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Brian Waters

Four-time Pro Bowl player Brian Waters entered into George Solis’ Spanish class thinking that he could catch a few z’s before practice. Instead, he did quite the opposite. “I can remember times when I thought I had no energy left to concentrate,” recalls the Kansas City Chiefs offensive guard. “In no time at all, my interest was piqued and I became engulfed in the lesson he taught.”

By teaching Brian about the consequences of his actions and that he could either sleep his life away or make something of himself, Mr. Solis “woke up a sleeping giant.”

Behind Every Famous Person is a Fabulous Teacher.

Contests

TeachersCount contests are our way of saying thank you to the education community. Read below to learn about new contests and past contest winners.

Enter our Valentines Day Contest!

Contest Question:
Valentines Day is just around the corner and TeachersCount wants to make your celebration a little bit sweeter. So enter our Valentines Day contest for a chance to win a free Zac Posen tote. Please, tell us in 200 words or less what teaching taught you in 2009? Email your answers to info@teacherscount.org by February 15th, 2010 11:59 PM.

And the winner was...Linda Upton!!! Here is the winning entry:
Teaching has taught me gentleness along with patience in 2009. I have worked with special needs students for 23 of my 25 years in teaching. Many people have commented on my patience. I have always disagreed. I felt exasperated with students who refused to try to accomplish tasks asked of them. Learning patience has really been a 25 year process that became intensely personal as I recovered from a near fatal accident in 2004. I identified with my students as I sat in a wheelchair for four months, as I learned to walk again, and had to learn to read all over again as a result of multiple injuries, a process that took more than two years. Part of my own prescription for recovery included returning to school. I earned my Master’s Degree in 2009. I have a new perspective on just how difficult it is for my students to perform academically and even physically. When they cannot complete a task it may not be because they don’t want to…it just might be too difficult for them. Now I patiently provide them much more time to respond, and assist them even more gently since I have shared their intense struggles.

Linda Upton is a 25 year Special Education teacher. Her experience has included special education settings from inclusion and helping teacher to self-contained for cognitively delayed children to her current setting in the homes of children too ill or disabled to attend campus classes. In 2004 she suffered a near fatal accident resulting in 12 broken bones and crush injuries along with nerve damage and minor brain injury from which she had to learn to read and process language again. After 6 months in a wheelchair and 2 years of physical rehabilitation she returned to college to earn her Master's Degree in Educational Administration as part of her cognitive and mental rehabilitation. She earned her master's degree in August 2009. This experience provided greater opportunity to identify with the struggles of her special education students and enabled her to respond with greater understanding and compassion as well.



Past Contests

Go Green! Planet Earth DVD Contest
Teachers Are Students Too! Zac Posen Tote Contest
Lions to Lambs DVD Contest
Happy-Go-Lucky DVD Contest
Zac Posen Tote Contest
Super Hero Teacher of the Year Contest - 2006