Extreme Teaching

Globe-trotting science teacher Bev Schaake conducts labs in the Amazon rain forest—and her seventh-graders love it.

Photos by Michelle Mulligan

Bev Schaake takes experiential learning seriously, and no one knows that better than her seventh-grade science students.

"Instead of talking about something that's on page 29 of our textbooks, we actually get to observe the flora and fauna in its natural habitat," she says of frequent class trips to the Amazon rain forest.

Her love affair with the region began with Schaake's first trip in 1995, when she flew to Peru and spent nine days traveling along the river and hiking through the countryside. Since then, she's been back seven times, taking more than 100 of her students from Liberty Middle School in Edwardsville, Illinois, and an eclectic mix of families, college students, and adults.

Schaake always schedules a visit to a local school into every trip she leads, an experience that teaches her students a lot about the cultural and social life of their host country. When word gets out American tourists are visiting, the school often becomes a popular spot for impromptu concerts and performances.

"The mothers will drop in with their babies and the fathers will come in from the fields and sing songs. Sometimes, they'll ask us to sing and we'll sing something like, 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game' or 'You Are My Sunshine.'"

After her first trip, Schaake began thinking about what she could do for the people of the Amazon. She collected 65 boxes of school supplies, which were shipped to Miami for free by UPS, flown to Peru for free by the national airline, and distributed with help from Lions Clubs International, which provided Schaake with a boat, fuel, and a driver to deliver the goods.

Schaake, who has also been to Kenya, Botswana, Tanzania, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, says she never expected to become a world traveler. In Zimbabwe Schaake met a young girl who attended a school that had no running water or heat. Even though the child's teeth were chattering, she told Schaake how much she loved going to school.

"Education is special and truly valued in many of the places I've visited," says Schaake. "For that little girl to say she loved school was both heart-wrenching and inspirational. I guess that's why I love going places and taking people with me." 

—Desda Moss

A Wild Ride

"It's kind of like running a mile, dancing a ballet, and riding a bull—all at the same time," says Tom Lamb.

Photos by Sandy Huffaker

No, Lamb is not describing a new hip-hop dance move; rather, he's waxing lyrical about the sport he loves—downhill mountain bike racing. This science and environmental studies teacher from California is an expert downhill mountain biker who's currently the national champion for the 50- to 60-year-old expert age group. 

Lamb—a member of Chumbawumba, a team of professional and amateur racers—competes between 10 and 15 times a year. Downhill racers compete against the clock one at a time on a rough, steep course down the side of a mountain. Each race lasts five to seven minutes and involves an elevation drop of 1500 to 2000 feet.

So how does Lamb train for this challenging sport? A former triathlete, he rides three to four times a week. To maintain his level of fitness, he trains on a cross country mountain bike for endurance and a downhill-specific bike for technique. He also does some weight training.

Lamb obviously likes a challenge, which is why he switched to teaching 10 years ago after working as a geologist for 17 years. Lamb's background serves him well at Coronado Middle School near San Diego, where in addition to physical science, he teaches students about the environment. Even though he taught community college early in his career, Lamb says it's nothing like teaching middle school. "It's an all-consuming, tough job," says Lamb, "but it's all-satisfying too."

—Emily Goodman

Broadcasting Messages of Hope

Retired South Carolina member Fannie Leonard Simmons takes to the radio waves each week with information and inspiration for county jail inmates.

Photos by Dave Ackerman

A few years back, Simmons was saddened when she visited a relative in the Marion County Prison Camp. "I saw in prisoners' faces what confinement had done to them, and these were not faces of hope."

Simmons contacted the manager of a local radio station that broadcasts gospel music and religious programming, and he gave her the green light to create a program to serve prison inmates. Simmons' show, "Behind Locked Doors," airs Saturdays on WJAY radio in Mullins, South Carolina. Simmons reads inspirational poetry, some of which she writes, and interviews guests with advice or encouragement for inmates.

Simmons gets a chance to talk with the inmates who listen to her show when she teaches Sunday school at the jail. Many express their gratitude and ask for copies of her poems. "Making a difference for people with tough lives makes me feel better about myself," says Simmons, who also writes letters of reference for inmates when they come up for parole.

Simmons, who has had the heartbreaking experience of meeting inmates who were her former students or the children of former students, was elated last month when one of the young men she had written a letter for came up to her and said, "Mrs. Simmons, I've got good news! I made parole!"

"It's all worth it," says Simmons, "if I can help just one person."

—Matt Simon

Got a Tip?

Do you have an interesting story idea? Contact Sabrina Holcomb.