Morningside math interventionist Billie Jo Lamoureaux with fifth-graders Abigail Baker, Layonna Albis James, Ava White, Kassidy Rock, and Faith Sawyer. Lamourreaux is this month's iBerkshires Teacher of the Month.
Lamoureaux says her students are brilliant and creative, and she works to relate math to their experiences.
Students say she creates a 'loving space' and keeps things funny and interesting.
Lamoureaux says the best part of teaching is seeing her students succeed.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — When Morningside Community School math interventionist Billie Jo Lamoureaux enters the classroom with her math cart, students' faces light up.
Her passion and unique approach to teaching have earned her the iBerkshires Teacher of the Month designation.
The Teacher of the Month series, in collaboration with Berkshire Community College, will feature distinguished teachers nominated by community members. You can nominate a teacher here.
"I think it's the best job in the world. It's absolutely awesome. It's dynamic, every single day, and super adaptive. You get to work with families, you get to work with students, you get to work with a community, Lamoureaux said.
"It's amazing when you can help a student see something that they hadn't previously been able to see. You learn from them, and they learn from you, and you're able to give them a pathway for life. So, it's just really important, and it's just more than a job for me, it's who I am."
In her role, Lamoureaux supports students from preschool to fifth grade, balancing a variety of needs and interests.
"I think it's really important to be able to think about who your students are, what they're interested in, what they need to learn, and what you can do as a facilitator to help connect that with the students," she said.
"The students are brilliant. They're so creative. And I'm just excited to be here every day. I work with the very best people. Everybody in Berkshire County is really supportive of each other."
What sets her apart is her commitment to every student's individual learning needs and adaptability, tailoring lessons for different ages and abilities, ensuring every student feels supported and challenged.
From co-teaching to lead teaching to leading small group learning, Lamoureaux is there wherever she is needed.
"I have a shopping cart that I can bring around the school so I can bring the materials to the students. So, whatever is their best placement, I'm going to come to them rather than them having to come to me. It's always about the students first," she said.
Lamoureaux described her teaching style as unconventional and persistent; it's based on the needs of the students.
"They're so imaginative, and I want to be able to give them a base for them, to be able to cultivate all their dreams," she said.
She makes learning fun, whether it is through her loving space, funny, or cringey, learning songs, or costumes, said some of her fifth-grade students.
"She creates a loving space, and she connects us," Avah White said, and Abigail Baker added that "she really interacts with the kids, and it makes me really happy, because I know that I'm very lucky to have Ms. Lamoureaux."
Their classmate Kassidy Rock agreed, "she dresses funny, and it makes us always laugh … she always teaches about math, and she helps us [with] what we need to do in our classroom."
Lamoureaux strives to create a cooperative space where students are encouraged to share their ideas and connect mathematical concepts to their interests and real-world experiences.
"I think it is important to know what the standards of Massachusetts are so you're making sure that you're meeting their needs with high levels of rigor and expectations, but doing in a way that interests them," she said.
Lamoureaux has been in education for more than 20 years. She began her career working in a prekindergarten class at the YMCA and then embarked on her journey with the Pittsfield Public Schools, starting with student teaching at Conte Community Elementary. In 2007, she began working at Morningside.
When she started her career, Lamoureaux wanted to work at a community school because of the strong sense of community and support.
A community school can connect their diverse families to essential resources, such as food banks and medical care, she said.
"Our mayor came two weeks ago, he saw a student who needed some more support in [English language arts] and he sat right down with that student and helped support the student," Lamoureaux said.
Teaching is a challenging job, but the effort and positivity Lamoureaux puts into it are infectious within the school, Principal Heather Gancarz said.
"She has really been a fountain of knowledge, a cheerful person who is always willing to try to lift people up. She also really wants to hold everyone accountable for being as positive and focused on growing.
"We talk a lot about growth mindset with our students. Lamoureaux likes to challenge the staff here to have a growth mindset as well."
Her impact goes beyond her work during the school day. She is also the intern coordinator for Taconic High School in Pittsfield.
"So students from the high schools get to come into the after-school programs and work and also learn from us as well. It's an opportunity for them to learn, make a stipend, and then also it might be a career pathway," Lamoureaux said.
"We have two students that were in our internship program last year that actually work as paraprofessionals in our school this year. So, it's really meaningful."
Some of the most meaningful moments in her career is when students come back to visit her, tell her they are going to be teachers, express an interest in working for the Pittsfield Public Schools, or say she is someone who made a difference in their lives.
"When my students succeed and they are able to follow their dreams and they share them with you, and then their families and their children come back, and you get to teach them, it's just been really powerful for me, and I really love what I do," Lamoureaux said.
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