Mary Huffman
Position: Fifth Grade ELA/Social Studies Teacher
School: Carolina Park Elementary School
School District: Charleston County School District
City, State: Mount Pleasant, SC
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Music that Describes Mary
Mary Huffman was nominated by her colleague, Dimitrios Matsoukas.
"I had the opportunity to work with Mary at two teacher's conferences for the Korean War Legacy Foundation in Charleston, SC and in Athens, Greece," said Matsoukas. "I have not met such an energetic person in my life. As we say in Greece, she was the 'soul' of both conferences."
In 2015, Ms. Huffman earned the National History Teacher of the Year Award from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. She shares her passion for teaching through professional development as a Master Teacher Fellow for the Gilder Lehrman Institute, as a senior Fellow for the Korean War Legacy Foundation, and a 2019 Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes Fellow. In all of her presentations, she reminds participants that history is a living, breathing entity that should always be taught through primary/secondary sources, simulations, community service projects, and project-based learning.
"I am very proud to know this brilliant teacher and human being," said Matsoukas.
Mary Huffman is one of the most influential teachers that I have ever met. She is not only intelligent and creative but is such a positive and caring individual. Her passion and enthusiasm for teaching and educating others about history can be clearly seen by anyone who has had the privilege of knowing her.
Even before Mary Huffman started teaching my 5th grade daughter Colette, I had heard so many wonderful things about her and saw her and her students around the school re-living history by dressing up and demonstrating what it was to live in a different era. Since she became my daughter’s teacher, she has exceeded our expectations.
Although for most teachers, starting off the year with a new 5th grade class virtually is not easy, Mary Huffman dove in and engaged the students even from day one. In only one quarter learning virtually, her students have dressed up as Native Americans/cowboys/ranchers, built Native American houses, and created 3-D diagrams of the west. She has gone above and beyond to make virtual learning interactive and engaging for her students.
My daughter was never interested in history and never did well before but since she has had Mary Huffman as her teacher she can’t wait to learn more and has done extremely well in social studies. I wish growing up I had a teacher like Ms Huffman as I am learning more history now through my daughter than I did as a 5th grader myself!
With her innovative and hands-on teaching Mary Huffman has made a huge impression on her students and anyone she has educated and therefore deserves to be recognized as Lifechanger of the Year!
Dr. Huffman is such a great teacher. She always puts her best work in everything she does for her students. She is very caring and consitterate to everybody she meets. She is such an awesome person and always brings a smile to everyones faces. She really cares about teaching and she loves her students. Ms. Huffman is the nicest and funnest person you could ever meet. If you are down she always knows how to cheer people up. I love her so much! She is the BEST!!!!!
Ms. Huffman is the BEST TEACHER IN THE WORLD! She always does fun things in the class but we learn at the same time! We learn while doing fun things. For example last week everday we experienced a different decade everyday. It's called dancin through the decades and Ms. Huffman made it 30 years go and has done it with all of the classes ever since. For every fun event we do the etachers have to volunteer to lead it and be in charge off to uy all of the things and orgnize everything and no one volunteered except Ms. Huffman. She volunteers for every fun thing we do because none of the other teachers do it. She spent $1,178 on everything! I love her so much! She relly cares bout her teaching and she is the best!
I am really sad about leaving Dr. Huffman. She is a teacher you get once in a life time. Dr. Huffman has over 2,000 artifacts, and with them she helps teach us. She has done many simulations. Dr. Huffman created the Dancin' Through the Decades, where she has her students dress up as the style of different decades, and eat food from there. She has spent 1176 dollars on Dancin' Through the Decades alone, not including her other simulations. I have learned so much this year because of Dr. Huffman.
Mrs Huffman is THE BEST TEACHER EVER!!!! Last week was Dancin Through The Decades which Mrs Huffman created. IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!! Every day was a different decade! Monday was the 1920s and I was dressed as a flapper! The rest of the 5th grade was also dressed up. We ate candy sticks, moon pie, and root beer. Tuesday was the 1950s. I had on a poodle skirt and a white top. We ate soda floats and candy dots. Wednesday was 1960s. I wore a tie dye shirt with jean shorts, big peace earrings, rainbow round classes, and Birkenstocks. We ate twinkies, laffy taffy, and Hawaiian Punch. Thursday was the 1970s. I wore bell bottoms, a striped shirt, pig tails, and white Birkenstocks. We ate pop tarts, Smarties, and Tang. Friday was the 1980s. I dressed all neon! We ate Cool aid and bottle caps. Mrs Huffman is the best! We also learned dances everyday.
Dr Huffman is a awesome teacher. She dose so much for us including dancing through the decades. I had the best school week of my life and i´m sure it will always be my favorite.
Mrs. Huffman makes learning so much more fun. We had a simulation on the holocaust, it lasted 3 weeks and it taught me so much more stuff than if a teacher just talked about it for 1 day. Last week we did a thing called dancing the the decades! Each day we dressed up as a different style, 1920s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s! We also ate what they ate in that years, we learned all the dances that were taught back then. It was a blast. Mrs. Huffman also made a memory sheet for all us kids to remeber what ourself and our friends were like in 5th grade. I love Mrs. Huffman, please make her the winner of life changer of the year!
Hi Mrs Huffman is a great teacher she teaches awesome stuff. We do a lot of fun simulations. Our class has done the Holocaust, WW1, WW2, Battle of Britain,and we, have done lots more. We dress up, we learn, and we have fun! Mrs Huffman knows a lot I come to class with a good feeling and not a bad. If we don't understand something Mrs Huffman is always there to help us. In are class we have done reports and wrote cool stories about what we painted it was like " I was in the story." Mrs Huffman makes class really fun and not boring so I look forward to coming to school. Thanks Bye!
I am going to miss how we are not going to be doing any simulations. I am also going to miss our school because they were so nice to me when I had my first day of school here in Elementary school. Also I am going to miss playing football with some classes like people in my class and people in Mrs Mitchell's class. I had a wonderful time here at this school, we did so much in a year. Bye ELEMENTARY SCHOOL!!
My name is James Malm and Dr. Huffman is my Reading, Social Studies, and Writing teacher. Mrs. Huffman is a great teacher teacher she goes above and beyond her expectations. This year has been very tough because of covid but I have had a lot of fun in person. She has a very good sense of humor and that is what every teacher needs. She even dresses up.We have done so many fun activities. I can tell she loves her job and her students. Mrs. Huffman is a great teacher and I will miss her as I head to middle school. Huffman. She deserves this award .
Before I moved to South Carolina and started at a new school, I thought I wouldn't have a good teacher, but I was wrong. Mrs. Huffman is the best teacher ever!! I can't believe school is already almost over! I moved here in January and it feels like it's only been one week! I'm going to miss Mrs. Huffman so much! The last day of school is a half day and it's optional. I'm for sure going so I can see Mrs. Huffman one last time. I wish I could stay the whole day! Last week, we had Dancing Through the Decades. Each day of the week, we dressed up in clothes people would wear in a certain decade. We learned dances and played games from that decade. It was the best! I wish Mrs. Huffman could be my teacher every year! I don't want to leave her for middle school next year!
cool! ms. Huffman is the queen.
Ms.Huffman, I think you are awesome and love that you respond to my emails although I know you are very busy. You are one of my favorite people in the world. Every time I think of 5th grade, I think of what a great teacher and person you are. :)
mrs. huffman is my 5th grade teacher. In class the other day we did a simulation we were learning about capitalism, socialism, and communism and she could have just given us a worksheet or a page in are work book but instead of that we had partners. First we learned about capitalism. So one person got two starburst candies (1 starburst equals food, water, shelter) and the other got like 12. We played rock, paper, scissors with are partner every time you won you partner would give you a starburst candy and if they won you would give them a starburst candy it was really fun. Next we learned about socialism she told us to split all the starbursts evenly between the two of us. Then play that kind of rock, paper, scissors again. It taught us that if you work harder you do not get paid more. Lastly we learned about communism she took all the starbursts and each partner got one starburst and the things needed to live in real life. Then she was walking around talking about how in communism the government picks favorites. she gave some students more starbursts then other to represent communism. This is not the first simulation we have done in her class we do alot of simulations. This is why I think she should get voted for life changer of the year.
