Spotlight on: Chanel Meyer
April 2026 High School Teacher of the Month
The Student Council decides monthly student and teacher awards with a specific category each month. The category for April 2026 was “most artistic” for students and “most creative” for teachers.
The Senior Student of the Month awards go to two seniors per month who are nominated and voted on by Student Council members in grades 9-11.
The High School Teacher of the Month award goes to one teacher per month who is nominated and voted on by Student Council members in grades 9-12. All Teachers of the Month become eligible to become Teacher of the Year in June.
The April 2026 Senior Students of the Month are Rylee Hisert and Oliver Boncella, and the April 2026 High School Teacher of the Month is Chanel Meyer, who teaches Spanish IV and V.
Below is a Q&A with Chanel Meyer:
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Q. What are some ways you intentionally build creativity into your classroom?
A. A lot of the creativity in my classroom comes from giving students opportunities to interpret, create and make meaning in their own way. That might look like reacting to a fun or unexpected topic, sharing opinions, creating a story or showing comprehension through art. I also like to switch up how we do things, so class doesn’t feel the same every day. This helps to keep students open to new ways of learning.
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Q. Can you describe a lesson or project that stands out as especially creative or successful?
A. One of the most engaging projects we do each year is our Spanish “March Madness” Music Bracket! Students in my Spanish classes listen to 16 songs by a range of artists from Spanish-speaking countries and vote for their favorites. As we move through the bracket, students use Spanish to express opinions, make comparisons and react to what they hear. At the end, students create a visual representation of their favorite song. It’s always fun to see their interpretations and opinions come to life through art!
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Q. Where do your ideas for creative teaching usually come from?
A. I find a lot of inspiration from other world language teachers, especially those who focus on comprehension-based and proficiency-driven instruction. Seeing how others design engaging experiences often sparks ideas that I can use in the classroom! I also focus on building a classroom community to know what my students are interested in, because that helps me design creative lessons that feel relevant to them.
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Q. How do you help students feel comfortable taking creative risks?
A. I work to create a classroom environment where communication matters more than perfection. Students are encouraged to take risks and make mistakes! I support them by providing clear models, sentence frames and scaffolds, so they are prepared to take these risks.
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Q. What is a favorite resource, tool or strategy you use to make learning more engaging?
A. Blooket has become a favorite in our classroom! Students love the gamified format, but what I appreciate most is how useful it is to measure student understanding. I can use it to reinforce vocabulary, check comprehension or revisit key structures in a way that feels fun for high school students.
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Q. What advice would you offer teachers who want to make their instruction more imaginative or student-driven?
A. As teachers, we all want to provide meaningful and engaging learning experiences for our students. I suggest making small tweaks to what you already do and building over time. You don’t have to completely redesign your curriculum overnight. Just try one new idea, see how students respond, reflect on the experience and build from there!
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