Last week, we showed our Clover Park School District pride by giving a #SuperSchoolShoutOut to Tyee Park Elementary School third grade teacher Megan Watson and fifth grader Daniel Blanco.
Tyee Park is an elementary school with a diverse student population and is unique in our district because of its suburban location and campus. “The building is really unique and special,” Principal Tyler Bieker said. “We have a lot of windows which brighten up our students’ classrooms and in the spring, we get to enjoy taking learning from the classroom to our amazing courtyard which is great for students.”
This is Bieker’s first full year as the principal of Tyee Park after serving as the dean of students and interim principal for part of last school year. “I’m proud to be the principal here because we have amazing students who work hard every day and a fantastic group of staff who make sure they’re learning to their highest levels,” he said.
Principal Bieker and his team embraced Universal Design for Learning this year, which emphasizes meeting students where they are academically to provide equitable support for student success.
“With whatever it is they bring into the classroom, whether that be outside knowledge or history at home, we want to support the learning of each student,” he said. “We don’t consider those things barriers, just qualities to take into account when we work hard to drive their learning forward.”
After completing his first year, Principal Bieker is in awe of the strides his students made and hopeful for their bright futures. “It’s great to see how students grew and developed over the year, and I can’t wait to see where they are able to go with the tools they learned from our supportive staff and the great skills they have all on their own,” he said.
Watson began her career in special education seven years ago and has just finished her second year in third grade. “I think I’ve found my niche because these kids have a great sense of humor and are always excited about learning,” she said.
Watson loves teaching her students all subjects but never expected math would be her favorite subject to teach. “Because of the way I was taught, I was never excited about it, but we did trainings this year with new strategies that have made learning math so much more fun for these students,” she said.
Watson takes pride in meeting her students where they’re at, respecting their feelings and opinions, and fostering a strong classroom community. “It’s really awesome to see them make such huge strides academically and with their personalities,” she said. “By the end of the year, I look at them as my own kids and I have such a hard time letting go.”
Daniel loves learning and feels as though he’s been challenged in great ways as a fifth grader this year. “When I’m doing tests, I can rely on the knowledge I learned and feel really confident,” he said.
Daniel loved learning about division and fractions this year but believes that his favorite subject is social studies with writing just barely underneath it in second place. “I love being creative and expressing myself when I write,” he said. “I’m mostly an expert in history, especially World War II, and watch the news with my family because I always want to learn about the world.”
Next year, Daniel is excited to start middle school and take computer science classes to strengthen his technological skills for the future. When he grows up, he is deciding between becoming a teacher, becoming a lawyer or joining the military.
Go Tigers!