Dear Mrs.Huffman you are an amazing teacher more than just perfect teaching skills great job on earning your doctorate! Mrs.Huffman is so kind and great at teaching this year we had so many fun simulations so far my favorite was the 3 week simulation teaching me all about Holocaust and of the Jewish and Nazis , I didn't even know anything about Holocaust until Mrs.Huffman brought it up and taught us about this time period and now I probably know more than 100 facts about this now. I think Mrs.Huffman more than deserves this award! In this simulation we got to have a Holocaust diary to document in with 5 sentences a day about what Jewish were treated like in the past and how to not start this again. them we go to visit Auschwitz in our classroom it was so fun and i had lots of experience from it. Then the baby powder par was the most fun! We had to wear this yellow star because that's what Jewish had sewed on and i love Mrs.Huffman so much she is so far my favorite teacher!
Mrs.Huffman is one of the best teachers on earth! I am so happy i got for a teacher this year! Mrs Huffman sets up all kinds of cool stuff for us for the past 3 weeks we have been doing a cool Holocaust simulation, but today was the last day we are doing it she gave us a baggie with a tissu, paper hart, a cookie, a hersheys bar, and a sour gummie worm then she asked us what we think the things that she gave us reprsente during the holocaust. evryone knew evry sigle answer to each quetion. That must mean she is a amazing teacher! Then after we had to draw pictures of the things she gave us and write down what we said they represented. Then we got to eat the stuff! it was delishoues! I love Mrs Huffman she is the best!!!
Mrs. Huffman is my 5th grade teacher. We did a simulation today about the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. She was a Nazi and we were all Jews hiding under tables (buildings) with ammunition (paper balls). She had red string that she was throwing on our buildings (tables) and we had to either hide, or fight back. I survived! We are currently doing a Holocaust simulation. We have diaries that we are writing in for the different dates and events. We also get rations as if we are working on the home front. When we are doing our work, we use our rations to get skittles. One ration equals one skittle. I wish that I could have Mrs. Huffman every year for my history teacher. Before 5th grade, I hated social studies. I didn't do bad in it, I just wasn't interested, but Mrs Huffman makes it fun!
We sometimes get scripts and we read a play that simulates something in history. We did one yesterday for the attack of Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. I have learned so much from Mrs Huffman. She is truly a life changer.
Today we learned about the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. We hid paper balls in our clothes and hid in the class room. We though the paper balls at her. She walked around the class room acting like the the Nazis. She came around the class room with the string as fire and wrapped it around tables and if she got close enough to touch us she would put some string on them. Mrs. Huffman is a very good hands on teacher!
Mrs. Huffman is the best teacher you can ever think of. We just did a simulation were we turned of the lights and thew paper balls like ammunition at her. Just like the Jews did to the Germans. The Germans ended up setting things on fire so Mrs. Huffman wrapped red string around the room. Every time we are on task she gives us 1 rash ion and 1 rash ion means 1 skittle. I had 25 rash ions. In fact I am eating some skittles now. Mrs. Huffman is awesome.
Mrs. Huffman is my 5th grade teacher. We did a simulation today about the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. She was a Nazi and we were all Jews hiding under tables (buildings) with ammunition (paper balls). She had red string that she was throwing on our buildings (tables) and we had to either hide, or fight back. I survived! We are currently doing a Holocaust simulation. We have diaries that we are writing in for the different dates and events. We also get rations as if we are working on the home front. When we are doing our work, we use our rations to get skittles. One ration equals one skittle. I wish that I could have Mrs. Huffman every year for my history teacher. Before 5th grade, I hated social studies. I didn't do bad in it, I just wasn't interested, but Mrs Huffman makes it fun!
We sometimes get scripts and we read a play that simulates something in history. We did one yesterday for the attack of Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. I have learned so much from Mrs Huffman. She is truly a life changer.
Mrs.Huffman if definitely the life changer of the year.We are in the middle of learning about the Holocaust,WWII, and Jews! Out of all of the simulations she has done this is maybe my favorite one but its hard to tell because we have done SO many amazing simulations.Not to long ago we just did a Nazi simulation, we threw paper balls at her because she was the Nazi. She car red yarn around and put in on our desk to act like fire! IT WAS AMAZING! We also have been learning about WWII rations, if we are working hard we get a few rations. After that we get to exchange them in for food (skittles). After this year I think I can say that Social Studies is my favorite subject. But I know this for sure, Mrs.Huffman is the best teacher anyone could ever have. Not just the simulations, she has over 1,000 artifacts. She almost like a walking museum (which is AMAZING!). I am very sure that Mrs.Huffman is defiantly a life changer of the year!
To say that Mrs. Huffman is a life changer is an understatement. As grandparents of a former 5th grader, we witnessed Mrs. Huffman’s passion for teaching history the moment we entered her classroom during “Back to School” orientation. The learning process truly begins at her classroom door. The memorabilia and military uniforms she displays instantly spark curiosity and ignite interest and excitement! We were confident from that moment forward that our grandchild would receive a stellar education and deep appreciation for social studies and history, would gain perspective on the actions and the lives of those who came before her, and would not lose sight of how past events affect future outcomes. The best moments of the days that followed occurred everyday after school when our granddaughter shared the topics, activities and the lessons Mrs. Huffman taught that day. Her enthusiasm was contagious and sparked interest and further conversation amongst her siblings and us as a family of three generations. We were soon perusing old family photos, discussing the stories about our heirlooms and retrieving military uniforms from storage. A forgotten ethnic family meal has since become a staple for us. Mrs. Huffman’s extraordinary field trips, creative in-classroom simulations, playing of era-themed music, providing opportunities to experience ethnic and “Hobo” cuisine, and dressing up in decade-themed costumes brings history to life for her students. Her “Treats for Troops” cookie program coupled with being Pen Pals with deployed servicemen and women directly connects students with those serving on the front lines that are witnessing history in the making. The guest speakers she invites to share their stories provides insight to the reality of the circumstances they faced and gives students a perspective they may not have otherwise considered. The common denominator of all of these experiences is that Mrs. Huffman teaches her students to embrace learning! Mary Huffman is a “Life Changer” for all of those whose lives she touches and is most deserving of this prestigious award.
Mrs Huffman is my favorite teacher out of all the teacher ive ever had she did so many good simulations and so many good lessons and if I said all of them I would be here all day so Im going to name a few. In our holacaust unit we went through everthing the ghetto Mrs huffman got a bowl and placed patotos and carrots in it with water showing us this is all they ate. When they were going on cattle carts all the students went under a blanket with a piece of bread all we saw under there were the other students and all we heard were dogs barking. When we go there we stood in line and she told us if we survived or not there was a boy line and a girl line and after we all stood in line she put baby powder in our hair. Towards the end we all ran up and down the stairs like the death march they had to do. With the simulations we also made paintings of butterflys repersenting the kids that died during the holacaust. We also got a book with a assigned holacaust person on it and we would have to see if we surrvived. We also met a real holacaust surrvivor her name was mrs De De and she was the nicest person you will ever meet. In class we also did something called treats for troops sending treats to men in the military who need it. We cleaned up outside all the trash around the school. Mrs Huffman also brought in a military worker with his son and we worked with him doing marches and push ups. For our civil rights movement we had a sit in at the front of the school and made signs marching around the house. Along with simulations we also had many fun feild trips like when we went to patrions point which we actually went to twice and the second time the people who went got to sleep on the ship. There were so many good moments and even though im in 7th grade I would love to have Mrs Huffman as my teacher until I graduaute.
