Parent Profile: Jessica Baker

Photo by Jamie Plain

Tell us a little about yourself (family, pets, etc.) 
My name is Jessica Baker, and I have been married to my husband, Christian, for 3 years. We have an 11-year-old son, Caiden, and a 1-year-old son named Josiah. We currently don’t have any pets but Caiden is wanting to get some fish.

What do you do for a living, and how long have you been in that role? 
I am a kindergarten teacher at Spottsville where I am lucky to work with some of the best teachers, administration, and staff in Henderson County. This is my 10th year of teaching.

What do you love most about teaching? What are some of the challenges? 
I love seeing the growth in my students from the first day of school to the last. I get excited and proud of them when things start to click, especially when it was something they struggled with. I love providing them with memorable moments/days throughout the year to make learning and school fun. The beauty of kindergarten is I get to give them their foundation of learning and show them how much fun school can be. 

Some challenges I sometimes face at my job are feeling like I can’t do everything I would like to do because of lack of time or lack of resources. Another challenge is that teaching is not a 9-5 job where once you leave you’re done for the day. There is always something to do, some new center or idea you want to implement so you have to prep/plan for that, or some student(s) you’re thinking about. 

When you aren’t inside the classroom, what hobbies do you and your family enjoy? 
When I’m not in my classroom I am typically running to my oldest son’s games. We all love to read and it’s been nice to see Caiden share some of his favorite books with Josiah and share some of my childhood favorites with Caiden. My family and I also enjoy traveling. Typically when we travel, we have one thing planned that we for sure want to do and the rest is up for chance which has made for some exciting adventures.

How do you balance work and family life? 
To be honest, this is something that I continually work at because certain parts of the year are crazier for work or family than others. However, what’s been working the last couple of years is picking a day out of the week where I stay at school longer or take stuff home to work on instead of spending multiple days on work. The years are flying by and my kiddos are growing up fast and I want to be a part of everything they do, so if that means having to adjust work activities then that’s what I’ll do.

What advice would you give parents for kindergarten readiness? 
It is wonderful if they can write their name, count to 10, know shapes and some letters and sounds, but we also want them to come in having some social/emotional and self-care skills. For example: can they play and share with others, can they follow directions, can they hold a pencil (fine motor skills), or can they put their jacket or shoes on by themselves, etc. Working on some academics, some social/emotional skills, and some self-care skills will give them the best start. It’s okay if they don’t know everything, they will grow so much throughout the year.

What advice would you give students thinking about a career path in teaching? 
Take in all you can during undergrad from different activities, classroom management strategies, etc. Other teachers are some of the best resources you can learn from, so don’t be afraid to ask for help. Teaching is very rewarding but some days are harder than others, but you can get through them and when you look back you’ll see it was all worth it.