Patrick Murphy continues to substitute teach at Florida High School after retiring from teaching in 2011. He enjoys interacting with and relating to students, sharing knowledge from his 37 years of teaching experience. Some former students and colleagues he influenced include teachers Melanie Hester and Tyrone McGriff. As a substitute, Murphy aims to see the future through his students' eyes and help them continue dreaming.

1. December 13, 2013
Tomahawk Talk
Features8
After retiring from teach-
ing American Government
and Economics in 2011,
secondary substitute teacher
Patrick Murphy continues
to influence the lives of
the Florida High family by
interacting with students.
Born in La Crosse, Wis-
consin, Murphy attended
the University of Tennes-
see on a track scholarship,
and then transferred to the
University of Wisconsin.
Murphy graduated in 1970,
and began his career in ad-
vertising in New York City.
Beginning his teaching
career by accident to get
through graduate school,
Murphy began teaching in
1974 at Blessed Sacrament,
which is now Trinity Catho-
lic School in Tallahassee.
He then moved to Lincoln
High School in 1976,
teaching American His-
tory, where he also coached
freshmen football and was
the head track coach.
“Growing up as an awful
student, I now empathize
with those students who do
not like school because I
can relate to them. I would
have never seen myself as a
teacher then, but I love it
now,” said Murphy.
Murphy taught several
classes in his 37 years of
teaching including: Geogra-
phy, American History, Reli-
gion, Philosophy, Psychology,
Sociology, World History,
Economics, Anthropology,
and American Government.
With 30 of his teaching
years at Florida High, Mur-
phy began substituting for
secondary teachers in 2011
after he retired because he
needed something fullfilling
to do throughout the day. Ms.
Dekle and secondary students
then provided him this op-
portunity.
“Even though Mr. Murphy
retired, I’m glad he is still a
substitute,” said sophomore
Usman Mughal. “He is such
an interesting person to talk
to.”
As a substitute, Murphy
incorporates his knowledge
by sharing it with the stu-
dents. When he learns some-
thing, he always aims to tell
others about it. Murphy said
since he loves reading nonfic-
tion and gaining knowledge,
he loves to share what he
learns with his students.
For over 30 years, Murphy
has taught a variety of teach-
ers and coaches who are now
employed at FSUS. Some
of these employees include
secondary science teacher
Melanie Hester, administra-
tive assistant Jaye Corbett,
head varsity football coach
Jarrod Hickman, and el-
ementary physical education
teacher Tyrone McGriff.
“You respect him because
he is so knowledgeable,” said
Hester. “He is definitely one
of those teachers that had a
huge impact not only on my
life, but who I am now as a
teacher.”
Currently, Murphy sub-
stitutes for all secondary
classes, five days a week.
“I love Mr. Murphy,” said
senior Olivia LeHeup. “I can
relate to him so much, and he
is very easy to talk to.”
From impacting students
as a teacher and now as a
substitute, Murphy plans to
continue teaching at Florida
High as long as he can.
“I am old enough now
where I have accomplished
everything I’ve wanted, and
now I want to see the fu-
ture through the eyes of my
students,” said Murphy. “It
is still fun to see students
dream.”
Krause influences students with unique methods
Through the implementation of
distinctive methods that includes the
incorporation of singing and dancing,
kindergarten teacher Robin Krause
continues to set the foundation for fur-
ther learning amongst her students.
Krause, who grew up in the Tal-
lahassee area, attended Florida State
University (FSU) where she received
her Bachelor’s degree in Early Child-
hood Education and her Master’s
degree in Elementary Education after
graduating from Leon High School in
1982. However, she became a flight
attendant with Delta Airlines for 18
years shortly after graduating from
college.
“I substituted on one of my days
off, and I realized then that I wanted
to teach while I was substituting. So,
I left being a flight attendant in order
to become a teacher,” said Krause.
“Teaching just really meshed what I
loved: teaching others and caring for
people.”
Now in her fourth year at Florida
High, Krause is known by her col-
leagues for her energetic approach to
teaching and distinctive instructional
methods. Her approaches combine
various learning styles, which include
visual, auditory, and tactile-kinesthetic
learning, in order to cater to the needs
of her students without having to cre-
ate multiple lessons covering the same
material.
“I like it when Mrs. Krause dresses
up and sings because she’s
really funny. She goes cuckoo
for cocoa puffs. It’s fun hav-
ing a crazy teacher,” said kindergartner
Hunter Hughes.
When teaching her students about
the directions of left and right, for
example, Krause used “The Cupid
Shuffle.” The lyrics, indicating which
side is left and which side is right,
helped auditory learners, while visual
learners saw the differences between
left and right, and bodily-kinesthetic
learners moved into the various posi-
tions.
“I use this high energy approach
because I’m competing with the
‘Gamer Generation’,” said Krause. “I
like to use a lot of singing and danc-
ing to keep them constantly moving
and engaged with the lesson. Plus, it’s
more fun to teach this way.”
Additionally, Krause occasionally
dresses up in character as a way to get
her students engaged in her lessons.
For instance, on Dr. Seuss’ birthday,
Krause wears an ensemble inspired by
“Thing 2,” cooks her students green
eggs and ham, and uses a constructed
tree, inspired by The Lorax, to help
teach students about the environment.
K-5 Assistant Principal Angela
Wills said, “I think all of her strate-
gies are really impressive. As educa-
tors, even we get bored, so it’s really
important to get the kids to connect to
the lessons and really remember the
material taught.”
As a reward for her unique in-
structional methods, Krause was
awarded the Director’s Faculty Award
for “Instruction that Moves” in 2013.
The award, which is hand-selected
by School Director Dr. Lynn Wicker,
recognizes various teachers for ex-
ceptional performance in instruction,
research, and leadership.
“It’s her energy that really makes
her a great teacher, and I think that’s
what helped her win the Director’s
Award,” said Wills. “The moment you
walk into those doors and enter Camp
Krause, you’re energized. That’s just
her; she’s always energetic.”
With an enthusiastic approach to
teaching, Krause hopes to continue to
lay the foundations of learning for her
students while also furthering their
learning and thinking abilities.
Said Krause, “As my students
leave, I want them to leave being
confident in themselves and be critical
thinkers.”
Dakota Williams | Co-Editor-in-Chief
Murphy continues to relate with students as substituteKari Baasch | Co-Editor-in-Chief
Photo by Mariam Mckee
As a secondary substitute teacher, Patrick Murphy
shares his knowledge from previously teaching at FSUS.
Above, Murphy interacts with students such as sopho-
mores David Maldonado, left, and Seth Bowden, right.
Photo by Dakota Williams
Kindergarten teacher Robin Krause, left, found an interest in
teaching after her experience as a substitute teacher. Krause con-
tinues to influence students, such as kindergartener Leah Crosby
(right), through her teaching techniques.
Man on the Street: What qualities do great teachers demonstrate?
Aleysha Sierra
Eighth Grader
“They should be excited about
teaching.”
Stephen Gallon
Seventh Grader
“They should answer all your
questions and care about your
grades.”
Brionnah Kreps
Freshman
“Teachers should relate to the
students, and they should be
nice.”
Cody O’Byrne
Senior
“They have to be fun and excited
about what they’re doing.”
Photo by Jennifer Gibson
Kianna Brown | Staff Writer