Teacher of the Month: Nickole Halvorsen

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — For many students, kindergarten is their first experience in a school setting and the beginning of ongoing growth and change throughout their lives.

 

Kindergarten teacher Nickole Halvorsen strives to instill in her students the foundational academic and social-emotional skills they need to succeed not only in her classroom, but throughout their educational journey and beyond.

 

It is this dedication, along with the fun, safe and welcoming environment that students describe her as cultivating, that has earned her the iBerkshires.com Teacher of the Month designation.

 

The Teacher of the Month series, in collaboration with Berkshire Community College, features distinguished teachers nominated by community members. You can nominate a teacher here.

 

The end of the year was bittersweet for Halvorsen and her students as they said goodbye to Morningside Community School, which closed its doors for the final time in May. 

 

"Now at the end of the year, it gets sad and a little more emotional, especially this year because this is our last year at Morningside," she said during her interview in May.

 

So, really focusing on coming in, being here, being present [and] consistent for them matters the most for me, and they make me want to be here. I want to have fun with them. I want to enjoy every last bit we can of being in the school building." 

 

However, as schools prepare to reopen this week, Halvorsen is confident her former students will thrive in their new environments. This year, she will continue to make an impact on young learners as a kindergarten teacher for Conte Community School. 

 

"I'm excited for them to be in buildings with walls and to be able to really focus on their learning …No matter how great of a student you are behaviorally, socially, emotionally, academically, having the open concept can be very, very hard to concentrate," she said. 

 

This open concept design even made it difficult for educators to concentrate because of the noise and activity from neighboring classrooms that were separated by dividers. 

 

"Them being able to have walls and being able to have a great enclosed learning environment, I think it's going to be so wonderful for them," she said. 

 

Halvorsen is no stranger to change, having worked at several Pittsfield elementary schools, Hoosac Valley Elementary School in Adams, and private preschools during her 12-year career. 

 

Halvorsen said she loves kindergarten because of the fun and hands-on experiences that come with teaching that age group.

 

"I love the age. It's so much fun for them. It's their first learning experience. They get to learn and explore … and it really creates their love for learning," she said.

 

It can be challenging for 5- and 6-year-olds to sit at a desk for long periods of time, so Halvorsen tries to incorporate as many hands-on activities as possible to keep her students engaged, whether it's moving to different parts of the room or using manipulatives. 

 

"If they are not engaged, then they're not learning anything. So, if they're engaged, they're really focused on their learning, and they want to learn more and they want to do more," she said. 

 

During the year, Halvorsen focuses extensively on teaching her students letters and their sounds, as many enter the grade not knowing them. So, she works to bring the letters to life through hands-on and movement based activities. 

 

"I hope I instilled positivity and strength in my students, and knowing that they are able to do whatever they put their mind to," she said. 

 

"We do that a lot in this classroom — talking about how whatever we set our mind to, we can do it."

 

Since the pandemic, Halvorsen said she has placed a greater emphasis on social-emotional learning, recognizing how important those skills are to students’ overall development and ability to learn.

 

"I really focus on building relationships with my students and my students' problem solving amongst themselves, so they know how to solve a problem without having an adult present," she said. 

 

"And teaching them all those social emotional skills, because I think that is such an important skill that I didn't realize how important it really was until we weren't able to do it anymore." 

 

When a former student remembers her later in life, Halvorsen said it is flattering because, at such a young age, she never knows whether they will remember her. 

 

Some of the students she taught when they were in elementary school are now in high school and still remember her.

 

"It's nice to see them growing and turning into adults …they are such wonderful kids. They all have turned out to be so wonderful," she said.

 

"It's funny because one of them I had as a fifth-grader loved music and is still singing in high school. 

 

"So, it's just so great to see that these kids have created their passions in elementary school, and they're staying with it all the way through high school, and hopefully college or whatever they do afterwards."

 

Since the beginning of the year, the students have grown so much in their confidence, reading, and math, said Janna Wood, paraprofessional. 

 

"They just need to have someone that they rely on, that they know that they can come and have a good day and be happy around. And she is definitely that role model in their life," she said. 

 

Halvorsen has a calming presence that helps students start their day ready to learn, even when their morning has gotten off to a rough start, Morningside Principal Heather Gancarz said 

 

"She has a really strong background in teaching the science of reading, so it is incredibly helpful as a kindergarten teacher when students are learning those most basic foundational skills," Gancarz said. 

 

"She is able to meet them where they are, and help them to progress in learning letter names, letter sounds, and then transitioning into being able to read words and then full sentences."