Instructor finds her niche

By

News

September 14, 2017 - 12:00 AM

New math teacher Melissa Hayes is teaching a new math class to Iola Middle School. In addition to first-year algebra, an “Opportunity to Learn” course also is also part of her curriculum.
“We’re piloting this class this year to see if we can make a difference presenting math in a different way,” Hayes said. “ We’re also helping students with skills they might have missed in the past few years.”
The OTL class is textbook free and uses an online based program for assignments and classwork.
It is not a remedial math class, but adds extra steps to assist those who have struggled in the past.
An example is working with rational numbers and fractions.
Hayes said she will help students understand how to add, subtract, multiply and divide them through a more simplified approach. Students also should understand subtracting negative numbers and other subjects with clarity.
Hayes is originally from Rio Rancho, N.M., and moved to southeast Kansas last year when her husband, Danny, found a job at the Russell Stover chocolate factory.
She graduated from New Mexico State University with a bachelor’s degree in secondary math. Hayes also earned a master’s degree from NMSU in curriculum and instruction.
For nine years, she taught math at both the high school and middle school levels, including algebra and geometry.
Hayes left being a full-time teacher when she did instructional coaching for three years in New Mexico. This carried over to southeast Kansas when she spent last year with the ANW Special Education Cooperative.
“It was trying something new. It was an opportunity that interested me and I wanted to see what it was about,” Hayes said. “After doing it, I don’t think it’s a job that anybody should stay in forever. You learn so much, but how do you really be effective? In order to be doing that I needed to be working directly with kids.”
She said she learned how to be a better teacher, which motivated her to return full time to the classroom.
According to Hayes, students become disengaged with the class if the teacher speaks too much. Mixing conversations with her students has been a new approach.
Hayes is a mother of four. She and her family live on a farm in Humboldt.
They began farming soybeans recently. On the side, Hayes likes Denver Broncos football, fishing, camping and music. Since working in Iola, she enjoys the Bowlus Fine Arts Center being nearby, preventing her family from traveling to Kansas City for entertainment. 
Being four years removed from teaching in a classroom with her own students, she noticed the change in technology as her biggest adjustment. Every student uses a Chromebook and has assignments and work through the internet.
Hayes wants her students to have a mindset of carefully analyzing math. She spoke about how there can be ups and downs each day, but said it always feels rewarding when her students understand her teaching material.
“There are hard days where I go home and I’m just exhausted and ask myself ‘Did I make a difference?,’” Hayes said. “Then there are days where every kid was writing on the tables, making numbered lines and subtracting where they were doing what they’re supposed to.  They met their daily learning goals and they showed me they knew what they were doing. There’s no better feeling than helping kids understand that. I want them to feel more confident about themselves in math.”

Related
December 13, 2019
August 24, 2015
September 23, 2013
September 14, 2010