Mrs. Huffman is the ultimate best teacher in the world! she is awesome and kind! she has more than 5 fun activities in each hour! (2 hours in all) when I was in 4 and 3rd grade I heard all about Mrs huffman! and now I'm blessed to be in her class! she deserves the best award! our class is nice and well behaved, you might think we act like this because she is mean... BUT YOUR WRONG!!! our class gets along very well! we never fight or talk back to Mrs. Huffman or our classmates. I could go on and on about how nice and sweet she is! it would take a whole year for me to finish saying why she is perfect.
My mother deserves this award! She is the best teacher, and I am not just saying that because she is my mom. I still remember when she dressed up as the Statue of Liberty when teaching about Ellis Island. My mother is the most Hands-On teacher I have ever met. On top of that, she always finds time for just me and her. I cannot think of any other teacher in my school that dresses up as well, anything and everything. I'd like to thank her for everything she does for her school family, her real family, and her friends.
These are only a few reasons that she should be awarded this honor.
I wouldn't have asked for a better teacher other than Ms Huffman. I wanted to be in Ms Huffman since 2nd grade. Her simulations are so fun. one time she dressed up like statue of liberty and she was covered in green paint. Also right after school that day she had to get her hair done. She was willing to humiliate her self for us so we could have fun. Another time she asked us to dress up as a soldier. I thought it was just a simulation where we dress up and learn about stuff but it wasn't. Ms Huffman made trenches out of sand bags very heavy sand bags. She divide us into 2 based on when we were born. Then she told us to crumble up a lot of paper and get in a trench. Then she said, "when ever I blow a blow the whistle your going to throw your papers at the other teem to win". That simulation was very fun. You should choose Ms Huffman because she is the best teacher ever.
Mrs. Huffman LOVES to do simulations with us. We do simulations about once or twice a week. For our simulations Mrs. Huffman dresses up in different characters. (We say she goes the time machine!) The most recent simulation we had was about the Great Depression. When we did the simulation Mrs. Huffman dressed up as Harry the Hobo for the first part of the simulation. For the last part of the simulation Mrs. Huffman dressed up as Margret the former hobo, but she now works at the soup bowl and the bread line. Margret gave us soup and taught us about FDR's (Franklin D. Roosevelt's) Alphabet Soup! While we were eating our soup we looked for Initials of the programs that FDR made to help us get out of the Great depression, like the TVA, SSA, AAA, NRA, FDIC, and the SEC. With or without her great simulations she is an awesome teacher. She makes learning so fun, it is not boring to learn history when you have Mrs.Huffman as your teacher!
Mrs Huffman is the best teacher i had i know i have only been here a month, but i learned so much through out the month. The other day we learned about the stock market crash at the end of the stock market the last month to many of us bought so it crashed. Also we learned about no mans land and the dough boys we also did a war with barbed wire and trenches! We did a simulation on women suffrage and dressed up in all white and made 30 second speeches! The other day we just dressed up as a hobo on Tuesday. When we dressed up as hobos most of us lost our homes from the stock market crash. We learned that too many people bought the stock so it crashed. Then the people went to their banks and all of them were closed. Also we did a simulation on Roosevelt alphabet soup and watched a rap video about it. Then we ate soup from the soup kitchen and the bread line. We also learned about the corporation to help people from The Great Depression called the New Deal we also had to pic all of the corporations out from alphabet soup.
Hi my name is Luciano I have Mrs Huffman as a teacher this year I'm new this year I have to say Mrs Huffman is a really fun rock'in teacher. Here are some really cool things in are classroom there are Flags of different countries,army coats, army hats,and more!! Mrs Huffman loves to dress up one time she dressed up as Uncle Sam, A Us Dough-boy, Harry the Hobo. Mrs Huffman loves Social Studies she has taught me a lot of SS lessons like Trench Warfare, World War 1, Stock Market Crash, Women's right to vote,The New Deal. Our class has done a lot of projects to we made trenches out of play dough, World War 1 ammunition with crumbled paper.All I have to say is Mrs Huffman should go down in history!!!
One of my most favorite things mrs.Huffman does is dresses up as the person we are learning about such as: when she dressed up as Teddy Roosevelt or when she dressed up as Harry the Hobo and Margret for alfhabet soup. I loved the Brown Bag Briefcase, it really taught me well on what it was really like to own your own buisness, I loved how at the end we got to buy little trinkets at a mini shop it really teached me how to be an buisness man. I also really loved the trench warfare simulation because we actually got to fight with paper balls and we would make traps and we made trenches out of sand bags , it really tought me what it would be like to fight in the trench warfare. I also loved the alfhabet soup because it taught me about all the different acronims such as FDIC CCC SSA SEC and much others. Last but not least I loved the Ellis Island simulation Because we pretended to travel around the world it taught me what it is like to be an immagrent.
I loved how we learned so much in just a month. My favorite thing that we learned about is the Stock Market. The reason why I like the Stock Market simulation the best is because everybody got to sit on the carpet, have money in their hands, and she allowed us to buy and sell Ford Stock. She tricked us by simulating the Ford Stock for 2020, but then in October, she crashed the Stock Market, so most of us had invested over 1,000 in the stock market, so we became poor instantly. The reason why the Stock Market is so cool is because we had a opportunity to actually do the Stock Market like back in the old days. The other simulation that I really liked to is the Trench Warfare. The reason why I liked the Trench Warfare so much is because when we got to throw papers as ammunition. Another reason why the Trench Warfare is so fun is because we got to build no man's land with play dough, sand, dirt, and three d trenches.
One of my most favorite things mrs.Huffman does is dresses up as the person we are learning about such as: when she dressed up as Teddy Roosevelt or when she dressed up as Harry the Hobo and Margret for alfhabet soup. I loved the Brown Bag Briefcase, it really taught me well on what it was really like to own your own buisness, I loved how at the end we got to buy little trinkets at a mini shop it really teached me how to be an buisness man. I also really loved the trench warfare simulation because we actually got to fight with paper balls and we would make traps and we made trenches out of sand bags , it really tought me what it would be like to fight in the trench warfare. I also loved the alfhabet soup because it taught me about all the different acronims such as FDIC CCC SSA SEC and much others. Last but not least I loved the Ellis Island simulation Because we pretended to travel around the world it taught me what it is like to be an immagrent.
My teacher is Mary Huffman and she does many simulations I am only about to describe 1 out of many other simulations. This simulation was about the industrial revolution. This simulation was called the brown bag briefcase,it took around a week. First we started to make the briefcase we made out of just a brown paper grocery bag and it turned out to really cool. The next day we made the label for the brown bag briefcase. The next day it was even funner we sketched what our product was and became entrepreneurs for example I named my product the pocket fan. The next day we started to make our paper money for writing about our product. I am going to fast forward to the last but the funnest part of this simulation. On the last day we used our paper money to buy prizes we had lots of good choices to pick from there was mini erasers and lots more little prizes. The big prizes are mini footballs, cream soda, root beer and Gatorade. There was also medium prizes like soda scented chap stick and slime and more. Mary Huffman is very fun and funny and she cares about how we do in school.
