Cambridge third grade teacher, Naomi Fredericks, has been named Travis Unified Teacher of the year!

Naomi Fredericks - Cambridge Teacher of the Year
Travis Unified Teacher of the Year for 2007!

Dedication, enthusiasm, and creativity are the qualities instilled in each great educator. Cambridge staff thinks Naomi Fredericks has all of these characteristics in abundance. Naomi’s educational philosophy is about creating life-long learners who value the knowledge and skills they have gained in school. She believes that the students should be able to apply them successfully as adults in their chosen career and in their leisure time.

Naomi always comes to school early on workdays, prepared and ready to teach. She can be found working hard after school, on the weekends, and during off-track periods, creating interesting and thought provoking lesson plans. According to her students, she motivates, rewards learning, structures the school day to their best benefit, and keeps them safe. Naomi’s students are excited to be in her class for independent and cooperative learning, real life applications of the state standards, and the one-on-one time they get everyday with their teacher. She modifies her teaching by the content, process, product, and learning environment, based on her students’ needs. She creates multiple paths for the same concept attainment.

Each year Naomi’s work on the Accelerated Reader committee at Cambridge helps to promote student interest in reading by offering incentives like the Accelerated Reader (A.R.) cart. The A.R. cart gives each Cambridge student a chance to earn books based on how much he or she reads each trimester. Her efforts have helped us offer this incentive to the students for three years now. It is without question that Ms. Fredericks works hard to ensure the success of the students at this school, but she also supports the younger and more inexperienced teachers. In addition to helping her grade level teachers regularly, Naomi has offered staff development in mathematics assessment and differentiated instruction, coordinated school’s Family Math and Science Night, and represented Cambridge in District Science Committee. She was one of the first few teachers who piloted the technology based assessment component of Harcourt Brace. Her presentation and regular use of Harcourt Brace assessment persuaded us to buy it for the whole school.

Naomi’s enthusiasm to collaborate to serve all her students is evident in the following comments from our Resource Specialist. “As an educator, I have always found Naomi to be deeply committed to the task of addressing the needs of her academically challenged students. We have collaborated upon blending general education with special education, when developing appropriate curriculum adaptations for her academically challenged learners. She is so dedicated, and knowledgeable regarding the individual needs of all of her students.”

Naomi has been a source of inspiration for several hundred students and educators. She possesses the personal qualities and professional skills that make her an outstanding educator who is committed to quality education. Cambridge Elementary School nominates Naomi Fredericks, a leader among her peers, for this competitive award without any reservation.