Romeoville's Howe is WGN 'Teacher of the Month'

WGN-TV cameras and crew visited Lukancic Middle School Thursday to honor language arts teacher Kathie Howe as their “Teacher of the Month.”

Nominated by Lukancic 8th grader Nathan Helfert, Mrs. Howe will be featured in a segment on Channel 9’s 9 p.m.news on March 26 and on the mid-day newscast on March 27.

Nathan cited Mrs. Howe for her willingness to help her students learn.

“She is always adding new books to her library. She will help a student find a book to read even if she has to go and buy it,” he wrote in his nomination paper. “When there is a book fair if a student is short of money she will help them pay for the book.”

Mrs. Howe, Nathan said, also keeps school supplies on hand for students who run out of their own supplies.

“If a student comes to class and is out of paper or a pen, she will give it to them. This way the student will not be sitting there or asking a friend for it,” he told WGN-TV. “That way, it removes the stress from the student.”

Student rewards for positive behaviors play a big role in Mrs. Howe’s classroom, according to Nathan. Students receive tickets (worth 10 cents each)  for such things as sharing an essay with classmates or for being on time to class. At the end of each semester, tickets are totaled up and Mrs. Howe donates an equal amount of money to a local food pantry.

“The more the students try, the more tickets go in,” Nathan said.

WGN’s Muriel Clair, who does “Teacher of the Month,” spent several hours at Lukancic Thursday gathering a variety of information that will be used in the taped segment.