Bel Clohesy with Matt Sambell, Schoolbox Director
Bel recently joined Schoolbox as a member of the Professional Services Team. Some of you were lucky enough to meet her at our Meetup, but for those of you who didn’t, we thought it would be great for you to learn more about our newest recruit.
She has been teaching since the dawn of time, and is now using her primary teaching and tertiary teaching expertise to support the team. Bel knows how small people (and their responsible adults) think, and works with primary schools who want to make the best of their Schoolbox experience. We want you to love her as much as we do, so we’ve asked some important education questions!
Who is the best educator you've ever met?
I wonder if there would be a big enough space to list all the people who influenced me as an educator and I’d rate as someone I want to be like… BUT, if I have to name one person, it would have to be Mr Bergstrom - a truly magical casual relief teacher in the Simpsons! He worked to immerse his students in all they were doing - an essential skill of any educator.
What superpower would you love to have when you are in the classroom?
Oooooooooooh! A superpower? Does it just have to be in the classroom? Could it be used in a staff room too? PLEASE??? Either way, I want to be invisible. But for different reasons… In the classroom, this superpower would be used purely for entertainment. Things like sneaking up behind kids on the wrong app and scaring them, or spraying kids with water at the tap… All the best adult things… The staff room, however, would be the ideal time to live this dream - imagine getting in and out to get food and coffee without being asked for something. Or being reminded that it’s your turn to do the dishwasher. Or your turn to refill the coffee beans. This superpower could save any teacher HOURS! Please can I be invisible???
Where do you think kids learn best?
Kids learn anywhere. Well, anywhere that they are with an adult that they feel safe and happy with. But if it was up to me, teaching would be outside. In the sun. And there would be regular breaks for running, jumping, skipping and beating my record on the monkey bars. Obviously.
When did you first decide you wanted to become a teacher?
I never really decided to be a teacher. It just happened. And then once it happened, I realised that going to a place every day and seeing the same small people so happy to see me, made me happy. And there are some great milestones that you experience in the primary world - like when someone mini learns to write their name, or when someone less mini talks to you about something they read at home that relates to something you are teaching, and you know they are genuinely interested. It’s definitely a ‘love’ job, and I am glad I had the opportunity to love!
How have you embarrassed yourself in the classroom?
Have you ever witnessed a teacher sitting on the back of a chair when gravity wasn’t her friend? My kids did. On several occasions…
Have you ever seen a teacher in the middle of a messy science experiment add a little too much of an ingredient that causes somewhat of an explosion and she gets covered in some green gloop. My kids (and the people on a school inspection tour) have...
Oh I have so many more of these stories… So yes. I have embarrassed myself in a classroom. And those small people NEVER let you forget. Nothing beats making a graduations slideshow 6 years after you have done something embarrassing! I guess that’s what happens when you combine clumsy and teacher!
Why did you join the Schoolbox team?
I worked at a primary school that used Schoolbox. And I loved it! But I always knew I wasn’t making the most of it. I wanted more. I wanted to make sure that primary students got the same shiny excitement that I had seen secondary students get. So, when this job came up, I applied for my ‘dream job’. Actually wrote it in my application - and the wonderful crew at Schoolbox went for it. Now, here I am - learning so I can be teaching!