33 years of helping Cache Valley students find their light — Brenda Bilodeau’s legacy
Teaching elementary students in Cache County School District has been Brenda Bilodeau’s passion for three decades. Bilodeau can’t remember a time in her life when she didn’t have a desire to be a teacher — and her efforts in becoming an excellent educator have influenced hundreds of students. Bilodeau has been selected as Mountainside Elementary’s Teacher of the Year.
As a second-grade teacher, Bilodeau spends a large amount of her time in the classroom teaching students to read. “Brenda is an amazing teacher of reading and writing,” said Mountainside Principal Lynette Riggs. “She is determined that her students will not only learn to read but also learn to love reading through joyful engagement with the text. The written work her students produce is inspiring and well noted by other teachers.”
Teaching students to read isn’t just something that Bilodeau is good at doing. For her, it’s a passion. “The best part of my job is seeing the light come on for young readers. When reading really starts to make sense to them--that is a great reward for me,” she said.
Seeing that light in her students is something Bilodeau has missed during this period of online learning. “I miss seeing the daily progress that my second graders make,” she explained. “I also miss the hugs, handshakes, and high-fives.”
Principal Riggs praised Bilodeau for her dedication and efforts to improve continually. “Microsoft has a motto that is similar to ‘the learn-it-alls’ will do better than the ‘know-it-alls,’” she said. “Mrs. Bilodeau is a veteran teacher and certainly knows a lot, but she is also a life-long learner. She cares about learning and she is continually trying to improve her effectiveness in the classroom.”
Thank you for all that you do for the students at Mountainside Elementary, Mrs. Bilodeau!