News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Smithville Elementary School Kindergarten Teacher Tanya Howard, one of 20 teachers statewide, selected for the Tennessee Early Educator Award.
Over 1,700 teachers were nominated for the awards. Howard has been teaching Kindergarten at Smithville Elementary for 16 years. Howard said she simply loves teaching children.
“I have always strived to do my best and to make sure that my students are successful,” Howard said. “I just love watching them grow and learn so again it was an honor and I was just so excited I never thought it was going to be me.”
Howard said she will never forget the moment in her first year of teaching when she was able to help a struggling student learn to read.
“The excitement that child got because he had been so frustrated not knowing his letters and not knowing that sound,” Howard said. “And to watch that light bulb come on and see it work and you know reading is one of the best gifts that we can give children. That’s the start to success for any career for any path that they may choose.”
Howard teaches other various programs at Smithville Elementary such as the after-school program and the STEM program. Howard said she loves teaching Kindergarten and is proud to be honored for her hard work.
“I love teaching the kids,” Howard said. “You see so much growth when they come in not knowing how to hold a pencil and not knowing how to write their name and then them being able to read and read stories back to you it warms your heart and you’ve made a difference in somebody’s life and teaching is about making a difference and giving them tools to be successful.”
Alongside receiving the award Howard received a $1000 cash prize, a $1000 shopping spree at Lakeshore Learning, and an all-expenses-paid trip to Nashville. Howard said she plans to use the shopping spree to buy games and materials for her classroom.
