Somers student-teacher’s lesson plan featured at national conference

SOMERS, N.Y. - Keep an eye on Primrose Elementary School student-teacher Emily Guerra.

A lesson plan she created on how to build a better birdhouse was one of five from across the country that were demonstrated at a national conference in Orlando, Florida as model STEAM activities.

The top five were chosen from among 50 – one from each state – that were spotlighted in the Beyond School Hours conference, presented by the education non-profit Foundations Inc. in February.

“Emily's lesson was chosen for its strong connection to standards while being fun and engaging for students,” said Starr Jordan, program strategist with Engaging Creative Minds, which curated the event.

Guerra created her lesson plan, “Home Sweet Birdhouse: Design and Build Like the Pros,” in Jessica Paperman’s second-grade class at Primrose. It instructs students to identify the needs of local birds, then design and build homes for them from found art – using everyday objects – to address those needs. The plan represented New York State in the conference, which was carried the theme Education Amplified.

“I truly wasn’t expecting to be chosen as one of the top five lesson plans out of the fifty submitted, but I was overwhelmed with the result!” said Guerra, who is also a 1:1 aide.

Guerra will graduate from Mercy University this year with her master’s degree in early childhood special education.

“A dream of mine has been to work in a special education classroom,” she said.

Article courtesy of Somers Central School District.