Rural Elementary Teacher
MICKEY BURLE
Launch the media gallery 1 playerMickey Burle is a self-motivated, hardworking, and a thoughtful teacher. Now in her 20th year as a valued member of the Linn Elementary School faculty, Mickey works tirelessly for her second grade students, with an outstanding exceptional ability of being able to bring a wide range of life experiences which she quickly brings to life in an engaging and exciting manner in her classroom.
Mrs Burle’s background is in journalism. She entered the teaching profession later in life, but definitely found her calling. Maybe it is the journalism that has helped her develop reading and writing at the elementary level like no other. Not only are the students at Linn Elementary learning and achieving at an alarming rate, but they are also having so much fun! What may really set Mr. Burle apart as an educator are her abilities to translate challenging topics into fun adventures for her students, and the atmosphere of kindness, calm, and love of learning she creates.
One hallmark project that her class completes each October is the ‘Monster Gallery.’ This is a several weeks’ long creative writing project that culminates in a performance by each student of a monster they have created and written about. The students read a number of Halloween poems and books, and then use what they have learned about styles and techniques to create their own monster character. Their character portrayals are written and edited to grab the audience’s attention, create a vivid picture of their invented monster, and build both suspense and humor.
Mrs. Burle greatly impacts her students’ lives. From her dedication, long hours of planning, community and staff leadership, her organization and common sense approach to teaching and education in general, sets her apart and makes it appropriate that we congratulate Mickey Burle as Missouri’s Outstanding Rural Elementary Teacher for the 2015-2016 school year.