Preface: I first knew Mary Jo Denton as the mother of one of my son’s friends. How she loved Patrick and was so proud of him. Then I knew her as a newspaper reporter whose writings were true and trusted.
Then I watched her teach. After these many years, the quotes in this story aren’t exact. Memories conjured up words. I know she talked about the five W’s and getting details correct. She modeled, she nodded, she praised, she congratulated.
This is my story of a woman I greatly admire.
“In the first paragraph tell the five W’s,” Mary Jo Denton told my class of 6th grade students. She stood beside the classroom overhead projector, held a black pen in hand, and asked if anyone knew the five W’s.
One by one students called out. Who. What. When. Where. Why.
Mary Jo nodded, and halfway smiled, as she wrote each W word on a clear transparency. My students were learning from a master.
It was 1989 and Capshaw Elementary School would celebrate its fifty-year anniversary since opening in 1939. Principal Dr. Leslie Roberts suggested that the students in my Language Arts classes interview former Capshaw students and write about their school experiences and then get a booklet printed.
I taught paragraph, letter, and story writing and grammar, but I wasn’t confident in guiding students to interview someone and write an article. Since Mary Jo’s son Patrick was a Capshaw student, Dr. Roberts and I hoped she’d help. Maybe tell the students what questions to ask and give them, and me, suggestions how to write an article.
Thankfully, Mary Jo was willing to help.
After every student had someone to interview, most who were family members or neighbors, Mary Jo came to school to teach students how to get information. “Take paper and pencil and look professional,” she told them. “Be sure you spell their names correctly.”
And then, using students’ suggestions, Mary Jo wrote a list of interview questions on the overhead projector.
Who was the teacher you most remember?
When did you go to Capshaw?
How did you get to and from school?
Did you bring your lunch or eat in the cafeteria?
What games did you play on the playground?
Who were your friends?
The list was two pages long. Mary Jo didn’t reject a single suggestion and she added a last question: What do you want Capshaw students to know that I didn’t ask? “Don’t ask every question. Pick a few. And if someone starts telling a story, stop and listen, and make notes of exactly what they say,” Mary Jo said.
After the class, I asked Mary Jo to tell me know how to help the students write articles from their interview notes. She offered to come back to school and that’s when she began class with the five W’s.
Writing on the overhead projector, she modeled. She wrote a sample first paragraph and then gave students time to do the same. She told students to pick one or two of the most interesting details.
Using one student’s interview notes, in ten minutes Mary Jo wrote an article on the overhead projector while twelve-year-old students watched intently. She made writing look easy.
Students picked up their pencils and wrote. For the rest of the class time, they wrote as Mary Jo and I watched silently.
That second class time wasn’t the end of Mary Jo’s help. She came back to school a few days later to get the student’s finished articles, and she took them home with her.
When she returned the students’ papers, Mary Jo asked to talk with them. Those students grew taller as she praised them for their work. She read aloud a few lines from many writings. She talked about how reporters need to get the details right and they had done their jobs well. She smiled. She nodded. She approved.
When the booklets were printed, Mary Jo make one last visit to our classroom. She was given the first booklet. She congratulated the students on their work.
Yes, those 6th grade students and their teacher learned from a master.
Susan R Ray
August 17, 2024
Filed under: Friends | Tagged: Mary Jo Denton | 1 Comment »
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