BJU Press Blog

distance learning teachers

Meet Your Distance Learning Teachers: Jessica Ingersoll

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distance learning teacher Jessica Ingersoll
If you went to school as a kid, you may have had the odd experience of running into a teacher at the store. It’s still easy for kids who go to school to forget that teachers are real people who need groceries. But for kids who use only videos, it’s even easier to start thinking of their Distance Learning teachers as celebrities. It’s always fun to get to know our celebrities, so I sat down with Miss Ingersoll for an interview. Here are some things I learned about her.

She loves . . .

Food!

One of the reasons she’s excited about the new 2018 World Studies course is getting to introduce her students to new foods from around the world. She has a wonderful selection of cultural cuisines lined up for her students!

Traveling!

One part of studying history and science that we don’t often consider is that it takes us to new places. Miss Ingersoll loves to travel. She’s even gone hiking in Alaska and Hawaii. In her classes, she gets to create interest in other cultures by bringing in elements of other places and times. In her elementary class, she puts on fun hats, and in world studies, she has filled her classroom with items from all around the world.

Teaching!

One big ways Distance Learning  differs from a regular classroom is that the teacher doesn’t always get to immediately know the impact of her teaching on her students. Miss Ingersoll wants to inspire her students to love learning. To do that, she uses various tools and techniques to make sure her students stay engaged. She keeps lessons as hands-on as they can be, and she shares interesting facts in each lesson. But she can’t help but wonder how God will use her lessons. She loves hearing from her students!

Teaching WWII!

I never thought of World War II as interesting until Miss Ingersoll started talking about it. Many of the factors in play during that part of history are things we don’t often think about, like how different cultures interacting contributed to the war and how soldiers had to make do with the equipment they had. She tries to start every lesson by being excited about the day’s topic, but I can tell she is most excited about teaching World War II.

Remember, Miss Ingersoll won’t be Miss Ingersoll for much longer. In May, she’ll become Mrs. Bancroft, and we’re all praying for her as she makes preparations!

Stay tuned for more opportunities to get to know your Distance Learning teachers on Facebook, Instagram, and right here on the BJU Press Homeschool blog. If you’d like to learn more about Mrs. Walker, check out some of her secrets for unforgettable teaching. In the meantime, you can visit our website to learn some brief fun facts about each of them!

Mrs. Walker’s Secrets to Unforgettable Teaching

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Phony and fake or true and genuine—kids can spot it a mile away. That’s why Mrs. Walker puts more than the usual preparation into her Distance Learning video lessons. She knows that most elementary-aged students don’t watch her math, reading, heritage studies, and English video lessons because they just love those subjects. There has to be something more to motivate them to learn. Here are three ways she does that in her teaching.

The “Hook”

Now this idea might sound scary if you know the story of Peter Pan, but with Mrs. Walker you have nothing to fear. Her “hook” is used to help your child make a connection. As she prepares lessons for a subject, Mrs. Walker asks herself, “What can my student relate to?” Teaching the lesson this way means that sometimes Mrs. Walker seems to go off topic, but she’s really using her hook to help your child build a bridge of understanding. She provides encouragement along the way, pausing to speak directly to your child so that he can think independently and draw connections.

Dinner Nugget

No, Mrs. Walker isn’t talking about something to eat even though she would probably love to have an excuse to make chicken nuggets on camera. What Mrs. Walker means is a nugget of information your child might share at the family meal. She does this by including in her lessons personal stories, such as the time she went skydiving (yes, really!) and various interesting facts as in this Math 2 video lesson, which introduces the baobab tree. You won’t have long to wait before your child says, “Guess what Mrs. Walker told me today!”

End on a Giggle

Learning is a great big challenge for your child at times, especially when he is just beginning to learn to read. But Mrs. Walker wants to teach him that learning is also fun. She tries to end almost every lesson on a positive note—most often with an amusing comment or story that causes a giggle to escape from your child’s mouth. (Just watch him and see!) It’s Mrs. Walker’s goal to use humor as a way to encourage your child to keep coming back to learn more.

By the time your child completes a Distance Learning course with Mrs. Walker, he’ll consider her more than just a teacher. She’ll be a true friend.

See Mrs. Walker in action with Reading 5—a favorite course for her Distance Learning students!