New York City elementary school teacher Shara Breit has been recognized as an exceptional educator with a 2023 Big Apple Award. Photo Credit: New York City Department of Education
New York City is very proud of their public school teachers. In fact, city educational leaders regularly recognize exceptional teachers with their annual Big Apple Award. In 2023, one of these educators was Shara Breit, an elementary school teacher from Staten Island.
Shara teaches fourth grade at Public School 11, also known as Thomas Dongan School. Her professional philosophy is that every student in her classroom should have “voice and choice.” Upon entering her classroom, students and alike immediately feel they are immersed in a relaxed atmosphere and culture that invites all students to succeed. Shara makes sure that her youngsters are provided with enrichment opportunities and projects that have been created in collaboration with her students. Some of these have even gone schoolwide.
Shara says she understands that keeping her students at the center of the instructional program means engaging their families in their education, too. She regularly invites families to lessons she calls “Parents as Learning Partners.” These lessons are interactive. During the pandemic, the lessons were provided virtually, and once the school returned to in-person instruction, many parents requested their children remain remote with Shara, because they simply did not want to leave the popular teacher’s online platform.
In addition to her responsibilities as a classroom teacher, Shara serves as a Grade Team Leader, a social and emotional learning (SEL) coordinator, and a data specialist. In her role as the data specialist, she facilitates grade-level and school-level (horizontal and vertical) Inquiry/Impact Team work to decide upon the best instructional practices to promote the highest levels of student achievement at all grade levels.
The Big Apple Award was presented to 20 New York City teachers. Each one was nominated by their principal for work in the profession that inspires students, models great teaching, and enriches school communities. The recipients were chosen through a rigorous selection process that includes community nominations, principal recommendations, classroom visits, an interview, and a review by a board of judges. To learn more about the program and this year’s recipients, click on this link to Big Apple Awards.
