Teacher is tops, according to WalMart and her students

Her energy level is high. Her smile is genuine and bright. She has a bounce to her step and a warm, inviting persona. Fourteen smiling children are acutely "tuned in" to her every move.

Her name is Patricia Tobin, the kindergarten teacher at St. Mary's School in Clinton Heights, and she was recently named one of the top 100 teachers in the U.S. by WalMart.

Each year, WalMart presents 100 outstanding teachers nationwide with a gift of $1,000 each to recognize their dedication to their jobs. The names of the nominees are submitted by WalMart employees to a panel at the company's corporate headquarters in Arkansas. The panel selects the best from thousands of nominees.

Top recognition

Mrs. Tobin, who has been teaching five-year-olds for the past 23 years, was nominated by Dave D'Allesandro, whose daughter Gabrielle is one of her students. He manages the WalMart in Clifton Park.

He nominated her because "she is one of the most outstanding teachers I have ever seen. Mrs. Tobin consistently goes way above and beyond that which is expected of a kindergarten teacher. She takes caring to a personal level" with all of her students.

Mr. D'Allesandro, who has two other children who have been taught by Mrs. Tobin, said that he has always been impressed with her total dedication.

"Teachers get paid to do their job, but Mrs. Tobin obviously goes beyond that," he explained. "She consistently makes the effort to spend that extra time with a child if he or she needs it. She makes sure that no child is ever left behind. Whenever someone is needed to do something extra at school, on school trips, or simply taking the time to listen to a child's concern or worries, she is always right there."

'Little miracles'

Mrs. Tobin, a parishioner of St. Pius X Church in Loudonville, called her students "little miracles of life. Each one is different, and each has gifts of their own. I love teaching each one of them."

She calls each day a gift and an opportunity to spend time with children.

"They are all precious to me," she said, adding that she loves to watch them learn basic skills for the first time: how to be respectful of each other, how to be polite and how to share.

"I make sure the students have fun while they are learning," she noted. "All the projects we do are education-based, with a certain degree of learning built in. We learn how to read, and we learn other basic skills. We read books, and we even write our own little books.

"Kindergarten learning is all hands-on. The children learn what they need to know by the time they go into first grade. They have fun while they are doing it. I have a lot of fun, too," she said. "I have the best job in the world! I love what I do. I come back year after year for that simple reason; and as far as I can see, it's the best reason of all."

(5/1/03) [[In-content Ad]]