Denae Jones teaches her kindergartners | Facebook
Denae Jones teaches her kindergartners | Facebook
Denae Jones, a Jefferson County kindergarten teacher, is working hard to instill a sense of positivity in her students at Doctor Nick Osborn Primary Center in Mount Vernon. This has won her recognition as an “Unsung Hero.”
Teaching has always been a passion for Jones, but the COVID-19 pandemic threw a new challenge her way and demanded that she pivot to adjust to teaching such an emotionally needy age in an online capacity.
"When I would struggle with teaching something on the computer, I would talk to them, and they would have an idea, so I feel like if I didn't have those other eight (kindergarten teachers), I probably couldn't have made it through this year like I did because we have really stuck together this year," Jones said in an interview with WSIL.
Jones’ class started all remote this year and returned to in-person instruction in February.
Despite all of her challenges Jones has helped to cheer her students up with singing, dancing, and simply bringing a great deal of positivity to them in whatever way that she can.
In a Facebook post, Sen. Terri Bryant (R-Quincy) praised local educators for their integral role during the pandemic in helping students thrive amid a challenging time.
Alerts Sign-up