Victoria Layman is a third generation teacher who says she has the genetics for teaching.
Layman, a sixth-grade math teacher at Carver Middle School for eight years, said she went into education because she is a “natural-born helper with the ability to build relationships with kids.”
Layman started her educational path in high school through career-and-tech centers in Early Childhood Education. She switched to Middle School Education at Longwood University.
Layman said she focused on math because of what she sees as a “math stigma” at the middle school age, and she wanted to influence students before they got to high school.
She is passionate about Summit Learning, a personalized teaching and learning program that uses mentoring, projects and self direction in order to achieve student success in cognitive skills, content knowledge and habits of success. She did a pilot program for it this year.
Layman said the best part of the program is the Personalized Learning Time block that consists of mentoring conversations about life and discussion of goals and aspirations. She said she has a deeper relationship with her students because of Summit Learning.
“It’s amazing to see – once they’re able to spend time with each other that isn’t so instruction [and]SOL-driven – that they can motivate each other and work together and peer mentor one another,” Layman said. “It’s just an amazing experience.”
She is Carver’s Teacher of the Year for the 2018-2019 school year.
Layman said she loves Carver.
She received her master’s degree in administration and supervision two years ago, and her goal is to go into administration eventually.
Layman goes to after-school games and cheers for her students. She said she is involved in everything that goes on at Carver, and her favorite thing about being a teacher is the relationships she’s built.
“You want kids to want to come to school…” Layman said. “You gotta make it fun, and you’ve got to build a relationship with them where they [want to]come see you every day.”
