TEACHER'S CORNER: TEACHER SAYS TIME WITH CHILDREN WELL SPENT

Shelly Gorman got her pupils' attention one day in a way she hadn't planned.

She stood on a table to reach a book on a shelf.

"I lost my footing and pulled the entire shelf of books down on myself," Gorman said.

"The next thing I knew, 25 sets of eyes were looking down at me and asking if I was all right.

"I was fine, and all of us had a good laugh over the scene."

Gorman teaches third grade at Charles C. Clippard Elementary School.

She graduated from Drury College in 1989 with a bachelor's degree in elementary education. She has a master's degree in gifted education from Southeast Missouri State University.

Her first teaching job was at Bonne Terre. She moved to Cape Girardeau in 1991 with her husband, Rod, who is head varsity basketball coach at Cape Girardeau Central High School. This is her fifth year of teaching.

"I thought I would enjoy spending my day with children," Gorman said, "so I chose to enter the teaching profession. And, I do!

"It is so rewarding to see children smile and laugh and learn every day," she said.

Some of the extras that Gorman incorporates in her teaching include choral reading, cooking, creative writing and fund raising.

"I feel that it is very important that children be given real-life opportunities to apply what they learn," she said, "such as public speaking, exchanging money, measuring and respecting their environment."

Gorman expressed appreciation to the parents of children at Clippard School.

"Your support and concern make all the difference in the world," she said, and all of the teachers greatly appreciate you!"