Teacher Tuesday – Ms. Carpenter!

Meet Ms. Carpenter!

Ms. Carpenter teaches Spanish and has been with APS for 17 years.  Ms. Carpenter feels that APS is a great place to work.  In her words, “We are fortunate to have a wonderful staff and a variety of resources to help our students succeed in school.  Our department is extremely important because, due to globalization and immigration, we are part of a world community and it is an advantage for our students to be proficient in more than one language.”

When asked who inspires her, Ms. Carpenter named her father.  She said, “My father always has been a leader to me.  He had a great work ethic.  He used to wake up every day at 4:00 am to get ready for work.  He left the house at 5:00 am every morning, took the bus to Panama City and walked 30 minutes to his job as a manager for the Panama Canal Commission. He retired after 30 years, right before the ownership of the Panama Canal was transferred to Panama.”

Ms. Carpenter loves using technology in her classroom.  She believes that, “As teachers we have a responsibility to keep up with this generation. I utilize a variety of reading, speaking, writing and listening strategies in my classroom. I use songs, audio tracks, video clips, graphic organizers, interviews, etc. Now, with Canvas, it is easier to personalize your teaching and keep students motivated.”

Ms. Carpenter’s advice for those aspiring to similar leadership roles is to, “Be a good listener, be responsible, be yourself, be sensitive to the needs of others, and be an advocate and a communicator for your team.”

Ms. Carpenter wants everyone to know that, “Being a teacher is a labor of love.  We are in this profession because we care about our students and their success in life.”