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Coatesville teacher gives students reason to smile
A Chester County teacher is using the power of water ice to help heal and to show her students she's still there for them. FOX 29's Bill Anderson has this
COATESVILLE, Pa. - A Chester County teacher is using the power of water ice to help heal and to show her students she's still there for them.
“On Monday in my virtual classroom, I actually had a student of mine hold up a sign that said Black Lives Matter. He brought up the conversation and he is 9, 10 years old.”
Nicole Brown is a 4th grade teacher in Coatesville, but on top of that, she has history and cares about her city.
“My family, we grew up in this community. I teach in this community, so I just really wanted to give back to the students and let them know their teacher is here and although we’re not in the classroom, I still care about them. I still love them, I’m still thinking about them,” explains Nicole.
For her, Nicole has to remember that they are only in the 4th grade, so she had to be creative on how to reach out to her students and her idea was clearly a winner. She rolled up in a Rita’s Water Ice Truck and gave away free water ice to every one of her 4th graders and their families.
“I just wanted to give back to them, let them know that I’m still here for them, especially with the tragic things that are going on in the world that we live in.”
This day wasn’t just about George Floyd, the protests or the coronavirus, it was mostly about just checking in and celebrating her kids. But Nicole, who along with her husband has written a children’s book on diversity, knows that in confusing and potentially painful times children need to know that they can comfortably share how they feel.
“With the majority of my class being young black males, I wanted them to realize that there can still be a safe place with their teacher and in their school.”
And as students and parents came out, you could see that a simple gesture of maintaining open communication over some water ice in a time of division was appreciated.
“I just wanted to be there for them and show them one last time that I will be here even outside of the classroom in the years to come. They will always be able to contact Ms. Brown if they need something or need to talk to someone.”
While water ice will not be able to solve society’s issues, the open channels of communication and the support for children of all backgrounds can only be a positive – for goodness sake.
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