Meet Teacher Dan Fruzzetti

One of Dublin's newest teachers, Dan Fruzzetti, is a seventh-grade mathematics teacher at Fallon Middle School.  Fruzzetti is in his 30s and taught for six years in another Bay Area school district. We caught up with him as the school year began, to ask him some questions.  

Q: What is your favorite thing about the grade you teach?

A: At this age, kids have very well-developed minds, however a critical mass of them haven't started developing into adolescence; because of this they take a natural, beautiful interest in learning that can really mean something in their futures. 

Q: What do you do when you aren't teaching?

A: I have a family (wife and two daughters), and we try to get as much quality time together as possible.  I also enjoy hacking electronics (the legal kind), making music, and writing for pleasure. I have a tiny book on the way entitled `Essays on Everything.'

Q: Do you have any pets or hobbies?

A:  We have no pets; two young children are plenty to take care of.  My numerous hobbies are listed above, with the exception of wrenching on cars — also a favorite pastime.  I have a 1965 Mustang which has had some special work done and is a very fun car.  

Q: Are you doing anything different this year?  

A: As this is my first year teaching middle school, it is very important to me to really know my audience.  The better I know them, the better I can serve their educational needs.  As the year wears on, it becomes more important to get the kids working together at discovering the mathematics without too much direct guidance from their teacher, and that's where my energy will be focused. 

Q: Are you excited about anything new at your school?  

A: Yeah: me. (Laughs) Actually, I come from a district a little to the west and seeing the trifecta of successful learning in action — excellent students, an amazing staff, an ideal facility — I am humbled and excited by the quality of work we're empowered to do here. 

Q: How do you encourage your students?

A: Foremost is a sense of mutual respect in the classroom.  I treat them like peers, individuals deserving of absolute respect, who are just not as fluent in the subject as I am. They always seem to appreciate this treatment.  I also bring in as many fascinating elements of my subject as I can, including links to reality every chance I can find them. 

Q: Any advice to parents on homework or this school year?  

A: My suggestion is: Your child will have homework almost every night.  You can check out my website on the Fallon Middle School website to see what their assignments are.  Something I wish I had learned at this age was a sense of priority.  First, go to class. Second, squeeze every productive minute possible out of that class meeting.  Third, get home and dive into your homework head first.  Fourth, when the homework is done is your own play time. Decompress by doing something you love for a good hour, eat dinner with the family and then find a way to be personally productive by doing something you love that feeds your mind.