Frisco ISD Focus Magazine November 2017 | Page 22

Hands-on activities and an engaging teaching style make Patience LeBlanc a favorite among her students .

Fowler Middle School Teacher Brings History to Life

Hands-on activities and an engaging teaching style make Patience LeBlanc a favorite among her students .

Patience LeBlanc brings historical figures to life for her students with creative costuming and a bit of dramatic flair .
Her talent for bringing the history of this nation to her students was recognized earlier this year when she was named as the 2017 Texas History Teacher of the Year by the the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History . LeBlanc is an eighth grade U . S . history teacher and social studies instructional coach at Fowler Middle School .
Whether she is dressed as Abigail Adams , Pocahontas or herself , LeBlanc engages her students with facts combined with her passion for the history of the United States and governmental processes , particularly the importance of voting .
“ My mother makes all of my costumes . The first costume I asked her to make was Queen Anne of England . She was married to King James ,” LeBlanc explained , describing how she mixed things up on the first day of school . “ I decided I would come as her instead of coming as me . Queen Anne went through all the rules and procedures with the kids on the first day of school because Mrs . LeBlanc was sick . She also talked about her husband King James and how he encouraged exploration and the settlement of the first permanent settlement in the New World , Jamestown . Needless to say she was the topic of dinner conversation on the first day of school .”
LeBlanc brings a personal understanding of how important it is for teachers to know their students and observe how they learn . Her favorite teacher was a Ms . Cabaniss who taught her during her senior year of high school .
“ She was the one who discovered I had dyslexia . She was the one who got me help ,” LeBlanc said .
Frisco ISD should be thankful to that observant teacher . LeBlanc has taught at several FISD campuses over the years and has served as a curriculum writer and presenter of professional development . She won the Leon Jaworksi Awards for Teaching Excellence in Law Focused Education in 2005 .
LeBlanc grew up in a military family , going to school and living in Europe during the Cold War years .
“ I gained an appreciation for being an American when I got to see how other people lived in other countries ,” she said . “ Our story always fascinated me .”
LeBlanc takes her role as teacher very seriously . She says she often wishes she could be in two places at the same time , so she could do everything she wants to for her students and for her own family . But she feels she has a mission in the classroom .
“ The most important lesson I want my students to learn is that citizenship is important ,” LeBlanc said . “ People must show up in order to make this representative democracy work . I want them to be good active citizens and I want them to remember the black marks in our history so that we do not repeat them in the future . They can make a difference .” •
Patience LeBlanc loves to use costumes as part of her lessons . Her favorite historical figures include women who made a difference such as Abigail Adams and Susan B . Anthony .
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