“She is one in a million!” How Vanessa Dos Santos Helps Her Students Feel Happy and Safe

After moving to the United States from Brazil during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Vanessa Dos Santos began teaching Portuguese as part of the DLI program at Sunrise Elementary. Her kind and supportive teaching style has earned her the 2025-26 Teacher of the Year award for Sunrise.

Dos Santos always loved the learning environment of school and knew that she wanted to be a teacher from a very young age. “I felt like that was my calling from the beginning,” she shared. “I didn't imagine myself doing anything else.”

She is proud to share parts of her culture with her students, from teaching them Portuguese nursery rhymes to making a sandman instead of a snowman for a Christmas project. She loves getting to see how curious her students are about everything and how excited they are to learn another language.

One of her main goals is to make her class a place where students can feel safe and be happy. “That is something that I work hard at – to have happy kids in the class and help them feel loved, supported, and excited about speaking Portuguese,” she described. 

A parent testified to this truth. “Vanessa is an enthusiastic and personal cheerleader for my kid,” she shared.

Ms. Dos Santos cares deeply about her students, and her colleagues note how her patience and natural leadership skills make her both an amazing teacher and a great advocate for why the DLI program is important.

“Within the DLI program, she has to get to know double the number of children, and she still manages to build a relationship with each child and their parents,” says Sunrise Principal Shellie Healy. “In addition to being a fabulous teacher, she is a natural leader among her peers.”

Dos Santos enjoys watching her students progress with the language over time, as it helps them become more confident and resilient. She finds it rewarding to help the kids express themselves more through the language by making them feel supported and safe in the classroom.

She also encourages parents to get their children involved in the DLI program. “I truly believe that any child can learn a language,” she says. “They are capable. They can do it!”