GOLDEN APPLE: Oakland Heights’ Horn teaches students through ‘good noise’
Published 10:46 am Friday, February 18, 2022
- Katie Horn calls on a student to answer a question during a lesson Oakland Heights Elementary School.
Katie Horn’s classroom is not a quiet place, and it isn’t intended to be.
Horn said the 20 years she’s spent teaching have taught her the best way for students to learn is “good noise.”
“My classroom is different,” said Horn, who teaches third grade at Oakland Heights Elementary. “It’s not going to be a quiet place. I like for my students to discuss and hear conversations. That’s when I know they’re learning.”
In some classrooms, Horn said, students are told to be quiet and listen, but in hers, students are encouraged to speak up.
Using group discussions, she said, students learn not only from her but also from their fellow students.
“I like for them to talk and engage in conversation because I know they are learning what we have taught,” she said.
Horn, who was chosen as the February 2022 Golden Apple Teacher, is in her first year at Oakland Heights Elementary after more than 20 years in the Lauderdale County School District.
Throughout her career, she said the technology has changed and the methods of teaching have adapted. Now, she said, technology is incorporated into every lesson.
“I think it’s important that I include all sorts of technology in the classroom,” she said. “And, the students love it.”
The one thing that hasn’t changed, however, is Horn’s mission. At the end of the day, she said, she wants her students to remember to believe in themselves as much as she believes in them.
“I want them to remember that I helped them believe in themselves,” she said. “That I helped them overcome struggles and battles. Whether it’s emotional battles, learning battles I want them to remember me as helping them to believe in themselves, and no matter what never give up on themselves.”
Being named the Golden Apple Teacher of the Month is an honor, Horn said, and it represents the efforts of a team of educators. Teaching doesn’t happen in a vacuum, she said, and the award reflects on the dedication of the entire Oakland Heights staff to give children the best education possible.
“This doesn’t represent just me. This represents all the hardworking educators at Meridian Public Schools and especially here at Oakland Heights,” she said. “We are a team.”
About the Golden Apple
Horn received a Golden Apple Certificate and $1000 (approximate value) in school supplies from Avery Products and $200 in cash.
A television program will be produced in May 2022 in honor of the monthly Golden Apple Award winners and to announce the Teacher of the Year. The program will be broadcast on CBS24, NBC30, FOX30, Bounce TV and METV.
The Teachers of the Year will receive a special award on stage (The Meridian Star article), a custom-made Teacher of the Year Trophy, $2,500 cash to be used at their discretion and a $2,500 scholarship to be awarded to a deserving student in the teacher’s name.
Presenting sponsors are East Mississippi Electric Power Association (EMEPA), NBC30, CBS24, FOX30, BOUNCE, METV, and The Meridian Star.
Key sponsors are EMEPA, Law Offices of Richard Schwartz, Mississippi Power Company, Woodstock Furniture and Avery Products. Participating sponsors are Meridian Coca-Cola Bottling Company – Muna Federal Credit Union – 1st Mississippi Federal Credit Union – Meridian Mutual Federal Credit Union – Meridian MS Air National Guard Federal Credit Union.
How to nominate an educator
Nominations for the monthly Golden Apple Award can be submitted by parents, faculty, or community members as well as past or present students. Candidates must be a current, full-time, faculty member in Pre-K through 12th grade (public or private) and work in the following counties: Lauderdale, Neshoba, Kemper, Clarke, and Newton in Mississippi; and Choctaw and Sumter in Alabama.
The nomination process consists of an essay (no more than 500 words) detailing why the person should be considered for the award. Nomination details and an entry form are available online at www.goldenappleawards.com.