Take Two

A different kind of duck... From fi lm critics to forest rangers, some Maine educators lived entirely different lives before they stood in front of students all day. Those experiences helped shape who they are as educators today and infl uenced their perspective and teaching style. Turn the page to read their stories.

Uri Lessing Waterville EA

When you ask Uri Lessing about his former life as a movie critic he is happy to share a story about meeting and interviewing Matthew McConaughey (fi rst photo above).

“He was extremely charismatic, dynamic, charming and really friendly. He shared his interest in music, and he and I talked about an African guitar player we both liked. I was frustrated by the fact that we were the same age and he was in better shape!” said Lessing.

Long before his role as a 5th grade teacher at Hall School in Waterville, a younger Lessing interviewed McConaughey when the movie Sahara hit the big screen in 2005. Lessing met McConaughey in a trailer park in Platte County, Missouri. At the time the “A” list celebrity was travelling across the country to meet with critics to discuss his fi lm. Being part of the Hollywood scene was a lifestyle Lessing loved.

“When you’re doing interviews it's exciting and fun—you step into a role and you step into a very specifi c job. Your job is to get as much information; it never got old interviewing fi lm makers and performers,” said Lessing.

Lessing later found himself as a movie critic both in print and on the radio, taking to the mic as part of a panel of critics on a local show

in Kansas City, where he lived at the time. During Lessing’s movie critic career he met many stand out movie critic career he met many stand out actors, including Peter Falk.

“Peter Falk was an excellent interviewer; his thoughts would come out so succinctly,” recalls Lessing.

While Lessing’s students have likely never heard of Colombo, and don’t necessarily understand the cool factor around interviewing the man who made the phrase “alright, alright, alright” part of pop culture at the time, they do seem to really enjoy having a teacher who uses his love for fi lm as an infl uence in their learning.

On this day, students watched the 1956 classic, The Red Balloon and identifi ed key parts of the story, themes and characters.

“It certainly is not traditional but I’ve found when kids are emotionally invested in their learning it becomes a process that is exciting and meaningful. After watching The Red Balloon, they discovered advanced Common Core ideas such as symbolism and color,” said Lessing.

Lessing’s love of fi lms and acting is more than apparent in his classroom where theater posters act almost like wallpaper border

Denise Simoneau is a long ways away from her past with dreams of becoming an interior designer—hoping to remodel Maine’s kitchens. While that dream never became reality, (there wasn’t a real need for kitchen makeovers in Washington County) Simoneau did land a job where a lot of people needed her services. “I ended up working for WIC (women, infant and children) teaching mothers the importance of good nutrition during their pregnancy, and for their children,” said the middle school math teacher in Bangor.

While working for WIC Simoneau questioned mothers and children about their diets, performed fi nger pricks to test for iron levels and then used that information to prioritize their nutritional needs. Simoneau was also responsible for issuing vouchers that clients would use to purchase nutritious food.

around his classroom. Each poster hanging is from a show where Lessing played a role. After hanging up his critic’s pen and moving to Maine to teach in Waterville, Lessing focused his extra time on acting and performs at the Waterville Opera House and is the Board President of the Maine Film Center.

“I feel like teachers should have their passions, and they should let students know they're passionate about learning. It's a huge impact on kids,” said Lessing.

The positive impact of fi lm in learning continues to motivate students so for Lessing—

Denise Simoneau Bangor EA

the show will always go on.

It was not until Simoneau transitioned into teaching that she would realize how vital her previous work would be in the lives of her students.

“Working with children as a WIC nutrition educator helped me understand that my impact on the lives of children and their families made a diff erence. Hunger is a reality for so many of the kids I teach today. Having the unique perspective from my job as a WIC counselor gives me a greater understanding of where each student is coming from and the kind of issues they’re facing before they even get into my classroom. That perspective is invaluable and impacts how I approach teaching and reaching each child in a way that will allow them to become better learners,” said Simoneau.

At 41 years-old, Ken Chutchian found himself standing in front of a group of high school students teaching humanities. The four walls of his classroom at Poland Regional High School are a long ways away from the day he interviewed President George H.W. Bush. The newspaper columnist turned teacher has 20 years-worth of stories to tell about his days as a general assignment reporter when he had bylines in papers all across New England, including the Boston Globe.

“The only time I really miss it is when I think about how much fun it would have been covering Governor LePage. I covered McKernan and Angus King—we used to go at it,” Chutchian reminisces.

Now in the classroom, Chutchian knows it’s clear to others he is a second career teacher. His students, who call him “Chutch” not Mr. Chutchian enjoy a less formal learning environment with a man who admits, at his home, the words rubric and constructive response are banned.

“They all know that I’m diff erent. I can’t hide that. I don’t walk like a duck, I don’t

Jim Thornton

Oxford Hills EA

While Jim Thornton doesn’t literally swing from trees anymore, his love for the woods weaves its way into his 5th grade classroom often. To understand Thornton’s approach to teaching you need to fi rst know where he’s been.

Thornton grew up on Long Island—NY not Maine. He attended New York State Ranger School and became a forest technician doing what’s called timber cruising, which is measuring trees to see when they were suitable quack like a duck—but I’m a good duck,” said Chutchian.

That too is clear—Chutch’s teaching is good. He is engaging and on this day his students eagerly participated in a discussion about the book All Quiet on the Western Front. While Chutch admits he still feels like an outsider, he seems okay with it and continues to bring the outside world into his classroom, using his experience and connections from his days as a newspaper reporter to enhance the education of his students. When studying the Vietnam War, Chutch brings in a guest speaker, a Vietnam Jim up in a tree the 1970’s to harvest. Thornton was also a tree-planting inspector.

“I would have to dig a hole to check and see if the planter put the roots straight...if the roots weren’t straight the tree wasn’t going to grow. I did a lot of surveying as well,” said Thornton. While this now elementary school teacher loved the forest service, he says he got the education bug and headed back to school, becoming a non-traditional older college student. To this day, he hasn’t looked back. veteran, he met at the State House during his reporting days.

“I value giving them opportunities to learn from people not named Ken Chutchian.”

Chutch also turns his students into reporters of sorts when he teaches civics lessons, requiring them to conduct interviews on issues like taxes as he hopes to shape them into citizens who understand their civic responsibilities, which he admits is an easy task for him because of his background.

“It’s tremendously helpful. I’m very conversant in current events. I love a historical event, I love talking about history and bringing classroom content into the real world. This is a good way to spend my time with young

picking pinecones in

people...I enjoy their company,” said Chutch

“I certainly miss being able to be outdoors when it's nice but on the snowy days I know I made the right career move! I’m teaching STEM now and I do have so many connections I can make with students about the world of work from my past experiences,” said Thornton.

Thornton goes beyond the stories from his former job to engage students, he brings them to the woods to learn. Thornton’s Harrison Elementary class will head to Bryant Pond for a four day, three night camping trip, learning everything from hunter safety to habitats and ecosystems. And, Thornton says there is so much more the trip will teach his students.

“Just the experience of camp for these kids will be impactful, for a lot of these kids it will be their only chance to do that. It's a fun week for me and I do think that it's very motivating, usually for the students who are not as motivated in class,” said Thornton.

It’s an outdoor adventure made possible by a teacher who continues to bring his love for forestry and science to his students, making learning fun in the best way he knows how.

“They get out there and they love it and they’re learning, which is neat to see,” said Thornton.