by Jen Myers

(Each month, Wellpoint, InsideLowell and Lowell Public Schools honor a Lowell teacher for their exemplary work in the classroom and for going the extra mile to serve as a positive influence in their students’ lives. Wellpoint awards each honoree a $250 gift card to be used for school supplies)

Sometimes a title doesn’t tell the whole story. 

Lisa Moore’s title at the Stoklosa Middle School is Special Education Teacher. It is a role that also requires her to be a variety of things not explained by that label – a data analyst, a detective, a psychologist, a cheerleader, and a friend. 

“Lisa has a discernable passion for education but specifically teaching students how to improve in literacy,” said Stoklosa Principal James Cardaci. “She specializes in filling gaps in the areas where students have deficits to accelerate the process of reading fluently. Her work is unique and critical for students to successfully progress in all content areas. She often gives up her own time to assist student needs.” 

Moore grew up in Lowell’s Centralville neighborhood and studied Accounting at UMass Lowell. She had no intention of becoming a teacher, but not every destined path is a straight line. 

When her own children were old enough to go to school, Moore began working at an early childhood center. When that school closed, she took a job at the Stoklosa as a tutor. The plan was to stay for a few years until her kids were older and then return to the corporate world. That was in 2007. 

“I found that I actually loved working with middle school-aged children – they were still young enough to rely on the guidance of adults but old enough for frank conversations and could understand jokes and sarcasm,” Moore said. “I found that what I enjoyed most was working with smaller groups of students. I initially worked frequently with intervention groups, and the smaller groups allowed us to dig into the lagging skills that students had that prevented them from accessing the grade-level content.”

She took the plunge back into school, earning her teaching license and then her Master’s degree.

Students, especially middle school students, with learning disabilities can develop behaviors to hide their struggles from their peers, which can obstruct their ability to learn, Moore said. 

It is her job to create a safe space and build trust with those students so they change those behaviors and take down the barriers to their success.  

“The student needs to be comfortable enough to allow themselves to show their vulnerabilities and expose their gaps in their knowledge before they can start to build their skills,” she said. “I think this truth is even deeper with students who are at foundational levels in their learning. This work can be difficult and patience is a necessity.”

Once the walls are down, Moore focuses on analyzing student assessments to find the specific areas in which each student has gaps and create lessons that build up the skills required to fill those gaps. 

“I primarily work with students who are struggling to master reading at the most basic levels,” she said. “This includes students who have not yet mastered decoding and/or spelling of basic words as well as students who can read words but don’t yet have the skills to make meaning from these words.” 

She keeps her classroom comfortable and incorporates positive reinforcement, warmth, humor, and empathy to help students on their learning journey.

“As students enter my room, I ask them to stop at my Affirmation Station to say something positive about themselves,” she said. “When a student is unable to work due to frustration, I offer them short breaks and then try to help them return to the work to highlight what they have been able to do and show them the leap they need to take to do the next step. I try to make the learning fun with jokes and I try to show some of my own vulnerabilities to the students to help them feel more comfortable taking these academic risks. We also celebrate student successes and I use a Badge Wall along with a note or a text home when students take a chance that leads to a new understanding.” 

Moore said she could not do what she does without the support of the Stoklosa administrative team, who understand her work and allow her to dig into lessons and stay on them as long as needed for students to master one skill and move to the next. 

The school was recently named a School of Recognition by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education for the growth progress made in MCAS scores in recent years, an accomplishment she attributes to the shared mindset of the administration and teachers to reach every student where they are, let them know they are valued, and support their growth and success.  

“The most important thing that I do to foster student growth is to show my students that I truly love the work I do with them,” Moore said. “I enjoy my work, I enjoy watching them grow their skills and I enjoy the time that I have to work with them. We share jokes and stories and we have fun in class. I think my students can see this, and I think they respond to this by continually challenging themselves to meet my expectations.”

When her students fly from her nest and off to high school, she wants them to leave the Stoklosa with the confidence that they can do hard things. 

“They are amazing young people and they have the skills to step up to meet life’s hardest challenges,” said Mooee. “I want them to leave my classroom with the confidence and poise to find success in all they do.”

All About Ms. Moore

Dream Vacation: Anything involving waterfalls – but kayaking through icebergs in Alaska would be pretty cool too!
Favorite song to sing in the car: Anything from Yacht Rock to Teddy Swims to Walker Hayes.
Favorite meal: A bowl filled with homemade pasta tossed with local seasonal veggies and fresh parm. Or pretty much any bowls. I participate in farm shares and love trying new vegetables that have been grown locally.
Favorite snack: Fresh, homemade bread with peanut butter. Or chocolate. Definitely chocolate.
Favorite Movie:  Breakfast Club
Favorite Book: Professional text? The Writing Revolution But reading for fun? Fire Weather by John Vaillant  – which also happens to be the scariest book I have ever read. Or any thriller. I read constantly – both books and audiobooks – so my favorite is always changing!
Favorite TV Show: Any documentary – whether it is true crime or natural disaster based
Favorite Fictional Character: I tell my students that Chicken Little is my favorite, because he was a tiny little chick and yet he was brave enough to stand up for his beliefs and save the world. I have a giant poster of Chicken Little in my classroom and I use this to remind students that if a tiny chicken can save the world, then they can certainly try something hard for them as well.