Celebrity Crush

While students might come and go from Mrs. Christina Lentz’s English classroom, there’s one person who stays by her side all day long: Adam Levine.

His presence has been a constant in her classroom for about six years, when Mrs. Lentz added a poster of the singer to the room. Since then, the Maroon 5 singer has become an integral part of the classroom.

“[Sometimes] I’ll ask them to create some sort of analogy, or… be like, ‘How is this person like my love for Adam Levine?’ And they like to rip on his outfit and we constantly talk about how I feel like celebrities never age.”

Adam Levine became a household name in her classroom years ago, which she admits is because Levine was her celebrity crush in her early 20s. Mrs. Lentz believes the poster helps foster connections with her students.

“Kids like to see you as a person and not just as a teacher,” Mrs. Lentz said. “It gives them something to talk to you about.”

Princess Peppa

In Mrs. Emily Harris’ classroom, don’t just learn math formulas – they also hide plush Peppa Pigs she keeps in her classroom. The game deemed “hide-and-seek Princess Peppa” began three years ago because of Mrs.
Harris’ daughter, who requested she bring her stuffed animals to work so her mom would think about her during the school day.

“I would bring them to work and I would put them out, and then I would put them back in my bag and take them home,” Mrs. Harris said.

When her students caught on that the toys were disappearing, they found their own way to participate: hiding one for other hours to find.

“It’s very entertaining… I think it’s fun to see where she could be at places I don’t think of and it’s just neat to see [the students] so interested in where she is.”

Bobo the Clown

Mrs. Stacey Dennigmann stands at the front of her classroom, lecturing as students students listen intently. And, in the corner looking back at them, is Bobo the Clown.

The inflatable clown was gifted to Mrs. Dennigmann in 2020. When teaching about Bandura’s Bobo the Clown experiment, she mentioned she had a Bobo the Clown as a kid. So, a student brought one to school to cheer her up after she’d had a difficult two weeks.

“When I came [back] to school, he was just in a random desk one day, and I was like, ‘who got me Bobo?’

Since then, Bobo has become a beloved part of Mrs. Dennigmann’s classroom. She even started to dress the clown in different outfits.

“When it came to twin day for teacher spirit days… the kids were like, ‘you should make Bobo your twin.’ So then I was like, ‘I should start dressing Bobo up.’”

For Mrs. Dennigmann, Bobo isn’t just a fun – he’s a reminder of the kindness she received.

“It’s just a good memory that a student cared so much for me that he wanted to make sure that I had joy when I came back.”