TOWAMENCIN- As far as we know, English class is packed with tests and quizzes on novels like Moby Dick, The Catcher in the Rye, The Great Gatsby, and more. It is rare that a teacher chooses to spare students, ditch the tests, and go with projects- a teacher like Mrs. Megan Schmidt.

The veteran teacher of 16 years at North Penn School District did not originally plan on pursuing a career in English. Schmidt attended Lehigh University, where she planned to major in molecular biology, but she switched to liberal arts, and then business and economics. Finally, it was her love for writing that pursued her to become an English teacher. In Schmidt’s upbeat classroom, she focuses on the needs of her students, and how she can get them to not only learn the content, but embrace it.

“When I plan lessons and look at my calendar I think to myself, ‘how can I have fun’ so then it usually will rub off on students and my whole attitude of trying to have a little more entertainment in the classroom. But this year I also have tried to push having students own the content that they’re writing about, and reading. I find that makes it more interesting,” explained Schmidt.

While some classes jump right into a lecture or notes, Schmidt opens up class in a unique way for students. By selecting a poem of the day, the English teacher can encourage thinking among students in a creative way.

“The more you read, the more you understand about yourself and the human condition. It’s part of why I brought in the whole concept of the poem of the day. I can bring in authors that students may not be exposed to, ideas that they may not get to read about because I find that just picking up things that are unfamiliar to you, or something that’s completely different, it gives you a whole new perspective” explained Schmidt.

Another way Schmidt encourages creative thinking inside the classroom is through projects. Instead of giving big tests on novels that are read in class, students are given the opportunity to succeed in English class in a different way.

“This year, we are project based. I want students to own more the direction of their learning. I don’t ever want them to feel like I ‘got ya’, or if they took a test and got a fifty they come in and feel horrible for a whole month of class, you know? I don’t want that,” stated Schmidt.

When she’s not planning lessons for her junior English classes, creative writing classes, or AP Seminar, Schmidt rides her bike and is an active fan at her children’s sporting events. The English teacher also has a passion for traveling.

“When I get ten minutes I love to ride my bike anywhere I can ride it. I love the beach. We go to Avalon. Every year I try to go somewhere I haven’t gone. So over winter break we’re going to go to Lake Placid for three days. There’s nothing really remarkable there, but the Olympics were there in 1980. We’re gonna do the bobsled, the toboggan slide onto the frozen lake. I spend time with my kids. We’re just goofy,” shared Schmidt.

One of Schmidt’s favorite places that she’s traveled to is Nice, France, along the beautiful Mediterranean. Another one of her favorites, due to her love for baseball, is Maryland.

“The coolest place I’ve been in the last year is when I went to a Baltimore Orioles game and I just learned how the culture of that baseball game was so different from how the Phillies are,” Schmidt explained. 

Schmidt carries her fun, uplifting personality from being with her kids to North Penn High School. It is crucial to have a positive and welcoming classroom for all of her students, every day.

“I think the most important thing in my classroom is that students are acknowledged and welcomed every day. So I try to say hello, I try to greet them as they leave, I try to make eye contact with them and talk to them because I know that when I say, ‘it’s great to see you’, when they leave, it’s the only time they hear it all day. I just try to have that environment of comfort where they want to come, that they’re not being evaluated on picky things,” Schmidt stated.

It is clear that Schmidt’s care for students extends beyond their ability to absorb the material she teaches.

“I want students to be comfortable. I think that’s the most important thing,” Schmidt shared.