BROOKINGS – Camelot Intermediate School is inviting members of the public to sign up to become an educator for a day on Nov. 15.
Educator for a Day is done each year at Camelot in recognition of Education Week, which is Nov. 13-17 this year. The school will bring in guest speakers on Wednesday, Nov. 15, to share a passion or area of expertise with its students.
Presenters can talk about nearly any topic they’d like, whether it’s related to their job or a passion.
“We’ve had parents come in who have taught life skills. We’ve had grandparents come in one time and teach how to bake cinnamon rolls,” Camelot fifth-grade teacher Andrea Gullickson said. “We don’t really have a set criteria other than come in and share and teach about something you think the kids would want to learn about or know about. We’ve had a wide variety.”
Based on the presenter’s availability, they are scheduled to a certain classroom. Depending on how much time they have, they could stay for multiple presentations if they’d like.
The times a presenter could take are:
• 8:15-9 a.m.
• 9-9:45 a.m.
• 9:45-10:30 a.m.
• 10:30-11:15 a.m.
• 11:15 a.m.-12 p.m.
• 12-12:45 p.m.
• 12:45-1:30 p.m.
To fill those 45 minutes, many presenters use a PowerPoint presentation or have some kind of display.
“I had a mom one or two years ago bring in Asian beetles because that’s what her research was on, and then she talked about what she did with her research and taught about that,” Gullickson said.
But due to the interactive nature of these sessions, students have plenty of questions to ask, taking up some of that time, too.
If assistance is needed coming up with ideas for what to do for a presentation, Camelot staff can help, Gullickson added. It’s worth it because of how much the students love the Educator for a Day experience.
“They usually can’t stop talking about it. They absolutely love having that experience and having those opportunities to learn in a different way and having that connection to people in the community or businesses in the community or even future job experiences that they hear about and didn’t even consider,” Gullickson said.
Those interested in presenting must email Gullickson at andrea.gullickson@k12.sd.us with their name, contact information, time availability, brief biography of self and a brief description of the presentation. They must be turned in by Wednesday, Nov. 1.
Educator for a Day has been a part of Camelot for many years now, but this will mark the first time Camelot’s extended the Educator for a Day to fourth-graders as well as fifth-graders.
Contact Eric Sandbulte at esandbulte@brookingsregister.com.
