Claire Benavides

Claire Benavides spent her full final semester student teaching in the same fourth-grade classroom, under the same mentor teacher, five days a week — not the split placement some programs use. "You don't actually learn to run a classroom in six-week rotations. You learn it by watching one teacher handle the same kids through a bad week, a good week, a state testing week, all in a row. My mentor let me take over more each month until by April it was basically my classroom with her in the back taking notes."

Thirteen years later Claire teaches fourth grade herself and splits part of her week coaching newer teachers through their first two years. "The instructional coaching side is just paying forward what a full-semester placement gave me. Nobody should have to figure out classroom management alone in October of their first year."