Ms. Stover teaches AP Human Geography, Government Honors, and Economics Honors. The AP Human Geography classes are mainly dominated by freshmen, and the Government and Economics class are senior-dominated. Teaching polar opposite grades can be an interesting experience with freshmen who may not be as mature, and seniors experiencing “senioritis,” as they call it. In terms of content Ms. Stover says, “AP Human is my favorite class to teach which has a variety of topics.” Though there are differences in her various courses, she thinks her students this year “…are the most fun and funny students…” she has had in her 13 years of teaching. To keep her students engaged, Ms. Stover tries to make the classroom a positive environment.
She does occasional fun activities, teaches skills that will help the students in many different aspects of their lives, and doesn’t see value in giving homework. This week Ms. Stover rewarded her students with various prizes such as lucky Chinese coins and bubbles. However, she only does this occasionally because she thinks “…just doing well to earn a grade or prize doesn’t impact them long-term, which is
the key to being successful.” Ms. Stover wants her students to be able to not only get good grades, but learn skills from school that can actually be applied to real life. Using her experience in psychology, she has been able to become a better teacher by having a greater understanding of her students. She uses this knowledge to make the classroom a positive experience for everyone.
