As Riverside Brookfield High School continues second semester, there are some new additions to the classrooms. There are two new student teachers subbing in for the rest of the year. Henry Judge is teaching history classes, and Abby Moorehouse is teaching French. They have both just finished the spectating portion, and they now begin to teach in front of the class. They are both eager to begin their teaching careers and optimistic about this opportunity.
The first new student teacher, Henry Judge, is teaching two different history classes this semester. He grew up in Elmhurst, Illinois and goes to the University of Illinois. His last years of college prepared him for this experience, and it wasn’t an easy journey. He worked very hard to get to this point, and he is excited about this phase of his career.
“The last two years of college there were a lot of tests, and a lot of the classes I took were difficult. It was a lot of work studying for the content tests that I had to pass,” Judge said.
Judge has come very far with determination and his passion for history. He is very captivated by the subject, and he is ecstatic to continue working with it and sharing his interest with others.
“I’ve always been interested in history … I’m really interested in economic issues and class disparity,” Judge said. “I think history is awesome with understanding why the problems we have today are still existing.”
One of Judge’s goals for this semester is to create student interest in history.. He wants to share his passion for the subject with students who have previously found it monotonous. Judge is trying hard to connect with students and get them fascinated with the content he is teaching.
“I hope I can make learning history engaging, which I know for some people is pretty difficult, so I don’t want to just lecture… and have the information come off stale. I want to think of ways to come up with student-centered activities,” Judge said.
Judge observed and helped two other teachers in his time spectating classes. One of these teachers is Justine Treviño. They both share their experiences teaching alongside another person.
“It’s been awesome so far. My coordinating teachers have all been great. The students have all been friendly, and all the other teachers I’ve met have been really welcoming,” Judge said.
Treviño has been teaching for 12 years. She had to go through this same process as well. She was excited to have a new teacher learn from her experiences.
“This is my first experience with hosting a student teacher. It’s been really nice to connect with someone that is just working through the program. I think a lot of new teachers have a lot of cool things to add. So, I think it’s really nice to learn from newer teachers and then be reflective on my teaching process as well,” Treviño said.
Judge has done a lot of very hard work to get to this point and he is optimistic about the next step in his career.
“Mr. Judge is great. I think he is coming in and he is excited to be here… incredibly enthusiastic to start the semester,” Treviño said.
The other new student teacher is Abby Moorehouse. She observed and began teaching a French class with Laurence Forberg. She is from La Grange Park, Illinois and went to Lyons Township High School. She attends Illinois State University with the intention of becoming a French teacher. In addition, she has other interests that she indulges in.
“My major was French teacher education, and I also did a minor in women and gender studies,” Moorehouse said.
She has become consumed by French and wants to share her fascination with the language with young students. Recently, she realized that teaching is the path for her, and she works hard to reach this goal.
“I decided I wanted to be a teacher late into senior year because I really loved French… I knew I wanted to give that same passion to students,” Moorehouse said.
She has had an extremely positive experience with student-teaching so far at RB. She is eager to meet and connect with students and staff and was asked what the best aspects of the job are so far.
“Working with the students or getting to see everything I have been doing in college and how it applies,” Moorehouse said.
Though she has been optimistic about the opportunity and eager to advance her career, she shares some of the struggles she has faced.
“It was hard at first to learn names. I’ve met hundreds of people in about two weeks,” Moorehouse said.
Despite this, she has still made connections with many students. One of these students is freshman Violet Furey. She elaborates on what it’s like for the students to have a new teacher in the classroom.
“I think she brings a lot to the atmosphere as a whole… It’s nice to have a new face in the French room,” Furey said.