Mrs Huffman is the best teacher social studies was my worst subject and in this class it is my best. There is not a dull moment in this class. She is always doing simulations which I love (I am a visual learner so this great for me.) The reason I get up early every morning, Try so hard during the day, and doing homework at night is because of this class. Mrs. Huffman pushes us to be our best. There is always a surprise waiting when we walk in the classroom. Weather shes dressing like lady liberty, surprise silly stringing us or even letting us through paper balls at each other. I knew who Mrs. huffman was sense 2nd grade and if I got any other homeroom teacher I think 5th grade would be 2x harder. Mrs Huffman gives challenging assignments but she is open to questions. Mrs. Huffman is the best and she should win no doubt about it!!!
I can't stop telling you about the best teacher in the world! she is now a dr and still teaching. if perfect was a real thing then that's Mrs Huffman!
Hi, I'm Maya and Mrs.Huffman is my teacher this year, and so far it has been a blast. In class, we do simulations. My Favorite has to be the Ellis Island Simulation. In the simulation, we had to do funny "health" test which weren't really funny when it was happening back then, but when we did it, Mrs.Huffman made in funny. Anyway, we also had profiles and characters that we had to be. I was a Polish Woman Named Olga. It was really fun. Mrs.Huffman is pretty much the Best History Teacher in the whole world!
I am in Mrs. Huffman's class, and let me tell you... SHE IS THE BEST TEACHER EVER!!!!!!
We do lots of simulations! We did one yesterday about Roosevelt's Alphabet Soup! We ate alphabet soup and spelled out the most important acronyms for the jobs during the Great Depression! When we were learning about immigration, we dressed up like immigrants and did a simulation of us coming to Ellis Island and doing all of the tests! For WWI, we dressed up as soldiers and simulated a battle! We decorated the classroom and even made ammunition out of paper balls! During the 2020 Presidential Election, "President Trump" and "Presidential Candidate Biden" came to talk to the class and we did simulations. When we were learning about Native Americans, we learned about a tribe we got to choose and sent that chief a letter! The other day we simulated the stock market crash on October 29,1929.
In 2015, Mrs Huffman won the "National History Teacher Of The Year Award".
All I want to say is that Mrs Huffman is the best teacher EVER and she should be the life changer of the year because she just earned her doctorate degree in college and she is going to be a professor this coming school year so she won't be able to earn this again. Also, she has never won this before.
Mrs. Huffman is probably the best teacher I will ever have. We have done so many simulations that helped me remember. She has taught me so much this year more then I ever thought I could know. When we were all online it was so hard for me to keep going because it didn't give me as much energy to get through the school day. Now that we are gladly all in school with Mrs. Huffman, we do these amazing simulations that I can't believe how she makes them or even thinks of them. Like our big bag entrepreneur briefcase project, trench warfare, alphabet soup kitchen during the Great Depression, and our women suffrage debates and so much more. It has really kept me thinking positive and wanting to get up in the morning being curious to what will happen next in our amazing class. She treats our class like normal people and I am so glad that I can share the year with my classmates and I´ll say it again my amazing teacher Mrs. Huffman.
Mrs. Huffman is really a life changer! Mrs.Huffman does a simulation with us every 1 to 2 weeks. Yesterday she gave us alphabet soup and bread, for Roosevelt's soup kitchen and bread line. While we were eating the soup there were tiny letters that we had to dig through and find the jobs teddy created. We all dressed up like hobos with Mrs.Huffman. She is the best teacher I could ask for!
Mrs. Huffman is the best teacher ever! I just moved here and she became my favorite teacher right away. She does so many fun simulations with us! We do them 1-2 times a week! One simulation we did yesterday was so fun! We dressed up to school as hobos from the Great Depression. Mrs. Huffman made alphabet soup and bread to simulate what we learned about the soup kitchen and bread line for homeless people during the Great Depression! We even got to dig around in the alphabet soup to find letters to spell out the abbreviations for societies started during Roosevelt's New Deal! These simulations we do with Mrs. Huffman are a great way to learn what happened in the past. My favorite simulation we did was WWI Trench Warfare. We built trenches out of sandbags. Next, we split into teams and simulated a war. It was awesome! We threw paper balls at each other as weapons. I'm so excited that I got Mrs. Huffman as a teacher!
Mrs. Huffman is one of the best social studies teacher ever! we always do activities we for example we just finished doing one called the new deal Alphabet Soup simulation. Here are just some things we did New deal Alphabet soup, WW1 trench warfare, women suffrage debates and speeches, brown bag briefcase investor zoom presentations and etc.Another thing she likes to do for us is to dress up for the new deal alphabet soup simulation she dressed up as Harry the Hobo. Also on presidents day she dressed up as Trump and Biden she is truly one of the best teachers i have ever had!
Mrs. HUffman is a huge ball of fun! I have her from the 5th-grade teacher for my homeroom. I only see her for 2 hours, my switch class I see her for 5 hours. I wish I could spend more time with Mrs. Huffman. you might ask why Mrs. Huffman has a simulation every week when we were learning about trench war-fare we built trenches with sandbags. we built "ameo" with paper balls and had a "war" it was so fun! when we were learning about stock markets we had another simulation when we "invested" in our fake stock market the tricked us! she crashed the stock market. we have little rhymes for different words like economy means " money money money MONEYYY!!!!!!!" I really enjo\y her class I wish she could teach 6th grade next year
Mrs.Huffman is the best teacher ever! She does the best social studies simulations EVER!! We just did a new deal alphabet soup simulation, it was so much fun! We got to actually got to eat alphabet soup and bread rolls. This was teaching us about how hobos needed jobs and food. The next simulation we did was about a 2-3 weeks ago. We did a WWI simulation, we had Central and Allied Powers. We got to make trenches out of sand bags and barbed wire out of piped cleaners! We also got to make a mini trench on a piece of card stock with play dough,fake moss,dirt,sand, and Popsicle sticks! Another simulation did a Women's suffrage simulation, everyone was put into groups and we gave speeches, but 3 of the boys were the non suffragettes. All of these were so much fun and I wish they were not over,this year will always be a year that I will remember! I have all of these memory's in my head, all I can do is replay them over and over, I had so much fun and I am not ready to leave her at the end of the year! She also makes the best jokes and keeps us up and alive during the day. Thank you Mrs.Huffman!!
I am one of Mrs Huffman students and i am going to talk about the simulation wed just did. So what we are learning about is the Great Depression (the stock crash).As we are learning about the great depression we need to learn about the fire sight chat.So when we were learning about the fire sight chat we had to learn about the hobos, what we learned is that people were building soup kitchen and bread lines. So are simulation was the New Deal alphabet soup simulation were we learned about people that help during the great depression like the FDIC,WPA,and CCC. During the simulation i learned about the definitions of the acronyms and what job would i pick if i was here in the Great Depression. That is why i love this class and how much excitement there is to make this class so great that is why i love this class.
Hi this is Isabella K and I'm in Mrs. Huffman's class and she is the best. We just had a simulation on the Great Depression and we dressed up as Hobos and we did a soup line and a bread line. We also did a simulation on Women's Rights and we had to right a speech on what we would say to the police and judges for Women's rights. We also did a stock market crash where we had to invest in cars and then the stocks crashed at the end. My favorite simulation is the WWI trench warfare, we actually had a fight. So we had to build a trench out of sandbags and ammunition out of paper and barbed wire out of pipe cleaners. Then there were to sides and it was Allied Powers and Central Powers and Allied won again! We also did an immigration migration and I was first class and I was from France! Mrs. Huffman is the best teacher ever. Vote her she is the best teacher I've ever had.
I am one of Mrs Huffman students and i am going to talk about the simulation wed just did. So what we are learning about is the Great Depression (the stock crash).As we are learning about the great depression we need to learn about the fire sight chat.So when we were learning about the fire sight chat we had to learn about the hobos, what we learned is that people were building soup kitchen and bread lines. So are simulation was the New Deal alphabet soup simulation were we learned about people that help during the great depression like the FDIC,WPA,and CCC. During the simulation i learned about the definitions of the acronyms and what job would i pick if i was here in the Great Depression. That is why i love this class and how much excitement there is to make this class so great that is why i love this class.
