The following is an article that was written a few years ago for my district's website. It gives a good background to who I am, where I came from and my feelings about teaching.
She Was Born to Teach
Patrice Monks is a natural in the classroom. Watching her work with fourth graders at Woodhull Intermediate School is like seeing poetry in action. A sense of grace and dignity pervades every aspect of her presentation. Her professionalism, charm and tenderness creates a type of choreography that is hard to put down in words
“I wanted to be a teacher since the day I was born,” Ms. Monks said. “I never wanted to be anything else.” She played “teacher” every day after school for years as a little girl, dreaming of the day she had “real” students.
She began teaching second grade in 1987 in Norfolk, Virginia. “I loved it,” Ms. Monks said. She proudly recalled receiving the Sallie Mae Award for Excellence in Beginning Teaching after that first year. She was named Teacher of the Year after her third year there, becoming a member of Norfolk’s All-City Teaching Team.
Ms. Monks graduated from Stony Brook University, majoring in child psychology and sociology and later earned a degree in teaching at Kean College in New Jersey. She obtained a master’s degree in elementary education at Adelphi University.
After giving birth to her daughter, Becca in 1990 and to her son, Tom in 1992, Ms. Monks spent the next seven years at home raising the two children. As the youngsters made their way through Jefferson School, Ms. Monks became involved with the PTA, eventually serving as its vice-president.
“Both of my children went through Huntington schools,” she said. “It was an amazing experience to be in the same school with them and to teach their friends.” Becca graduated from St. Anthony’s High School and is now a sophomore at Loyola University in Maryland. Tom is a senior at Huntington High School.
Ms. Monks’ career as a Huntington teacher began in 1998 when she was hired as a long-term substitute teacher for a sixth grade classroom. She moved to the fourth grade level the following year and stayed there ever since. “I adore 4th graders,” she said. They are so enthusiastic about learning. Seeing the world through the wondrous eyes of nine year olds every day keeps me young at heart.”
“Patrice Monks is one of the most dedicated and inspirational educators I have ever come across,” Woodhull Principal Jarrett Stein said. “Her ability to get through to the most difficult students is a testament to her patience and perseverance. Her former students and their parents still visit her on a daily basis and thank her for everything she has done for them and this district. She is an invaluable member of the Woodhull family and we’re proud to call her our colleague.”
Teaching is more than just a job for Ms. Monks. It’s a real calling. “My philosophy is simple; provide an environment where students feel comfortable, excited about learning and accepted for who they are and they will flourish,” she said. “I strive to get to know as much about each student as I can. I talk one-on-one with each child on a regular basis to get to know how they are doing. My hope is to build a relationship that both of us value. Every child that I have ever taught will always hold a special place in my heart. We have shared a part of each other’s lives and I feel blessed that I have had the opportunity to share in that.”
Keeping learning fresh and fun is important to this Huntington teacher. “Every year, my class has a theme,” Ms. Monks explained. “In September, I decorate my door based on that year’s theme and we spend the first week of school doing activities that go along with the theme. The seniors that are graduating this year were my ‘Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream year’, and this year was a circus theme. If you ask one of my old students what their theme was, chances are they will remember with happy memories. Many students will help me to come up with a theme for the next class.”
A classroom has to be fun for a teacher to be effective. No one believes that more than Patrice Monks. It’s not only important for the students, but for their teacher, too. “There is not a day that I go to work that I don’t laugh,” she said. “No matter how difficult things are going for me in my life, my students always help me put things in perspective and bring a smile to my face - always.”
The Woodhull School family is important to Ms. Monks. Everyone knows that. It’s obvious. She works hard for her students and is constantly coming up with new ideas. “Every year I do a special project with my class,” she said. “One year, we put on a Revolutionary War play, another year we put an ad in the newspaper asking people in our community to write us letters with ‘life lessons’ in them. A favorite project was our ‘Pay It Forward’ experiment.”
It’s a tradition for Ms. Monks to create a “yearbook” for each of her students near the close of every school year. “These books are precious to me,” she said. “They are filled with hundreds of photos and memories of they year we spent together. I often take them all out, thumb through them and remember all of the wonderful memories I have of my students.”
She’s not only popular with students and their parents, but with her colleagues, too. “Patrice Monks is one of the teachers every parent wants their child to have,” said Maryann Sacher, a retired Huntington teacher who worked alongside Ms. Monks for many years. “She is very popular with parents, children and her colleagues. What is unique about Patrice is that her classroom and her teaching reflects her concern for each and every child and her enthusiasm is beyond measure. Her creativity is reflected in her presentations to her students and learning becomes a joy to all. Everyone should have a little Patrice Monks in them because the world would definitely be a better place.”
“I love when I see or hear from my old students,” Ms. Monks said. “I love to know what they are up to and how they are doing. Often they will come back to Woodhull to visit me or send me an e-mail. When they do, it absolutely makes my day!”
The veteran faculty member makes each day count for her students. Lessons are planned to perfection. Learning is made fun. Students grow in knowledge and confidence. The youngsters look forward to coming to school.
“When a student leaves my class at the end of the year, I hope they always remember to hold their head up high, have confidence to stand up for what they believe in and know that they are truly special,” Ms. Monks said. “Because they are.”
