Teacher Appreciation Column: Ms Smith Engages Every Earth and Space Science Student

I was only a few months into my freshman year of high school when I had a teacher throw something at me for talking.

The assailant? An Earth and Space teacher who had recently transferred from Northwest Junior High, Stacie Smith. She would go on to be one of the most memorable teachers that many students, including myself, would go on recall upon far into adulthood for two reasons.

First, throughout my time at City, I have never seen a teacher form a personal relationship with each and every student they teach. Smith did this and she did this in what felt like the first week of school.

Secondly, her teaching style regularly engages students. Smith doesn’t make her students want to learn that class material, but rather her students are interested in how she will talk about the class material. Students hang to each word she says as if they were dangling three feet above a pin of lions.

That’s not to say we never got off-topic during her beautifully chaotic lectures. In fact, the class regularly floated into semi-unrelated discussions. But that’s what made it fun. That’s what made us want to listen to the names of atomphospic layers and the differences between erosion and weathering.

That’s why when I saw her with wild eyes and with a mischievous smile reaching inside her desk for a small foam ball only to have it chucked halfway across the room at my seat, I was thrilled to have received the attention. She keeps us students on our feet.

Haileigh Steffen

Mrs. Stacie Smith is one of our City High science teachers who has spent the entire year instructing online. As an online student, it can be difficult to connect with your teachers and peers, but Mrs. Smith has made an incredible effort to make meaningful relationships with her students. She empathizes with us and our struggles, and always checks up on us to see how we’re doing. If we’re stressed, she’ll ask why and takes time at the beginning of class to chat and message with students.

Mrs. Smith is approachable, relatable, and fun. She likes to share stories about her own life to help build connections. A couple of months ago, on a long and dreary Friday, she gave us an entire slideshow presentation about the time she had dental surgery and included a video of herself on laughing gas, just to cheer us up. More recently, a friend in the next class period had a birthday, and I mentioned it to Mrs. Smith. I heard from him later that day that she had played a video of pirate puppets singing a happy birthday song just for him! Every day in class, we also have “Jam or Not a Jam,” where she plays a fun piece of music at the beginning of the period and we vote on whether we like it or not. It’s a great way to start the day and connect over musical interests. 

Mrs. Smith has had an amazing impact on my year. She is someone who truly cares about her students, and it’s reflected in everything she does, especially her teaching. Mrs. Smith, thank you for making learning from home better for so many of us!

Livian Lavine