Mrs. Huffman is an awesome teacher. We just did a simulation of the Great Depression and she did a soup line and we had to find letters in our soup about the jobs the new deal made like the TVA and the CCC. Then she gave us bread for the bread line in our simulation. We also did a Women's Right's simulation and we wrote a speech on what you would tell the police and the judges. Oh and my favorite simulation is the WWI trench warfare. In the trench warfare we actually made a real trench out of sand bags and then we made ammunition out of paper and we made barbed wire out of pipe cleaners and there was Allied Powers and Central Powers and Allied won! I love Mrs.Huffman and vote her fore life changer of the year.
I absulotly love Mrs. Huffman she is the most fun teacher i had ever had!
I CAN'T STOP TELLING YOU GUYS HOW AWESOME MS.HUFFMAN IS! One of the only things I want for Christmas is for Ms.Huffman to win LifeChanger of the Year. Many kids are afraid of her large amount of homework but when I was in her class, I knew it was to help us learn more. Ms.Huffman sticks facts from history right into your long term memory, and now I have learned so much more than I knew 2 years ago in 4th grade. Now I am in 6th grade, and I carry around 3 charms that Ms.Huffman gave out during the virtual school as rewards. My favorite one is the one that says "In My Heart" because it reminds me that a wonderful teacher like Ms.Huffman will stay lodged in your heart forever. If I had to rate her, she would get 5 stars because of the person she is.
Mrs. Huffman was my fifth grade teacher and she is the most amazing person I've ever met. She has so much happiness and love to share with her students. She tries so hard to make us happy and to have fun in school.She stays hours after school making fun simulations and activities for us. She made me love writing, reading, and history. Things were hard for me in South Carolina, but she changed my life. Mrs. Huffman deserves this award more than anyone i know. Thank you Mrs. Huffman!!!
Hello, This is Palmer I was in Mrs.Huffman's class for 5th grade last year it was so fun I loved how she would make our social studies into real-life cool activities! I loved her class and the way she taught things and the nice way she treated people lots of people in that class told me it was by far their favorite and nicest teacher I thought the same too I want to marry Huffman to be nominated for a life changer. :)
Mrs.Huffman was my 5th grade teacher last year and I had a blast! We always did these fun simulations and by far my favorite one was the Holocaust simulation. Mrs. Huffman has always helped me when I needed it and because if that I think she really does deserve this award. I would really recommend her as a teacher to the kids that go to Carolina Park Elementary. She really explained things in a very good way. I really understood everything! I am going to Thank her for her amazing teaching and I am going to tell her to continue what she does cause she does know what she is doing. Thank You Mrs.Huffman !
I served as Mrs. Huffman's Assistant Principal for 3 years at Carolina Park Elementary School in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. While working together, Mrs. Huffman was one of the most dedicated teachers that I had ever worked with during my career. Teaching is just not a job to Mary, it is her passion. Mary lived at least 40 minutes away from our school, but was always the first to arrive and the last teacher to leave. Mrs. Huffman uses every minute of her professional and free time thinking and developing creative lessons for her students. Having students re-create historical facts from events that have happened throughout the world to making historical cross curricular connections to literature to allowing her students to experience curriculum outside of the four walls of her classroom, has given her students an immense educational experience that they will never forget. On top of providing these opportunities to students, Mary consistently conducts presentations to many educational and historical organizations across the world. Mary's fervor for the education profession is one of a kind. The immeasurable impact that Mary Huffman has had on her students and community, makes her worthy of the Lifechanger of the Year Award!
Mrs.Huffman changed my life! My happiest ,memories are in her class.
I want to keep writing lol, Mrs. Huffman really brings lessons to life, before her class, I hated social studies because all we did was read textbooks and answer questions. In Mrs.Huffman's class, I was excited to learn, I am very happy to have been her student last year and I hope she wins this, I remember commenting here last year as well.
An add to my comment, Mrs. Huffman also was an amazing teacher in virtual learning, we still did awesome activities and yeah, it was my favorite grade so far.
HI! I was Mrs. Huffman's student last year, and she was the best and coolest teacher EVER! We did so many cool projects, learned about awesome things, and even got to see real artifacts and go on awesome field trips! I really hope she wins, she is the best social studies teacher ever!
She is amazing! I miss here very much. Mrs. Huffman is the reason why I love Social Studies! She was very interactive with these simulations she did but our year got cut sort but even though zoom she was amazing! I loved dressing up and doing interactive stuff with the point though history! I still love this class! I hope whatever she is doing now she will make it so much better!
I had the privilege of working with Mary in creating three courses for the Online History School program at the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Mary's enthusiasm is infectious, and she brings an interactive take to online learning that engages students in an impressive way.
Mrs.Huffman was my 5th grade writing, reading and SS teacher, and she was definitely one of my favorite teachers i loved to do social studies with her it was so much fun. We did so many fun simulations like dressing up for certain time periods of history like the women's rights movement, the native Americans and so many more! <3
Mrs. Huffman Is the best teacher ever. She makes Social studies come to life and has the best activities for us. I just wanted to say THANK YOU MRS. HUFFMAN FOR EVERYTHING. I want her to become a life changer of the year because she has really CHANGED MY LIFE. So please vote for MRS HUFFMAN.????
Mrs. Huffman Is the best teacher ever. She makes Social studies come to life and has the best activities for us. I just wanted to say THANK YOU MRS. HUFFMAN FOR EVERYTHING. I want her to become a life changer of the year because she has really CHANGED MY LIFE. So please vote for MRS HUFFMAN.????
Ms. Hoffman is my favorite teacher I've ever had :)
I have worked closely with Mary Huffman for ten years and the longer I know her, the more I am awed by her work ethic and passion for teaching our students. The amount of knowledge she has for history is like nothing I have ever seen before. She is a team player and always willing to teach coworkers, as well as students. She just loves history that much! Her kids learn so much through simulation and it makes learning come alive. She taught me how to teach share cropping in such an interactive way that the students instantly "got it" and that was a teachable moment for students as well as for me. Mary Huffman is most definitely deserving of this award. She IS a life changer and I am blessed to call her peer, colleague, and friend!
Ms.Huffman is extraordinary! She does awesome simulations with us like Ellis Island, where we got to dress up and see how wonderfully decorated the school is to look like Ellis Island. Her classroom is so cool with the posters, artifacts, and military uniforms. It is like a mini-museum. She also brought Holocaust survivors to speak to our class and their stories are sad but inspirational. Ms.Huffman is also a great person because she is kind, especially during this global pandemic. I was in her class when it started. Life felt like it would never be the same, but it was still fun in Ms.Huffman's SS class, including the awesome Dancing through the Decades week when we got to dress up and learn what life was like in the olden days. She also partnered with gilder Lehrman for two awesome Zoom webinar camps. Kids all over the US participated! Another awesome thing is that one of her students last year created an awesome project about an unsung hero that won him 1,000 dollars, thanks to Ms.Huffman's constant help and support. I do not know how you could do that in the middle of a Global Pandemic, but Ms.Huffman and the student made it happen! I am also happy that some of her current students are enjoying her class! They will soon understand why I wanted to have Ms.Huffman FOREVER!
