Spotlight on Jaime Frost

Spotlight on Jaime Frost
Posted on 03/06/2015
Jaime FrostJaime, how long have worked in education/what is your background?
I began my teaching career at the John M. Tobin School in Cambridge in 1998. In 2000, while teaching at the Peabody School in Cambridge, I had my first experience working with a Literacy Coach. It was at this point in time that literacy became my passion. I also set a goal to become an instructional leader. In 2003, I moved to NJ and taught for two years at an Elementary School in Park Ridge. After this experience, I became a Literacy Coach for the NJ Department of Education (NJDOE) as part of a statewide Early Literacy Initiative. In this role, I worked collaboratively with school leaders to shift teachers’ thinking and increase student achievement. In 2006, my role changed to Literacy Specialist and, working directly under the Special Assistant to the Commissioner For Literacy, I developed & presented literacy workshops to the 31 Abbott Districts or poorest districts in New Jersey. I came full circle in 2007 and started back at the Tobin School in Cambridge as the Literacy Coach.   

Can you describe your role at Tobin?
As the Literacy Coach at Tobin Montessori, it is my job to provide support to teachers as they implement the literacy curriculum.  This support may occur through planning, observing, co-teaching or analyzing data. I may work with an individual teacher to look at his or her class data or instructional plans, but I also meet with teams of teachers to make grade level curricular decisions. Professional development is one of my main duties as a Literacy Coach and I work to align this professional development to our data and School Improvement Plan. Another aspect of my job as a Literacy Coach is to be an active member of the Tobin Leadership Team. This team works to make school wide instructional decisions rooted in data--both formal and informal. We analyze state test data, district assessment data and we also gather data informally on our weekly Learning Walks. These walks are connected to our School Improvement Plan and assist us in making curricular and programmatic decisions.

What are your biggest day-to-day challenges?
The biggest challenge I face as a Literacy Coach is TIME. Time for professional development and collaborative planning meetings is limited. Since this time is precious, I strive to make it as productive as possible for all staff members, but more time would allow teachers to dig deeper into the topic we are studying. Time is also limited in the classroom and another challenge for me is supporting teachers as they work to diligently fit everything into their packed school day. Integration of content areas is something that we are working on, but finding the time to do this type of planning is challenging.

What are some of your initiatives of which you are most proud?
In general, I am so proud of the school Tobin Montessori has become and this growth is due to the collaborative efforts of the entire staff. I am constantly referring to our school as a model for my graduate work and I believe our collaborative nature sets us apart from most schools. More specifically, I am extremely proud of how the teachers at Tobin Montessori have embraced the literacy standards and have worked to integrate them into their Montessori classrooms. This has not been an easy task and the data reflects their hard work and effort.

Favorite season and why?
My favorite season is Fall. I love the fresh start of the school year, apple picking and cider doughnuts! I also love summer, but getting back into routines and setting new goals has always been the best part about working in education.

What do you like to do in your free time?
In my free time, I am with my family! My husband Bryan and I have two boys and we live in Bedford. Alex is six and Tyler is three. They have lots of energy and hockey has become our favorite sport! We love to ice-skate and this year we built an ice rink in our yard. We love to stay active and also enjoy swimming and biking.
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