San Marcos teacher a hero in students' eyes

By: NOELLE IBRAHIM - Staff Writer
Carrillo teacher Ted Saulino honored for making learning fun | Friday, February 15, 2008 10:54 PM PST ∞

SAN MARCOS ---- Carrillo Elementary School teacher Ted Saulino says he strives to treat teaching his second-grade class like he's throwing a birthday party every day.

"You have to be on and you have to entertain and excite," said Saulino.

Saulino, who has worked at Carrillo for nine years and has been teaching in the San Marcos Unified School District for 17 years, recently won a Teachers are Heroes award for being a positive force in the classroom.

Students say he goes above and beyond to make learning exciting.

"We always have fun," said 7-year-old D.J. Wolfson. "It's a celebration of learning."

With the help of parent volunteers, Saulino's students wrote letters describing why he is their hero and submitted them to the awards program, which is sponsored by local Lincoln Financial Media radio stations and Azusa Pacific University's San Diego Regional Center.

The program honors San Diego County educators each month.

Along with the recognition, Saulino received a plaque, and he and his class will join other teachers honored throughout the year and their classes for a special day at Legoland in Carlsbad.

"It was a total, total surprise," said Saulino. "It's an honor and privilege to be their hero and it's a big responsibility."

Saulino credited the award to the tight-knit atmosphere at the school.

"I can do the job I do because I'm supported by the administration, my colleagues and the parents here," he said.

Parent Diane Mackie, who spearheaded the letter-writing campaign, said Saulino deserves the honor because he holds the children accountable without breaking their spirit. Saulino has had a positive impact on her son, Mitchell Zullo, within a short period of time, she said.

"He loves his job and it shows," said Mackie. "He's one of those teachers you know you'll remember the rest of your life."

Mackie praised Saulino's approach to teaching core subjects such as math, science and reading. For example, last week students sat on their desks and sang the lyric, "Put on your thinking cap, put your brain in motion."

The serenade was part of Saulino's Reading to Sing and Singing to Read program, an out-of-the-box approach to language arts. Students collect songs throughout the year, read them, dissect the structure of the song and look for language in them, Saulino said. The grand finale is a concert for parents, he said.

"It's taking learning outside the books," he said.

The students also have been trained in the PowerPoint computer program, which they used to make slides about protecting the whales and saving the rain forest. The exercise was meant to blend what students are learning in science with technology, writing and research, Saulino said.

In addition, students learn about addition, subtraction and keeping track of money by earning "Saulino Bucks" for sharing, extra-credit work and good behavior. The kids "deposit" their money into a bank account.

"We learn a lot in this class," said Jack Knowles, 7. "He prepares us for third grade."

But teaching goes beyond academic subjects, Saulino says.

"In education, we're always trying to measure things, but the bigger picture can't be measured ---- the inspiration, the ability to push yourself beyond what you did the day before," he said.

The class, which Saulino nicknamed The Incredibles, has its very own motto: "Think creative, be creative. Think positive, be positive."

Parent Stephanie Leach said Saulino's positive attitude is something that has rubbed off on both students and parents, including her daughter, Kaitlyn.

"They all love to come to school," said Leach. "He just takes it to another level."

Contact staff writer Noelle Ibrahim at (760) 740-3517 or nibrahim@nctimes.com.