Mrs. Huffman is my SS, writing, and reading teacher. Ever since i was in 3rd grade, i wanted her as my 5th teacher because her and her class would do all thing fun things like do pretend protest in the halls, they would dress up, and more. And now i'm in her class which is like a dream!!! The other day, we made pretend inventions and got "money" for them. Then with the "money" we got to buy real things like candy, toys, and drinks. I'm just going sum it up and say she is the best teacher EVER!!! :3
Ms. Huffman is the most amazing teacher. Each day my daughter comes home, the first thing she talks about is what they did today in Ms. Huffmans class. She has changed my daughters view of history and how it impacts our lives. Amazing, amazing teacher.
Mary has taught our oldest son and is now teaching our middle son in fifth grade.
She taught with such joy and passion that it was carried into our home and shared with the siblings.
Her enthusiasm for teaching, coupled with her creativity and hands on learning style really makes an impression on the kids.
She makes the students live, feel and immerse themselves in the topics so they not only remember the subject matter but also come away with more compassion and empathy.
We are so grateful to have her as a teacher!!!
Mary Huffman is a great teacher and what is cool is that i am one of her students.Mrs Huffman is a great teacher she helps out kids when they need help.Also she teaches social studies,writing and reading she can help out anyone she knows she is a great teacher and she should be know as one.She helps out in any sanitation with a student for what i know she is the best teacher.
Mrs.Huffman is the best teacher I ever had my sister would agree because she had her to. Mrs. Huffman has a rocking class room with veterans jackets hung on the wall and real artifacts. She gives out the best prizes when you get a 100 on your test for example I got a real railroad spike because it made me want to work harder on the test. She also marches around school wearing the coolest outfits and saying funny and amazing things/quotes. For example she painted herself green and dressed up like lady liberty. She also does bake sails and we got to mold native american house. These are some of the reasons that I nominate Mary Huffman for being an amazing teacher.
I've had the privilege to work with Mary in her role as Master Teacher for the Gilder Lehrman Institute as she has offered online classes for our students, facilitated professional learning for teachers across the country, and developed robust assessments of history content knowledge. In all of my interactions with her, Mary has brought enthusiasm, ingenuity, and a strong pedagogical lens. She's made tremendous contributions to our organization and had an impact on the many students and teachers we serve.
I am a Korean War Veteran and have worked with Mary on two Teachers Conferences. I was also National President of the Korean War Veterans Association 2013-2016 and the National Tell America Chairman for 9 years. My personal mission and commitment since I retired from full time employment is to help perpetuate the Legacy of those who served during the Korean War. Mary Huffman is helping to fulfill that mission. There is no one that I know whose enthusiasm, energy and skill at teaching matches Mary Huffman. Her imagination and skill combined create programs the children enjoy and remember when she is done. Thank you Mary for what you are doing for Korean War Veterans in teaching them that FREEDOM IS NOT FREE and that someone paid the price for the freedom we enjoy today.
Mary is an extraordinary teacher who brings energy and empathy to all that she does. In the early days of the COVID-19 crisis, Gilder Lehrman asked Mary to create a 'pop-up' history course for elementary school students. Within days Mary had designed a series of compelling and informative lessons that she delivered online to great acclaim from parents and students. Mary's ability to immediately engage a group of students from across the country in a virtual environment was impressive. She made learning about history interactive and fun. It's always a pleasure to work with Mary!
I have had the pleasure of working with Mary for three years. I have never experienced, as a parent, a teacher, or a student, anyone who brings history to life the way Mary does. Her students experience first-hand, through role-playing and simulations as well as through exploration of primary sources, not only the meaning of events in history but also the sight, sound, taste and feel of them. Mary is beyond energetic and enthusiastic. She really is a treasure.
mrs.huffman is so cool her classroom is like an museim it is so fun. mrs huffman deseves to win we dress up evrey 2-4 weeks and make artafacts like boom towns and we make are own stuff she aways lets us chose what we want to do i couldent wis for a better teacher
Mrs. Huffman has by far been the most entertaining teacher my daughter has ever had. We have compared her class to Mrs. Frizzle and The Magic School Bus! She brings the lessons to life in a way no other teacher has done in my experience or my children's. My daughter thoroughly enjoyed the interactive experiences and still talks about her class. The amount of effort, energy, enthusiasm she has put into teaching children goes above and beyond. If anyone deserves an award, it is certainly Mrs. Huffman. She is outstanding!!!!
We are blessed to have Mrs. Huffman as our son Joseph's History 5th Grade History Teacher at Carolina Park Elementary School in Mount Pleasant, SC. History can sometimes be deemed "boring" by children at this age, but Mrs. Huffman will have NOTHING to do with that. Her enthusiasm for this subject is second to none, and as a result it brings the energy out on the children. I can speak fluently on this topic, as a former High School History teacher on Long Island, NY. She not only teaches the children the importance of historical events, but more importantly makes the children truly think about the actions, setting and ramifications involved in each. She's the epitome of a teacher that relays her passion into the subject, and as a direct result the students are 100% engaged. Amazing teacher!
Mary is an educator that truly goes above and beyond for her students. Not only is her classroom decked out in military memorabilia creating an atmosphere of civic duty and reverence for the past, throughout the year her students travel through history to truly embody the people and times they are studying. Her students remember these experiences for years to come. She has high expectations for her students and supports them in achieving their goals. Not only does she want them to succeed academically but she strives to provide vital character education as she challenges her students to step into the shoes of others. She is a holistic teacher in the truest sense.
Mrs. Huffman is my daughter’s teacher this year and has impressed me with her passion for teaching and compassion for her students. I had heard previously about her creative teaching style, and had seen her dressed up as historical figures regularly around the school. But with the challenging times and starting off the school year with virtual learning I wondered how that would translate. Somehow she still manages to put together engaging lessons and comes to work with enthusiasm despite the additional challenges presented in 2020. She has also been kind and accommodating in discussing concerns I had with the plan to transition back to school. I feel blessed my daughter has the opportunity to learn from such an amazing teacher.
Mrs. Mary Huffner's coordination of the KWLF in Athens, Greece, conference was extremely efficient, the speakers' qualifications were superbly stated thanking them with praising comments. On the meantime she cheerfully came around us Korean War veterans and kneeling next to us she interviewed one-by-one taking our pictures simultaneously, for which all felt gratified. I strongly endorse her selection.
In 2015, Mary was named the National History Teacher of the Year. Over the past 4 years at GLI, I've worked closely with Mary in her role as a Master Teacher. Mary is one of the most passionate and energetic teachers I've ever worked with, and I consult with her on projects whenever I get the chance!
Mary Huffman brings an incredible energy to the classroom and helps students learn in a unique and engaging way. From the daily costumes to re-creating history within the classroom, her lessons were a favorite topic at our dinner table. Any student who is able to work with Mrs. Huffman is incredibly lucky and blessed. She leaves a positive impact on each person, student and family she touches.
Mary Huffman is the definition of commitment to changing lives for the better. With a passion and drive to understand the world and its people more, Mary brings enthusiasm and kindness to working with students, veterans, and fellow educators. She has brought her brand of sunshine and academic rigor to the world, blending her skills of teaching, empathy, and research to further education initiatives globally. Traveling around the many states of America as well as internationally, Mary is a professional educator who is dedicated to bringing the world closer together. She embodies everything that a Life Changer should be. Working with Mary for many years in many of these locations around the world, I have seen the effect and brightness she brings to every person she encounters. I thoroughly recommend her for this designation; she is wholly deserving and will be an outstanding exemplary representative.
Mary Huffman was born to be an educator. Her passion, dedication, and creativity make a big impact not just on her students, but her colleagues as well. Mary leads by example professionally and personally and is the perfect nominee for this award. I wish I had a teacher that made history come alive when I was in elementary school, just like Mary does each and every day.
