Today we’d like to introduce you to JoAnn Olenski.
JoAnn, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’ve wanted to be a teacher for as long as I can remember. It started with watching my maternal grandparents teach and coach throughout my childhood. Then my mother inspired me when she went to college once my four siblings and I were all in school. She went to college to become a teacher, and she taught high school math for 26 years before retiring. My four siblings are also in education at different levels. All of these people and events inspired me to become a teacher and keep me teaching each year.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has not been a smooth road. I started college after graduating from high school in 2003. During that time, I learned I was not able to have my own children and my parents split up for a few months. These things really took a toll on me mentally, and I ultimately quit going to college. I eventually moved from the city I had grown up in to McKinney, where I realized that I wanted to finish college to become a teacher.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I just completed my 13th year of teaching. I have taught 2nd through 6th grade, and I have learned that my favorite age level to teach is 4th and 5th grades. There are several things I am proud of, but the one thing I am most proud of is the family culture that I build with my students. It gives them the chance to be themselves, helps them feel safe enough to ask questions if they need help, and I feel it helps them be successful. The culture and environment in my classroom is the one thing I am praised for by my teammates and administration.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
The most important lesson I have learned throughout my journey is that my students need the chance to go through what we call “productive struggle”. This means that I need to give them the chance to try a hard math problem or figure out the answer to a reading question before guiding them. This allows them to feel proud of themselves when they get the correct solution or answer on their own.
