Over the past two years, students have experienced anxiety, separation, and in some cases mobility, grief, and trauma. For students from military families and their teachers, these concerns have been everyday experiences for years, not just post-COVID. In San Antonio, known as “Military City USA,” Ft. Sam Houston Independent School District provides a model of how educators are supporting student wellbeing and engaging families.
Dr. Roland Rios, Director of Technology, and Jeannine Freeman, Digital Learning Coach, helped to plan a STEM-focused family engagement night in April that was part of their Month of the Military Child celebration. Ft. Sam Houston ISD is unique in that the district boundaries are co-located with the boundaries of the military base and almost 100% of the students come from military families. BrainPOP robot character Moby was a special visitor for the celebration. Dr. Rios confessed that he fulfilled a years-long aspiration when he donned Moby costume that the company sent. Students immediately recognized Moby, who guides them through the movie lessons within BrainPOP. Dr. Rios said that students love Moby and clamored to have their picture taken with him. Even some of the parents recognized the robot character and asked for a selfie.
Jeannine noted that Moby is a part of their daily routines for academics and student wellness, as he provides an empathetic guide and learning partner. BrainPOP supports Ft. Sam Houston’s curriculum with engaging interactive lessons that include critical thinking and make it easy for teachers to differentiate instruction. The wide range of content across disciplines supports students in building academic background knowledge for the re-designed STAAR, with question types that mirror the technology-enabled questions on the new STAAR. Using BrainPOP, students could even create and share their own movies about their experiences as military children. Teachers map the lessons to their scope and sequence, and content management tools enable the district to easily pre-screen lessons and customize grade-level appropriate content. The recent integration of
Microsoft Immersive Reader makes the program accessible to learners of all reading levels. “Teachers love BrainPOP because the content is relevant, not outdated,” said Jeannine. Dr. Rios added, “teachers would be upset if we were to ever take away—it’s easy to use and so effective.”
Dr. Rios and Ms. Freeman exemplify how Texas educators are meeting students’ academic needs as well as supporting their well-being through positive interactions and family engagement. As educators statewide look for ways to help students process their emotions in positive and healthy ways, these resources may be helpful for all families.
PurpleUP USA, Celebrate the Military Child. Dr. Rios serves on the Board of this organization.
MCEC Military Child Education Coalition based in Harker Heights, TX