Local Teacher Honored at "Preschool Teachers Make a Difference" Awards

The 6th Annual “Preschool Teachers Make A Difference” Awards Ceremony was held on September 29 at the Habitot Children’s Museum in Berkeley. Gloria Gardner, who recently celebrated 35 years as Director and Teacher at The Little Red Schoolhouse, was chosen from 78 nominations as one of the 2014 winners awarded throughout the entire Bay Area.

Ms. Gardner’s nomination was made by Shelly Rivoli, parent of a student at The Little Red Schoolhouse, who had just 500 words to explain why she—and other Little Red Schoolhouse parents—felt Gloria deserved the early education award. According to Mrs. Rivoli, the hardest part in preparing the nomination was, “…editing down from about 5,000 words parents would love to share on the subject to only 500. We all wish we could take her with us to kindergarten!” A fellow parent, Victoria, agrees. “Gloria has the ability to teach science, music, culture and art all in the course of a 20-minute lesson. The children learn so much and they don’t even realize they are learning because they’re having so much fun. Gloria and The Little Red Schoolhouse are true gifts to our community.”

The award application was selected by a prestigious committee of leaders in the Early Childhood field, including Supervisor Keith Carson (District 5, Alameda County Board of Supervisors), Catherine Taylor (Executive Director of the California Association for the Education of Young Children), and Matt Regan (Senior VP of the Early Childhood Education Committee of the Bay Area Council).

At the awards ceremony, Shelly Rivoli presented Gloria Gardner to the guests, sharing examples of her innovative and imaginative curriculum, which in recent years alone has ranged from teaching preschoolers language skills in Sioux, sign language, and Italian, to experimenting with electricity and creating with ceramics. At the conclusion, Gloria was presented with an array of meaningful prizes, and she was honored by the Habitot staff and community leaders alike.

For more information about The Little Red Schoolhouse, please visit www.lrshpreschool.org or call (510) 234-5966.