We have had the pleasure-privilege of Mrs. Huffman teaching two of our daughters. To hear and see the excitement in their voices, and expressions on their faces recapping the time spent in class is incredible. She truly brings history to life! Her passion for teaching our girls was demonstrated through countless reenactments. Our oldest daughter is fifteen, and still tells the story of her character during the holocaust. Our youngest daughter dressed as numerous characters ( a slave, holocaust prisoner, native American, flapper girl, disco girl ect...). Not only is her teaching style unique to no one but her, she also preparer's the students for the future unlike any other teacher we have ever had.
I have had the good fortune of working with Mary for a couple years on both in-person and online professional development programs for teachers. Mostly recently, we worked together on two online seminars for K-12 educators, where she served as the Master Teacher. Mary's energy and enthusiasm are truly outstanding. Working with her is truly delightful and her passion for history education is an inspiration to colleagues and teachers alike.
Mrs. Huffman is an amazing teacher. She brings history to life with her elaborately decorated classroom and historical simulations. The students learn history in an innovative and active manner instead of simply memorizing facts. When the challenge of remote learning came along she rose to the occasion. Her classes online remained interactive and engaging. Mrs. Huffman is a dedicated teacher who is truly passionate about her profession.
Growing up, both of my parent's were teachers so I have always had an appreciation for and understanding of the hard work and dedication that is required to be a great teacher. I also know the impact that a great teacher's passion and enthusiasm can have on the lives of so many students. Two of my daughters have now had the honor of being in Mrs. Huffman's class and she has had a tremendous impact on both of them. Her passion for teaching and her ability to bring any subject matter to life is truly remarkable. Mrs. Huffman exemplifies the qualities of a LifeChanger. She has a special gift for engaging and challenging the minds of her students. Our family is cheering for you Mrs. Huffman. Well deserved nomination!
Mrs.Huffman is the best! She puts so much effort into her assignments and activities. Even in online learning, Mrs.Huffman continued to work hard to make her students happy. I wish I would've been in-person the whole year but she still did an amazing job helping her students learn. Last year we did so many fun activities like turning our school into Ellis Island and pouring baby pouter on us! She made me an honors student and I couldn't have done it without her. She is truly the best teacher ever.
As a fellow teacher I have been able to see Mary in action with her classes of children. Her room has the feel of a curated military museum room. She dresses up as figures from history as she teaches, bringing these figures to life. Her projects give students opportunities to become immersed in history beyond the facts, to try and step into a soldier's or an immigrant's shoes and experience what they felt/thought. She inspires students to see history as living and continuing.
Mary has worked with my foundation since 2016 and has been central in our enormous successes with social studies teachers not only in the US but also many countries that participated in the Korean War including Greece, Canada, United Kingdom, and South Korea. My foundation, The Korean War Legacy Foundation (https://koreanwarlegacy.org/) has about 1,600 KWV interviews from all 21 countries participated in the Korean War and has published curricular resources with National Council for Social Studies (NCSS), so far 4 curriculum books, about 200 pages each. Mary was selected as foundation's "Teachers Fellows" listening all those interviews and participating in the production of all those curriculum books. She has also actively involved in hosting conferences and developing professional programs for foundation.
WIth one word, She is essential, trustworthy, and does deliver what she commits and is assigned. I have the highest recommendation for Mary Huffman. Pls don't hesitate to contact me if you have further questions or concerns on her participation in my foundation's successes.
Jongwoo Han
President, Korean War Legacy Foundation
This teacher is the best teacher in the world! She's really funny and supportive! She's really smart and one of my personal favorite's about her is that she is so supportive and she helps us when we need her. Mrs. Huffman never ignores the questions we have or comments. She doesn't let us down when we need her, so we have the closest trust in her. Every day when we enter our zoom classes, she gives us a warm welcome and we start the day with a fun reading activity. Then after that, we get a break until we do a writing activity such as analyzing Native American tribal music or writing letters to tribal chiefs. For social studies, some of our cool activities include dressing up, building the West with sticks, Play dough, and dirt, and playing social studies bingo.
last but not least is that she LOVES ALL HER STUDENTS!!
Ms. Huffman is an amazing teacher. She has unique and innovative ways of teaching children. My fifth grade son loves her classes. She is spectacular. She uses a multi-sensory approach to teaching, including historical costumes and objects. Ms. Huffman knows how to make learning fun and interesting. My son is always looking forward to her class.
Mary is a one of a kind educator. The children who enter her classroom get to experience time travel and learn about and recreate historic events. As the theater teacher in the school, I can honestly say that her students not only learn about history but become part of it. They use costumes, props and acting skills to emerge themselves into the time period. There is not one child who hasn’t enjoyed learning from her. She is a gem!
It is easy to see that Mrs. Huffman cares about her students! She has established herself in the heart of many children throughout her years of teaching, not simply because she makes learning fun, but because she pours herself into the content! History comes to life in her classroom! I would vote for her any day!
Mrs.Huffman is the best teacher. She is my social studies and reading teacher and ELA.She is so enthusiastic and amazing. She so far is the best teacher I have ever had, this year has been so easy having her as my teacher!!!!! She is just so much fun. You will definitely not be let down by this nominee.
I have served as Mary's dissertation coach and editor for the last 15 months, and Mary has distinguished herself by exhibiting a tireless work ethic, an unrelenting desire to grow as both an educator and a scholar, and an infectious exuberance for even the most mundane tasks. I marvel at her ability to maintain her zeal for her teaching job while raising a family and completing the requirements for her doctoral degree. "Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." The second sentence of the aforementioned proverb applies to Mary as by striving for excellence in everything she does and encouraging those within her scope of influence to do the same, Mary teaches others across various contexts how to fish each day.
Mrs. Huffman is a very good teacher. She plans lots of fun activities and has many papers and signs of the past all along the classroom. She is a hard worker and I bet a strong solider. She is funny and nice. She is the right and well deserved person for this nominee. You will not be disappointed in this nominee.
My name is Joseph Colucci and Mrs. Huffman is my reading, writing, ELA, and social studies teacher. Mrs. Huffman is a great teacher to have especially because I love social studies. She has an online class and an in-person class. In class we are learning about the Industrial Revolution and new inventions that were made back then. Please vote for Mrs. Huffman!
Mrs. Huffman is my 5th-grade teacher and I like her as a history teacher cause she doesn't just give us a book and tell us to read it or give us a worksheet. Mrs. Huffman is very into it and that is a good thing because you can remember a lot more stuff when it's fun. My favorite activity we do is whatever we are learning like last week we were learning about the westward expansion and every two weeks we can dress up on what subject we were learning and in this instance we got to dress up as anything that has to do with the westward expansion and I dressed up as the pony express. Another example that she is a good teacher is she got my older brother to like social studies and let me tell you this you either have to have some type of superpower to get my brother to like things or you're the best history teacher named Mrs. Huffman. All in all Mrs. Huffman is the best teacher in the world.
I am Malachi Johnson and I am a student of Mrs.Huffman who is one of the best teachers i have ever had.when in her class you can have so much fun one of my personal favorite things to do is dress up as old time roles. I also like the simulations that we do during social studies to help us understand better plus she makes really funny jokes.she has really cool artifacts of old times and she hands them out to people who get good grades. she is just one of the best and i´m glad to have her as a teacher
Hi! my name is Isabella Ruocco, Mrs Huffman is one of the BEST teachers I have ever had! She defenetly deservs this award. Socail Studys used to be the WORST subject for me untill I came into her class. In 4th grade if you pass her class room you atomaticly want her as a teacher! Sometimes you come into school and you see people dressed up as native americans, farmers, coyboys and others and you think that person must be in Mrs Huffmans class! If you ever come to this school and see her class you know she is a BIG fan of the army, the Hollacost and any thing that has to do with history.If you need help or get something worng she is here to help with it and if you dont finish something she is nice anof to let you finish. Mrs Huffman defenely changed my life so she is perfect for this award!!! Thank You:)
Mrs. Huffman is a amazing teacher. Heres why, I never really understood social studies but this year i do she is an amazing teacher and I love how she teaches makes thing come alive and makes history so much more interesting. i hop she wins this year because she deserves it.
