TEACHING AND LEARNING FOR LA TEEN TEACHERS

    To date, 49 Teen Teachers from Langford Area have earned $11,800 in scholarships as part of Teens As Teachers, a program of the South Dakota Youth Foundation, Inc., The program has come full circle within the Langford Area School District. This year’s Teen Teachers include Rennan Bruns, Eliana Darling, Jordis Jenner, Caleb Mertz, Cassidy Nelson, Morgan Ostlie, Jake Samson, and Ryder Smith, all of whom were part of the inaugural class taught by Teens As Teachers.
    Since 2017, Langford high school students have taken on the role of mentoring elementary students in their community. The district has collaborated with the South Dakota Youth Foundation through its Teens As Teachers initiative. The teaching and  mentoring journey began with Langford Area teens Emilie Crosby, Dylan Frey, Brandy Peterson, and Ryan Punt. Once trained with the South Dakota Youth Foundation, these students became mentors and instructors for the CHARACTER COUNTS! lessons.
    Then Superintendent Monte Nipp observed: “Having Teen Teachers present lessons and become role models for our elementary students makes programs more successful than if it’s just adults teaching the material.”
    LA senior and Teens As Teacher participant Jordis Jenner added, “With this program we get to fully plan lessons and teach them to children in grades 2-7. It has been super fun planning out what activities we want to do, and to help make an impact on these young children’s education.”
    Teens who complete the requirements of Teens As Teachers, receive a scholarship for post-secondary education. Training and scholarships are funded by the South Dakota Youth Foundation Inc. and its donors.