Jimmy Day II, Colorado’s Teacher of the Year from East Middle School in Aurora, just got back from NASA Space Camp — bringing with him a new love for science, a lesson in using less spray paint on his rocket and even more patience for his students.

“(At space camp) we were just trying to learn as fast as we can and it got frustrating at times and it made me think about how I am with my beginning students,” Day said. “They come in in sixth grade and have never seen an instrument before and it made me realize I’ve got to make sure I have a little more patience. It really put me in their shoes.”

Day was at NASA Space Camp from July 19 to 24 with teachers of the year from all over the nation after he was awarded the title in a surprise ceremony in October. 

Day has been the band director and instrumental teacher at East Middle School in Aurora since 2017 and is about to start his fifteenth year of teaching next week. 

While Day has years of teaching expertise under his belt, he still came away from NASA Space Camp with new knowledge that will help him grow as a teacher back home. 

Many of the activities at space camp presented new concepts and challenging learning situations to the groups of teachers, Day said, oftentimes challenging them to see things from their students’ perspectives. 

On one of those days, the groups reenacted space missions, working in makeshift spaceships and learning quickly to get their “mission to space” to succeed. 

Learning new skills quickly and for the first time was challenging and put Day and his fellow teachers in their students’ shoes. 

“I’ve never been in a spaceship before pushing buttons and flipping switches,” Day said. “I’m sitting there and getting some of it but missing a lot of it and it made me realize I need to have a little more patience. I’m really going to carry that into the next school year when I’m teaching new concepts.”

Other parts of space camp brought out Day’s leadership skills and childlike wonder, he said. Other experiences were simply fun. 

The days were packed full with activities from morning to evening, Day said. 

One day, the teams of teachers made and launched their own rockets. 

“I put too much paint on my rocket,” Day said, laughing. “I think some of that spray paint seeped through the cracks and my parachute didn’t deploy.”

Lesson learned: Don’t paint the rocket next time. 

Saturday was “water day,” he said, which included a parachute simulation, ziplines and a helicopter crash landing simulation. 

The day included lots of exhausting swimming and fun camaraderie between the teachers as they swam from a simulated helicopter through a lake and pulled each other onto rafts. 

“I wish I had a video of us trying to get into that raft because it was the funniest thing that anybody could have ever seen,” Day said. 

The camp’s activities also reminded Day of the importance of creative teaching. 

As someone who never got into science, Day said he would’ve loved science as a kid had he been taught through activities like those at space camp that immersed him in the education. 

“It really brought the kid out of me,” Day said.  

Oftentimes, he ended up stepping into a leadership role, guiding his teammates through activities and challenges. These moments were good reminders for Day that he shines in leadership roles, he said. 

“It’s very important as teachers to be leaders in the classroom and to be able to step up and say ‘you can do this’,” Day said. “I think that’s something the other teachers learned about me is that, when they needed someone to step up and lead, they knew ‘Jimmy is a true leader in the classroom and outside the classroom’.”

His overall experience as Teacher of the Year has offered a period of reflection for Day. 

As a college student, Day wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with his career. After helping a middle school student work through challenges on the trombone and watching his sense of inspiration and excitement when he finally understood, Day’s passion for teaching was sparked.

The pedestal he was placed on as Teacher of the Year and the challenges that put him out of his comfort zone throughout the process left Day reflecting on where he’d started and how far he’d come, he said. 

“Being Teacher of the Year has caused me to do a lot of reflecting on life, from where I started to where I am now,” Day said. “When you’re busy teaching, you really don’t stop and just take in where you’ve come from. That has made me reflect.”

As the next school year approaches, Day said he is excited to build new connections with students and bring to the classroom what he’s learned in his Teacher of the Year Title.

The beginning of every year also feels a little bit like “holding my breath,” Day said. 

There’s always a moment before the school year begins when there’s a lot of uncertainty about what to expect. 

“Once that first day comes and I meet my students…I’m just always excited to teach these skills to sixth graders and see how happy they are becoming.”