I just love Mrs. Huffman, she is one of my favorite teachers! I've never liked to go to school until she made learning fun. We got to dress up, do fun projects, listen to cool songs, write letters to Native Americans, and uncover secret information. It was so fun! When we get to do something fun, i always feel grateful. I'm just sad that i'm going to middle school soon, knowing she won't be my teacher next year. Mrs. Huffman is super fun and if you get her for 5th grade, you will be super happy.
HI, my name is Cambyll McCune.This is my teacher Mary Huffman she is incredible she is 100% the best teacher I have ever had.She is inspiring and has changed my life.This is my first year at this school and she was so welcoming.She is accomplishing so much in life and is taking huge step.I love her with all my heart.She makes school so much fun like this one time we did a Native American tribal day and she let us make our own costume and were them in class.I love you Mrs Huffman.
My teacher is a amazing teacher I have learned so much from the time i came to history decorated classroom. I felt a spark when I saw her classroom, Mary Huffman and i talk about history or other subjects at lunch.Not so long ago we played would you rather with a fellow class mate. she makes sure to go all out to learn about history we make costumes of Indians to Irish immigrants . She
makes every project hands on Mary Huffman is a great teacher this is why she should be nominated.
Ever since 3rd grade social studies was´t fun but when Mrs Huffman taught me I loved it we have been dressing up,making corn husk dolls.If we get a 100 on our quizzes we get a artifact. Every 2-4 weeks we make fun models of what were studying like boom towns. Usually when we eat lunch we watch Mr Bets meme story or Donald duck serving in the military.I couldn't remember school being so fun until Mrs Huffman taught us. She even lets us touch her artifacts and her room makes you feel like your in a mus am.
Mrs. Huffman is a fun teacher and she loves her job. I used to not like social studies but now i love it thanks to Mrs. Huffman. she is a great ELA teacher. you picked a great nominee that is incredible at her job. Im looking forward to many fun things to do this year. MRS.Huffman is the one of the best teacher i have ever met.
Mary Huffman is the best teacher because she dresses up and makes us go back in time and she teaches us about history she makes my sad rainbow into a happy rainbow. Mary Huffman let's us dress up she has so much amazing world war 1 to world war 2.
Mrs.Huffman you are the greatest teacher I have had! You are so sweet I love how you let our class dress up every two weeks. I am so excited to be in her class it is a pleader she is always here when some is hurt, sad, or even when you just need a hug. Every so often to help our grades she talks out assignments with us. Sometimes days are hard but try to guess what happens after 5 minutes, she comes to give you a big warm hug. Thank you Mrs. Huffman you are awesome!!!
Briley
Mrs. Huffman is my daughter's 5th grade teacher this year. It's been a challenge this first part of the year trying to get the hang of temporary remote learning, but Mrs. Huffman has been so wonderful and understanding of everyone since the beginning of the school year. She's been great about keeping us up to date on what's going on and making my daughter, Taylor feel like she's still a part of the class even though she's Zooming in every day. Taylor has never liked social studies but has told me over and over again how much she loves it now thanks to Mrs. Huffman's teaching. She says she comes up with new and fun ways of learning the material that makes it much more interesting and easier to understand. I truly appreciate Mrs. Huffman for finding a way to really engage Taylor and make her love learning again! It's obvious to everyone who knows her that she loves what she does and is passionate about teaching. Taylor cannot wait to get back to in-person learning next week so she can see Mrs. Huffman in person!
My name is James Malm and Mrs.Huffman is my Reading, Social Studies, and Writing teacher. Mrs. Huffman is a great teacher teacher she goes above and beyond her expectations. This year has been very tough because of covid but I have had a lot of fun even though I am learning online and cannot experience the real thing. She has a very good sense of humor and that is what every teacher needs. She even dresses up. I can tell she loves her job and her students. Mrs. Huffman is a great teacher so please I am begging you to vote for Mrs. Huffman. She deserves this award .
Mrs. Huffman is an amazing teacher. social studies was my least favorite and was hardest for me until I was in this class and it all started to connect it feels a lot easier than any other year. she makes it really fun and she's so creative.I look forward to waking up to to see what she has planned for us the next day.she gives us challenging assignments but they're always incredibly fun. she's funny and she does a lot for us. she plans every day like it's the last day of the school year that's why Mrs. Huffman is an amazing teacher.
My name is Taylor Dunning and Mrs Huffman is my teacher. She is the best teacher ever! I used to not like social studies, but because of her, it is really fun. Sometimes, people come to teach us for a day from the time period that we are learning about from a time machine. It really helps me remember things. We also listen to cool songs about our units. She is the best teacher I could ask for. Thanks Mrs. Huffman!!
I am the chair of Mary's EdD committee. She is as energetic and enthusiastic as the nominator, Matsoukas, wrote! She is a marvelous woman!! Sydney
My name is Isabella Kahalehoe, and I have Mrs. Huffman as my homeroom teacher this year, and she is amazing. I always am excited when she dresses up into crazy outfits to teach us about our lessons. She is funny and teaches super well. She loves her job, and her students, I love how she teaches and so unique. I love Mrs. Huffman and she is my favorite teacher! I like her songs she teaches and the raps. She is so awesome!!!!!! I love Mrs. Huffman
My name is Madison Ginger and Mrs. Huffman was my ELA and History teacher last year in 5th grade. She is the best teacher I've ever had. Mrs. Huffman loves her job and to make everybody she meets happy. She knows to balance being strict and fun. She will tell you when you are doing something wrong but will definitely compliment you and how great you are doing when you achieve something. I was only in Mrs. Huffman's class for 3 months because I moved to SC in January 2020, but I learned so much from her. She jammed facts of the past into our heads with fun remix songs, dress-ups, and super fun simulations. She was an awesome Social Studies teacher and also a pretty good ELA teacher as well. Mrs. Huffman works so hard at her job, and loves her children [students] to the bone.
My name is Madeline Smythe and I had Mrs.Huffman last year for fith grade history and ELA. She is by far the best teacher that I have ever had. She goes out of her way to do extra activities with her students and makes sure that everyone is learning and having fun at the same time. She is extremely dedicated to all of her work. When I had her last year we went through World War Two and the houlocuast. I learned so much from some of the extra activities that me and my peers got to do. Mrs.Huffman is so caring and hardworking. She deserves this award more than any other teacher i've had.
Mary Huffman is so good at what she does! She's able to help her students excel in their learning ability's even through a pandemic. She does so many things to help her students understand what they are taught. I should know - I was one. She does so many fun things to help struggling students through the year. She does simulations, dress up days, and so much more. Mary is the most passionate person I know, and is willing to do anything for her students. But it doesn't stop there. I was so proud to be her student and will forever have a place in my heart for her. Mary: I would never of made it to who I am today if it wasn't for you. Thank you for helping me from the bottom all the way to middle school! You change the lives of other!
She is passionate about her teaching. She truly loves her kids and wants them to learn. She brings life to her history lessons. She was teacher of the yr for history, she works with Korean War veterans, and so many more . She truly makes a difference in the lives of others.
I met Mary on a conference about Korea which she has chaired in Charleston SC. I was amazed at her energy and kindness to all delegates. She has since been supportive of my requests for help on lessons, I attended Gilder Lehrman summer program for children as an observer teacher and she knocked it out of the park. One of e kindest people I know and by far an outstanding teacher.
Congratulations on this nomination! Well deserved. :-)