HOWARD CITY, Mich. — Before ringing in the new year, 13 ON YOUR SIDE pulled off another Teacher of the Week surprise at MacNaughton Elementary, where students and staff were definitely soaking in all the holiday spirit.
Teacher Deanna Sipes was dressed as the Grinch when we showed up. She was so surprised, she almost didn’t believe it.
“Teachers work so hard all the time and you just, sometimes you feel like it doesn’t go noticed and so I think that’s the coolest part because I’m still shocked and I still think I’m being pranked,” said Sipes.
The festive costumes are just one of the ways this second grade teacher brings some fun to the classroom
Principal Julie Scott said, “Today is Grinch Day and they’ve created a Whoville and get to have a theme day where they’re having fun, but they’re also learning and that’s just one of the many ways that she creates community here at Christmas time but all throughout the year.”
This is important to Sipes, who said, “We need to bring the fun back to learning because sometimes that’s hard. Like, you get so caught up in trying to like push them all the time that we forget that they need to have fun, too. That’s how they learn.”
She tells 13 ON YOUR SIDE she chose this field recently. She’s now in her second year.
“I got into teaching because I honestly just was like there’s a need for it. There’s teachers out there that – like not many people want to do it anymore and I just love kids and I care about them and their needs,” said Sipes.
Sipes explained her attention to students’ needs comes from personal experience.
“Coming from someone who had like a challenging upbringing, they need someone in their corner. You don’t know their home life. You don’t know what’s going on at home. So, to have a safe place where they can feel comfortable, they can be themselves, love themselves as they are and have someone always rooting for them, they need that,” said Sipes.
She added that she just wants to be her students’ “cheerleader, their person rooting for them, making them think that they can do anything. Anything they want to do is not out of their reach. They just have to put their mind to it and not give up.”
It’s clear her hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed, with Sipes being nominated as our next Teacher of the Week.
“It’s nice that somebody reached out and said ‘thank you for your work,” said Scott.
Two words Sipes says go a long way.
“I can’t tell you what a simple ‘thank you’ text from a parent can do to my hard day. Like it literally turns my who day around because it helps you remember your why and why you do this,” said Sipes.
If you have someone you’d like to nominate as our next Teacher of the Week, text the word “teacher” to 616-559-1310.
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