Exceptional Educator: Third Grade is the Charm for Stacie Linnell

While she realizes  the last day of school will be a very happy one for her third grade students at in Oakdale, teacher Stacie Linnell knows her reaction will be different.

"The end of the year is always hard for me," Linnell said. "After spending the year connecting with my students, it is sad for me to see them go."

Linnell, who has 29 students in her classroom this year, has been teaching at Eagle Point for the past 14 years. All but one of those years has been spent in a third grade classroom.

"Third grade is a really big transition year for students," she said. "It may seem corny, but I always say they go from learning to read to reading to learn." 

Not only does the classroom work become more difficult, but it is also a time when many kids begin to lose confidence in their ability to be a good student.

"It is a heavy year. They start to notice that maybe there are other kids in the class who are reading better than they are — some just haven't developed strong reading skills yet," Linnell said. "They know that some kids are reading chapter books and they aren't ready for those."

Another subject that third-graders begin to master is multiplication, but there again, Linnell tells her students to keep in mind that everyone is at a different level and that is OK.

One of the other challenges in the third grade is the difference in ages. In Linnell's classroom, she might have students who just turned 8 in the summer and others who will turn 9 during the school year. 

"It makes a huge difference," she said.

Giving the kids the confidence they need to learn and do their best is one of the hallmarks of Linnell's work as a teacher; helping parents meet the challenges of doing what they can to make an impact on how their child succeeds in the classroom is another.

"Stacie is a very strong teacher," said principal Kathy Nadeau.  "She raised three boys of her own (now 28, 25 and 21), so she knows what parents are going through. She always builds very strong relationships with the families of her students."

Nadeau has witnessed firsthand the transformation that takes place with many of Linnell's students. For her part, Linnell is grateful for how well Nadeau stays connected to all the kids at Eagle Point, which is a K-5 building.

"She keeps on top of what they are doing.  She really celebrates the kids who are working so hard," Linnell said. "In our school, everybody's student is everybody's student."

Right now, Linnell's classroom is filled with drawings of the solar system since the kids have been studying the planets in science. One thing that you will see in Linnell's classroom that is not on display in the other classrooms at Eagle Point is an old-fashioned blackboard.

"I still have my blackboards," she said with a laugh. "I have a picture of myself when I was in third grade that shows me standing in front of a blackboard and pretending to be a teacher."

Although Linnell will be sorry to see the arrival of the last day of school, she has a busy summer planned. In addition to teaching summer school, Linnell will also be completing her master's degree in differentiated instruction from Concordia University in St. Paul. With two years of course work behind her,  she just has to finish a final paper and prepare a presentation.

"I had decided not to walk in the graduation ceremony last week, but then I thought 'why not?' and I'm glad I did," she said.

There is no doubt that the third-grade classroom is exactly where Linnell wants and needs to be.

"I love, love, love the kids," she said. "I like making a difference. I love to see them feel good about themselves."