Teacher Spotlight: Señora Smith

Georgia Smith has been a Spanish teacher at Kenmore West for 30 years. Known by students for her positive spirits and quotable sayings, Señora Smith has been a deeply loved member of the Kenmore West staff during her time in the building. Being one of Señora’s students myself during my sophomore and senior years of high school, I have gotten to know the wonderful person that she is. Señora has always made an effort to truly understand all of her students and form meaningful connections with her classes. She has proven that it’s possible to learn a lot while also having so much fun in every class. To express my appreciation for Señora, I have interviewed her about her experience at Kenmore West and her plans for the future after her retirement at the end of this school year.

Q: What is your favorite memory from teaching?

A: “I think working with the students, taking the students to Spain on the exchange over the years. There's just been so many memories, you know, but I think that's one of my favorites.”

Q: How has the way you teach Spanish changed since the start of your career?

A: “I think I became a little bit more laid back over the years. I have added more variety to my teaching, just trying to enjoy the process more than just trying to teach content.”

Q: What do you consider to be the most valuable thing that you have taught your students over your years at Kenmore West?

A: “To enjoy life, to be sure of themselves, and to treat themselves well, that's very important.”

Q: What piece of advice would you give to future Spanish teachers at Kenmore West?

A: “It’s important to see the student as a human being, you know, as a person, and try to understand that they're going through this learning process, it's a journey, it's an adventure, and to find ways to have them invest in learning the language, have fun with them, do something fun that they enjoy.”

Q: Are there any Spanish-speaking countries that you would love to visit in the future?

A: “More like Argentina, I haven’t done much in South America, so that would be interesting.”

Q: What are you most looking forward to in retirement?

A: “Doing whatever I want to do, whenever I want to do it!”