Heissler in first grade. I vividly remember her dressing up like Pippi Longstocking after we finished reading the book together. She made school magical, and I try to live up to that standard every year.
Oddly, my favorite subject wasn’t usually reading, until the last few years of high school, when I could pick the English/language-arts classes that interested me and felt more like reading for fun. I was always good at math and liked figuring things out.
The first day of math class in freshman year of high school, my teacher did a cartwheel into the classroom. This goes back to what I said about teaching being a performance. My most memorable and favorite teachers were the ones that gave it their all. It’s hard to sustain when you’re in the daily grind of work, but it is what teachers at large strive for.
If I weren’t a teacher, I would be ... probably an instructional designer or teaching at the college level. I don’t see myself in any career that doesn’t have at least one foot in the classroom.
I’m spending my summer ... usually reading, hanging out with my kids and working at Indian Acres Swim Club. This summer, I am also on the planning committee for the Association of Illinois School Librarians conference in October at the I Hotel, which is keeping me pretty busy.
— Anthony Zilis