Mrs. Litchfield: Gage Elementary School's Teacher of the Year
Many of us have had the great pleasure to experience an outstanding teacher in our lives. A teacher who went beyond the curriculum to make us feel special; who motivated and inspired us, Mrs. Litchfield is that teacher. You can feel it as soon as you walk into her 1st grade classroom. It is packed with art, literature, projects and centers that she has lovingly prepared every day for 35 years. You can feel it when she takes you on field trips and explains every aspect of the experience in glorious detail. You know it when you receive small tokens of her affection; the trinkets that she picked up from her summer trips or adorable treasures that she purchased to brighten a celebration or holiday. You certainly hear it when she talks to or about any of her students. She sees the beauty in each child and treats them with dignity every moment of the day. Mrs. Litchfield is so special that her name can be an adjective.

After a field trip to Mission Trails Park a parent came back and said how wonderful it was to observe nature with Mrs. Litchfield, "It was so Litchfield," she said. The "Litchfield" effect is felt by all who know her. She is highly respected by her colleagues and has been a favorite teacher with parents and children alike.

Mrs. Litchfield was honored as Gage's Teacher of the Year at a special ceremony at the Board of Education on May 5th. It will be bittersweet since this will be her final year. As she will tell you, the joys she has received have sustained and empowered her and the time she has spent in the classroom has been a true labor of love. We know the impact she has made on her students will be felt for many years to come.
Submitted by: Sharon Youngman and Marcia Kaplan
The staff at Gage Elementary School would like to thank all the parents/families that attended our first "Take Your Parents to School Day' on February 11. We had over 180 parents join us in our classrooms to observe and participate in classroom lessons. Thank you for making this event such a success; we loved having all of you here.